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Lädt ... The Mystery of Numbersvon Annemarie Schimmel
Lädt ...
Melde dich bei LibraryThing an um herauszufinden, ob du dieses Buch mögen würdest. Keine aktuelle Diskussion zu diesem Buch. Annemarie Schimmel is Professor of Indo-Muslim Culture at Harvard University, and author of numerous books on Islamic literature, culture, and religion. This work is a descriptive study of folklore, rather than mathematics. Numbers play a conspicuous role in our daily lives, since the beginning, and across every society. Examines individual numbers from "one" to ten thousand. She notes that al-Ghazali, like medieval Christian scholars, "sought to arrange their writings in meaningful combinations of numbers". In Revivification of the Sciences of Religion, his number was 40, leading to the central figure of Mohammad in the 20th chapter, with acts of mystical love in the final meeting with the Lord at the moment of death. Augustine's City of God was 22, corresponding to 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Dante's Divine Comedy exhibits elaborate number symbolism based on the 3 of the Trinity. Curiously, the author mentions the number 19--long a sacred number in the Near East, drawn from the 19 dieties of the 19 limbs of the body in the Egyptian Book of the Dead, and the 19-year Metonic Cycle of the ancient Babylonian calendar. "Recently someone in Pakistan has tried to prove that the Quran is based upon the number 19 (incidentally the number of guardians of hell) and its multiples. However, despite the clever use of computer technology for this study, its results have been challenged by most Muslims." [224] "On the other hand", she goes on, "19 is uncontestably the sacred number of the Baha'is (again based on the numerical value of wahid), and they even divide the year into 19 months of 19 days each." [224] Zeige 2 von 2 keine Rezensionen | Rezension hinzufügen
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Why is the number seven lucky--even holy--in almost every culture? Why do we speak of the four corners of the earth? Why do cats have nine lives (except in Iran, where they have seven)? From literature to folklore to private superstitions, numbers play a conspicuous role in our daily lives.But in this fascinating book, Annemarie Schimmel shows that numbers have been filled with mystery and meaning since the earliest times, and across every society.In The Mystery of Numbers Annemarie Schimmel conducts an illuminating tour of the mysteries attributed to numbers over the centuries. She begins with an informative and often surprising introduction to the origins of number systems: pre-Roman Europeans, for example, may have had one based ontwenty, not ten (as suggested by the English word "score" and the French word for 80, quatrevingt --four times twenty), while the Mayans had a system more sophisticated than our own. Schimmel also reveals how our fascination with numbers has led to a rich cross-fertilization of mathematicalknowledge: "Arabic" numerals, for instance, were picked up by Europe from the Arabs, who had earlier adopted them from Indian sources ("Algorithm" and "algebra" are corruptions of the Arabic author and title names of a mathematical text prized in medieval Europe). But the heart of the book is anengrossing guide to the symbolism of numbers. Number symbolism, she shows, has deep roots in Western culture, from the philosophy of the Pythagoreans and Platonists, to the religious mysticism of the Cabala and the Islamic Brethren of Purity, to Kepler's belief that the laws of planetary motionshould be mathematically elegant, to the unlucky thirteen. After exploring the sources of number symbolism, Schimmel examines individual numbers ranging from one to ten thousand, discussing the meanings they have had for Judaic, Christian, and Islamic traditions, with examples from Indian, Chinese,and Native American cultures as well. Two, for instance, has widely been seen as a number of contradiction and polarity, a number of discord and antithesis. And six, according to ancient and neo-platonic thinking, is the most perfect number because it is both the sum and the product of its parts(1+2+3=6 and 1x2x3=6). Using examples ranging from the Bible to the Mayans to Shakespeare, she shows how numbers have been considered feminine and masculine, holy and evil, lucky and unlucky.A highly respected scholar of Islamic culture, Annemarie Schimmel draws on her vast knowledge to paint a rich, cross-cultural portrait of the many meanings of numbers. Engaging and accessible, her account uncovers the roots of a phenomenon we all feel every Friday the thirteenth. Keine Bibliotheksbeschreibungen gefunden. |
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Google Books — Lädt ... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)133.3Philosophy and Psychology Parapsychology And Occultism Specific Topics Divination; Oracles; Second sight; Omens; PredictionsKlassifikation der Library of Congress [LCC] (USA)BewertungDurchschnitt:
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There are seven chapters of "Introduction" discussing the history of number systems and evolution of number symbolism. Generally, depth is sacrificed for breadth, in an effort to touch on systems throughout Western history, and also in Asia and pre-Columbian America. The historical essays are followed by "A Little Dictionary of Numbers," organized in numerical order starting at 1. The highest value to receive an entry is 10,000, but even below 50, many numbers significant to me are not represented with their own articles, such as 23, 31, 34, and 44.
On the whole, the book is a decent introduction to its topic, and it can be a useful supplement to other more specialized treatments.