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Five stands for the Christ, or the spirit, resurrected from the tomb of matter. Four is the cross upon which I is crucified. Only as the lower nature is subjugated or crucified does the ego begin to rise toward freedom through a recognition of its innate divinity.
It is in accordance with these facts that the esoteric numerology of the early Christians held five to signify the sacred wounds upon the body of Christ Jesus, these being 5 in number. Related to this fact is the sorrow of the Via Dolorosa; since this is so difficult and beset with so many temptations, the number 5 has been considered by some to be a portent of evil. In the numerical mysticism of St. Martin, the quinary is the number of evil principle. However, earlier systems of numerology gave 5 as the number of macrocosm. If, then, we consider 5 representative of man's attempt to rise above the chaos of the present age, we can see where the difficulties involved in such an accomplishment would be looked upon as unfortunate, or evil from the personal point of view, whereas in reality, from the viewpoint of the spirit and its progress it merely identifies with the severe trials inevitably encountered in attaining to the state of eternal good, Five is good in the making.
The life and works of the apostle Paul are indicative of the powers of 5. Says Paul: "It doth not yet appear what we shall be." These words are particularly applicable to 5, the true symbol of which is the Pentagram, the five pointed star. Five has been called the dual number because it represents the two natures, the higher and the lower, which contend for supremacy in the life of man. The victory of the higher or spiritual nature over the lower is beautifully illustrated in the life of Paul, the change resulting in the adoption of another name, Saul, which became Paul, the former name representing in his case the lower man. In his awakened spiritual state he could no longer endure the vibratory impacts of the name Saul. The letter 'P' or 'Phe' in Hebrew, is symbolical of light, and is represented pictorially by a star.
In the struggle between the two conflicting natures, the person coming under 5 must contend with a nervous, restless energy. His environment undergoes constant change. Life being his supreme teacher, he is brought into touch with many places, personalities, and problems, each and all of which yield their quota of experience and supply an abundance of material out of which to extract the qualities that make for wisdom, character, and the growth of the soul.
Since 5 is half of 10, the cycle of unity, it is not surprising to find the 5 person a wide traveler. But his wanderings are not aimless; they contribute to the enrichment of the spirit and the strength of will and purpose necessary to meet successfully the trying situations which invariably meet the pilgrim on the path of 5.
The Masonic Fraternity is instructed that 5 is the most important number because it is at the center of the series of 10 which embraces unity. Two paths are continuously opening for the Five. Situations appear to reappear which represents the choice between the high and the low. Five is a powerful number for good or ill.
The pentagram, which is the symbol of 5, represents man with arms and legs outstretched and head erect. It is the 1 resurrected from out of the tomb or cross of matter. So we may say 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 represent the human series. They are the powers under which mankind has attained to its present state of consciousness. The numbers 6, 7, 8, and 9 point the way over which humanity may attain to complete emancipation and final atonement with divinity. That consummation is realized in 10, or unity, which marks the end of a numerical series and the conclusion of the present cycle of manifestation.
The crucial, decisive point in life experience marked by 5 links it closely in parable and allegory with 7, the number of earth work completion. The Supreme Master gave His disciples a beautiful lesson in the spiritual significance of numbers in the Parable of the Loaves and Fishes. There were to commence with, 5 loaves and 2 fishes, yet, after the multitude had been fed, there remained twelve baskets full of food. Five is a pendulum swinging between the influence of 2, the imperfect, and 3, the perfect. The Loaves and Fishes of the Christ parable are symbols of the essences of life which are extracted out of the experiences encountered in the course of our successive cycles of earth life. In terms of the Parable, the spiritual powers of 5 have lifted the powers of 2 above duality to the higher level whereon polarity is realized, the 5 and the 2 equalling the 7 through which the creative powers brought the world into being. The Days of Creation number 7. The result of this operation produces 12 — hence, in the Parable 12 baskets full remained. It indicates the far-reaching influences of the individual who has attained to the powers of 12. Twelve holds 3, the first perfect number, as its digit. Before it was possible for Joshua, the foremost disciple of Moses, to perform the magical feat of causing the Sun and Moon to stand still, which is but another expression of bringing duality into equilibrium, he was compelled to war upon and subjugate five kings. It was only after this important experience, which was the turning point in his life, that he was able to enter into the Promised Land (New Age). Melchizedek, priest and mystic, met the five kings in battle, and not until he had vanquished these did he bestow the rites which we refer to as the Order of Melchizedek upon Abraham in the city of Salem, the high place of peace. The five kings symbolize in both instances the powers of the five senses which at present so largely dominate the life of man.
Both of the above cited Old Testament records pertaining to 5 bear much the same numerical significance as does that of the Parable of the Loaves and Fishes. In the New Testament instance the work of spiritual realization is carried farther than in the Old. The former strikes a higher evolutionary keynote, coming as it does under the regime of the Christ than the Old, which came under the direction of Jehovah.
In the Parable of the Loaves and Fishes, 5 has become "The master of his fate, the captain of his soul. "
Such a one is truly represented by the five-pointed star. He has gained that most desirable of all gifts, the power of self-control. Not the Heavens above, the elements beneath, nor the invisible forces everywhere present can cause him to swerve from the right. The star is his crown and he wears it gloriously, influencing all whom he contacts by the radiance of its light. Such is the high destiny of 5 as revealed by biblical sages who knew its highest functions.
Five is the star; its color is a sheer luminous pink; and its highest status is represented by the sage. (The word 'sage' carries the power of 4).
The following lines are excerpts from the Pythagorean writings concerning the number 5:
Five is eminently a spherical and circular number because in every multiplication it restores itself, and is found terminating the number; it is change of quality, because it changes what has three dimensions into the sameness of a sphere by moving circularly and producing light, and hence light is referred to the number Five.
Five is the "privation of strife" because it unites in friendship the two forms of the numbers, even and odd, the 2 and the 3.
Five is Venus, which unites the male Three and the female Two. It is also a demi-goddess, because it is half of the decad, which is Divinity. Also Pallas the immortal, because Pallas presides over the ether, or the fifth element which is indestructible and is not material to our present senses.
Five is Cardiatis, or Cordelia, because like a heart, it is in the middle of the body of the nine digits when placed thus:
It is interesting to note in connection with the last item mentioned above that 5 is Leo, the fifth sign of the zodiac which governs the heart.
The vowels of a language are the centers or foci of spiritual forces. In Oriental theology as presented in the most ancient stanzas of the Vedas it is taught that it was through these forces that Brahma created the world. In the wisdom of the ancient Hebrews it was held that the five vowels were centers of good or evil, avenues of white or black magic, in accordance with the manner in which they were used. In ancient Greece the five vowels hung upon the walls of the Delphic temple, presenting to the neophyte who came to inquire into the Mysteries and opportunity for proving their qualifications for admission and advancement through deciphering their spiritual significance.
Five was proclaimed the sacred number of this temple.
The vowels are feminine, and in a name they represent the nature and strength of the forces that incline toward a knowledge of the secrets of nature and a practice of the mystical truths of life not even recognized as yet by the masses of humanity. The vowels are the hidden sanctuary within wherein dwell the highest aspirations and the holiest impulses of the soul; they constitute the Holy of Holies which no alien presence ever desecrates. It was of this sanctuary of the spirit that Emerson wrote when he said: "All men descend to meet." In this same high place abide the noble impulses and the lofty dreams that are destined to come some time or other to birth in the waking consciousness of evolving man, and to place their celestial signature indelibly upon the personal life of the external man. Five is the number of joy and sorrow; the two qualities between which a Five oscillates until the opposites have been reconciled into a higher polarity.
It is the purpose of this course of Numbers to aid the student to recognize the highest power of each number and to point the way to an effective cooperation with these powers. There is available to us in this science of vibration a knowledge of laws by which we can release more fully and speedily the latent idealism within our inmost natures and come to live ever more fully in harmony with universal principles of good. By accentuating the highest spiritual qualities of numbers we hope to assist the students of this Divine Science to approach the subject with reverence and devotion, and to live in accordance with its sacred precepts,
A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return, And he called ten servants of his and gave them ten pounds, and said unto them trade ye herewith till I come. But his citizens hated him, and sent a message after him saying, we will not that this man reign over us.
And it came to pass, when he was come back again, having received the kingdom, that he commanded his servants, unto whom he had given the money, be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by trading. And the first came before him saying, Lord, thy pound hath made ten pounds more. And he said unto him, Well done, thou good servant; because thou was found faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities. And the second came, saying, Thy pound, Lord, hath made five pounds. And he said unto him also, Be thou also over five cities. — Luke 19:12-19
In esoteric symbology a city denotes a state of consciousness, and it is with the development of consciousness in some one or another of its many aspects that the Master is chiefly concerned in the several parables attributed to Him. In the unfoldment of consciousness lies the key to the secret of spiritual development.
Five represents the awakening of the "I AM" within, the dawning realization of God in Man. In its highest relationships, Five sees in retrospect the path of its evolution from the time that it first contacted matter while yet in spirit at the stage of I up to its present individualized and illumined status as a true messenger of the gods, ready to receive the commandment which is given only to one who has attained self-mastery: "Be thou also over five cities". The Five also looks into the future beholding an ever-ascending spiritual development that leads finally to a complete at-one-ment with spirit. At this stage he will hear the commendation: "Well done, thou good servant. Because thou was found faithful in a very little have thou authority over ten cities".
Five is the keystone in the arch of the structure of life; in the series of 9, four numbers are on each side. A Five person will meet in life a series of situations in which he is called upon to make a definite choice. In the last analysis that choice is one that calls for allegiance to the forces of construction and progression or an adherence to the powers of negation and retrogression. The perfect ideal for the Five was given by the Christ in the five words which shone upon His robe at the time of the Transfiguration like five scintillating stars, i.e., "Glorious robe of my strength."
In Daniel we read: "Unto two thousand and three hundred days, then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." The sanctuary referred to is the human body, the living temple of the indwelling God. The supreme work of 5, as Daniel states, is the cleansing of the sanctuary, or the regeneration of the body of man. In Matthew we find further instruction as to the process of renewal or redemption:
Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For the foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them; but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. Now while the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
But at midnight there is a cry, Behold the bridegroom! Come ye forth and meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil, for our lamps are going out. But the wise answered, saying, Peradventure there will not be enough for us and you; go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
And while they went away to buy, the bridegroom came, and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily, I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know not the day nor the hour. — Matt. 25:1-13
The bridegroom symbolizes the Christed powers of the illumined five, the five wise virgins. The marriage refers to the union of the head and heart, or intellect and intuition. This blending produces an inner illumination which is maintained by the oil of the soul, or wisdom, and this inner luminosity produces an expansion of the five senses so that the virgins become truly 'wise'. The parable also indicates the dual path before which the Five must make his choice.
The number 365 digits 5. It is the numerical value of the days making up the cycle of the calendar year, a period of opportunities for progress and for the harvesting of fruits grown from seeds previously planted.
Five is essentially the number of life. A Five lives to the fullest in this physical expression; he almost automatically extracts the very essence of every experience which life holds for him. There are no halfway measures he aims to enter fully into the entire gamut of experience, and will let go of none until he has explored it in its entirety.
The fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet is He or H, the Hota of the ancient Greek. This letter also means life or vitality; it refers not only to physical animation, but to the capacity for breathing a more rarefied air than that known to the average mortal.
When the Five has learned the lessons that physical experience has to teach him, he is ready to experience this inflow from on high which will make him a new and different being. Such was the transformation that occurred in the lives of Abraham and Sarah with the addition of the letter "H" to their names. This transformation has a meaning for both the inner and the outer life. It manifests physically as exuberant health and expresses itself intellectually in an increasingly sensitized and enriched mind which in turn becomes instrumental through its well-focused and controlled powers to reflect more fully and accurately the faculties of the spirit within. Those double effects occurred in the lives of both Sarah and Abraham after the addition of "H"(5) to their names. True to the nature of the change as this may be known in the light of the science of numerical emanation, a new joy (Isaac) was born to the renewed lives of the patriarchal couple. It is only after such a new birth that one is really alive.
Paul referred repeatedly to this transition in consciousness as "putting off the old and putting on the new." Such is the work of 5. It is a tremendous change, and before it can be effected there must be a reversal in the flow of the life process. Whereas they are now directed chiefly outward and downward, they must be turned inward and upward. Regeneration is particularly the work of 5 as evidenced in the life and divine apostleship of Paul.
The word 'corn' which is used so frequently in both the Old and the New Testaments, is a 5-power word, and has reference in this specific regenerative process. In this connection study the account given in Genesis of the famine that occurred when Joseph was Prime Minister of Egypt, and the multitudes that came into that land in search of the needed corn. The Five makes this journey into Egypt many times before he is finally successful in obtaining his portion of the coveted grain. When he does receive his measure of corn, he realizes what occurred in the life of Paul on his journey.
The fifth element is Mercury. It is Quintessence, or the substance of all things. To synthesize, refine, and spiritualize all experience into the oil of soul wisdom for keeping eternally alight the lamps of the Wise Virgins is the destiny of 5.
"The number 5 appears in the Scriptures most often in two relations, i.e., the planes of manifestation and the senses."
Some of the forces contacted by the Ego are harmonious, others inharmonious, the purpose of evolution being to transform darkness into light, matter into spirit, and death into eternal life.
1. What part of this evolutionary drama is represented by 5?
2. Correlate 5 with the fifth zodiacal sign, Leo.
3. What biblical character typifies the forces of 5?
4. Give some keywords descriptive of 5.
— Corinne Heline
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