1 and 5

Riddle me this: what do you get when you add explosives to a fire? That’s kinda like what would happen when you add these two combustible crazies together. Though there are several odd-number combos to consider, this is one of the explosive and “special” ones that would seriously benefit from a nice cold glass of water more than anyone else. See, this pairing is like an antithesis, an arch rival to the 0-2 pairing. If the gravitationally magnetic “feminine” allure of the 0 and 2 are seen as a kind of “attractivator”, then the 1-5 combo creates a radioactive “masculine” presence as the ultra “projector” that likes to charge after things like that one red-eyed psycho chasing you after you cut them off changing lanes a few blocks back…As such, we can see a few things with this duo: a natural progression from the start of an activity to its full maturation (if we read it as the 1 followed by the 5); a propensity towards themes of diversification and “scattering” versus simplification and focusing; an imbalance towards things like hyperactivity, overexertion, burnout, and temper problems in our lives; a summation to the number 6, bringing peace and rest to balance out the 1-5’s hyperactivity; themes of enthusiastic leadership, positive showmanship and ruthless tyranny; a step-up from the 1-4’s tense struggle to the 1-5’s unrestricted flourishment.

Remember how the 1 was the firestarter to get the ball rolling with some type of action? Well, since we know the 5 is a type of maxing out or peaking of an action, then, to me, reading 1-5 like a book from left to right tells a tale of the beginning of an action or thing blooming into its full intensity. Going back to the ignition-engine example back in The Firestarter, if the 1 is the ignition to spark the engine into action, then the 5 would be the result of letting your car warm-up for a few minutes until the engine is fully heated and primed to drive, like we do if you live in places with bitter cold winters. You could say the same for athletes warming up (1) before competing with full force (5) in a 100 m sprint; or, seasonally again: if 1 is symbolic of the starting heat of Spring, then the 5 could embody the full maxed-out heat of Summer. But, in terms of life general: a new action or thing that you started in the past is reaching full effect, whether that’s a good or thing; or, it’s a hint that you need to develop something you started before into its complete form, whether it’s an incomplete stalled project, business idea or hell, even a new friendship or relationship that wasn’t given much attention after it began. 

And then, like a prism splitting light into colours, or dendrites branching off from a single neuron to multiple other neurons, the theme of diversification, dispersion, scattering and branching out in multiple directions (5) from a singular starting point (1). So, the twisting of the simple, rigid 1 to the dual-curved, sine-wave, S-shape of the 5 to me signifies a new acquisition of mental dexterity, flexibility the ability to think in multiple dimensions as opposed to the simple, one-dimensional 1 as we had touched on in Fifth Gear, remember? So, I think that this whole concept of diversification, branching out and expanding our knowledge and thinking is pretty much the process of true learning, so this combo could be mirroring or signifying a need for the same process of learning in our lives, whether that be a course of study, a new skill or just a life lesson. On the same token, we can flip this concept around in reverse and state that the progression of the 5 towards the 1, from left to right like a countdown, can illustrate the opposite idea: that of contraction and simplification, or even focusing of something scattered (the 5) into a single, focused thing (the 1). Likewise, these themes may indicate a need for, symbolize or predict themes of growth of an idea, concept or action towards it’s full, unrestricted expression, or instead a contraction and inhibition of such a thing towards it’s minimal expression, or even a need to focus thoughts, actions or even align people together towards a singular purpose. 

Next, this combo can lead us into things like a hyperactive, overdriven state of mind or even an obsessive, uncontrollable rage. The 1-5 can signify an almost constantly “on” state where activity continues incessantly, even after there are clear signs of overheating, burnout and exhaustion. This would be like doing all-out 100 m sprints at 12 noon on a sunny day in a tropical country at mid-summer, in opposition to the lazy but wise lions who take naps at that time of day. Naturally then, the message here is we’re going to extremes in life: such as tiresome overthinking, reaching the extremes of our temper, or just fatigue from physical work and the excess of anything in general, and that we need to slow down and take a break, which relates to the next section. 

It’s interesting to note that though the numbers 15 and 51 both add up to a 6, neither of them is obviously a 6 itself, and this is significant because: the individual digits of these numbers themselves demand recognition. Yet, on this last point, many numerologists just like to play the addition game of lumping all numbers into one category by summing up to a single digit in the end. For this example, 15, 51, 33, and 3102 would all simply be summed up to a 6 in the end and treated as such, but I don’t agree with this. Anyways, though the 15 would be rife with that volatile, hyper and overdriven energy coupling of the 1-5, the sum of the 6 here would beautifully provide the solution to it’s extreme and unbalanced energy through the 6: that natural purveyor of balance, peace and rest after activity. 

Then, themes of egotism, power-hunger and the desire for powerful leadership or even tyranny can be seen here. Firstly, we can think of the 5 as a stuntman who likes to be a type of shine thief who likes to steal everyone’s attention; though, this makes sense since the 5, being midway on the journey to the 10, is at the heart and centre: exactly midway between the 1 and the 10.  Then, you throw the 1 into the mix, and you get this same stuntman with a desire to lead and create change through creative and inspired action. Yet, the dark side to this is the emergence of the ruthless, egomaniacal and power-hungry tyrant intent on bending the world to their own will. So 1-5 may be asking you to take inspired, revolutionary action as a leader in some and showmanship in an area of your life or for those around you. It could also be warning you of a dictatorial person around you, or that you yourself may be starting to take on those qualities. 

Lastly, since we’ve moved on from 1-4 to 1-5, then this in itself shows the evolution of strife-ridden conflict through limitations and challenges to the effortless, harmonious and unrestricted growth of our dreams and potential. Of course, this makes sense since that’s the basic process of life, of any achievement or learning a new skill: you go through a hellish, steep-learning curve full of frustration, irritation, doubt, darkness and maybe even depression before things eventually improve; but, these periods required back-breaking hard work and sheer grit to get through (1-4); then, as you move on past those periods, suddenly everything makes sense, suddenly gives way and comes easily to you which manifests through rapid improvement. It’s like suddenly striking oil after arduous drilling for days without finding anything or finally digging out an unlikely tiny spring of water in the Sahara whilst one has cracked lips, parched skin and is on the verge of death; either way, resistance instantly disappears and you come to that much-needed breakthrough point at last. Well, that’s the 1-5 for ya: that “magical” and “miraculous” rapid improvement phase that is a well-earned reward of all the sacrifices, suffering and pain of the 1-4 path through hell.