New AVANT-OCCULT TRANSLATION – I've translated the Gematria chart
printed in Gérard de Nerval's and Henri Delaage's hermetic anthology,
"The Red Devil: Cabalistic Almanac for 1850". (I discussed this in part 1
of my lecture on 19th Century avant-garde occultism this summer.)
In the original, this was accompanied by numerological findings regarding prominent political and cultural figures; if anybody wants to do the math for some names of international and/or avant-underground people, I'll publish them in Issue 5 of Rêvenance (#4 is already in preparation) and/or a separate chapbook . . . just send them along to olindsann@gmail.com.
These calculations have always been carried out by the magi, sooth-sayers and philosophers of antiquity. The Chaldeans transmitted them to the Hebrews; moreover did the greater part of the predictions in the Bible and the Talmud adopt the science of numbers. The rotation of the starts gave them the initial foundation. Oriental fatalism found in the traditional combinations, which were thus transmitted from people to people, a way to explain all of the fatalities attached to the life of nations and those of individuals. Pythagorus, Plato, Porphery[1], Ptolemy, Philo were just as attached to these adroit combinations as was one camp of the apostles and Church Fathers. According to the opinion of the mystics, every being, from God to the tiniest atom, has a particular number which distinguish them and become the source of their traits as well as their destiny. According to Cornelius Arippa, “chance is only in essence an unrecognised progression, and time only a succession of numbers.” However, the future being a composite of chance and time, it should not be more difficult to discover by this means the outcome of an event of the future of a destiny than to carry twice the same roll of the dice, or to often make fifth and fourteen.[2]
Note. – It is important to be assured of the exactitude of of names inscribed on the baptismal documents. The mystery that make people choose on or the other of these names gives way to errors. One must inscribe the [family] name and given names of the person whose number one seeks, and take for all letters that compose the the numbers indicated in the following alphabet:
[INSERT TABLE HERE]
One must add the numbers of each letter to obtain a total. In order to obtain the meaning of it, the following table must be consulted, while taking care to count the thousand separately and afterward seek the meaning of hundreds, tens, and singles.
Tables of Numbers – Their Power and their Meaning
1. Passion, ambition, desire.
2. Destruction, catastrophe.
3. Religion, destiny, soul, charm.
4. Solidity, wisdom, power.
5. Stars, good fortune, grace, marriage.
6. Accomplishment, redemption, labour.
7. Imperfection, diminution, attempting an attack.[3]
8. Justice, plenitude, conservation.
9. Course of life, repose, liberty, divinity, virgin, Minerva.
10. Accomplishment, reason, unity of the soul and body, future good fortune.
11. Defaults, penitence, discord, prevarication.
12. Town[4], good omen.
13. Impiety, Incredulity.
14. Sacrifice, purification.
15. Piety, contemplation.
16. Good fortune, hedonism, love.
17. Forgetfulness, ill-fortune.
18. Hardening.[5]
19. Nothing.[6]
20. Dignity, sadness.
21. Love of people, sympathy.
22. Creation, mystery, wisdom.
23. Scourge, divine vengeance.
24. Education, desire for the good.
25. Intelligence, birth.
26. Useful labours.
27. Firmness, courage.
28. Amorous favours.
29. Nothing.
30. Receptions,[7] celebrity.
31. Love of glory, virtue.
32. Hymen, chastity.
33. Purity, childbirth.
34. Suffering, spiritual pain.
35. Harmony, holiness.
36. Universe, genius, vast conception.
37. Soft virtues, conjugal love.
38. Imperfection, envy.
39. Nothing.
40. Parties, receptions, satisfaction.
41. Disagreement, ennui.
42. Voyage, well-traveled life.[8]
43. Religious ceremonies, priest.
44. Power, pomp, energy.
45. Conception, loss of virginity.
46. Population, fertility.
47. Long and happy life.
48. Tribunal, judgement, judge.
49. Nothing.
50. Pardon, redemption.
60. Widowhood.[9]
70. Initiated, science, charms
73. Nature, understanding.
75. Sensitivity.
77. Pardon, repenting, charm.
80. Healing, enlightenment.
81. Adept, belief.
90. Blindness, error, to repent.
100. Election, political virtue.
120. Divine love, patriotism.
150. Praise.
200. Irresolution.
300. Salvation, belief, faith, philosophy.
315. Calamity.
318. Divine messenger, new man.
350. Hope, justice.
365. Tough and grueling journey.
400. Astronomy.
490. Priests, theology.
500. Love of mankind.
600. Success
666. Infernal spirit, plot,[10] conspiracy, ennemies.
700. Force, control.
800. Empire, catastrophe.
900. War, combat.
1000. Character, kindness.
1095. Aloofness.
1260. Torment.
1390. Persecution.
We have given above the mystical table of holy books to which one can avail oneself when writing the hebrew names and letters. What we reproduce here was composed in the seventeenth century upon the principles of the other [hebrew system]. We can seek here for any name without attaching an absolute importance to the result, due to the vagueness of ancient correspondences. At the same time it does often offer curious serendipities; for example, Napoléon Bonaparte yields the numbers 755, which give us for 700 force, domination; for 50, pardon, redemption; and for 5, stars, etc.
from Henry Delaage, Gérard de Nerval, et. al. Le Diable Rouge: Almanach Cabalistique pour 1850. 1850. Aubert: Paris. (see Re-issue with introduction, ed. Michel Brix, 2013. Plein Chant: Bassac.)
NOTES
[1] find English spelling
[2] faire quinte et quatorze. I sense that this is a reference to playing cards (quinte is also a “flush” in cards), but can’t nail down what exactly it means, maybe because I don’t play card games . . .
[3] Attentant.
[4] Ville.
[5] Endurcissement.
[6] Nul.
[7] Noces.
[8] Vie traversée.
[9] Viduité.
[10] trame.
In the original, this was accompanied by numerological findings regarding prominent political and cultural figures; if anybody wants to do the math for some names of international and/or avant-underground people, I'll publish them in Issue 5 of Rêvenance (#4 is already in preparation) and/or a separate chapbook . . . just send them along to olindsann@gmail.com.
(Must click on PDF to access chart of Letter-Number correspondences; formatting does not support it here)
Cabalistic Calculus
on family and given names
These calculations have always been carried out by the magi, sooth-sayers and philosophers of antiquity. The Chaldeans transmitted them to the Hebrews; moreover did the greater part of the predictions in the Bible and the Talmud adopt the science of numbers. The rotation of the starts gave them the initial foundation. Oriental fatalism found in the traditional combinations, which were thus transmitted from people to people, a way to explain all of the fatalities attached to the life of nations and those of individuals. Pythagorus, Plato, Porphery[1], Ptolemy, Philo were just as attached to these adroit combinations as was one camp of the apostles and Church Fathers. According to the opinion of the mystics, every being, from God to the tiniest atom, has a particular number which distinguish them and become the source of their traits as well as their destiny. According to Cornelius Arippa, “chance is only in essence an unrecognised progression, and time only a succession of numbers.” However, the future being a composite of chance and time, it should not be more difficult to discover by this means the outcome of an event of the future of a destiny than to carry twice the same roll of the dice, or to often make fifth and fourteen.[2]
___________
Note. – It is important to be assured of the exactitude of of names inscribed on the baptismal documents. The mystery that make people choose on or the other of these names gives way to errors. One must inscribe the [family] name and given names of the person whose number one seeks, and take for all letters that compose the the numbers indicated in the following alphabet:
[INSERT TABLE HERE]
One must add the numbers of each letter to obtain a total. In order to obtain the meaning of it, the following table must be consulted, while taking care to count the thousand separately and afterward seek the meaning of hundreds, tens, and singles.
___________
Tables of Numbers – Their Power and their Meaning
1. Passion, ambition, desire.
2. Destruction, catastrophe.
3. Religion, destiny, soul, charm.
4. Solidity, wisdom, power.
5. Stars, good fortune, grace, marriage.
6. Accomplishment, redemption, labour.
7. Imperfection, diminution, attempting an attack.[3]
8. Justice, plenitude, conservation.
9. Course of life, repose, liberty, divinity, virgin, Minerva.
10. Accomplishment, reason, unity of the soul and body, future good fortune.
11. Defaults, penitence, discord, prevarication.
12. Town[4], good omen.
13. Impiety, Incredulity.
14. Sacrifice, purification.
15. Piety, contemplation.
16. Good fortune, hedonism, love.
17. Forgetfulness, ill-fortune.
18. Hardening.[5]
19. Nothing.[6]
20. Dignity, sadness.
21. Love of people, sympathy.
22. Creation, mystery, wisdom.
23. Scourge, divine vengeance.
24. Education, desire for the good.
25. Intelligence, birth.
26. Useful labours.
27. Firmness, courage.
28. Amorous favours.
29. Nothing.
30. Receptions,[7] celebrity.
31. Love of glory, virtue.
32. Hymen, chastity.
33. Purity, childbirth.
34. Suffering, spiritual pain.
35. Harmony, holiness.
36. Universe, genius, vast conception.
37. Soft virtues, conjugal love.
38. Imperfection, envy.
39. Nothing.
40. Parties, receptions, satisfaction.
41. Disagreement, ennui.
42. Voyage, well-traveled life.[8]
43. Religious ceremonies, priest.
44. Power, pomp, energy.
45. Conception, loss of virginity.
46. Population, fertility.
47. Long and happy life.
48. Tribunal, judgement, judge.
49. Nothing.
50. Pardon, redemption.
60. Widowhood.[9]
70. Initiated, science, charms
73. Nature, understanding.
75. Sensitivity.
77. Pardon, repenting, charm.
80. Healing, enlightenment.
81. Adept, belief.
90. Blindness, error, to repent.
100. Election, political virtue.
120. Divine love, patriotism.
150. Praise.
200. Irresolution.
300. Salvation, belief, faith, philosophy.
315. Calamity.
318. Divine messenger, new man.
350. Hope, justice.
365. Tough and grueling journey.
400. Astronomy.
490. Priests, theology.
500. Love of mankind.
600. Success
666. Infernal spirit, plot,[10] conspiracy, ennemies.
700. Force, control.
800. Empire, catastrophe.
900. War, combat.
1000. Character, kindness.
1095. Aloofness.
1260. Torment.
1390. Persecution.
We have given above the mystical table of holy books to which one can avail oneself when writing the hebrew names and letters. What we reproduce here was composed in the seventeenth century upon the principles of the other [hebrew system]. We can seek here for any name without attaching an absolute importance to the result, due to the vagueness of ancient correspondences. At the same time it does often offer curious serendipities; for example, Napoléon Bonaparte yields the numbers 755, which give us for 700 force, domination; for 50, pardon, redemption; and for 5, stars, etc.
from Henry Delaage, Gérard de Nerval, et. al. Le Diable Rouge: Almanach Cabalistique pour 1850. 1850. Aubert: Paris. (see Re-issue with introduction, ed. Michel Brix, 2013. Plein Chant: Bassac.)
NOTES
[1] find English spelling
[2] faire quinte et quatorze. I sense that this is a reference to playing cards (quinte is also a “flush” in cards), but can’t nail down what exactly it means, maybe because I don’t play card games . . .
[3] Attentant.
[4] Ville.
[5] Endurcissement.
[6] Nul.
[7] Noces.
[8] Vie traversée.
[9] Viduité.
[10] trame.
