DIVINATION
THE MYSTERY OF NUMBERS
That there is virtue in numbers and that every person is under the
influence of certain numbers was taught as far back as the days of
Pythagoras, and a vast collection of books have been written concerning
this phase of superstition.
Any clairvoyant to whom you may go to have your fortune told will ask
you on what day of the month you were born and in what year. From this
she will tell you whether to expect good or evil fortune in the coming
year. The basis for these calculations has been handed down from very
ancient times.
According to astrologers, every letter in one’s name corresponds to a
number, so that if you understand how to calculate the numerical value
of your name you can foretell your future.
The planets have numbers, and the influence they exert on you depends
in how far their numbers correspond with those in your name and dates
of important events in your life.
In horse racing, the names of the horses, taken according to their
numerical value, often predict the result of the race.
Every nation had its lucky and unlucky numbers that occur in their
mythology and history. The Greeks believed in the sacredness of the
number nine. They had nine muses, nine principal deities, nine oracles,
etc.
The Romans believed in the mystic three, the Egyptians in twelve, etc.
The Jews revered the number seven, and its recurrence throughout the
Bible is remarkable: Seven days of creation, seven lean years, seven
fat years, seven stars, seven times bathing in the Jordan, seven years
followed by a year of jubilee, etc. This number, according to Kabala
was obtained by adding the letters of Man and God together.
Thirteen, as we know, has been regarded by Christians as a very unlucky
number on account of the events following the Last Supper.
Divination by numbers is a favorite pastime and leads to some
remarkable results. Many historical events have been prophesied by this
method. Thus Napoleon III was born in 1808 and assumed the empire in
1852. Add 1-8-0-8 to 1852 and you have 1869, which foretold the end of
the empire about that time.
The French Revolution occurred in 1789; add this date to the sum of its
numbers and you have 1814, which foretells the end of Napoleon’s reign.
The dates of other personalities can be worked out the same way and the
result is often remarkably correct.
Kabala, or the occult science of the Jews of the Middle Ages, depended
almost entirely upon the mystic powers of numbers.
Many problems in modern mathematics depend on the mystic number nine
and both nine and seven are used by fortune tellers in divining the
future.
LOTTERY NUMBERS AND USAGES
Lotteries are practically a thing of the past in America, but there was
a time when they flourished and when everybody from the wage earner to
the millionaire wagered his pile on some lucky number. In the South
the fever raged particularly strong, and the Louisiana Lottery and the
Dismal Swamp Lottery counted their victims by the million. Policy, too,
was very prevalent, and is still being conducted secretly in many
parts of the country. Both lottery and policy were similar in that a
certain price was paid for a ticket or a paper with numbers. On stated
occasions numbers were drawn out of a wheel and these were announced.
The holder of the lucky number won an amount that differed according to
the occasion.
A man’s age, or that of his wife or children, was frequently taken as
the number. Some men added the figures in the date, month, etc.
Dreams are considered particularly efficacious in playing policy. Most
dream books give policy numbers coinciding with every possible dream,
and these when played are supposed to make a winning.
Among the numbers often taken are the date of the year, or the date of
an important event. The numbers on a freight car have been known to
bring fortunate results.
In the case of a murder committed in a community, certain numbers are
supposed to have a peculiar significance and bring luck.
In the South many negroes make a comfortable living by interpreting
dreams, signs and omens and telling the proper numbers they signify for
the playing of policy.
In buying several lottery tickets, it is not lucky to have them all
follow each other consecutively. An interval should separate them.
Odd numbers are more apt to bring prizes than even numbers. Numbers
ending in three, nine, twelve or seven are the most likely to strike
luck.
A number given you by a cripple is sure to be successful, but that
given by a cross-eyed man or woman is bound to lose.
PREDICTIONS OF WEALTH
To have lots of hair on your arms and fingers is a sign of coming
wealth.
When you throw a lump of sugar into your coffee or tea, the number of
bubbles that arise are an indication of your future wealth.
Many moles over your body indicate that you will be wealthy.
To be born with a caul indicates that you will have luck and amass
wealth.
A birthmark in the middle of the back indicates a wealthy marriage.
To be born during an eclipse, denotes hardship and poverty.
DIVINATION BY LETTERS
The most celebrated arrangement of letters by which fortunes were told
or cures effected was the ABRACADABRA. It is attributed to Serenus, a
celebrated physician of the second century. It is often written so that
reading from the apex like an inverted pyramid up to the right side,
the same word will be spelled as at the top. Thus:
A B R A C A D A B R A
A B R A C A D A B R
A B R A C A D A B
A B R A C A D A
A B R A C A D
A B R A C A
A B R A C
A B R A
A B R
A B
A
The belief in the wonderful powers of this word are well-nigh
universal. By writing it on a parchment and hanging it about the
neck of a sick person, it would staunch blood, heal disorders, cure
toothache, etc.
The Jews used a similar word, Abracalam, to cure disorders. In the
Middle Ages the word, Anamazaptas, if whispered into a man’s ear, was
supposed to cure epilepsy.
The word “Bedooh” inscribed on rings and charms or on helmets or sabres
is supposed to bring good luck. It comes from an Arab word which means
“he has walked well.”
The word “Osy” was used as a charm against serpents, and caused them to
lie still as the dead.
Pythagoras considered the letter Y a symbol of life, and used it in his
divinations.
Anagrams are often used to tell fortunes and to decide the career of a
person. Thus Eleanor Davies, a well-known English woman and the wife of
a poet, became a prophetess because she found that the letters of her
name could be transposed to read, “Reveal O Daniel.”
In many countries, charms worn about the neck and engraved with mystic
letters have the power to keep away evil and cure disease.
DIVINATION BY BOOKS
In ancient Greece, when people wanted counsel on important matters,
they opened a scroll of Homer at random and noted the lines covered by
the thumb. At the present time the Bible is the book usually employed
for that purpose.
If in distress, open the Bible and put your index finger on the page
at random. The text will tell you what to do. If the words have no
apparent bearing on the question, you should consider it an unfavorable
reply.
To decide Yes or No in any doubtful matter, open the Bible and note the
first word on the left-hand page. If it has an even number of letters,
the answer is No; if an odd number of letters, the answer is Yes.
If things have gone wrong with you, open the Bible and say:
“Mark and Matthew, Luke and John,
Counsel, that I may get on.”
Then retire and inspiration will come in your sleep.
A singular mode of divination for girls who desire to know their fate
is described in an old book, as follows:
“When you go to bed place under your pillow a prayer book opened at the
part of the matrimonial service which begins, ‘With this ring I thee
wed,’ etc. Place a key on it, a ring, a flower, a sprig of willow, a
small heart-shaped cake, a crust of bread and a pack of playing cards.
Wrap these up in a thin handkerchief and, on getting into bed, cross
your thumbs and say:
‘Luna, every woman’s friend,
To me thy goodness condescend;
Let me this night in visions see
Emblems of my destiny.’”
On New Year’s Day a Bible is laid on the table, in some parts of
England, and each member of the family opens it at random and from the
contents of the two open pages reads his destiny for the ensuing year.
The last chapter of the Book of Proverbs contains thirty-one verses,
each of which is supposed to have reference to one day of a month. By
consulting these for the day of the month on which you were born, you
will have an indication as to which kind of occupation you will be most
successful in. Thus, the twenty-fourth verse speaks of “fine linen,”
which indicates that the person born on that day will be successful as
a manufacturer or seller of linen.
PRECIOUS STONES
Precious stones are supposed in all countries to have a special
province in inducing fortunate or unlucky occurrences. The proper
stone is chosen according to the month of one’s birth, each month being
governed by a different gem.
The following is the list of birth stones according to the generally
accepted belief:
January, Garnet
February, Amethyst
March, Bloodstone
April, Diamond
May, Emerald
June, Agate
July, Ruby
August, Sardonyx
September, Sapphire
October, Opal
November, Topaz
December, Turquoise
In the dictionary of “Phrase and Fable,” we find a different
arrangement based on astrological lore. It is as follows:--
Sign of Zodiac Month Stone
Aries, the ram, April Amethyst
Taurus, the bull, May Agate
Gemini, the twins, June Beryl
Cancer, the crab, July Emerald
Leo, the virgin, August Ruby
Libra, the balance, September Jasper
Scorpio, the scorpion, October Diamond
Sagittarius, archer, November Topaz
Capricorn, the goat, January Onyx
Aquarius, waterman, February Sapphire
Pisces, the fishes, March Chrysolite
A ring presented to a person with his or her birthstone is sure to
bring good fortune.
One’s birthstone in a charm or locket, worn about the neck, will bring
luck in business or speculation.
COLOR SUPERSTITIONS
There has always been a disposition to connect one’s personality with
colors. People are supposed not only to have a fortunate number but a
lucky hue as well. Planets have a certain hue, and a person’s color
chart agrees with that of his star.
Modern scientific research has proved the importance of color in a
curative sense. No matter whether your native color is red or blue,
it is a fact that the color of your wall paper may have a beneficial
or harmful effect on you if you are ill. Color undoubtedly has an
influence on mental conditions.
Infusoria and the lower forms of life develop faster under one kind of
color than under another, red and yellow being most favorable. Flies,
ants and other insects die under the effect of blue or violet light.
Why then should color not also have its influence on man?
Insane people have been cured by placing them in a room that was
flooded with light of a certain color that corresponded with their
aura. Blue light was thought particularly efficacious for melancholy
people.
The following beliefs are current in regard to colors:
Red governs love, affection or lust.
Scarlet rules emotion and anger.
Crimson is the color of animal passion.
Bright red gives courage and confidence.
Orange is the color of simplicity or ignorance.
Brown is the hue of worldly wisdom.
Yellow, of jealousy and silliness.
In the Bible, sin is supposed to be scarlet in color, hence that color
is to be avoided by virtuous people.
The devil, as the incarnation of sin, is always represented as dressed
in scarlet.
Yellow and gold, according to some philosophers, correspond to the
intellectual, red to the sensual, and blue to the spiritual, moral and
religious nature of man.
White is the color of innocence, hence brides dress in white.
Black is the color of mourning in European and American nations, but
white is the mourning hue in oriental countries.
Purple was considered the color of royalty in ancient days, probably on
account of its former scarcity and expensiveness. It is also used for
second mourning, as being a compromise between black and gay colors.
There is a belief that every jealous person had green eyes. This
idea no doubt was formed by the fact that some people’s eyes become
phosphorescent under great emotion.