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

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #222123 in Books
• Published on: 2007-04-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781578633838
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"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

"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

About the Author
Renna Shesso brings a life-long study of mystical traditions to her writing. Inspired by her herbalist/astrologer grandmother, she studies mythology and history, archeology, tarot, the vast lore of the Goddess traditions, and many other good mysteries. A long-time resident of Colorado, she is a shamanic practitioner and a teacher and priestess of Wicca.

Customer Reviews

Living Math
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.

Renna Shesso's delightful Math for Mystics recovers both the practical and the wonderful in math with a refreshingly clear and lively writing style. The author includes numerous well-designed illustrations and diagrams that she has thoughtfully integrated with the text. Here you will find explained not only the math methods but also the associations that inform their proper magical uses. The selection of topics is excellent, from the origins of measurement to geometric solids, with many implications for numerology. Math for Mystics will be of interest to anyone curious about the living world of math or who seeks a deeper understanding of magical practice. No previous background in math is needed to access and understand this material.

Excellent book
When I recieved this book in the mail, I knew it would help me to better understand sacred geometry. I did not realize to what extent it would help. This book teaches the mathematics behind sacred geometry. I am planning my own sacred geometry project. In that endeavor, this book has proven priceless.

Math for Mystics: From the Fibonacci sequence to Luna's Labyrinth to the Golden Section and Other Secrets of Sacred Geometry

Math Is as Math Does
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 in the book). Before presenting each of the "planetary" Magic Squares, the author discusses the aspects attributed to each square. Similar things have been done before, notably in Medieval and later grimoires, and more succinctly.

For best results, the reader should be a novice in esoterica with little mathematical background. The book is, at best, an introductory text, hardly anything intermediate to advanced. It makes nice summer reading though.