Pythagoras and his followers, the Pythagoreans, held a profound and unique perspective on numbers, believing they possessed a special nature and were fundamental to understanding the cosmos. For them, numbers were not merely quantities but entities with inherent qualities and symbolic meanings.
The Special Nature of Numbers
The Pythagoreans believed that numbers were thought to have their own special nature. This went beyond their mathematical properties; numbers were imbued with characteristics that humans might attribute to living beings or abstract concepts.
Key aspects of their numerical philosophy included:
- Personification of Numbers: Pythagoreans assigned human-like attributes to numbers, considering them to be:
- Male or female
- Ugly or beautiful
- Possessing a special meaning
- Numbers as Principles: They saw numbers as underlying principles of the universe, with each number holding specific significance related to aspects of existence, philosophy, or even morality.
Examples of Pythagorean Number Symbolism
The provided reference offers specific examples of how certain numbers were interpreted:
| Number | Symbolism / Attributes |
|---|---|
| 1 | The number of reason |
| 2 | The first even or female number, the number of opinion |
This demonstrates their system of assigning intrinsic qualities and philosophical meanings to individual numbers. For example, the number '1' was linked to unity and the faculty of logical thought, while '2' represented duality, often associated with the feminine principle and the subjective nature of opinion.
This deep philosophical connection to numbers, viewing them as living entities with intrinsic properties, formed a cornerstone of Pythagorean thought and influenced their approach to mathematics, music, and cosmology.
For further details, refer to the Pythagoras article by NRICH - Millennium Mathematics Project.
