Why did people make these carvings? The letters and symbols carved into the stone formed a language, a means of communication. Sometimes the purpose of this communication was pragmatic, for example to record or celebrate a particular event or to be used as a territorial marker.

However the language and symbols used could also be of a more poetic nature, perhaps to evoke a memory of a person or place or to be used as part of a devotional ritual.

Carving letters and symbols into stone can still be a valid form of communication today. They can have the potential to affect our thoughts and feelings in subtle ways, just as music or a beautiful landscape can slow us down or bring us into focus. Stone by its very nature, slow forming and durable, is also a material which reflects this quiet state of mind. Present day Tibetan monks still carve mantras into stone as part of a meditational practice.

Private gardens and homes as well as public spaces and buildings can contain artworks as sanctuaries and reminders of our contemplative lives.