List Price: $16.95Our Price: $11.53 You Save: $5.42 (32%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 516
EAN: 9781578633838
ISBN: 1578633834
Label: Weiser Books
Manufacturer: Weiser Books
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 193
Publication Date: 2007-04
Publisher: Weiser Books
Sales Rank: 101312
Studio: Weiser Books
Related Items:
Editorial Review:
Product Description:
A Magical Mystery Tour of Math History
Much of what we know as math comes to us directly from early astronomer magi who needed to be able to describe and record what they saw in the night sky. Everyone needed math: whether you were the king's court astrologer or a farmer marking the best time for planting, timekeeping and numbers really mattered. Mistake a numerical pattern of petals and you could poison yourself. Lose the rhythm of a sacred dance or the meter of a ritually told story and the intricately woven threads that hold life together were spoiled. Ignore the celestial clock of equinoxes and solstices, and you'd risk being caught short of food for the winter.
'As thoughtful as it is readable, Renna Shesso's Math for Mystics is the book I wish I had when I first started trying to make sense of the mathematics that underlie so much of modern magic and traditional occult lore. Not the least of its virtues is the way it makes magical number theory accessible even to those who think they don't like or can't handle math. It provides a first-rate introduction to a fairly neglected branch of magical lore.'
-- John Michael Greer Grand Archdruid, Ancient Order of Druids in America and author of The Druidry Handbook
Renna Shesso's friendly tone, delightful 'math lore,' meticulous research, and clear information makes math easy to understand. This marvelous book begins with the simplest lunary and planetary math and then tackles the most enigmatic of numerical esoterica such as Platonic Solids, the Golden Section, Luna's Labyrinth, and Benjamin Franklin's favorite way to pass the time, 'Magical Squares,' akin to the 17th century Sudoku.
For anyone who tried to understand the Fibonacci Sequence of numbers from Dan Brown's (son of a mathematician) The DaVinci Code, this book is for you!
'In times past, math was seen as magic for its power and associations. It was even banned by authorities who thought it a threat--a power that no one else should hold. In this book, that ancient magic is relived, and the power yours.'
-- Jeff Hoke, author of The Museum of Lost Wonder
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
The book is supposed to be about math, but near its beginning, it indicates that little background in math is required. The book explores a number of traditions that many occultists are already aware of, though the writing is in a pleasant style.
Some of the more diverting subjects include different ways of counting on one's fingers, though the approaches are simplistic (with a little creativity, one can count to 100 on the fingers of both hands, but I haven't run into such a technique ... Read More
Rating:  -
Very boring and simplistic. This book has very litle depth but an abndance of directions. Buy this if you want a very rough intro to the subject matter there are much more thoughtful and informative books on the subjects presented.
Rating: -
Good reference/beginning to knowin about things I've heard about for years. Makes you want to know more,
Rating: -
I hope that I finally learned a lesson when I ordered this book, and that is to not impulsively purchase a new "read" just because you are attracted by the cover art. Maybe we ought score yet another point for the marketing gurus at the book publishers who apparently know how to package their merchandise to achieve increased sales. In the meantime, we can mark down one more big "zero" for the longsuffering, financially-challenged reader.
Now, I am not trying to be cruel and I take no delight ... Read More
Rating:  -
Modern mathematics as professionally practiced is too often severed from its roots in the marvelous contemplation of our life in nature. When its origins are remembered at all, the focus is usually on necessity, for example the need to measure the movement of the sun or moon for practical matters of planting or harvesting. But to our ancestors even the most practical math was also a source of wonder at the deep yet comprehensible connections within the universe. This wonder is the true beginning of magic. ... Read More
Browse for similar items by category:
|
Aries
Taurus
Gemini
Cancer
Leo
Virgo
Libra
Scorpio
Sagittarius
Capricorn
Aquarius
Pisces
