Читать книгу Mysteries and Secrets of Numerology - Patricia Fanthorpe - Страница 10

When we were distinguishing between mathematics and numerology in the first chapter, an important difference was that numerology was concerned with magical or mystical bonds between numbers and their environment. Certain significant numbers are believed by numerologists to have the power to make things happen or to predict what will happen to particular people in given circumstances at specific dates and times. The point was that numerologists believe that numbers have powers over, above, and beyond what might be termed their everyday use to calculate solutions using normal scientific mathematics. The earliest numerologists felt that, as potent as numbers were for solving calculation problems such as which army was likely to win a battle, how to build a stable pyramid, how much food was needed to feed a given population for a prescribed period, or how many days it would take to cover a given distance on foot, they could do other, stranger, more powerful things as well. Numerology parts company with scientific mathematics when numerologists argue that certain numbers are mysteriously influential, dominant, and predictive. Numbers, to a numerologist, are what spells and incantations are to a magician.

But how and when did these numerological beliefs begin?

There are expert historians and pre-historians who would argue that the history of numerology goes back to the ancient carvings found on bones and antlers as well as to the ancient drawings and paintings on cave walls. It is widely agreed by pre-historians that ancient cave drawings and paintings were often intended to act as a form of sympathetic magic: draw an edible animal being slain, and such an animal will be influenced by the magic in the painting to be available and vulnerable to the huntsmen on whose skill the tribal food supply depended. Were primitive attempts to use numbers cut into sticks, bones, and antlers an allied form of sympathetic magic? Did 3 notches mean that 3 animals were needed to feed the huntsman’s family? Did 4 notches mean that they would be found in 4 days’ time? Did 5 notches mean that the prey would be encountered after a 5 days’ journey? This is pure speculation at this distance in time and culture from the hunter-gatherers who carved the notches, but it’s a real possibility all the same.

The ancient systems of everyday mathematics — what we might term “ordinary” mathematics, used for simple, basic calculating — were examined in detail in the previous chapter. Very probably, those earliest counting and calculating systems had mysterious numerological purposes as well as scientific ones. Religion and magic seem to have played an integral part in human culture from the earliest prehistoric times, and on through the Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age. As early civilizations dawned there is evidence that something akin to modern numerology, something that might well have been the ancestor of contemporary numerology, originated in ancient Babylon and in ancient Egypt. The earliest Hebrew systems began in the same Chaldean area. Different versions of numerology were also being practised in Japan, China, and India. In addition, it was growing up and developing more complex and sophisticated forms in ancient Greece and Rome.

On the far side of the Atlantic, indigenous Americans like the Hopi people were exploring numerology for themselves and allocating significant values to numbers. It is particularly interesting that wise old Hopi elders, like Floyd Red Crow Westerman, who are expert numerologists, translate the 2012 date as “5” by adding its digits together, and in their system “5” signifies momentous change: the end of one era and the start of another. It is another interesting aspect of ancient Hopi numerology that there are 4 elements: earth, air, fire, and water, but there is another element — spirit — that transcends the other 4 and completes them.

In Norse mythology, numerology is recognizable because of the focus on magical numbers “3” and “9,” and their product, “27,” which is the cube of 3. There are, for example, 3 very different giant races: fire giants, frost giants, and mountain giants. The Norse universe began with 3 entities: the great cow, known as Audhumia; the primordial giant, Ymir; and Odin’s grandfather, Buri, who was the first of the gods. A giant named Hrungnir had a stone heart that was 3-sided, and it is noteworthy in this context that the valknut symbol consists of 3 interlocking triangles with 9 corners. The name valknut means “The Knot of the Dead” and the symbol was carried by warriors as a talisman — those devoted to Odin who died bravely in battle would be taken to Valhalla, the paradise of Norse warriors.

The great world tree Yggdrasil has 3 roots and joins 9 worlds together. There are 3 holy wells under Yggdrasil’s roots. The dreaded wolf, Fenrir (or Fenris), was secured with 3 chains, but only the final one held. Gullveig is killed 3 times and reborn 3 times. Ragnarok is heralded by the crowing of 3 cockerels: 1 for the gods, 1 for the dead, and 1 for the giants. The rainbow bridge, known as Bifrost, has 3 colours and 3 names. Nine magical charms were given to Svipdag by his mother, the enchantress Groa, and 9 beautiful maidens sit at the knees of Menglod. It is also significant that Aegir has 9 daughters. There are 9 locks securing the chest that belongs to Laegjarn. In another piece of Norse mythology, one of the magical fires can be lit only if 9 different types of wood are used. Thrivaldi was a giant with 9 heads.

The ancient Egyptians had a profound influence on the history of numerology. The Egyptian goddess Seshat had 2 major attributes. She was revered firstly as the inspirer of writings, and seen from this perspective as a sort of divine archivist. She was also honoured as a kind of instructor-goddess of building and construction. Numbers were another vital part of her work, which led to her being given the title of “the Enumerator.”

To get inside ancient Egyptian thought, it is necessary to look at everything in the universe from the point of view that it is alive and animated. Objective twenty-first-century science has the underlying assumption that when we work in a laboratory with sulphur, lithium, magnesium, bromine, and chlorine, we are working with something dead or inanimate. Egyptian thinkers did not look at their environment that way 5,000 years ago. They might not have been familiar with the term animism, as such, but they still subscribed to the idea that everything in their environment was impregnated with living forces, and that such forces energized it and gave it its characteristics.

On this basic concept of an animated universe, the Egyptians based their numerology — their magical and mysterious ideas about numbers. For them, numbers were not mere quantities, or units of fruit, vegetables, and meat. Numbers were more than the length of a line or the area of a pyramid’s base. Numbers were more than measurements of the volume of corn stored in a granary (thanks to Joseph’s inspiration and prudence). Numbers were expressions of the world around them and the animated spirit that it contained. If a waterfall was seen as alive and powerful, numbers expressed its power in terms of the volume of water that roared down it. The plunging of a war-horse; the spinning wheels of a chariot; the great block of stone being dragged by sweating slaves: these were all alive. These were animated. Numbers could clothe objects and events and make them more comprehensible. Numbers — in the hands of a skilled numerologist — could actually control the environment.

For the ancient Egyptians, numbers had personalities. They were as alive and as powerful as the objects they measured and quantified. They were male and female, not neutral.

Plutarch (45–120 AD) had very interesting comments to make on this idea of gender in the natural and mathematical universes. Born at Chaeronea in Boeotia, in the centre of Greece, he studied in Athens and then moved to Rome as a teacher of philosophy. Both Trajan and Hadrian liked and admired him. In his work, Moralia: Volume Five, Plutarch referred to the genders of the parts of a 90-degree triangle. The “3, 4, 5” triangle was an essential part of Egyptian design and measurement. Plutarch said that the base of a right-angled triangle was female; the upright that formed the 90-degree angle against the female base was masculine, and the hypotenuse — greater than either of its parents — was the son or daughter of the 2 shorter sides. Plutarch incorporated the Egyptian legend of Isis, Osiris, and their son, Horus, into his 90-degree triangle thinking. Isis was the horizontal base of the triangle, Osiris was its upright. Their great son, Horus, the hypotenuse, avenged his noble father’s death by destroying the evil god, Set.

One famous old Egyptian numerological papyrus, dating from nearly 4,000 years ago, declares that it contains methods for inquiring into “everything that exists: all mysteries and all secrets.” This passage sums up the amount of faith the ancient Egyptians had in the power of numbers. The Leiden Papyrus was procured by the Leiden Museum of Antiquities in 1829 from J. d’Anastasy. It confirms the major importance of numbers and numerology for the Egyptians of its time. The 27 stanzas within this papyrus are numbered from 1–9 as units, then from 10–90, and finally from 100–900. The 3 groups of 9 thus cover all 27 stanzas.

The Norse Valknut symbol

The designs of Egyptian temples and pyramids were all dependent on the Egyptian numbering system and, most importantly to the ancient Egyptians, on the numbers “3,” “9,” and “27.” In accordance with the numerological elements of the early Egyptian belief systems, each number had a magical power or mystical significance.

Just as “3,” “9,” and “27” were milestones in the history of numerology as far the ancient Egyptians were concerned, “7” was of more significance to the ancient peoples of the Middle East. “Seven” is frequently encountered in the Epic of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh was the fifth king of Uruk, which is modern-day Iraq, and according to some of the ancient chronicles such as the Sumerian King List, he reigned there for more than a century. His father was a semi-deified king named Lugalbanda; his mother was the goddess Rimat Ninsun. Such ancestry gave Gilgamesh tremendous physical strength and qualified him as a demigod. In Gilgamesh’s story there is a gate with 7 bolts, and 7 mountains have to be climbed on the way to the Cedar Forest. Gilgamesh then cuts down 7 of the great cedars to reach the lair of their guardian, the fearsome giant Humbaba, whom he tricks with 7 gifts (including his sisters, as wife and concubine) before decapitating the giant. Gilgamesh also meets the wise old sage, Utnapishtim, the Babylonian equivalent of Noah, and stays with him for 7 nights. In the account of the flood that Utnapishtim survived, the waters subsided on the seventh day.

There are scholars who would argue that the ancient Chaldean systems of numerology are, in fact, the oldest of all. Its extreme is disguised to some extent by the comparative secrecy in which it was kept for millennia. Chaldean numerology assigned meanings to the various numbers, beginning with “0.” To them, the “0” represented nothing and everything because in their mystical thinking everything began from nothing. It is the symbol of all potential things.

Ancient Middle Eastern winged figure

For the Chaldean experts, the number “1” was masculine. It stood for independence, individuality, aggression, and dominance. There were also aspects of creativity and originality associated with “1.” “Two” represents the female aspect: cooperation, adaptability, understanding, tact, gentleness, and caution. “Three” represents expansion and development. It is the number of communication and diversification. The number “4” in the Chaldean system represents the 4 seasons and the virtues of control and self-discipline. “Four” is stable and enduring. “Five,” by complete contrast, stands for adventure, travel, freedom, and versatility. “Five” means change. “Six” is an excellent number. It is associated with teaching, counselling, healing, and loving. The number “7” is philosophical and metaphysical. It looks for the deep eternal answers to the great questions of the universe. “Eight” is an authoritarian symbol: it quests for power and control over the environment and other people. In the Chaldean system, “9” is regarded as the ruler of all the other numbers except for the originating “0.” “Nine” is the symbol of patience, tolerance, universality, and compassion. The number “11” was of great importance in the old Chaldean system of numerology. Does that mean that the Basques, who also have the highest regard for “11,” may have come from the ancient Chaldean peoples? In the Chaldean system, “11” was thought of as the number of light. It is the number of wisdom and the wise. “Eleven” represents altruism, inventiveness, and tremendous strength of both mind and body.

There are also very interesting historical connections between the old Chaldean system outlined above and the ancient African system, which could very well be of similar age. Brought to America in the days of the slave trade, and carefully researched by academic African Americans in our own time, this African numerology resembles its Chaldean counterpart in some aspects, but differs from it significantly in others. In the old African system, “0” is thought of as the origin of everything else. It is considered a representation of God. The “1” is, again, male, and the “2” is female, just as in the Chaldean system. “Three” is also the number of creativity and growth. In the African system, “4” symbolizes the entire universe, having 4 corners or quadrants. It also represents the 4 stages of human life: conception, birth, existence, and death. Whereas the Chaldean “5” stood for change and resourcefulness, in the African system, “5” symbolizes religion and groups of the faithful. It also represents a combination of femininity (“2”) and creation (“3”), as well as family and tribal life. “Six” symbolizes something very similar in the African system, so “5” and “6” can almost be taken together in terms of meaning. If they are, of course, they create the all-powerful and highly desirable “11.” In the African system, “7” symbolizes deep thought, spirituality, and philosophy. This is closely comparable to the Chaldean meaning of “7” as the symbol of truth-seeking. In the Chaldean system, “8” stood for power and control. In the African system, it represents balance, poise, and equilibrium. For the ancient African numerologist, “9” is the symbol of nature, whereas in the Chaldean code it ruled over all the other numbers except for the “0.” The Chaldean “9” meant patience, tolerance, and compassion. In the ancient African system of numerology, “10” is the perfect number. It brings together the “1” of man and the “0” of God. It unites humanity and divinity.

The ancient Japanese numerology was especially focused on “3,” “5,” and “7.” Children younger than 3 had their heads shaved or had very short haircuts. At age 3 they were allowed to grow hair. Five-year-old boys were permitted to wear a hakama for the first time. When girls reached the age of 7 they were allowed to fasten their kimonos with an obi. At ages 3, 5, and 7 children were taken to a shrine to pray for long life, good health, and to be protected against evil spirits.

Chinese numerology differed from most other systems because it was a homophonic system, meaning the sound of the number, when spoken aloud, gave it its significance. In Chinese symbolism, “2” was a good, helpful, and lucky number because the sound of “2” in Cantonese was a homophone for the word easy. The favoured number “2,” therefore, made difficult tasks easy to perform. “Three,” in Chinese, sounds like the word for birth, so “3” is also considered a good, positive symbol in the old Chinese system. “Six” represented liquid, or fluidity, because of its homophonic partner in Mandarin. This meant it was a good number for business. In Cantonese, the same sound meant a blessing, so that also brought good luck. “Seven” is favoured among many systems of numerology, and the Chinese system, at this juncture, falls in with the majority. “Seven” symbolizes togetherness, friendship, and a happy community. “Eight” represents wealth and great prosperity. It is particularly interesting to note that a famous international banker has a string of “8”s as a telephone number. This seems to work well and bring prosperity. Chinese and Asian clients are especially keen to use this bank’s services. In the ancient Chinese system, the number “9” was always associated with the Emperor. His robes were decorated with 9 dragons, and in the old mythology, the dragon had 9 children. “Nine,” in the Chinese system, also symbolizes endurance and length of time, so it is conventionally used at weddings. As well as all these good and positive numerical homophonic associations, there are some negative ones. “Four” is avoided scrupulously, for example, because it sounds like the word for death.

There is a tradition that the first so-called “magic square” appeared in China about 4,000 years ago. In the legend it appeared on the shell of a turtle that had been sent by the river god to assist the emperor. The essence of these numerological magic squares is that all the columns and rows in the square, as well as the diagonals, add up to the same number. Chinese traders who visited India with spices also seem to have carried numerological concepts with them. According to the form of numerology that developed in India, every person is endowed with 3 numbers. The first of these is the psychic number, which is related to the person’s date of birth. Anyone born on a date from the first to the ninth day of a month has a psychic number between 1 and 9. Someone born on the fifteenth of the month, for example, has a psychic number of “6” (1+5). A birth date on the twenty-ninth works in 2 stages: first, the numerals in the number 29 are added together (2+9=11), then, the numerals from whatever the sum of the first equation was, are added together (1+1=2).

The next number is referred to as the person’s destiny number. This is found by adding the sum of the numerals for the year of their birth to the sum of the numerals for the day and month of their birth. For instance, co-author Lionel was born on 9/2/1935. Since the numerals for the day and month (9 and 2), are singular, we leave them as is. The year, however, needs to be calculated into a number below 10 using the reduction method we have previously demonstrated. So, first we add together the 4 numerals of the year (1+9+3+5), which comes to the sum of 18. We then add together the numerals of this sum, 18, which equals 9 (1+8). We now can add the 9 (representing the year of Lionel’s birth) to the numerals representing his day and month of birth: 9 (day)+2 (month)+9 (year)=20. Finally, we add together the numerals of the sum 20 (2+0). This comes to 2, whereas his psychic number is “9.” The destiny number refers to the way that other people see you, whereas the psychic number represents who you actually are. The third number, known as the name number, is rather more complicated.

There are several ways in which the name number can be calculated. The simplest and best known technique is to use a number for each letter, but different numerologists would tend to allocate different numbers. One school of numerologists might say: A=1, B=2, C=3, and so on until I=9; but that would mean J=10, so the reduction of 10 (1+0) reverts to “1” again, like the “A.” The next letter, “K,” becomes “11,” which is reduced to “2” — the same number as allocated to the letter “B.” There are also complications about which name the person prefers, and which name he or she is best known by. This again distinguishes between the introspective self and the public self. In some systems the capital letter with which the name begins may be allocated additional weight and numerical value. Therefore, 2 equally well-qualified and experienced numerologists working with slightly different systems could reach very different conclusions.

In the sixteenth century, Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528), the mathematician, painter, and engraver, brought the old Chinese art of

magic-square-making to its zenith. In his engraving entitled Melancholia, which he completed in 1514, there is a magic square in the top right-hand corner. The theme of the engraving is a proto-

scientist, an alchemist in all probability, who is surrounded by unused equipment. His posture and the position of his head suggest that he is deep in melancholic thought.

16	3	2	13
5	10	11	8
9	6	7	12
4	15	14	1

The magic square that he has created contains each of the numbers from 1–16. When added vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, they total 34. This has the numerological significance of “7,” which is found by adding the numerals of the sum 34 together (3+4). Each of the 4 corners adds to make 34 as well, as do the 4 centre squares. Dürer has even managed to incorporate the date of his work, 1514, by placing the numbers “15” and “14” together at the bottom of his magic square. It is a truly amazing piece of numerology.

Basque numerology has significant contributions to make to the general history of the subject. Their language is not related to the old Indo-European, and their ancient origins are the subject of much speculation. Were the Basque people the original inhabitants of Europe prior to the arrival of the Indo-European peoples? Or were they from Chaldea? Interestingly, “11” has special significance in the Chaldean system. The Basques were certainly written about in Roman times. There are numerological references that suggest that the number “11” was of great significance in Basque numerology. In the Basque language, “11” is hamaika; “7” is hazpi, and “3” is hiru. Their interest in “11” as having special numerological significance relates to “11” being the first number that cannot be counted with the hands alone. In the sequence of prime numbers, it is the fifth: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11. There are some very strange calculations connected with the number “11.” For example, to check whether a number is exactly divisible by 11, add every alternate digit, then add the remaining digits and subtract one total from the other. If the answer is “0,” or a multiple of 11, the large number will divide by 11. For example, consider 2,592,821. Consider the equation 2+9+8+1=20 followed by 5+2+2=9. Subtract 9 from 20, resulting in 11. This reveals that the large number 2,592,821 is divisible by 11. When the division is done, the answer is 2,592,821÷11=235,711 — an answer that consists of the first 5 prime numbers.

A polygon with 11 sides is called an “undecagon” or a “hendecagon,” and has special significance for numerologists. A regular hendecagon can have a spindle placed through its centre, so that it can be used as a spinner — the equivalent of a miniature roulette wheel. The numbers 1–9 are marked on 9 of its sides, and two extra “1”s fill the last 2 sides to represent “11.” When the undecagon settles on any of the “1”s it is considered to be very positive and to bring good fortune to the person who spun it. If this occurs on 3 consecutive occasions, it is thought to bring either great fortune or deep and lasting romantic fulfilment.

There are points throughout the history of numerology at which numerology blends into general magic involving spells and charms: so many movements of the hands, so many repetitions of an incantation, so many portions of each ingredient, the dates and times at which the spell can be enacted with the greatest likelihood of success. The same is true of the interaction between alchemy and numerology: for the alchemical processes to work, the alchemist believed that a particular blend of ingredients had to be assembled, and that the numbers of each, and the temperatures reached, were all significant for the work.

The history of numerology, with its global ramifications and its intertwining with scientific mathematics, is a difficult path to follow, but it can be summed up as the route that perceptive and thoughtful numerologists have followed in order to reach the interesting forms of numerology that are practised today.