Heart Symbol

The Heart symbol is universally seen as a quintessential representation of love, especially (though not solely) of romantic love. It signifies both physical and eternal love. Various cultures have associated the symbol with affection, compassion, joy, and charity. It has also found ritualistic use in ceremonies of yore performed for strengthening relationships.

The use of the symbol goes far back in history and has even been found on ancient Roman coins. There is a lot of ambiguity about the origin of the Heart symbol as it has only a remote resemblance to the human body organ it represents. It is largely believed to have been derived from the shape of the seedpod of silphium, an herb popular among the Romans as a contraceptive. Another belief has the symbol originating from the shape of leaves, typically ivy leaves. The Greeks associated ivy with Dionysus, the god of passion, wine, and other sensual things. Perhaps this later led to the Heart symbol being connected with romantic love. The longevity and resilience of the ivy vine are also seen as symbolic of eternal love.

Some people link the Heart symbol with an upside-down triangle and associate it with the divine feminine power. The inverted triangle also symbolizes the Water element, which makes the Heart a sign of intuition, psychic perception, emotion, transition, and motion.

The all too familiar use of the Heart symbol as a metaphor for love developed around the 15th century and gained increasing prominence with time. Gradually, the Heart came to be depicted in red, a colour that is also a symbol of passion and love. Another symbol closely related with the Heart is the wounded or broken heart that shows the heart pierced with Cupid’s arrow. It denotes the live sickness.

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