The most important of rituals upon death was the afterlife judgement of weighing of the Heart against the feather of truth (Maat).

The shape of the ancient Heart symbol, being more realistic than our modern depiction of the heart, is reminiscent of a container or vessel, (and was often employed as such).Rather than representing love, it represents the ‘holding’ of a person’s life. Therefore it was very important for the Heart to be well protected in life and death, just as it is today.If you use a Heart amulet, look after it. Regard it seriously and do not give it away. You may request to be buried with it or if it is of sufficient size it could be the used as the urn for your ashes!Use it as a vessel to speak your life dreams and desires to, you could even write these down and place them inside (better if the inside is hollow) . When seeking answers of life direction and purpose, use your heart amulet.

Make sure though that you do not fill your Heart with misery or bad thoughts about yourself or others. This is not the place. It is the place for words of prayer and love spoken with care.

So the reason for the heart is simply because I came across a tattoo of a heart within a heart whilst looking for a symbol to help my friend who is going through a difficult time coping with a six month old babe with sleep issues.

I wanted to be able to give my friend a symbol that would help her feel supported and loved by her family and friends, and for that love to flow around and through her to her daughter as well.

I liked this symbol because of the way it connects the mother’s heart to that of the the child. If a mum is feeling anxious or depressed about their role, taking time out to focus on the love that is present underneath all the responsibility and ‘doing’ that is required, can be a positive step.