What is Ash Rubbing?

In the aftermath of a cutting, one may choose to treat it differently, if at all they are undergoing this procedure, to make different kinds of scarring. The same can be done with ash rubbed into a fresh wound just like ink rubbing. In this way, the wound is irritated and more scarring is produced.

The following reasons are behind this practice:

1. This causes the wound to irritate and increases the amount of scarring.
2. It may cause the wound to appear discolored in a similar way to ink rubbing.
3. A cremation urn can be incorporated into one’s own body to incorporate items of emotional importance (such as the ashes of a loved one).

A note should be made regarding the inconsistent discoloration offered by ash rubbing, which does not result in a uniform appearance.

Introducing a foreign body into a wound can cause an infection to develop. The layer of oxygen that surrounds the carbon in ash is essentially carbon with an outer layer of monoxide. There has been some recent evidence suggesting that such substances are carcinogenic (cancer-causing).