Introduction
Even though I rarely consider numerology in my daily life, today I had to take pause to consider an example of possible synchronicity.
While this note is only an anecdote with subjective information contained in it, my reason for writing it down is to make sense of my inner reality and to develop the positive qualities I've discovered so far.
Being a Buddhist who practices meditation, often without the rituals of organized religion, I felt it necessary to document what happened since I'd finished reading Dr. Bolen's book, The Tao of Psychology.
In her book, she writes convincingly of the individual's need to balance logic and reason with emotions and feelings.
Thus, my main motivation for writing this note is to balance the strong sense of logic and reason which occupies me during the winter months with the emotions and feelings which remain submerged in the darkness of each short day.
Specifically I wish to address the positive and negative qualities encountered during this brief encounter with synchronicity today to uncover more knowledge about myself.
It All Began with Ursula
After looking up the word, "ur sula", which translates as "the sole" in Swedish, I looked up the legend of St. Ursula.
From what I've discovered, Saint Ursula is associated with the number 11, which coincides with me being born on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of November in 1958. Even 1958 is divisible by 11.
But before getting too far ahead of myself, let's look at the word "sole" first.
"Sole", Its Synonyms and Homonym "Soul"
As for the Swedish translation of "ur sula" as "the sole", the synonyms for "sole" are:
a certain, absolute, alone, an, any, any one, arch, atomic,
azygous, bachelorlike, base, baseboard, basement, celibate,
chassis, clubfoot, dado, digit, dog, either, exclusive, extremity,
fetlock, first and last, foot, footing, forefoot, forepaw,
foundation, frame, harefoot, heel, hoof, husbandless, impair,
individual, indivisible, instep, integral, irreducible, keel, lone,
maiden, maidenly, monadic, monistic, mopboard, nadir, odd,
old-maidish, one, one and only, only, only-begotten, pad,
particular, pastern, patte, paw, pedal extremity, pedes, personal,
pes, pied, pug, separate, shoemold, simple, single, singular,
solid, solitary, solo, spinsterish, spinsterlike, spinsterly,
splayfoot, spouseless, toe, tootsy, trotter, unanalyzable,
underneath, underside, undivided, unexampled, ungula, uniform,
unique, unitary, unmarried, unpaired, unrepeatable, unrepeated,
unshared, unwed, unwedded, virgin, virginal, wainscot, whole
Of these words, "one" and "whole" appear to be the common theme, though there is one word usually associated with the masculine, bachelorlike, but several words associated with the feminine, i.e. maiden, maidenly, old-maidish, spinsterish, spinsterlike, and spinsterly.
Overall, the synonyms for "sole" have a neutral quality:
a certain, absolute, exclusive, extremity,
individual, indivisible, integral, irreducible, lone,
maiden, maidenly, monadic, monistic, nadir,
one, only, only-begotten, particular, personal,
separate, simple, single, singular, solid, solitary,
undivided, uniform, unique, whole
In addition, the homonym for "sole" is "soul".
The Legend of St Ursula and its Relationship to the Number 11
With respect to the legend of St. Ursula, the word "virgin" is associated with "ur sula" through its Swedish translation as "the sole", as in "the sole person dedicated to God".
Articles about Saint Ursula have even surfaced on the Internet:
"In the twelfth century, Saint Ursula was venerated in a cult of the Divine Feminine similar to today's Mary Magdelene myth. Honored in a cycle of chants composed by the maverick mystic abbess, Hildegard von Bingen, Ursula was regarded as the epiphany of the feminine: the archetypal manifestation of the union with God--the daughter of Sion, Bride and Beloved of Solomon, and of Christ." -- 23.5 Degrees: The Tale of Ursula and the 11,000 Virgins
However, St. Ursula does not exist in the historical records. It is possible that the purpose of the legend was to promote the Catholic faith.
Most likely, the legend is due to the popularization of the visions of Elizabeth of Schönau, a Benedictine nun.
The Number 11 in Numerology
In numerology, 11 is known as the first of the Master Numbers.
"The 11 is the most intuitive of all numbers. It represents illumination; a channel to the subconscious; insight without rational thought; and sensitivity, nervous energy, shyness, and impracticality. It is a dreamer. The 11 has all the aspects of the 2, enhanced and charged with charisma, leadership, and inspiration. It is a number with inborn duality, which creates dynamism, inner conflict, and other catalyses with its mere presence. It is a number that, when not focused on some goal beyond itself, can be turned inward to create fears and phobias. The 11 walks the edge between greatness and self-destruction. Its potential for growth, stability, and personal power lies in its acceptance of intuitive understanding, and of spiritual truths. For the 11, such peace is not found so much in logic, but in faith. It is the psychic's number." -- Decoz.com on the number 11.
According to numerology, 11 has its roots in the number 2.
Here's a list of more positive attributes of 2:
gentle, subtle, cooperative, tactful, diplomatic, patient, sincere, harmonious, artistic, emphatic, intuitive, supportive, loving, humble and peaceful. You are considerate and sensitive to the needs of others.
Here's a list of the negative attributes of 2:
Timidity, fear, low self-esteem, lack of self-confidence, depressed. You are vulnerable and easily hurt and you try to escape from all kinds of confrontation and criticism.
Canada and the Number 11
Coincidentally, Canada is associated with the number 11:
* The stylized maple leaf on the Flag of Canada has eleven points.
* The Canadian one-dollar coin is a hendecagon, an eleven-sided polygon.
* Clocks depicted on Canadian currency, for example the Canadian fifty-dollar bill, show 11:00.
* Eleven denominations of Canadian currency are produced in large quantities.
* Due to Canada's federal nature, eleven legally distinct Crowns effectively exist in the country, with the Monarch being represented separately in each province, as well as at the federal level.
Here, 11 refers to the original ten provinces and Ottawa, the seat of federal power.
Conclusion: 11 is Just a Number that Points to the Buddha
To sum up, Saint Ursula is associated with the number 11. This coincides with me being born on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of November. Indeed, even the birth year, 1958 is divisible by 11. Also, coincidentally, Canada is associated with the number 11.
IMHO, at an earlier point in life, I may have read about the number 11, and become associated with the numerologist's interpretation of 11. This may be why it's more familiar to me than the numerological interpretation of my name and personal information.
To paraphrase numerological interpretation, my potential for growth, stability, and personal power lies in my acceptance of intuitive understanding, and of spiritual truths. For me, then peace in my life is found in faith.
I feel that faith begins with faith in myself and my positive capabilities, including charisma, leadership and inspiration. However, it's important to remember my limitations, especially impracticality and shyness. I also have to counter self-criticism with a balanced look at my positive aspects, such as being a team player.
Even so, what numerology and synchronicity speak to is the heart of compassion, specificially feelings, not the mind of logic and reason.
All the numerology description does is provide information about my feelings and intuition, and if I so choose, to act on them. Apart from this current note, I do not consciously think of the number 11 all the time. Nor does the numerology impact my life 24 hours, 7 days a week.
From the Buddhist viewpoint, it's important for me not to cling to the numerologist's interpretation of 11, least it distract me from my faith in the Dharma.
For the actual interpretation is clear: take from numerology only what agrees with both intuition and reason, yet continue to have faith in Buddhism.
References:
Google Translate: "ur sula": http://translate.google.ca/#sv|en|ur%20sula
Wikipedia entry for Saint Ursula: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Ursula
23.5 Degrees: The Tale of Ursula and the 11,000 Virgins - http://www.mania.com/235-degrees-tale-ursula-11000-virgins_article_118421.html
Information on Saint Ursula and her companions: http://www.answers.com/topic/ursula-and-companions
Saint Ursula not in historical records: http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Saint_Ursula
Legend of Saint Ursula popularized through sermons about the visions of Elizabeth of Schönau: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_of_Sch%C3%B6nau
11 known as Master Number: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/11_%28number%29
Definition of Master Numbers: http://www.decoz.com/Masternumbers.htm
Description of 11 in numerology:
http://www.spiritual-numerology.com/numerology-master-numbers/numerology-meaning-of-master-number-11.html
Description of 2 in numerology:
http://www.spiritual-numerology.com/numerology-number-meaning/numerology-meaning-of-number-2.html
Canada associated with number 11: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/11_%28number%29#Canada
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