Seven. It seems like such a simple number, yet many cultures consider it to be lucky. In fact, this number is seen significantly in religions from every civilized continent. It is such an important number that it was chosen to represent the number of days in the week, despite it not being a divisor for the number of days of the year. Coincidence? Maybe…
The “Seven Deadly Sins,” pyramids have 4 triangles (3+4=7), Mayan pyramids had seven steps, the “Seven Lucky Gods” (Japanese mythology.) The references go on and on, and on.
Today there are seven billion people on Earth, which is ironic considering the hysteria we are sure to see in the coming months. Many predict the end of the world, or some massive shift in society. Most of these can be traced back to the Mayan calendar, and various (most likely) bad interpretations of a dead language.
Some argue that seven’s significance goes back to ancient times, when it was believed there were 7 figures in the sky which behaved differently from stars. Five visible planets (stars that didn’t stay in one spot), plus the Sun and the Moon. I doubt that, because back then we had to stay hidden at night to avoid being eaten. So then what is it?
It seems that our entire race is infatuated with this number, and now our population has matched it in a way that no one could have predicted ages ago. If seven is so lucky, then are we entering a golden age of humanity? It sure is hard to say, considering the economic problems we are facing today.
Perhaps 7 is a very important number…
The answer to “…Life, the Universe, and Everything” is 42, which is 7 times 6. 6 also being frequently used in religious symbology, of course.
cynicaldriver 