Numbers: The Language of the Universe

The question arises: "How can one measure qi, a force that cannot be fully measured?" One answer is numbers. The ancient Chinese understood that numbers provide the connective link between the macrocosm and human development (the microcosm). While the Chinese equated these integers to the language of the gods, modern science has proven that numbers provide the language of the universe.

Unfortunately, for many people, numbers and mathematics invoke not-so-pleasant memories of grammar school arithmetic drills. In high school, math meant learning to perform abstract calculations of algebra, calculus, and trigonometry--complex computations that had little to do with our relationship to the world. However, this contrived notion is far from true. Mathematics is about finding hidden order and patterns in things that are not detectable to the naked eye. A diverse lot such as special-effects artists, physicists, oceanographers, geneticists, and musicians use mathematics to plumb the mysteries of their field. While math may be technical, it undeniably yields profundities about life.

Numbers speak to us and through us. In fact, we conform to mathematical laws of the universe. For example, take the Fibonacci sequence, a pattern of numbers discovered by thirteenth-century mathematician Leonardo de Pisa, also known as Fibonacci. Referring to the following diagram, the sequence begins with the number 1. Each number that follows is the sum of the previous two numbers: 0 + 1 = 1; 1 + 1 = 2; 1 + 2 = 3; 2 + 3 = 5, and so on to infinity.

1,1,2,3,5,8,13,21,34,55,89,144,233,… The Fibonacci Sequence

If you divide each number in the series by the one preceding it, the answer produces a ratio that stabilizes at 1.618034. For example, 2 [db] 1 = 2, 3 [db] 2 = 1.5, and the results continue to change until we get to 1597 [db] 987 = 1.618034, 4181 [db] 2584 = 1.618034, and so on to infinity. This figure is called the Golden Ratio.

While these "divine proportions" may not seem awe-inspiring on the surface, the Fibonacci numbers and ratios appear repeatedly in a remarkable range of fields. Taken from Trudi Hammel Garland's fun-filled book, Fascinating Fibonaccis: Mystery and Magic in Numbers: Mystery and Magic in Numbers (Dale Seymour Publications, 1987), here are a few examples to ponder and marvel at:

The Fibonacci sequence and the Golden Ratio represent just one example of number series made manifest in life. Other transcendental mathematic principles you may wish to research on your own include Pi, the exponential e, and the esoteric practices of gematria and numerology. Certainly, these dynamic correlations inspire many to seek the origin of life. While we won't dwell on this mystery, understand that somehow numbers guide our development. Unquestionably, it is the fabric of nature connecting everyone and everything.

Simply stated, the Chinese correlated the nine numbers of the Luoshu with the five phases of qi (fire, earth, metal, water, and wood), among other things. While this is a gross under simplification of a complex process, understand that the five physical phases allowed these astute observers to measure how qi affected our well-being. Over time, the accumulation and analysis of acausal information linked number patterns with the probable occurrence of specific human events.

Synchronicity: The Study of Meaningful Coincidences

What does "acausal information" mean, you ask? It describes a phenomenon called synchronicity, a word coined by noted Swiss psychologist Carl Jung (1875-1961). In a nutshell, synchronicity can be explained as a pattern of correlated coincidences that can take form as objects, thoughts, ideas, and events (or a combination) linked together in a common theme, meaning, and significance to the observer. Often, synchronicity is the eerie feeling that someone or something is operating "behind the scenes," guiding us along. Actually, that "someone" is what the Western layperson variously describes as a knowing, higher force, the sea of consciousness, or the almighty God. As you've just learned, modern scientists like David Bohm and Rupert Sheldrake describe the connective force as the quantum potential and the morphic field respectively. For our purposes, the Chinese call this holistic field of information, qi.

In classical feng shui, the combination of numbers generated by a Flying Star (Xuankong Feixing) qi chart represents synchronistic probabilities. For example, the Chinese recognized that a 2 (earth) 1 (water) combination was often linked with spousal conflict, separation, or divorce. An 8 (earth) 9 (fire) combination spawned the likelihood of weddings and pregnancy. A 5 (earth) 1 (water) combination meant the probability of ear, kidney, or genital disorders. Get the idea? The most complete document about the combination of stars or numbers can be found in the Song dynasty (C.E. 960-1279) Xuanking Mizhi (The Secret Principles of the Flying Stars) by Wu Jing Luan.

If you're having a difficult time grasping this seeming esoteric concept, there are other more far-reaching numeric coincidences that strike a common chord, sending a chill up our collective spines. For example, consider the Zero Year Phenomenon where beginning in 1840, each United States President (with the exception of Ronald Reagan) elected in a year ending with zero died while in office:

Coincidence? Or is this phenomenon really the result of a curse by Tecumseh, a Shawnee tribal leader, who revolted against Harrison's campaign to strip the Indians of their land?

Let's take another series of apparently unrelated events and data that has a common theme of meaning - the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on New York City's World Trade Center and The Pentagon, the governmental complex for the Department of Defense, located just outside Washington D.C. Here, time and space (the two bulwarks of classical feng shui) merged to produce synchronicities involving the number 11:

Are you amazed? In this last example, you may wonder what the number 11 means. According to retired Harvard professor Annemarie Schimmel, as she states in her well-researched book, The Mystery of Numbers (Oxford University Press, 1993), "Larger than 10 and small than 12, it stands between two very important round numbers and therefore, while every other number had at least one positive aspect, 11 was always interpreted in medieval exegesis ad malam partem, in a purely negative sense. The sixteenth-century numerologist Petrus Bungus went so far as to claim that 11 'has no connection with divine things, no ladder reaching up to things above, nor any merit.' He considered it to be the number of sinners and penance."

We need not dwell on the symbolic meaning of the number 11 and the extraordinary facts linking it with the World Trade Center attack. You can formulate your own conclusion. Here, our point is to illustrate a recent, albeit catastrophic, example of numeric synchronicity.

A New World Vision for the Millennium

If we do discover a single unifying force or scientifically prove the existence of God or a Higher Power, how will that affect our everyday life? Will we lay down our warheads and use this knowledge constructively? Will be become united as citizens of planet Earth? Perhaps we earthlings should establish a New Vision for the Millennium, a set of principles that will unite us on a fundamental level. These principles will heal cultural and racial tensions resulting from dogmas and superstitions of the past, as well as elevate our awareness so that we can create a harmonious and peaceful world.

If for no other reason, our common purpose of survival will force us to adopt a holistic mindset, a New World Vision for the Millennium. The Baha'i Faith suggests the following goals:

The implementation of world harmony begins with you. We hope we've demonstrated that separatist thinking has no place in the study of Chinese cosmology. In order to fully understand feng shui and its principles, we must look at the Big Picture, a holistic reality that connects everyone and everything. If you're inspired to learn more, we've included a selected list of fantastic books that will help broaden your horizons, setting you on the proper feng shui path.

Learning More About Science, Synchronicity, and Feng Shui

A Brief History of Chinese Civilization, by Conrad Schirokauer. Harcourt Brace & Company, 1991.

An Anthropological Analysis of Chinese Geomancy, by Stephan D.R. Feuchtwang. Vitagna, 1974.

Blueprint for Immortality: The Electric Patterns of Life, by Harold Saxton Burr. The C.W. Daniel Company, Ltd., 1972.

The Body Electric: Electromagnetism and the Foundation of Life, by Robert O. Becker, M.D., and Gary Selden. Quill, 1985.

The Cambridge History of Ancient China from the Origins of Civilization to 221 B.C.E., edited by Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy. Cambridge University Press, 1999.

Chinese Astrology, by Derek Walters. The Aquarian Press, 1987.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Feng Shui (second edition), by Elizabeth Moran, Joseph Yu, and Val Biktashev. Alpha Books, 2002.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to the I Ching, by Elizabeth Moran and Master Joseph Yu. Alpha Books, 2001.

DNA and the I Ching: The Tao of Life, by Johnson F. Yan. North Atlantic Books, 1991.

Does God Play Dice? The Mathematics of Chaos, by Ian Stewart. Bladwell Publishing, 1990.

Earth Ascending: An Illustrated Treatise on the Law Governing Whole Systems, by Jose Arguelles. Bear and Company, 1984.

Encounters With Qi: Exploring Chinese Medicine, by David Eisenberg, M.D., with Thomas Lee Wright. W.W. Norton and Company, 1985.

The Essence of Chaos, by Edward N. Lorenz. University of Washington Press, 1993.

Fascinating Fibonacci: Mystery and Magic in Numbers, by Trudi Hammel Garland. Dale Seymour Publications, 1987.

Feng Shui: The Ancient Wisdom of Harmonious Living for Modern Times, by Eva Wong. Shambala, 1996.

The Feng Shui Handbook, by Master Lam Kam Chuen. Henry Holt, 1996.

Fortune-tellers and Philosophers: Divination in Traditional Chinese Society, by Richard J. Smith. Westview Press, Inc. 1991.

God and The New Physics, by Paul Davies. Touchstone, 1983.

Heaven, Earth, and Man in the Book of Changes: Seven Eranos Lectures, by Hellmut Wilhelm. University of Washington Press, 1977.

Heaven and Earth in Early Han Thought, by John S. Major. State University of New York Press, 1993.

The Hypothesis of a New Science of Life: Morphic Resonance, by Rupert Sheldrake. Inner Traditions International, Ltd., 1981.

Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences, by John Allen Paulos. Vintage Books, 1988.

The Invisible Landscape: Mind Hallucinogens and the I Ching, by Terence McKenna and Dennis McKenna. HarperCollins, 1993.

K.I.S.S. Guide to Feng Shui, by Stephen Skinner. Dorling Kindersley, 2001.

Life by the Numbers, by Keith Devlin. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1998.

The Living Earth Manual of Feng-Shui, by Stephen Skinner. Arkana, 1982.

More Joy of Mathematics: Exploring Mathematics All Around You, by Theoni Pappas. Wide World Publishing/Tetra, 1991.

The Mystery of Numbers, by Annemarie Schimmel. Oxford University Press, 1993.

Newton's Clock: Chaos in the Solar System, by Ivars Peterson. W.H. Freeman and Company, 1993.

Number and Time, by Marie-Louise Von Franz. Northwestern University Press, 1974.

On Dialogue, by David Bohm. Routledge, 1996.

On Divination and Synchronicity: The Psychology of Meaningful Chance, by Marie-Louise Von Franz. Inner City Books, 1980.

On Synchronicity: An Acausal Connecting Principle, by Carl Jung. In Collected Works, Vol. 8, Princeton University Press, 1981.

The Philosopher's Stone: Chaos, Synchronicity, and the Hidden Order of the World, by F. David Peat. Bantam Books, 1991.

Physics and Philosophy, by Werner Heisenberg. HarperCollins, 1962.

The Presence of the Past: Morphic Resonance and the Habits of Nature, by Rupert Sheldrake. Inner Traditions International, Ltd., 1995.

The Pythagorean Sourcebook and Library, compiled and translated by Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie. Phanes Press, 1988.

"Qi Through the Centuries and Around the World," by Dr. John Baker. Qi: The Journal of Traditional Eastern Health and Fitness, Vol. 1, No. 4, Winter, 1991.

Science and Civilisation in China (6 volumes), by Joseph Needham. Cambridge University Press, 1956.

Seven Life Lessons of Chaos: Spiritual Wisdom from the Science of Change, by John Briggs and F. David Peat. HarperCollins, 1999.

A Short History of Chinese Philosophy: A Systematic Account of Chinese Thought from Its Origins to the Present Day, by Fung Yu-Lan. The Free Press, 1948.

Synchronicity: An Acausal Connecting Principle, by Car Jung. Princeton University Press, 1973.

Synchronicity: C.G. Jung, Psychoanalysis, and Religion, by M.D. Faber. Praeger, 1998.

Synchronicity, Science, and Soul-Making, by Victor Mansfield. Open Court, 1995.

Synchronicity: Science, Myth, and the Trickster, by Allan Combs and Mark Holland. Marlowe and Company, 1996.

A Short History of Chinese Philosophy, by Fung Yu-Lan. The Free Press, 1948.

Sources of Chinese Tradition, Volume 1, by William Theodore de Bary, Wing-Tsit Chan, and Burton Watson. Columbia University Press, 1960.

Tao of Chaos: DNA and the I Ching: Unlocking the Code of the Universe, by Katya Walter. Element Books, Ltd., 1994.

The Tao of Physics, by Fritjof Capra. Shambala, 1991.

The Universal History of Numbers: From Prehistory to the Invention of the Computer, by Georges Ifrah. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2000.

Wholeness and the Implicate Order, by David Bohm. Routledge, 1996.

About the Authors

In 1997, Elizabeth Moran left her position as print media director for a network television station to pursue a full-time writing career. Her books about Chinese cosmology include The Complete Idiot's Guide to Feng Shui (Alpha Books, 2002) and The Complete Idiot's Guide to the I Ching (Alpha Books, 2001). Elizabeth has studied feng shui and Chinese astrology with a number of classical masters. She is a highly sought lecturer and teacher of feng shui. You may contact Elizabeth at [email protected].

A native of Siberia, Val Biktashev descends from a long line of shaman healers. Under the tutelage of his mother, Val learned bone setting, energy healing, and herbology. His early interest and natural instinct gave rise to a career in holistic health care spanning over 20 years. Val immigrated to the United States in 1992. Seeking to deepen his knowledge of nature's healing properties and their effects on humankind, he became an apprentice of one of the world's foremost authorities of classical feng shui. In 1997, Val founded the Beverly Hills-based American Healing Arts, Inc. He provides feng shui consultations worldwide for individuals and businesses. Val has made numerous television appearances, including being the feature subject on the CBS television program, Sunday Morning. Also, he has had several articles written about his work in nationally distributed newspapers. He is the co-author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Feng Shui. You may contact Val at [email protected].