It seemed to Steven as if there were as many monuments to the deceased as there were living persons. Similar to what he had seen in treks through other heavily Buddhist-influenced societies (such as Thailand), the mostly stone monuments received tremendous respect and were not to be viewed as useless relics from earlier times. No matter how much each had been eroded by time and rain, each silent stone marker from the past seemed to have a secure permeance and a duty to remind the present generation not to forget its roots. Although simple in appearance, most monuments are rife with symbolism. A good example is the pagoda stupa. The five stones that make up a stupa represent (starting with the bottom stone) the elements of earth, water, fire, wind, and air.