“Seven, Richie thought. That's the magic number. There has to be seven of us. That's the way it's supposed to be.”
- Stephen King
Although Math and I were never friends, numbers fascinate me. Well, numerology and their symbols behind that is. The number 7, specifically. How a single number can be so entrenched in our lives and in the cosmos is so mind-boggling that I decided to count the ways why the number 7 is fascinating for me.
1. It's Universal
Think about it. There are 7 continents. There are 7 oceans. 7 types of electromagnetic waves. 7 colors in the rainbow. Each of the lunar phases last approximately 7 days. 7 musical notes. 7 layers in our atmosphere. Internally, we have 7 layers of our skin. 7 vertebrae in our neck. One of the key aspects of our short-term memory is that only 7 items can be stored at a time. How fascinating is that?
Even at random parties, you can now find a 7-layer-dip, a 7-layer salad, and a 7-layer cake. Proves that the number 7 has quietly taken over our minds.
2. It's Spiritual
I sat through 2 years of World Religions as part of my curriculum through my final years at the university. The number 7 came up repeatedly. Below are some of those:
In Islam, this was illustrated several times in the Holy Qur’an. 7 is the first number stated in this holy book. The “7 heavens” phrase was repeated 7 times. The first chapter is made of 7 verses. The number of words in the first verse and the last verse is 7.
'In Judaism, Adam & Eve were created in Tishrei - the 7th month of the Hebrew Calendar). Sabbath falls on the 7th day of the week. There are 7 Laws of Noah. The first verse of the Torah consists of 7 words. The 7 candles of the Menorah symbolized the creation – where God created all things in 7 days.
In Christianity. There are 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Mentioned countless times in the Bible. For example, Ruth has 7 sons. Moses fled from Egypt to the land of Midian where the priest has 7 daughters. In the Catholic Church, there are 7 sacraments. There are 7 last plagues of revelation.
In Hinduism, there are 7 known chakras. 7 holy cities, holy rivers, and holy seas that are revered with great religious and spiritual significance. In marriage rituals, the bride and groom walk 7 steps in front of the sacred fire.
In Buddhism, it is highlighted in the 7 Treasures for Buddhist Scripture.
3. It's antithetical
Well, virtuously speaking that is.
We all know about the 7 Deadly sins, which gets a lot of hype in pop culture. Even ANTM did a photoshoot stint based on this theme. However, do you know by heart the 7 Heavenly Virtues? Yeah, me neither. So here it goes - Faith, Hope, Charity, Fortitude, Justice, Temperance & Prudence. A complete antithesis to its darker counterpart. Although not sure if Tyra Banks would do a segment on this one. Maybe she can do a theme around the number 7 instead?
4. It's Historical
In medieval education, students pursued a total of 7 subjects collectively known as the Liberal Arts. Shakespeare wrote the 7 Ages of Man.
There were known 7 planets of antiquity or classical planets – which are the moving astronomical objects in the sky visible to the naked eye. The Babylonians recognized 7 planets.
In the Hippocratic tradition of medicine, 7 rules the illnesses of the body.
In Ancient Egypt, there were 7 paths to heaven and 7 heavenly cows.
In Yucatan, the monuments show that the Mayas had a predilection for the number 7. The artificial mounds were composed of 7 platforms, and the north side of King Can palace was adorned with 7 turrets. The headdress of kings and queens was adorned with 7 blue feathers.
The Wonders of the Ancient World were, yes, 7.
Even in recent history, the number 7 keeps popping up. 7th June 1929 is when Vatican City becomes a sovereign state. During WW2, German armed forces surrendered on the 7th of May 1945. 7th April 1969 is the internet’s symbolic birth date, the publication of RFC 1. On 7th December 1988, PLO led by Yasser Arafat proclaimed the State of Palestine, recognizing the existence of the State of Israel for the first time. Even the Lewinsky controversy, Bill Clinton’s impeachment trial was on 7th January 1999.
5. It's Mythological
In Egyptian mythology, Osiris both the god of the dead and fertility led his father through 7 halls of the underworld.
Greek Mythology has the 7 heavenly sisters called The Pleiades. The Hesperides or the Daughters of the Evening were also debated to be 7. Out of the most 12 important gods of the Greek pantheon, 7 were male. (Apollo, Ares, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Hermes, Poseidon, and Zeus).
And since Greek gods have their Roman counterparts. Likewise, in the 12 Council of Roman gods, 7 were male. (Apollo, Mars, Bacchus, Vulcan, Mercury, Neptune, and Jupiter)
In Japanese mythology, the 7 Lucky Gods or 7 Gods of Fortune are believed to grant good luck.
6. It's Cultural
Breaking a mirror leads to 7 years of bad luck.
In Iran, a cat has 7 lives (and not nine).
In Jewish, a fever can be cured by taking 7 prickles from 7 palm trees, 7 chips from 7 beams, and 7 nails from 7 bridges.
In China, the line “To create a poem within 7 steps” is used to describe somebody’s wit in literary creativity.
The Seven Treasures is the most common artificial pattern in Korean Culture. It signifies objects which are considered auspicious.
The 7th son of the 7th son is a folklore concept regarding special powers given to such son. In Italy, the 7th son had the power to enchant snakes. In Latin America, they are cursed to become a werewolf. While for the Irish, the 7th sons are gifted as healers.
Speaking of Irish, another example of 7 is in music. For them, tradition holds that 7 years of learning, 7 years of practicing, and 7 years of playing is required before a piper could be said to have mastered its instrument.
Even in literary culture, this is very obvious. The Harry Potter series was divided into 7 books. Sinbad the Sailor had 7 journeys. Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs. James Bond is 007. Brad Pitt spent 7 Years in Tibet. The Brothers Grimm, fairytale masters, wrote about the 7 Ravens, Wolf and the 7 Young Kids, The 7 Swabians, and more.
The revered Gettysburg address by Abraham Lincoln started with the iconic phrase that includes “...and 7 years ago”.
These phrases include the number 7 such as “7 for a secret”, “7-year itch”, “7th heaven”, “7-day wonder”, “7-league boots” and more are used in idioms, nursery rhymes, or even everyday lingo.
7. It's symbolical
The mystique around symbols has gripped the world. That’s why we read between the lines and never take things at face value. It’s human nature to believe there is something more than what meets the eye.
The number 7 means completion. In numerology, it is the sum of the spiritual (the number 3), and the material (the number is 4) is 7.
In Chinese culture, it represents the combination of Yin, Yang, and the Five Elements (Metal, Water, Wood, Fire, and Earth).
Hence, the number 7 has been known to be the complete number.
As you can see, there are thousands of reasons why the number 7 has fascinated me throughout the years. Even though it seems to appear everywhere, this just adds to its elusiveness and mystery. I also like that since it’s a prime number, hence can be divided only by 1 and by itself. Thus, somehow represents that it doesn’t bend so easily.
What about you, does the number 7 fascinate you as well?
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