That Curious Number 9

By James Donahue

Numerologists and people who play with sacred geometry, astrology and just accumulate peculiar facts have long been fascinated by the uniqueness of the simple number 9. That is because all numeric equations and even the measurements of the universe seem to end up at the number 9.

One can play for hours at all of the peculiar things you can do with this number and no other. For example any number multiplied times 9 will give you a combination of numbers when added together will equal 9.

9x1=9
9x2=18 1+8=9
9x3=27 2+7=9
9x4=36 3+6=9
9x5=45 4+5=9
9x6=54 5+4=9
9x7=63 6+3=9
9x8=72 7+2=9
9x9=81 8+1=9

You can go as high as you want with this game and it always works out the same way. For example, 9 times 485 equal 4365. Add 4+3+6+5 and you get 9.

When you do yet another mathematical trick with the number 9 you get this interesting result:

0 x 9 + 1 = 1
1 x 9 + 2 = 11
12 x 9 + 3 = 111
123 x 9 + 4 = 1111
1234 x 9 + 5 = 11111
12345 x 9 + 6 = 111111
123456 x 9 + 7 = 1111111
1234567 x 9 + 8 = 11111111
12345678 x 9 + 9 = 111111111
123456789 x 9 + 10 = 1111111111

Prime numbers are natural numbers greater than 1 that have no positive divisors other than 1 and itself. For example prime numbers are 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 11 and 13. But 9, while not a prime number (since it can be divided by 3), is such an amazing number that the ancients considered it a sacred or holy number. That is because it shows up in so many mathematical numbers that measure our world and the universe that surrounds it.

There are 360 degrees in a circle. 3+6+0=9

The diameter of the Earth is 7,920 miles. 7+9+2+0=18; 8+1=9

The radius of the Earth is 3,960 miles. 3+9+6+0=18; 8+1=9

The diameter of the moon is 2,160 miles. 2+1+6+0= 9

The radius of the moon is 1,080 miles. 1+0+8+0=9

It takes the moon 27 days to orbit the Earth. 2+7=9

A 24 hour day amounts to 1,440 minutes or 86,400 seconds. 8+6+4=18; 1+8=9

The procession of the Earth’s axis is 25,920 years. 2+5+9+2=18=9

There are 12 astrological ages, each lasting 2,160 years. 2+1+6=9

A human mother goes through 9 months of gestation during a pregnancy.

This same strange pattern leading to the number 9 seems to be found just about everywhere we look.

In Chapter 9 of the Book of the Revelation, the "beast" is described as 666. The number 6 is an upside-down 9. The numbers 6+6+6=18=9. The story in Revelation also speaks of the 144,000, or Great Multitude. The numbers 1+4+4 add up to 9.

It is interesting that the number for Carbon, a building block of life, is 6. This molecule includes 6 protons, 6 neutrons and 6 electrons, or 666. And of course these numbers add up to 18 and then 9.

Marko Rodin, the inventor of the Rodin coil that supposedly creates energy out of nothing, said he used sacred geometry the omitted the number 9. Yet in reaching his design, Rodin said the number 9 played an iatrical part of his formula. As a Bahai believer, he converted the name of God, or Abha, by converting the letters in the Arabic language into numbers as they appear in the Abjad numerical system. Thus A=1, b=2, h=5 and a=1 for a total of 9. Rodin then drew a circle and placed the number 9 at the top. Then he placed the numbers 1 through 8 in a clockwise direction around the circle.

Through experimentation by drawing straight lines from number to number within the circle, he reached the design of his coil. It too him years, but Rodin said he discovered the 1,2,5,8,7 and 5 pattern worked as a circuit for his coil.

Both ancient and modern traditions are laced with symbolism around the number 9, which is the highest of the numbers used in the ten distinct forms. Thus when looking at the row of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, the number 9 is the final and highest number. It thus represents a limit, an ultimate attainment. Thus we have sayings like "the whole nine yards," or "dressed to the nines" to represent going to the extreme.

There are superstitions surrounding the number 9 as well. Beethoven died after writing 9 symphonies. After this, composers have never numbered a symphony past 9. It was said that Mahler wrote more than nine symphonies, but never named them.

The game of baseball has 9 innings and 9 players. The term "bottom of the ninth" usually means the end of the game, unless a tie forces the game into overtime. Then they stop counting the innings.

Another strange number combination is that infamous 9-11. This is the eleventh year since that terrible event occurred in the United States. We can play with this number combination the same way as above.

Using the date 9/11/01, we can multiply 9 times 11 time 1 and come up with the number 99. Add 9+9 and we get 18. Add 1+8 and the answer is 9.