Toward Ecosophy

Last week we discussed the first of the three numbers that play a primary role in numerological divination: the birth number, which represents the things in yourself and your life that you can’t change. This week’s lesson in numerology focuses on the other half of the equation:  the name number, which represents the things in yourself and your life that you can change.  As the label suggests, the name number is the sum of the numerical values of the letters of your name, reduced in the usual way to a number between 1 and 9, with 11 and 22 (and possibly other doubled numbers) as special cases.

The conversion of letters to numbers is handled as shown in the table below.  This is the Pythagorean set of letter values, and it’s one of two systems in common use in modern English language numerology—the other is the Chaldean, which takes its letter values from Hebrew. If you find different values in other books or online sources, no, you’re not confused; they’re probably using the other system. This is the one that I learned and that has always worked best for me, but of course your mileage may vary.

There’s a trap here, however, for those of my readers for whom English is a second language. The table shown above only works if your language has the same letters as English. If it doesn’t, you  need to find a different table. No, I can’t point you to one, but in theory all you need to do is write out your alphabet in its normal order and assign the letters to the numbers 1-9, repeating as needed. That’s the principle on which the Pythagorean system works. If English isn’t your native language, give your own language a try and see what you get.

With that settled, let’s go on to name numbers. Which name do you use as a basis for calculating your name number?  Whichever one you usually go by. Yes, this means that if you don’t like your current nane number, you can change your name number by changing what people call you.  Let’s say that your name is John Jacob Jingleheimer Smith, and everyone knows you as John Smith. That’s 1 + 6 + 8 + 5 + 1 + 4 + 9 + 2 + 8 = 44; 4 + 4 = 8.  If you don’t like having a name number of 8, you don’t have to keep it: start going by Jacob Smith, 1 + 1 + 3 + 6 + 2 + 1 + 4 + 9 + 2 + 8 = 37 = 10 = 1, and you’ve got 1 for a name number; go by J.J. Smith and you’ve also got a 1; go by Jay Smith and you’ve got a 6; or go by J. Jingleheimer Smith if you prefer that, and you’ve got a 5. And that’s without even doing a legal name change!

Yes, I know that rationally speaking this shouldn’t have the kind of effect that numerology claims it does. Let me whisper one of life’s great secrets in your ear:  the world isn’t rational. That’s why occultism flourishes in every age and among every people:  it deals, as rationality can’t, with all the places where human reason trips and falls flat on its nose in dealing with a universe too vast and complex for our minds to process.

Take the few minutes you need to calculate your name number, taking the name you normally use as the basis for the calculation. When you’ve finished, we’ll go on.

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Got your number?  Excellent. Now we’ll discuss what it means.

As your birth number represents the lesson you came into this life to learn, your name number represents the methods and strategies you’re using to achieve it. You can use any name number to meet the challenges of any birth number, though some work together more easily than others! (To know how a name number will influence a birth number, add them together and consider what the sum means—we’ll discuss this in more detail later on, when I post about adding numbers and interpreting the results.)

The name number is also known as the number of development.  There are nine birth numbers, and also the special numbers 11 and 22. We’ll take them one at a time.

If your name number is 1, your best strategy is always to get moving, make things happen, and deal with problems as they come up. Don’t try to plan out everything in advance—that’s not your strong suit. Instead, hit the ground running, choose the best opportunity you see, and stick to that. Avoid speculative ventures or long range projects, take each day and each project as it comes, and move straight ahead to your goals.  You have the energy, courage, and ambition you need to succeed; you are likely to make plenty of money, though you also tend to spend it just as easily. Keep moving and deal with problems as soon as they come up, and you’ll be fine.

If your name number is 2, you are good at planning and you have the potential for excellent judgment, but you lack the initiative to take the lead and make things happen. You have a changeable disposition that can leave you subject to mood swings and vagaries of action, and if you let this get the better of you, you will land in trouble. Instead, focus on expressing your naturally friendly and agreeable qualities, avoid arguments, and remember that patience and careful judgment are your strengths. Choose friends and associates who can take your advice and guidance and do something with it, and beware of sentimentality, which will lead you into unhappy relationships, failure, and spitefulness.

If your name number is 3, you have the capacity to become a jack of all trades and a master of some. You tend to be impatient with things that you think are small or trivial; rein in that habit and pay attention to the subtle details, and you will achieve much. You have a gift of self-confidence that will help you, but be careful not to let it go overboard and lure you into making promises you can’t keep, or thinking you know more than everyone else! Learn to take advice from others, and focus on making the most of situations where your versatility and quick thinking can shine, and you will flourish.

If your name number is 4, you have a talent for hard work and reliability that can take you very far indeed. Your steadiness and dependability make you a valuable friend, partner, and employee. Choose your path with care, after adequate time to research and reflect, but once you’ve chosen, move steadily toward your goal and you can achieve almost anything you can imagine. You will attract friends, though you will need to be careful to avoid people who simply want to exploit your dependability for their own benefit. Remember to learn new things as you go, and don’t let yourself fall into the common 4 habit of underestimating your own capacities—you can accomplish much more than you think.

If your name number is 5, you have an independent mind and shine best when working by yourself. You find it easy to learn from experience but hard to take advice or apply the lessons of others. You will be most successful in life if you can make it an adventure, for change is essential to you and risk adds spice to your experiences. You will have to work to overcome your restless nature when steady work is required, but if you do this you will excel. You are naturally lucky, but don’t count on luck carrying you through every obstacle, because your luck is as unsteady as the rest of your life. A little ordinary caution and some practical preparations for trouble will help stave off the risks involved.

If your name number is 6, you have a gift for making people like and trust you. Follow through on the promises you make to them, respond to their trust and loyalty by being loyal to them in return, and you will attract them to whatever you do—as customers if you are in business, as students if you teach, as supporters in you go into politics, or what have you. Integrity is your great strength, while your great weakness is the temptation to take the love and loyalty of others for granted. Avoid drastic changes and radical action, remember that each day builds momentum that will pay off in the long term, and you can rise very high in the world.

If your name number is 7, you have the capacity for original thought and deep reflection. You will do best in a situation that makes use of your mind and your creative talents. Learn to plan your activities in advance and move step by step toward your goals, and always take the time to think through every important decision before you make it, and you can accomplish great things. Your great weaknesses are depression, on the one hand, and a tendency to chase impractical daydreams on the other; focus your efforts on things you can reasonably hope to accomplish, and remember that you will need help from others if you wish to achieve financial success, since you have no natural talent in that direction.

If your name number is 8, you have the capacity to achieve great things in business or in any practical field, and if you want to make money you can do so—though you will have to work at it.  This is a number of hard work and big plans, and it requires you to set realistic goals for yourself and pursue them over the long term. You will need to learn how to tell the difference between real opportunities and illusory ones, for not every door you encounter leads to success; if you learn from the experiences of others you can avoid many problems. Jealousy and self-indulgence are your great weaknesses; think big and enlarge your heart to make room for others, and you will do well.

If your name number is 9, you have the capacity for great accomplishment in at least one field of activity, but you will need to set your sights high if you are to fulfill that capacity. Drudgery and boredom are very difficult for you to tolerate. Your great weaknesses are pride and arrogance, which can lead you into self-defeating behavior. Strive to live up to high ideals and to be fair to others, and you will avoid that pitfall. This name number can lead to great success or great failure; you will need to work harder to achieve the former and avoid the latter than most people, though you can succeed if you give others the same respect you give yourself.

If your name number is 11, you have the keen judgment of a 2 combined with the capacity for decisive action. This will tend to surface spasmodically—that is, you may go for years living life as a 2, suddenly accomplish something that relies on decisive action, and then settle back to the relative calm and balance of a 2.  Choose your goals carefully, think through all the details of your plan, and be sure of your timing, and you can accomplish your goals.  Pay attention to intuition and inspiration as sources of guidance, and consider learning and practicing one or more of the occult sciences—they will benefit you.

If your name number is 22, you have the capacity to venture into unexplored fields of thought and action. As a name number, this is the mark of the eccentric and the genius, but it can also be the number of the misfit and the misunderstood failure. The patient discipline and capacity for work that characterizes the number 4 is essential, and must be cultivated in order to put your unusual talents to good use. Focus on practical results rather than airy abstractions, or you risk overvaluing your ideas and becoming one of the legions of unsuccessful cranks.

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