The Grim Reaper is the personification of the word death. He is shown as a skeletal figure covered in a large black hood and gown and carrying a large scythe. Usually his face can't be seen and shrouded in shadows. Some say that Grim Reaper actually causes his victim's death with trickery or bribery. Other tales show the Reaper as having no control of the actual death. He is only the messenger and the one who leads the person to the next world.
The Grim Reaper is a potent symbol of death and tattoos that incorporate him are all about death. Sometimes a grim reaper tattoo is more symbolic of life and how little time we each have to live before it is our time to die. The scythe symbolizes the way Death "harvests" the souls of the doom.
Although the Grim Reaper may sometimes be pictured with symbols related to Hell or the Devil, he is a separate entity and has no control over where the soul comes to rest.
