8. NUMEROLOGY

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So many books have been written about “Indian Numerology,” but we are going to deal with “Western Numerology.”

Although numerology has gained most of its present popularity within comparatively recent years, it is actually one of the oldest of the psychic sciences. In a sense, numbers form a language in themselves. Primitive tribes understand their meaning and communicate in terms of numbers. Among ancient alphabets, numerical values were ascribed or assigned to certain letters, giving them a special significance.

As one authority succinctly puts it:

“Every number has a certain power which is not expressed by the figure or symbol employed to denote quantity only. This power rests in an occult connection between the relations of things and the principles in nature of which they are the expressions.”

Rather than delve into the intricacies of cabalistic cosmology and its esoteric doctrines, modern numerologists prefer a simplified numerical and alphabetical code, based upon the theories established by Pythagoras, the famous Greek mathematician and mystic, who rose to fame about the year 550 B.C.

Attributed to Pythagoras is the statement, “The world is built upon the power of numbers, and in keeping with that theory he and his followers reduced the universal numerals to the figures 1 to 9 inclusive, as the primary numbers from which all others may be formed.

These, as listed some twenty centuries later, by the famous Cornelius Agrippa in his Occult Philosophy, which appeared in A.D. 1533, possess the following significations:

1 is the number of purpose, evidenced by aggression, action, and ambition, all beginning with “A,” the first letter of the alphabet. Straight as an arrow, its aim is to acquire fame or to rule by might.

2 is a number of antithesis, with such extremes as day and night. It stands for balance as well as contrast, and maintains its equilibrium through an admixture of positive and negative qualities.

3 shows versatility, as symbolized by the triangle, which represents past, present, and future. It combines talent with gaiety, making it the most adaptable of numbers.

4 stands for steadiness and endurance. Its solidity is represented by the square, the points of the compass, the seasons of the year, and the ancient elements of fire, water, air, and earth. It is the most primitive of numbers.

5 symbolizes adventure, attaining its ultimate through travel and experience. Its lack of stability may produce uncertainty, but it is the keystone of the group and therefore is the luckiest though most unpredictable of numbers.

6 is the symbol of dependability. It is in harmony with nature, representing the six colors of the rainbow. It is the perfect number, being divisible both by 2, an even number, and 3, an odd number, thus combining basic elements of each.

7 symbolizes mystery, with study and knowledge as its ways of exploring the unknown and the unseen. It represents the seven governing planets, the seven days of the week and the seven notes of the scale. It combines the unity of 1 with the perfection of 6 to form a symmetry of its own, making it the truly psychic number.

8 is the number of material success. It stands for solidity carried to completion, as represented by a double square. When halved, its part; are equal (4 and 4). When halved again, its parts are still equal (2, 2, 2, 2), showing a fourfold balance.

9 is the symbol of universal achievement, the greatest of all primary numbers. It combines features of the entire group, making it their controlling factor, if developed to the full. As 3 times the number 3, the number 9 turns versatility into inspiration.

Various systems have been devised to reduce large numbers to one of these primaries. The simplest as well as the most popular of modern numerological methods is to add the figures of the number; then, if they total 10 or more, to add those figures. This process is continued until a primary number (1 to 9) is obtained.

As a simple example, the no 125 would be treated as 1 + 2 + 5 = 8. Thus 8 would represent the vibratory symbol for 125.

Take the “number of the beast” in the Book of Revelation; namely, 666.

It adds to 6 + 6 + 6 = 18.

In their turn, the figures 1 + 8 = 9.

This is a very appropriate vibration, considering the universal influence represented by the number 9.

A more complex example is the number 684371. This adds to 6 + 8 + 4 + 3 + 7 + 1 = 29.

2 + 9 = 11.

1 + 1 = 2.

So 2 becomes the vibratory symbol.

It should be mentioned here that many modern students of numerology regard the numbers 11 and 22 as having special significance of their own. Thus a number like the one just given would be checked first for qualities expressed by 11; then it would be finally considered as number 2.

In contrast, a number like 312563, which adds to 3 + 1 + 2 + 5 + 6 + 3 = 20. Here, 2 + 0 = 2, which becomes the vibratory symbol. But the Influence of umber 11 is not encountered during this reduction.

Similarly,, a number reducing to 22 and then to 4 (2 + 2) would be studied first as 22 and then as 4; whereas a total of 13 would also reduce to 4 (1 + 3) as would 31 (3 + 1), but neither of these would have any vibratory significance other than that represented by the final number 4.