The other day somebody pointed out a photograph of an inukshuk on our calendar. Since he works in the North West Territories, and many of his colleagues are Inuit, he's knowledgeable about these native people and there culture. He said these way-markers basically mean, "We were here". He was clear that it was in the past tense. Here's an Inukshuk on the 2010 Winter Olympics logo.
"Inukshuk (ee-nook-shook or ee-nook-sook) is an Inuktitut word that means to look like a person (an Inuk). It is a stone cairn which has been used by the Inuit people to mark high points of land, good hunting and fishing spots or the way home. Inuit have been building Inuksuit (ee-nook-soo-eet / plural) for thousands of years. It is a symbol of trust and reassurance for those who travel across the vastness of the Arctic." You can build your own virtual inukshuk...
'A symbol of trust and reassurance for travelers'. Those who have walked the hills know about Britain's way markers, the cairn. And closer to home there is the Buddhist stupa. Somewhere (and I wish I had a better memory for this kind of thing) it is said that to build a bridge or a stupa is an act of charity.
