#Magic Square

[thesorceresstemple]

[archiveofaffinities]

Squares- A Public Place Design Guide for Urbanists by Mark C. Childs, "Magic Square"

[useless-catalanfacts]

If you visit the Sagrada Família basilica in Barcelona (Catalonia), you might be intrigued by these squares with numbers. Like every detail in the building, it has a symbolic meaning.

These are a very particular kind of magic squares. A "magic square" is a series of numbers on a square grid, placed so that any row, column, or diagonal line always adds up to the same number. Well, to be fair, there is one more rule for the normal magic squares which this one doesn't follow: the squares cannot repeat numbers and must use all numbers from 1 to the number of squares possible (for example, a square of 3x3 would have numbers from 1 to 9, a square of 4x4 would have them from 1 to 16, etc). When this rule is followed, the number that results from the addition will always be the same (in a square of 3x3, the sum of 1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9 = 45, and each row, column and diagonal line sums 45/3 = 15; in a 4 x 4 magic square, where the sum of all the numbers from 1 to 16 is 136, the magic constant is 136/4 = 34). For mathematical reasons, the resulting number cannot be chosen, it will always be the same one if we follow those rules.

And here is why this one doesn't follow that rule, and it's on purpose. It doesn’t have all the numbers from 1 to 16 (it is missing the 12 and 16) and some numbers are repeated. And why did they do that? Here's the important bit: the result of the sum isn’t 34 (as would always be in a 4x4 magic square), but 33.

The sculptor who created the Sagrada Família's Passion façade (the artist Josep Maria Subirachs, following architect Antoni Gaudí's vision) took a different spin for these squares. Magic squares have been used as talismans in many cultures for millennia, since ancient cultures including 3rd millennium BC China, Ancient India, Ancient Egypt, Arab, and Greek cultures, among others. For the Sagrada Família (a Christian temple), Subirachs used to hide a number of great significance in Christian symbolism.

Painting Melencolia I by Albrecht Dürer (1514) and a detail from it.

Subirachs adapted a magic square from this engraving by Dürer and changed it so that it would add up to 33: the age that Jesus Christ is traditionally believed to have been when he was executed. A number based on the repetition of another of the most important numbers in Christianity: 3, symbolizing the holy trinity.

The square in the Sagrada Família manages to add 33 by repeating some numbers and skipping others. But it also goes further than adding up 33 in every row, column, and diagonal line. The same number can also be obtained with many other combinations. Here are some of them:

Plus, in the magic square at the Sagrada Família, there is also a sort of hidden subliminal signature: adding up the numbers that repeat and looking at their correspondence in the Roman alphabet, we get the initials INRI (Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum = "Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews" in Latin), which was written on the sign at the top of the cross where Jesus was crucified.

This way, mathematics, art history and religious symbolism all come together in this little symbol.

Photos from Alamy, Martin Leicht, Sagrada Família blog. Text adapted from Sagrada Família blog. All the graphs with the numbers are from that same article.

[thevirginwitch]

Magic Square of Saturn: Rubik's Cube Talisman

I've had this idea rattling around in my brain for a few months, and I've finally brought it to fruition:

Behold, my Magic Square of Saturn Rubik's Cube!

For more info on how I made this, and the exact applications on this talisman - check out my post on Substack!

[eye-of-mordor]

MAGIC SQUARE OF SATURN

Magic square series 1/?

Sometime during the early Italian Renaissance, a pseudepigraphical grimoire was published by an unknown author. Called the Key of Solomon, it contains obscure occult information concerning how to summon spirits of different sorts through carefully constructed rituals. Among its information provided, are discussions regarding what are known as ‘planetary magic squares,’ which are illustrated squares with smaller squares within that vary in number by any given celestial body. The magic square of Saturn has nine squares in three rows and columns, essentially making it a 3x3 square. This square can cross in a single linear direction in eight different ways: three horizontal, three vertical, and two diagonals. The numbers traveled in each direction will come to 15. Since each square in it has numbers ranging from 1 to 9, all the numbers in this square add up to 45, a number that is identified in the Key of Solomon as the corresponding value of two ruling spirits of Saturn, Agiel and Zazel via the ancient cipher system of gematria. The former is beneficent, whilst the latter is malevolent, a theme of duality that ties in with the mythos of Saturn as a wrathful god, judge of souls, and benefactor of civilization in many different civilizations.

While most of these mysterious planetary magic squares are credited as esoteric Hebrew developments, their true origins are shrouded in the remote mists of antiquity. Going far back to the ancient Chinese period, an archaic 3x3 square known as Lo Shu posits itself as one of the earliest appearances of magic squares used in mathematics, dating to sometime in the 7th century BC. However, it is uncertain whether this is the earliest appearance of magic squares. Via an ancient trading route known as the Silk Road, many ideas from different cultures were transferred from distant lands to others, and this resulted in the synchronization of many different ideas, contributing to the collective development of human thought. This ancient road led from China, where ancient folklore (and still survives today) told of a primeval man named Fuxi who is credited with the invention of language, civilization, agriculture, among many other aspects of civilized society, including mathematics and practices that may seem today like occultism. For instance, he is credited as the inventor of the eight trigrams that served as the basis of the later I Ching, a divination text with obscure origins, but is reputed to have been thought to date to sometime in the 10th century BC, making it older than the Lo Shu by several hundred years. Beyond the earliest appearance of the I Ching, the days when Fuxi lived in and the origins of the eight trigrams are even more obscure and for all we know, may stretch far back into the remote mists of time. The true origins of the practice of magic squares are ambiguous and is questionable whether the concept was first developed in the Far East or if it originated elsewhere in a remote epoch.

(Click here to continue to segment 2)

[kanguin]

I just posted this on the Transformers subreddit, but I reason I should probably cast my net in my native environment here as well.

I'm working on a spreadsheet for personal use cataloguing the dimensions of various Transformers toys (official and 3p), and I've hit a snag with a few big ticket bots I don't own or know anyone personally who owns them (tbh none of my friends are into TF), and right now SS86 Optimus is the one I'm most curious about.

If anyone has 86 OP, could you measure his height in robot mode as well as length/width/height in vehicle mode (just the truck, no trailer or smokestacks, or at least specify), and let me know what you get?

Additionally if anyone knows or can get those same measures for any of the following official and 3P figures, I'd really appreciate it:

Any Earthrise, Kingdom, or Legacy G1 Season 1 figures

Magic Square Light of Peace

Generation Toy Gravity Builder (individual bots/vehicles & combined)

Jinbao OS Gravity Builder (same as above)

X-Transbots Cliffjumper or Hubcap

X-Transbots Windcharger or Tailgate

X-Transbots Inferno, Grapple, or equivalent

Any Mastermind Creations / Occular Max Combaticon or Protectobot

Thanks to any who respond!

[iamalexjustice]

"Megatron must be stopped, no matter the cost!" Magic Square Light of Freedom aka Optimus Prime. This is a Metallic version and it's My G1 Optimus for now. The figure itself I give a MP10 out of 10. Double Knee Joint and Individual fingers are great, love the blaster, but the Energon Ax is tough to get on this guy's hand. Overall it's a good figure, not my 1 of top 12 figures if this year, but it is good.

[tarot-reader]

Magic Square Spread 01, 02, 03 01 – 03 What they're thinking or planning. 04, 05, 06 04 – 06 What they're doing, actions. 07, 08, 09 07 – 09 Undercurrent. Emotional undercurrent and how it affects querent or situation. Round 1: Mind 01, What you were thinking. 02, What you are thinking. 03, What you will be thinking. 04, What you were doing. 05, What you are doing. 06, What you will be doing. 07, What you were feeling. 08, What you are feeling. 09, What you will be feeling. Round 2: Circumstance 01, Wealth & Prosperity 02, Fame & Reputation 03, Love & Relationships 04, Children & Creativity 05, Spiritual Health, Well-being 06, Family & Physical Health 07, Wisdom, Knowledge, Epiphany 08, Career, Travel, Moving 09, Helpful people, Luck Round 3: Undercurrent 01, Individuality, What affects the situation now 02, External Influences, Unexpected factors 03, Environmental factors, Family Home, Friends 04, Hopes & Fears of the consultant 05, Alternatives, Options to problem, Opportunity 06, Belieds & Aspirations regarding query 07, Limiting Factors, Contrarian factors 08. Positive Influences, Key to success 09. Strength. Power in face of a problem This spread adds many layers of information and context to only nine cards. This is a great spread to try with majors only tarot decks, full tarot decks, playing card decks, lenormand decks, and some oracles.

[zinesumarex]

zinrs #61

Revelando o enigma do Quadrado Mágico 3x3

Conteúdo recomendado:

[mathhombre]

Magic Hexagon Square

Usual Lee Sallows crazy clever contraption. Seen at Futility Closet.

[trevlad-sounds]

Slipstream Drift Repair

13.12.2024

Ambidextrous – Ortifi – 00:00 ARC – Slipstream – 04:04 Binaural Space – Fractured Beyond Repair – 13:05 BRIAN DUFFY – Recorder And Claps – 17:21 Dan Deacon – Snuppy – 19:29 Heiko Maile, Julian DeMarre – Eternal Drift – 20:59 Karl Marx Stadt – Electonic – 23:03 Mike Dickinson – No Spacesuit, No Helmet, No Oxygen – 25:32 Mike Dickinson – Fremder – 31:39 The Odd Pattern – Session II – 35:39 Pbs’73 – Turquoise Daylight – 39:48 Pulsliebhaber – Galerina Marginata – 42:44 Receptor Modulator – Heartbeat – 46:09 René van der Wouden – Artificial Galaxy – 51:27 Scott F. Hamrick – Slave to the Algorithm – 01:03:10 4T Thieves – Happy Place (Weldroid Remix) – 01:06:43

[highretrogamelord]

Super Programs 1 for the ZX81

[noise-vs-signal]

“Down at the Crossroads” (2024)

Meet the Devil (Horned God) at the centre of the Crossroads, the centre of Reality, the Centre of Eternity, the centre of Now.

[pocoslip]

I Love any White Ultra Magnus Repaints with his own Unique Blaster

(And Not those Lazy White Magnus Repaints that came with Optimus Prime's Gun)

[tilbageidanmark]

The original prototype for Rubik’s Cube.

[eye-of-mordor]

Today, I have published my lengthy analysis of a core theme in The Rings of Power, mainly on Sauron’s character. Following an introductory gifset, it consists of three parts, with the first one exploring parallels between him and a certain ancient deity. This one has 3 segments to it, due to tumblr’s character count limitations. Following this is an exploration of the Magic Square of Saturn, which also feature aspects of this occult tradition that overlaps with Sauron’s personality. It has 2 segments. And finally, there is also an exploration of another magic square, belonging to Rahu. It has 3 segments. I have compiled a list with hyperlinks to easily access these publications, in recommended viewing order from 1 to 4.

Introductory gifset

TROP analysis: Sauron’s character

Magic Square of Saturn

Magic Square of Rahu

Over the next few weeks, I will be uploading various versions of the Magic Square series that feature the same gifs without the numbers within the squares, as well as wide-cropped gifs of the same content, both with and without the numbers. I will also be uploading photo collages of these squares, with and without the numbers. Tags to these posts are accessible via a link in my bio that is titled ‘Magic Square Series.’ As for a quick access to this very post, it is also accessible in my bio via the tag ‘Sauron Analysis.’

I sincerely hope you enjoy.

All Hail the Eye!