The Magic of Labyrinths: Following Your Path, Finding Your Center. Liz Simpson

and its inhabitants He blessed and sanctified the seventh day. Indeed, the Bible is full of references to the number 7, from the length of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:19) to the seven sayings of Jesus uttered from the Cross.

      

       This labyrinth, in the Church of Reparatus in Orleansville, Algeria, dating from the fourth century, is the oldest known example of a pavement labyrinth. The letters in the center are a puzzle based on the words “Santa Eclesia.”

So, given the widespread connection between the Christian religion and the number 7, why does the Chartres design consist of eleven rather than seven circuits? To answer this, we need to take a brief journey into the realm of numerology and sacred geometry.

      Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was not just being facetious when he wrote that the meaning of life was 42. Numerology – the study of numbers and their relationships – is an ancient occult or esoteric art. While it is believed to have originated with the Greek mathematician, Pythagoras, some experts argue that he learned about the prophetic nature of numbers from the Kabala. This early Hebrew work mainly consists of mystical practices aimed at uncovering the nature of divinity, creation, the soul and the earthly role of human beings. You may have had a small taste of numerology yourself when adding up the numeric relationship with the letters making up your name or your birth date. According to modern numerologists, such calculations offer clues to a person’s talents, life challenges, basic values and the way they might best express themselves through their choice of work. Pythagoras is said to have developed a letter wheel by which he could predict – like an astrologer – the future events in a person’s life based on their name.