Numbers and their symbolic meanings

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FALL 08–09
Okt. Bengisu Keleflo¤lu, Arfl. Gör. Eren Evin K›l›çkaya
[email protected] [email protected]
tel: (222) 335 05 80/4168, 4161/46
Lesson 02
Numbers and their symbolic meanings
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Numbers have long been seen as expressions of cosmic order, possibly deriving from ancient
Babylonian observations of regular cosmic events, such as night and day, the phases of the
moon, and cycles of the year. In most cultures numbers are laden with symboic meaning, and
the practice of numerology is the study of their influence on the future. Viewed symbolically,
numbers represent more than quantities; they also have qualities. To the Greek mathematician
Pythagoras, even numbers were femine, divisible into two equal parts, and passive; odd
numbers were masculine, and active.
zero
Zero was invented in ancient India. Represented by
the continuous circle, it signifies non-being and
eternity. To Pythagoras it was the perfect form which
contains all and from which all is created. In Islam
it is limitless light and the Divine Essence.
one
To be number one is to be the best. Spiritually, one stands for the state before the creation
of the myriad forms of life. It also symbolizes the oneness to which all living things must
return. It is God but also the individiual.
The straight line is one of the five basic elements in
Western ideography. The straight vertical line stands
for unity, oneness, the self (who am I?), the number 1,
authority, power, the absolute, that which is outstanding,
and contact between the lower and the higher.
(http://www.symbols.com/encyclopedia/10/101.html)
One - the first - the greatest - the beginning - is
usually identified with the Creator. In the beginning
God created . . ., so in the beginning there was only
one.
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.geometry
/unit4/unit4.html#Uno)
two
In many cultures view the worlds as made up of opposing dualities
life and death, light and dark, male and female, heaven and hell.
Others see these pairs as complementary, such as the Chinese yin
and yang. Two is the number of discord and conflict, but also of
balance and marriage.
Aristotle said, "most human things go in pairs." We
have many sets of dualities, like night and day, hot,
cold, etc. and especially male, female.
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.geometry
/unit4/unit4.html#Uno)
three
Sacred to most religions, the number three combines the numbers one and two and so includes all life
and experience. It is birth, life, and death; mind, body, and soul; past, present, and future; man, woman,
and child.
Hindu Trinity
In India Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva form a powerful
trinity of gods. Between them they create, sustain,
and destroy life in an endless cycle of birth and
rebirth
Brahma
Vishnu
Shiva
Trefoil Of The Trinity
Three geometric shapes coming together can
express the Christian Trinitiy, one God in three
persons the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Thus the architectural device of the trefoil is often
found in churches.
The trident is a symbol of the Roman sea god,
Neptune, possibly representing the past, the
present, and the future. the trident of the Hindu
god Shiva stands for his function as creator,
preserver, and destroyer. Satan also holds a
trident.
four
Four is the number of the square; the four elements, earth, fire, water, and air; and the cardinal points
of the compass. It is associated with the Earth and with completeness. In medieval Europe human
nature was characterized by the four humours phlegmatic, sanguine, choleric, and melancholic.
five
As the sum of two, a feminine number, and three, a masculine number, five is important in many
cultures. It is a symbol for man. On a figure of a man, a line joining head to out- stretched arms and
legs forms a pentagram, and also there are five human senses. Muslims pray five times a day and
there are five pillars of piety in Islam.
six
According to the Bible, God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. Six represents
balance, love, health and also luck, as it is the winning throw at dice.
The creation, French Bible, 14th century
seven
Seven is a sacred number, representing the union of divinity (number three) and earth (number four).
Each of the four phases of the moon lasts seven days and there are seven days in the week.
Menorah
The branches of the Jewish candlestick indicate
the seven days of the week as well as the sun,
moon, and five principal planets. The three Ushaped arms represent wisdom, strength, and
beauty.
Wheels within
In Hindu philosophy there are seven chakras, or
wheels, in the body. These stand for levels of
consciousness, ranging from the lowest for physical
survival to the highest for spiritual enlightenment.
Seven Deadly Sins
The seven deadly sins (clockwise from top)
gluttony, sloth, lust, vanity, anger, envy, avariceare the counterpants of the three theological and
the four cardinal virtues.
eight
As the first cubic number (2x2x2), eight is considered the perfect number. Chinese life is ruled by eight;
at eight months a child has milk teeth; at eight years he loses them; at twice eight the reaches maturity;
and at 64 (8x8) he loses the power of procreation. The Buddhist wheel of life has eight spokes, for the
eight-fold path to Enlightenment.
Budhist Wheel Of Life
nine
Nine is the sacred number; three multiplied by itself to give eternity, completion, and fulfilment. The
Norse god Odin hung for nine days and nine nights on the tree Yggdrasil to win the secret of wisdom
for mankind. In China it is the number of celestial power; the nine- storeyed pagoda is a symbol of
heaven.
Symbol Of Nine
ten
As the number of the fingers, ten is the foundation of most counting systems including the decimal
system. Ten also figures strongly in the Bible there are ten commandments and ten Egytian plagues.
According to some theories, in the decimal system, ten is symbolic of the return to unity.
Ten Commandments Tablet
twelve
As the multiple of the masculine three and the feminine four, 12 represents both spritiual and earthly
order. There are 12 signs of the zodiac, 12 months of the year, 12 hours of day and night. There are
also 12 knights of the Round Table, 12 days of Christmas, 12 disciples, and 12 tribes of Israel.
Twelve is one of the big numbers in astrology because
twelve complete lunar cycles takes approximately one
year. Each month was eventually identified with a sign
of the zodiac, which is believed to have originated in
Mesopotamia as early as 2000 BC. The Greeks adopted
the symbols from the Babylonians and passed them on
to the other ancient civilizations.
The Egyptians assigned other names and symbols to
the zodiacal divisions. The Chinese also adopted the
12-fold division, but called the signs rat, ox, tiger, hare,
dragon, serpent, horse, sheep, monkey, hen, dog, and
pig. The Aztecs independently devised a similar system.
(http://www.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.geometry/uni
t4/unit4.html#Uno)
Signs Of The Zodiac
thirteen
In Christian countries 13 is an unlucky number because there were 13 at the fateful Last Supper. In
Leonardo’s fresco above, Jesus has just announced that one of the disciples will betray him. In ancient
South America there were 13 Mayan heavens and the Aztec calendar was divided into 13-day periods.
The Last Supper, Leonardo Da Vinci, 1495-98
twenty one
Originally the age at which a citizen was entitled to vote (though now lowered in many countries), 21
is still considered a major landmark in life. A symbolic key signifies entry into adulthood. In many
countries this is the age at which a person is allowed to buy and drink alcohol.
Representing wholeness, the number 40 is especially important in the Bible. Moses’ sojourn on Sinai
lasted 40 days, as did that of Christ in the wilderness, and Noah’s ark floated in the Flood for 40 days
and 40 nights. Forty was also significant in terms of years the Jews spent 40 years in the wilderness,
and the reigns of David and Solomon were both 40 years.
50
60
This is the number of joy and celebration. It marks the completion of 7x7 year cycles and signifies new
beginnings
This marks the division of the minute and the hour, and so is associated with time. In Egypt it represented
a long life.
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Number systems
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Most Western languages use Arabic numerls. These derive from the classical Indian language Sanskrit, written
in the Devanagari script that is still used for many North-Indian languages.
4
69
5
one
two
six
seven
three
eight
Devanagari
four
nine
five
ten
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Number systems
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The Roman system uses seven alphabetical signs I, V, X, L, C, D, and M.
Numbers are formed by adding (6 = V+I=VI) or substracting (4=I less than V=IV). Larger numbers come from
Latin words, for example C=centum=100; M=mille=1,000.
4
one
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5
six
fifty
two
three
seven
eight
hundred
four
nine
five hundred
Roman
five
ten
thousand
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Number systems
1
Numerals in Hebrew (read from right to left) corres-pond to the alphabet. One is the first letter, aleph; two,
the second; and so on. After the tenth letter, the value of each letter goes up in tens.
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5
five
(he)
ten
(yod)
four
(daleth)
nine
(teth)
three
(gimel)
two
(veth)
one
(aleph)
eight
(heth)
seven
(zayin)
six
(vav)
Hebrew
FALL 08–09
Okt. Bengisu Keleflo¤lu, Arfl. Gör. Eren Evin K›l›çkaya
[email protected] [email protected]
tel: (222) 335 05 80/4168, 4161/46
Lesson 02
Colors and their symbolic meanings
Color is a physical formation and it exists with light .It is also an important design element and
has symbolic meanings. Only Color itself, can give the message and can direct the human
behavior. In nature, color has a vital importarce among living beings. Sometimes animals are
hunted or stay alive by the help of the color, so color is a fact of attractiveness. The symbolic
usage of color can be seen esp at the architectural constitutions and folkloric art pieces. At the
medieval ages the strict rules of the religions effected the usage of color on art. For ex: the
clothes of Gesus and Maddonna always had been painted in dark blue color because it is
belived that this color is a divine effect.
Color
Colors have different symbolic meanings in different cultures, geographies and timelines. The colors of the
rainbow represented “luck” previously, but nowadays especially around europe and united states, as a
consequence of the homosexual activities becomes widespread and institutionalized, rainbow colors symbolize
the homosexuality. A few years ago this color symbolism had different meanings and today represent a group
and their supporters. Because of the physical and psychological effects of the colors, they can give a message
clearly. Although different meanings and words written at the same size, character and text features only by
color the meaning of the words can be easily recognizable.
DYNAMIC
MYSTERIOUS
MASCULINE
FEMINEN
CALM
NATURAL
HOT
COLD
DYNAMIC
MYSTERIOUS
MASCULINE
FEMINEN
CALM
NATURAL
HOT
COLD
DYNAMIC
MYSTERIOUS
MASCULINE
FEMINEN
CALM
NATURAL
HOT
COLD
white
Commonly represents virginity, lack, hygiene, snow, purity, ice, peace, death, nothing, frost, good and
air. White flag at the war symbolizes the peace and submission. Because of the purity connotation,
at Europe bridal dresses are mostly in white color. If we think on the sound and color, white is the most
calm tune or may represent the silence. That’s why at the eastern countries white is the color of
mourning and reincarnation. Mostly white is used for expressing the opposition like “black and white”.
black
Commonly represents darkness, evil, bad luck, chaos, crime, mystery, elegance, end, death. At the
Western cultures it is the color of death, mourning and also aristocracy but in China it is the symbol
of winter and north.Because it do not emit or reflect light –sometimes described as an "achromatic",
or hueless– indicates mystery and unknown. At ancient Egypt and North Africa it is the color of
abundance and richness as the colors of the rainy clouds turns into black. Generally in holy scriptures
black is the color of the hell and witchery and devil is defined as the prince of the darkness. But in
printing technologies black is key color which determines the dark tones and shown with the letter “K”
red
Commonly represents dynamism, love, passion, aggression, blood, stop, courage, guilt, energy, anger,
fire, sin, violence, warning and danger. As the color the fire, red represents hell and devilment. Red
flag means revolt and revolution. Red is also a symbol of status and luxury. At Japan many single
young women wear red clothes for good luck. In printing technologies red ink (magenta) is one of the
basic color.
yellow
Commonly represents warmth, happiness, sunshine, electiricty. As the color of the sun and gold, yellow
is the symbol of the value and status. In China it is the color of royaltiy and sultanate. Also yellow
means attention at international communication and traffic sign system. It is one of the main color in
printing technologies.
blue
Commonly represents ice, water, sky, sadness, winter, judaism, boys, cold, calm and heaven. Vishnu
as an Indian God depicted in blue color to indicate the heavenly side. Blue in many cultures symbolizes
the divine mercy and being forgiven.As the contrast color of red, blue has the effect of calmness and
peace. In Chirstianity blue is the color of hope and devotion.As a musical form “Blues” takes its name
from those connotations.At the eastern cultures like Egypt, India, Iran and also Anatolia it is believed
that blue sends away the negative energy and harm.
green
Commonly represents nature, growth, hope, youth, calm, sickness, health, go, Islam, env ironmentalism,
positiveness.In islamic expressions, architecture and also at anatolian motifs green is important as the
color of heaven. This divine color also symbolizes the trefoil of Christian Trinity; father, son and the
holy spirit. At the packaging designs green sis used to show the freshness and naturalness.