number symbolism.pdf

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1、TableofContentsArticleNumeralsandnumerologyArithmomancyPythagoreanismCulturalassociationsofsomenumberso1o2o3o4o5o6o7o8o9o10o11o12o13o14o15o16o17o18o19o20o100NumberandrealityoNature’snumbersoNumber’snatureAdditionalReadingCitationsARTICLEfromtheEncyclopædiaBrita

2、nnicanumbersymbolism,culturalassociations,includingreligious,philosophic,andaesthetic,withvariousnumbers.Humanityhashadalove-haterelationshipwithnumbersfromtheearliesttimes.Bonesdatingfromperhaps30,000yearsagoshowscratchmarksthatpossiblyrepresentthephasesoftheMoon.Thea

3、ncientBabyloniansobservedthemovementsoftheplanets,recordedthemasnumbers,andusedthemtopredicteclipsesandotherastronomicalphenomena.ThepriesthoodofancientEgyptusednumberstopredictthefloodingoftheNile.Pythagoreanism,acultofancientGreece,believedthatnumberswerethebasisofth

4、eentireuniverse,whichranonnumericalharmony.ThePythagoreans’ideaswereamixtureofprescience(thenumericalfeaturesofmusicalsounds)andmysticism(3ismale,4isfemale,and10isthemostperfectnumber).Numberswereassociatedwithnamesformagicalpurposes:thebiblical“numberofthebeast,”666,i

5、sprobablyanexampleofthispractice.Morerecently,crankshavesoughtthesecretsoftheuniverseinthedimensionsoftheGreatPyramidofGiza,anaberrationsocommonthatitevenhasaname—pyramidology.Millionsofotherwiserationalpeopleareterrifiedofthenumber13,totheextentthathotelsomititfromthe

6、irfloors,airplanesdonothavearow13,andthenumbersforFormula1racingcarsskipfrom12to14sothat,forexample,22carswouldbenumberedfrom1to23.Learnedtomesarewrittenaboutthesignificanceofsuchstalwartsasthegoldennumber(1.618034),whichdoesoccurinfloweringplantsandmodernarchitectureb

7、utdoesnotoccurintheshellofthenautilusandancientGreekarchitecture,despiteendlessmythstothecontrary.Manyreligionshavetheirsacrednumbers,asdoorganizationssuchasFreemasonry;WolfgangAmadeusMozart’smusic,notablytheMagicFlute(1791),includesmanyintentionalreferencestoMasonicnu

8、merology.Mathematicsisthestudyofnumbers,shapes,andrelatedstructures.Numbermysticismbelongselsewhereandisgenerallycate