Irish Gaelic: LIFE

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I am in the process of sketching out a tattoo that I want to get on my back. It involves a tree and its roots and a word intertwined in the roots. I wanted to use the irish gaelic word for life in the roots but was having a hard time finding the correct word. I looked online and was told 'beatha' and my friend FROM Ireland told me 'saol'. So I started the sketch using her version but am still wondering what the difference between the two words is. Can anybody tell me? I'd like to know that I'm using the right word choice in something so permanent.