1 and 8

Alright, so when these digits buddy up, it can stir up a wide, interesting variety of themes ranging from: duplication, deception, mystery, spiritual connection and the next step of ascension, choice and it’s relation to the concept of karma, and the meshing of passion and initiative in the creation of wealth, businesses and legacies.

If 1-5 is the genesis of the diverse s-shaped sine wave, then, long-story-short, the 1-8 would be the process of DNA replication. Allow me to explain: I see the 1 as representing the original “parent” DNA strands, which would separate from each other and unwind in such a way to resemble the figure 8; then, special enzymes would attach to those original DNA strands and basically duplicate them. So, then this pair illustrates the concepts of duplication, replication and copying as outlined in Duality. This could symbolize processes like: “copying”/adopting the good qualities or bad habits of others in our social circle; or even, passing off the batons of our wisdom, knowledge, virtues, vices and biases off onto future generations for better or for worse.

Next, the fact that this pair tells a story of a single, simple straight line (1) and twists it into a curving shape itself can mean a myriad of things. Firstly, it could depict the warping of a clear, logical line of thought into one that’s grossly twisted out of shape and deviates in an unhealthy way; this could even extend to a loss of sanity through a severe twisting of one’s perception of reality, much like is seen in psychosis states. In fact, if the 1-5 is the development of the clever, mentally flexible, multidimensional, “cunning” sine wave, then the 1-8 puts that cunning on steroids and further winds the wave into an 8. This is signficant because the 8 now resembles a serpent biting it’s tail. This could imply anything from a warning of deceit, the twisting of truth, the misperception of reality, or even a simple implication of secret agent-style thrilling mystery, intrigue and danger.

Yet, just like the 1-0 depicting the small, individual, disconnected ego morphing into the vast, expansive nothingness of the cosmos, the 1-8 can similarly indicate the same sublimative spiritual ascension. In detail, the 1 is like a limited, staccato, fragmented structure which allows a limited, one-way flow of energy which, once expressed, is forever lost, like in 1-3. Anyways, the 8 becomes the 1’s salvation here as the “cunning serpent” mercifully mends together the 1’s ends into a complete figure-8 circuit, a vertical symbol of infinity (the 0 being the simpler symbol of this) like the Ouroboros forever feeding back upon itself. So, you get a limitless supply of energy, motion and expression, like those hypothetical perpetual motion machines that would keep moving forever. Here, I like to think of the 8 by itself as a distant, unreachable source of limitless or at least immense energy and potential, like a celestial star in the night. By itself, it remains untapped and unreachable; but, once you add the firestarter, you ignite the 0-ian fuel into 1-ian engine combustion. This means we awaken and anchor that vast reservoir (8) into our direct, physical, conscious, present-moment reality (1), similar to the 0-1 conversion. In fact, we could extrapolate m further and say that if 1-0 is the limited ego becoming the limitless self, then the 0 could also be a stepping stone (rather than merely a limitless halo), and conclude that the 1-8 is like the “addition” of an extra small circle (hence, the stepping stone, with the 2 conjoined circles of the 8 both being steps) to the orignal 0, indicating that ascension here is taking the next step upward, akin to the “next phase” of spiritual evolution after the first 1-0 phase. This could convey the next actions one takes towards spirituality. A simple example: deciding to do active prayer or even volunteering/community service in addition to only meditating.

Fourthly, let’s talk about what happens when you superimpose the 8 on the 1: it resembles the Greek origin Rod of Asclepius symbol of health that you see in the western world. This is significant because of the link between ancient Indian depcitions of the Kundalini energy with serpentine undulations up the spine; well, guess what?: to me, the 8 on the 1 depicts the same process. Like I harped on already: If the 0-1 is the simple expression of limited conscious life (1) arising from the vast subsconscious/unconscious (0), then the 1-8 is once again like the next step of evolution where that simple expression (1) turns upward to refine itself by merging with the “infinite divine” (8), but for a different reason here. Bear with me: I think of 8 as just a tilted over vertical symbol of infinity, and this is important because it suggests upward ascension, that vertical process of reaching above oneself. Now, compare this with the ordinary horizontal infinity symbol, which can almost be thought of, in my mind, as a left-right-left stagnating cycle of endless birth, death and reincarnation without any escape (through upward movement) due to spiritual neglect. It’s almost like a horse chasing in endless circles the same carrot hanging on a string tied to its face a foot away from it, without ever reaching it. Similarly, this is a caricature of our endless chasings of physical/material goods/goals/pleasures which sucker punch us by promising supreme fulfilment but never really delivering it. So, the real “carrot” of permanent bliss is never achieved; instead, we just get phony imitations and crumbs of it here and there to keep us occupied and distracted, like kids playing with fake candy.

Then, we could take the number 18 and roll it either onto its left or right side…why?..Well, if you roll it 90 degrees to the right, you get the 1 as a straight line covering the horizontal 8/infinity symbol on the top, and to me, this shows a handicapping of our infinite potential through devolution and sheer ignorance. On the other hand, rolling it perpendicular to the left has the infinity over the flat line; so here, we have unfettered space above us for that infinite potential to unravel and emerge upward. The main thing to remember here is that we’re free to choose either path, and this idea of choice ties into the concept of karma, previously discussed in 8-ball. In fact, it’s like a Snakes and Ladders game minus the dice: we could voluntarily choose either the difficult, exhausting, boring but noble, honourable way of effort to ascend ladders; or instead, the convenience, ensnarement and eventual destruction of instantly fun, cheap thrills and comfort zones by opting for the snakes. Either way, we’ll experience the fruit of those actions at some future point; and so, the 18 then, rolled either way, serves as a kind of reminder of this…It gets even more interesting if we partner more 1’s with the 8: like in 118, or even 1118, where those additional 1’s can become either extra fetters to our potential, or by reversing it, those additional handicaps become our motivating supports to push the horizontal 8 even higher up skywards…

Lastly, let us end with a more down-to-earth discussion: that of the business/wealth/legacy drive. See, the initiative of 1 coupled to the business machine of the 8 fuels a drive to create a wealth-generating machine. Therefore, this pairing is a highly relevent representation of business entrepreneurs and CEOs. The way I see it, even the imagery of the number shapes here vibes with this idea: the 1 is like a crankshaft which sets the 2 interlocking gears (the two conjoined circles of the 8) into motion, symbolic of this activation of a business/wealth/legacy creating machine. Now, the 1 here can be any activating force that sets those wealth/business gears into motion: simple passion and motivation to create wealth or pursue a business venture, perhaps a do-or-die compulsion to try that entrepreneurial idea if one’s job is at risk or else face homelessness; or, even something as simple as a manager, director or CEO who sets into motion the exact actions that need to be performed by their staff.