Symbology has been a part of humanity since we first began scratching images on cave walls. The first written languages were entirely symbolic. The evolution of the written word and the history of symbols are inseparably tied. As man's understanding grew so did his connection to symbols as the ideas they once linked to transformed into actual words. However, the influence of symbols never waned and they grew in historic cultures as mythic runes of power. Different cultures viewed symbols differently, each trying to define the distinct power as it pertained to their own beliefs.
The feeling of power from symbols is the oldest form of symbolism. You feel it when the moon, rising over water, fills you with romance, or a birds song brings a smile to your face. As we process sounds and sights, we cannot help tying the symbols to something more. These natural symbols first drove man to express himself in lasting depiction of his view of transpirations.
The spoken word may have evolved after the use of symbology by primitive man. The first cave drawings appear to tell stories. Some people believe this to be a literal telling of events, man using pictograms rather than simple grunts and gestures, in order to more accurately describe things such as military victory and great hunts. These symbols would allow for a single story to be told, instead of the distorted version that is usually passed with oral traditions incalculably exacerbated by primitive language. While this theory is popular with logophiles, some of the more spiritually inclined believe the depictions were used to invoke the mythic abilities of the people, creatures and events depicted.
The inexplicable power of symbols filled humans with both curiosity and wonder.
