|
Mathematical philosophy has dispersed old prejudices
and provided a fresh and uniquely powerful intellectual technique which still
awaits its appropriate scientific application. It is for another generation to
use that techniquc to establish the fundamental principles of a new age.
At this point it should be stated that the author is
in no way a numerologist, nor does he believe in numerology. It is undoubtedly
true, however, that the writers of the Bible used certain definite numbers to
symbolize the operation of spiritual fact in an exact way, just as they used
the "mustard seed" or "the secret place of the most High" to symbolize
spiritual fact in a pictorial and familiar way. The best known authorities on
the Bible designate certain numbers as being regarded by the Hebrews as "sacred
numbers."
It is believed that even before the time of the
Hebrews men had accepted specific numerical symbols to illustrate essential
thought. The number "one," for instance, had been accepted as a symbol of the
one great First Cause, for no matter how many deities were worshipped, there
was generally in the thoughts of men some acknowledgment of one supreme First
Cause. Sir Charles Marston, in his book The Bible Comes Alive, states
that "the evidence of observed facts postulates Monotheism, or the worship of
one God, as the original religion of both the civilized, and the primitive,
Races of mankind."
Many thinkers agree that the Chaldeans realized that
in earthly experience chance ruled and little could be depended upon, and so
they turned for guidance to the ordered things of the heavenly system. To
establish an even more definite sense of these things, they symbolized them
mathematically. For instance, the number "three" as a symbol of spiritual
things was derived from the sun, the moon, and the stars. Pythagoras stressed
the importance of this symbol in his elucidation of the triangle, one of the
basic mathematical figures. The "three" has certainly dominated all religious
thought; Christianity adopted the symbol to signify the Trinity,—Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost. Thus "three" has come to represent the threefold essential
nature of God.
Another mathematical symbol of vital importance was
the number "four," the significance of which was derived from the four points
of the compass—north, east, south, and west. The Chaldeans were to a great
extent nomads, and naturally, in a land where travel was slow and difficult,
everything depended on the sense of direction. The number first therefore, came
to signify in spiritual matters four cardinal points of divine calculation and
direction.
Then there was the symbol "seven," which originated
from the seven heavenly bodies as recognized at that period. To the people of
that time the seven great bodies of the solar system represented the
completeness of the heavenly system, and therefore this number was used later
to illustrate the sense of divine completeness and perfection.
Tie symbol "twelve" was adopted from the twelve signs
of the Zodiac, which were at one time regarded as influencing and controlling
the affairs of men, and thus "twelve" became the symbol of government and of
the proof of divine fact.
It is believed that all these symbols were originally
derived from the three great mathematical figures,—the sphere, the
triangle, and the square,—indicating the numbers 1, 3, and 4; for 7, 10,
and 12 can be arrived at by adding or multiplying the numbers 1, 3, and 4.
«
Back | Next »
|
