Boats and ships carry a great deal of symbolism and historical importance. Ships have transported people into slavery, carried vast armies towards conquest, saved armies from annihilation, and brought refugees from tyranny towards new lands. They represent a journey, a crossing, an adventure and exploration. The boat and its journey can symbolize a transition of one phase of life to another and one's quest to answer the questions, "Where am I going? What is behind me? What is in front of me?" The symbolism of the boat is exceptionally important in the context of Spirituality. The ship was an ancient Christian symbol. The symbolism can be viewed as the Church tossed on the sea of disbelief, worldliness, and persecution but finally reaching safe harbor with its cargo of human souls. All of us know the story of Noah's Ark. Boats are often used symbolically to carry the souls of the dead to heaven. This symbolism is worldwide and can be found in Egyptian mythology, Greek and Roman mythology, in Hindu stories, and in Buddhism. Boats were also used by the Norse as the symbolic means of transport of souls upon death. For this reason, they often used actual funerary boats in which to place their deceased noblemen and wealthy. The boats were then cast out into the sea, symbolically mimicking the souls' journey to heaven - the final resting place of the soul.