Sacred Numbers 8, 9, and 10: Christian and Kabbalistic Symbolism

then of neighbors, as is said in the Stromata VII,III,16,1-4. Clement of Alexandria and Origen insist on interpreting the Scriptures in the Archeo-sophic way, specifying: "The Savior is the Son of God who saves: this is therefore the principle (Arché)" (EP 4 = Eclogae propheticae). The Eight is mentioned by Saint Basil of Caesarea in his Traité du Saint-Esprit, XVII,192: "this 'one' day is the eighth, and signifies, in itself, this truly unique and truly eighth day, of which the psalmist makes mention, as in the title of certain psalms".

• The number 8:

is called "peace" and "perfection", as well as "Eternity" and "stability". It was often associated with harmony because of the musical octave, so much so that it was also called the "panharmonic" number. Also in the Christian tradition the eighth day is the day after which there is no longer a new week, it is the unique and definitive one (Lubac).

Using the number 9 we generate the primary decompositions of 8:

$$8 + 9 = 17 \rightarrow 8 = 1 + 7$$

$$17 + 9 = 26 \rightarrow 8 = 2 + 6$$

$$26 + 9 = 35 \rightarrow 8 = 3 + 5$$

$$35 + 9 = 44 \rightarrow 8 = 4 + 4$$

$$44 + 9 = 53 \rightarrow 8 = 5 + 3$$

$$53 + 9 = 62 \rightarrow 8 = 6 + 2$$

$$62 + 9 = 71 \rightarrow 8 = 7 + 1$$

$$71 + 9 = 80 \rightarrow 8 = 8$$

The general sense of nine is that of Initiation, that is, of the ninth arcanum; it is the victory over human trials that Initiation leads through the moral purity acquired by consciousness. Revelation or Divine Wisdom is the manifestation of the ninth arcanum of the Creator's will. Nine is the cabalistic number by archeosophic addition of 72 $(7 + 2 = 9)$ remembered by Jesus in the gospel of Luke, 10:1: "The Lord appointed seventy-two other disciples and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go." He thus designated the mission of the apostles. Nine is an essential part of the celestial hierarchy on which Dionysius the Areopagite dwelt in his exposition on Angelic Orders and with him Dante Alighieri, Saint Bonaventure, Saint Francis, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux. Nine is the multiplication of $3$ (God) $\times 3$, which makes $9$, the cipher that leads to faith = the spiritual cement that unites Man to God.

To nine correspond the Seraphim and this is the esoteric Mystery of the NINTH day of which I speak to you, the passage from Isaiah VI,6 can serve as your guide. If hierarchically it is not possible in exoteric language for the first angelic order to enter into direct communication with a human being, it is instead possible in an esoteric way, and we know this from Origen's statements from what is written by the prophet and martyr Isaiah: "Then one of the seraphim flew to me; he held in his hand a burning coal which he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth and said to me: 'Behold, this has touched your lips, therefore your iniquity has disappeared and your sin is atoned for'."

Nine is considered an initiatic number of great significance, corresponding to the square of three, that is $3^2 = 9$ and to the multiplication of the ternary by itself $3 \times 3 = 9$. Nine is also very important because according to biblical Scripture it refers to the 72 attributes of God and to the 72 angels dominating the universe and around the throne of the Almighty Jehovah. 72 is the addition of $7 + 2 = 9$. In Genesis chapter 28 in reference to Jacob's ladder dreamed according to verse 12 it was formed of 72 steps. The number 9 is very important because it evokes the 72 attributes of God and the angelic hierarchies to which the Zohar also refers.

Nine is the cipher of generation, of the creative seed and of reincarnation. Who doesn't know that the gestation that precedes a birth requires nine months? It is a dissolver of other numbers; from it derive interesting results:

$$9 \times 1 = 9$$

$$9 \times 2 = 18: (1 + 8) = 9$$

$$9 \times 3 = 27: (2 + 7) = 9$$

$$9 \times 4 = 36: (3 + 6) = 9$$

$$9 \times 5 = 45: (4 + 5) = 9$$

$$9 \times 6 = 54: (5 + 4) = 9$$

$$9 \times 7 = 63: (6 + 3) = 9$$

$$9 \times 8 = 72: (7 + 2) = 9$$

$$9 \times 9 = 81: (8 + 1) = 9$$

$$9 \times 10 = 90: (9 + 0) = 9$$

You can continue multiplying 9 by the next number and in the end you always get 9 as a result.

• The number 9:

which was called "Ocean" or also "Horizon", the insurmountable limit before 10, was sometimes also called "Hyperion" because it has gone beyond all numbers, and at the same time defines the limit for which it was called "limitation". Nine is also a dissolver of various numbers, it decomposes them and makes them disappear.

Using the number 9 we generate the primary decompositions of 9:

$$9 + 9 = 18 \rightarrow 9 = 1 + 8$$

$$18 + 9 = 27 \rightarrow 9 = 2 + 7$$

$$27 + 9 = 36 \rightarrow 9 = 3 + 6$$

$$36 + 9 = 45 \rightarrow 9 = 4 + 5$$

$$45 + 9 = 54 \rightarrow 9 = 5 + 4$$

$$54 + 9 = 63 \rightarrow 9 = 6 + 3$$

$$63 + 9 = 72 \rightarrow 9 = 7 + 2$$

$$72 + 9 = 81 \rightarrow 9 = 8 + 1$$

$$81 + 9 = 90 \rightarrow 9 = 9$$

Ten is the number that springs from the sum of the first four numbers $1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10$, the Pythagorean Tetraktys that gives the sense of return to unity. Pythagoras considers 10 the most sacred of numbers, and eternal source of eternal Nature. It was therefore considered as a symbol of universal creation. Moses, perfect knower of the symbolism of Number, carved the tablets of the Law developing the 10 Commandments or decalogue. The Bible sees in this circular number like unity. Apuleius, referring to the Egyptian priests of Isis, speaks in first person: "I was ordered to abstain from the pleasures of the table for ten days, not to eat meat and not to drink wine." Scripture says that Jacob wrestled with the angel for ten days and finally won receiving the blessing at sunrise, receiving the epithet of Israel. Daniel was saved from the lions' den, David defeated Goliath and the Philistines in the number ten and Joshua defeated thirty-one kings. Ten days after Christ's ascension, the Holy Spirit descended to earth. The Kabbalah names 10 Sefirot. It is the "accomplishment".

• The number 10:

"Cosmos", "Heaven", "All", "Eternity", "Force", "Trust", "Atlas", "Urania", "container of everything", "receptacle", "Sun", "Inexhaustible Nature" and "Omniperfection". This number in itself represents the Unity-totality of numbers explained.

Using the number 9 we generate the primary decompositions of 10:

$$10 + 9 = 19 \rightarrow 10 = 1 + 9$$

$$19 + 9 = 28 \rightarrow 10 = 2 + 8$$

$$28 + 9 = 37 \rightarrow 10 = 3 + 7$$

$$37 + 9 = 46 \rightarrow 10 = 4 + 6$$

$$46 + 9 = 55 \rightarrow 10 = 5 + 5$$

$$55 + 9 = 64 \rightarrow 10 = 6 + 4$$

$$64 + 9 = 73 \rightarrow 10 = 7 + 3$$

$$73 + 9 = 82 \rightarrow 10 = 8 + 2$$