Numerology

Happy anniversary, everyone! This is the anniversary episode of the Middle-Aged Witch podcast, and I am so excited I could just spit. I can’t even tell you what a year this has been. We’ve gone from nothing, literally no listeners, just me speaking into the void, to a really beautiful, cohesive community in one short year. I came into this with no expectations really, certainly no idea what this little project would become or what it would mean to me, and I am beside myself with gratitude for the way that you all have welcomed me into your weekly routines and I have made some really valuable friendships here. Whatever else may come of this, I have been immeasurably blessed. And I thank you from the very bottom of my heart.

I am also excited to finally announce, officially, that the website, middleagedwitch.com is live! This has been a labor of love, and thank you specifically to Dani, Candice, Ithil, Rhose, Jennifer, Fern, Kim, and Angi for all of your help, and feedback, and support. You ladies are the real deal. The website is up and running with the forums, yes, but also podcast transcripts, there are additional posts with extra information that doesn’t make the podcast for one reason or another, videos, pictures, and links to live events will be posted on the site.

I’ve also taken the plunge and joined TikTok. I don’t know how long I’ll last over there before they realize I’m too old to post and delete my account, but go ahead and find me before it’s too late. I’ll be posting assorted spellwork, etcetera, and it will be interesting to see how that goes. It’s awkward for me to put myself forward in a more visible way, and it’s kind of hard for me to even admit that, but I gotta be transparent about that. I don’t perform here, this is as authentic as it can be, so if I seem stiff and uncomfortable at first, please just understand that it’s only because I am in fact stiff and uncomfortable. But that’s ok. I’m not just on this earth to be comfortable all the time.

But anyway, let’s start the episode with an email! This witch actually just had some really solid advice for anyone who may be struggling with meditation and I wanted to pass it along.

I have been trying to incorporate more meditation into my life. It’s hard, I have ADHD so even when I am medicated, it’s hard to get my brain to slow down and become still enough to meditate. My daughters and I went to a holistic fair a couple weekends ago and at one of the booths someone was selling candles and I bought the Earth candle because it smelled divine. I also bought a bunch of crystals and my first Oracle deck.

Well, this last weekend, I was in my craft room (where I have my altar) and was arranging everything (I cleansed the crystals and put them out to charge in the Full Moon last week) and thought I would light the candle because it smelled really good. (It’s sort of a joke in the ADHD community that people with ADHD love fire, but it really is true.) I was sitting there organizing and when I was done, I just sat there for a few minutes because I didn’t want to leave the altar.

I was comfortable, and my spirit felt peaceful. Sitting there I began to focus on the flame and ended up meditating for a while and didn’t struggle with focus. I have since incorporated a candle any time I sit down to meditate now, and it has really helped. It’s funny, I am still so new to all of this and there are things I just don’t know that other people that have been practicing don’t even think about because it’s second nature. One of those things is understanding that meditating isn’t just that “sit cross-legged on the floor, hand on knees, eyes closed” type of thing, that it can be many different things to many different people and if you need to have your eyes open and staring at a flame to meditate, then that is absolutely fine to do!

I loved this, for a couple reasons. First of all because it’s really good, practical advice and also because she’s completely correct. Look, there are a million ways to meditate, but the very best, number one way to meditate is the one that works for you. So if having a focus point, like a flame, like running water, or having white noise in the background helps to quiet your mind, that is infinitely more important than holding lotus pose in total silence with your eyes closed. Unless that is what works for you. So that was such a great message, I am disappointed in myself for not thinking of it.

And then another quick message from a witch with a really good bit of back-to-school advice. I know everyone is headed back to the classroom soon, if they haven’t already, but this was perfect:

Hi Eli,
I’ve been wanting to write about how much your podcast has helped me through a few huge transitions in the last year. But! Time is always short, and I can be long-winded. In the meantime, I wanted to send a thank you for the episode on amulets and charms. I usually don’t think of myself as an experienced witch. After pondering that episode, it hit me, I absolutely have been practicing for a very long time.

In the midst of this new understanding of myself, my kiddo was prepping to go back to school. She had been angling for a “poofy thing” to attach to her backpack; she had seen one in Target but it was a charger, she needed a plain one with a clasp. It occurred to me, the perfect way to practice a little witchcraft was to get her one and make a protective charm! She is going to a new school this year, and is worried about bullying. I worry about that, and all the million other things parents worry about.

We couldn’t find the “poofy thing,” but we found a sweet little rose locket charm. Her middle name is Rose, so it was perfect. She worked on her own protective potion to spritz the charm with while we cleansed it in salt. I also added my own little spell, and off she goes to her first day of fourth grade!

I’ve attached pics because seeing her wearing my witchy hat, working on her potions filled my heart. Thank you for all of your encouragement to practice with whatever we have available to us, to just DO the thing!

Yes! What a perfect way to use the power of charms and amulets. It’s a low-profile way to keep your magick close to you, it’s exactly the kind of spell that even a very young witch can totally nail, and it’s so empowering. This witch did include pictures of her daughter working this charm, and it was so beautiful to see this young witch taking matters into her own hands and knowing that she and her mom are working this magick together. This sort of generational magick is unspeakably strong. So thank you so much Amy, for sending that in. And I also have one more short message that I wanted to read from a witch in a situation that is a bit sticky.

Good Morning, Eli! I have a situation, and I hope you could help, please. I came from a mentally and emotionally abusive home. Both parents were mentally ill, but self medicated. My Mom just moved closer to me so I can take care of her. When I am with her, I am drained to the point of exhaustion, depressed, and angry. I did go back to therapy, I usually meditate and shield before seeing her, but it doesn’t 100% work. Her constant stream of negative comments and belittling leaves me exhausted. Do you have any suggestions? I have started creating healthy boundaries, but she still needs my help. I am at a loss. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

So, in addition to the excellent methods she’s already practicing (which she should definitely continue to use, because grounding and meditation will continue to strengthen as we continue to use them), I did suggest that she may need to put mom in a honey jar. It’s a method that takes a little time to build up (honey pours slowly, after all), but it’s incredibly long-lasting (honey never spoils, after all). So I advised her to write mom’s name on a scrap of paper and drop it into a small jar, along with a personal concern of hers, such as a bit of her hair or nail clippings. Pour honey over all of it and screw the lid on good and tight. Tuck it away somewhere discreet in her home and leave it alone.

I would also maybe get some reversal oil and just dab a little on whenever she heads over to mom’s house, just to help that negativity to rebound off of our witch. You can either buy reversal oils from an occult shop, or you can make your own using cinnamon, rue, and rose essential oils, or by infusing olive or vitamin E oil with actual cinnamon, rue, and rose petals. A dab on the wrists or behind the ears will help our witch to be less affected by mom’s nastiness. This is not an easy burden to carry, but I admire that this witch is willing to take care of her mother this way.

And I know this was very different advice to what I said previously to a witch who was intent on going totally no-contact with her parents. I helped that witch with a banishing, I am helping this witch with a honey jar. I am doing things differently because this witch is in a different place. We all have to navigate our familial relationships the way that works best for us, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution in witchcraft.

And now, let’s look at Numerology, as a practice, as a tool, and let’s figure out how to make it work for us. So, super short history lesson here, the term numerology is actually pretty new, it didn’t even enter the lexicon until 1907 but people have been practicing gematria for a few thousand years, which is closely related to numerology. Gematria is the practice of assigning a numerical value to a name, word or phrase according to an alphanumerical cipher. A single word or phrase may have several values, and therefore several meanings, depending on which cipher is used to translate it.

And the rules, as it were, for gematria weren’t really written down in a lasting form for us to study, first of all. And secondly, those rules did vary a bit according to the region, the language, and the traditions of the people who were practicing it. But a lot of ancients did use it. We find gematria in the bible, in Kabbalah, the Greeks, the Babylonians, the Assyrians, all used gematria in all kinds of ways, even down to the way that they constructed their buildings.

But numerology is much more standardized and well-documented. And it’s been used by a lot of very successful people for a good long time in the modern era. The former First Lady Nancy Reagan famously consulted with a numerologist-slash-astrologer for years, and relied on her advice for scheduling important meetings, travel plans, etc. Celebrities from Walt Disney to Beyonce have used numerology to define their destinies and to help them make the most of opportunities, to great success.

And when we think of numerology, we have to recognize how it intersects with other practices, like astrology and tarot for example, which also rely on an understanding of the significance of numbers. This is not to say that people born on less auspicious days are going to suck and people born on lucky days are going to succeed. We can all either let the numbers work for us or against us, but we can’t make the most of our opportunities unless we make an effort to understand how. And that’s the purpose of this episode. This isn’t going to be a master class in numerology because it’s such a vast topic, but this will be a primer, and I hope it encourages people to learn more.

We have spoken many times of the significance that numbers hold, in the Tarot episode where we talked about what the numbers in the minor arcana represent, the Omens episode when we talked about angel numbers, the astrology episodes, and so on. But this is because the universe and everything in it is made of and can be defined by numbers. So let’s backtrack just a little bit and refresh ourselves on what we’ve said before.

In tarot, the minor arcana cards can be easily understood with a basic idea of what those numbers, one through ten, mean. Aces (or ones) represent potential and opportunity. Twos represent duality or balance. Threes represent communication and cooperation, and also sometimes they will represent groups. Fours represent stability and structure. Fives represent instability and often conflicts. Sixes represent growth. Sevens represent knowledge and faith. Eights represent change, and also mastery or accomplishment. Nines mean something is coming to fruition, and tens represent completion, or something coming to an end.

When we are looking at angel numbers, repeating ones are a call to action, essentially. 222 is a sign that whatever you’ve been trying to create is growing roots and is going to pay off. Threes mean that whatever is going to happen, is going to happen. You’ve done your part, let the universe take it from here. Repeating fours are a reminder that you’re not alone, and you don’t have to do everything on your own.

555 is a heads up that the ride is about to get bumpy. Sixes are a warning and a reminder to stay true to yourself, to your ethics. Don’t get caught up in false ideas of what’s important.

And sevens of course are a message of good fortune. Eights are a sign that appears to us when everything is going perfectly and nothing can be improved, but also a notification that things are reaching a conclusion and it’s time to figure out what’s next.

999 is the number of new beginnings, something brand new is brewing and will present itself shortly. And finally, repeating zeroes are just a reminder of the wisdom of the universe, the wholeness of every living thing that exists now or has ever existed.

So we can see a little bit of an overlap in the numerical significance between tarot and angel numbers, can’t we? And when we look into the magickal correspondences of numbers, we see even more parallels. In magick, one is the number of action, inspiration, and optimism. Two is the number of balance, support, and dreams or visions.

Three is the number of communication, crossroads, and discipline. Fours represent stability, protection, and community. Fives are about cleverness, change, and chaotic energy. Six represents anxiety, but also wisdom and loyalty. Sevens tell us about intuition and secrets and also success. Eights bring abundance, justice, and karma. And nines tell of new beginnings, but always after the end of something else.

So let’s kind of keep that in the back of our minds now as we start looking at numerology. Now, I’ve read several books on the subject of numerology, but my hands-down favorite is called A Beginner’s Guide to Numerology by Joy Woodward. It was only just published in 2019, but it’s such an easy read and it’s got so much information in it that you’re going to read it through over and over again and it’s one of those books that you’ll end up using as a reference guide. It goes through how to calculate all the major, important numbers in your own life and it details how to make charts for yourself and others, which can be really helpful when you’re dealing with anyone, but especially someone that you’re not vibing with. It can just give you a bit more insight into their character and where they’re coming from.

Essentially, if you know someone’s birth date and their full government name, you can learn so much about them. But let’s just focus on learning about ourselves for the time being. We can explore a lot about ourselves and we can find repeating numbers in our own numerology charts that are really significant to us. The main numbers that an individual will use to make their own numerology chart, or a chart for anyone, really, are the Birthday number, Life Path number, Destiny number, Soul number, Personality number, and Attitude number.

Sometimes some of those numbers will be the same, and we can expect a lot more intensity having to do with what those specific numbers mean, but not always. We don’t have time to go through how to figure out all of those major numbers, but a simple google search will tell you how.

However, we are going to talk about how to calculate a couple of them, and the basic process for getting those important numbers works this way. We start with a string of single digits, for example all of the numbers that make up our birthdate. Month, day and year. We will add those individual digits together until we get another number, and then we will add the individual digits of that number together until we get a single digit.

As an example, if your birthday is January 12, 1975, we would add the numbers 1 (for January),1 and 2 (for the 12th), and then 1,9,7 and 5, (for the birth year) which together gives us 26. Then we add the 2 and the 6 together to get a single digit, which is 8. Incidentally, this is known as your Life Path Number.

Numerology is really just a lot of adding of numbers, which can be a little tedious, but there’s just no more to it than that. Add only the numbers of the day of your birth to get your Birthday number, which in our example is 12, and one plus two is 3, meaning that our Birthday number is 3. We do the same thing to get our Destiny number, which is calculated by adding up the digits of our full birth names, and then adding the individual numbers up again until we get that single digit. In my name, Eli, E is the 5th number, L is the 9th number, and I is the 12th number. We would continue that process until we have all the numbers for my whole name, and then add them again and again until we get that single digit.

There are times when you won’t reduce a number down to a single digit, but we just don’t have time to get too deep in the weeds with that. Please, either check out a book on numerology from the library, or find a used copy to get all the details. It’s one of those disciplines where the information is really simple enough that anyone can at least get a decent handle on it, and then if you like it, it’s easy to practice and become really proficient. Begin with people you know, celebrities, coworkers, anyone whose information is available to you to really start getting familiar with the process. There’s no way to get into all of those major, significant numbers here, but there is one number we can find that’s very helpful to know.

We are going to talk about finding our Personal Year, and then what that means for us. All of us can use this information, so get ready to do some basic addition. In numerology, everything happens on a 9 year cycle. Major life events, big changes, all of that is on a nine year cycle. There are nuances to that, but again, for the purposes of this little exercise, we aren’t going to focus on the nuance. Now to find out what your personal year is, we will need to find our Attitude number, which just means to add the number of your birth month to the number of your birth day, and then keep adding those numbers together until we get a single digit.

January 12 would be one plus twelve, giving us 13, and then we add the one and the three together to get four. Our example Attitude number is four. Then we simply add that to the current year, which right now is 2022. 2 plus zero plus two plus two gives us six. Add six to our Attitude number of four to get 10. One plus zero is one. So our Personal Year in this example is one, and if anyone listening happens to have the birthday of January 12th, your Personal Year is year one. What does that mean? Well let’s quickly look at what each Personal Year has in store.

Year one, unsurprisingly, is the year of new beginnings. Think of The Fool in tarot. So much possibility, so much confidence. This is a great time to set both short-term intentions, as well as long-term intentions for the new nine-year cycle and really explore where we’ve been and what we hope to accomplish.

If you’re in year two, this is going to be a year where significant relationships are formed. These may be romantic relationships, familial relationships, meeting or getting more familiar with people who are going to be significant in the rest of this particular cycle, new babies may join the family during this year. This is also going to be a year that tests your patience. You may feel a little stymied after all the whirlwind potential of year one, but it’s important to relax and let things unfold.

Year three is the year of communication and connections. Build your network this year, meet new people, join a book club, and accept invitations. This will be a year in which you’re likely to meet someone who will end up being very significant in your life. Maybe romantically, but more likely someone who will become a dear friend. Think of the Three of Cups, which portends social events, collaboration, and big emotion. All the emotions, both positive and negative, are going to be larger than life during Year 3, so watch for that as well and don’t let those emotions run amok.

If you’re currently in your Personal Year four, you’ll want to stay on top of the details, and you’ll want to make sure you’re not trying to get away with anything, because you will be exposed. Year four is about discipline, focus, and staying inside the lines, so to speak. Shortcuts aren’t going to pay off if you’re in Year four, and you’ll want to make sure you’re paying attention to your health and general maintenance. Don’t put off your oil change, make sure you’re paying your taxes, all that. Year five, and this is the year I am currently in, is sort of the antithesis to Year four. This is a year for trying something new. New job, new relationship, new hobby, traveling. Watch for someone new to come into your life that’s going to open up possibilities and help you see opportunities.

Year six will bring big changes in your family situation, and it’s a year of growth, so it can most literally be a year when your family grows in some significant way. That growth can also be applied to education, so if you’re in your Sixth year and you’re feeling drawn to further your education this is a great year for it. The sixth card of tarot is The Lovers, and you can expect this to be an auspicious year for romantic relationships, but there’s also a dark side to year six, emotionally. So I don’t like to fear-monger, but this might be a year in which there’s a difficult loss.

Year seven kind of dovetails with that as a year when you’re going to want to really take care of yourself emotionally. Meditation, therapy, yoga, exploring your spirituality, all of these things are going to help you navigate through this year and come out on the other side with a much more enlightened understanding of yourself and your place in the world. If you’re in Year 8, expect all of the effort and lessons of the previous years to come home to roost. You’re in a unique position to apply those lessons to a new endeavor, a new business, a new job title, and you can expect significant changes in your financial situation, but this could be for better or for worse. So keep a watchful eye on those finances and take a power position in your life. If you’re thinking of making a major change, you might consider doing it now.

Year nine is a year of resolution. All the lessons and struggles and highs and lows of the entire previous cycle are resolved in this year. This is a year for closure and for letting go of everything that you do not want to carry forward into the next cycle. This is not a great year for starting something new and huge. Think of this as the end of the growing season. Pull out all the old roots and clean up the garden in preparation for the next growing season. Tend carefully to anything that you want to continue to grow in the coming cycle, and cut away anything that you don’t. All the toxic relationships, the one-sided friendships, the bad habits, release it all so that you can be ready to hit the ground running when the new cycle begins.

And I know this has been a lot of information, but it’s really so useful. You can learn so much, you can plan the best times to start new endeavors, not just within your Personal Year cycle, but once you’re familiar with the basics, you can find your power days, weeks, months, you can set yourself up for the best possible outcomes. And of course this isn’t bulletproof. There will always be circumstances outside our control. Free will counts for a hell of a lot, and we can do our very best, we can do everything perfectly, and still be sabotaged by outside influences. But we definitely don’t want to sabotage ourselves, and that’s where having an understanding of Numerology can be so beneficial.

If we can understand our own numerological chart and its cycles, if we know what to be on the lookout for in terms of opportunities and opposition, we are going to be positioned to respond much more quickly and with much more confidence. And it can help us to see patterns and messages from Spirit, from the universe, and from our guides. So, I really hope this has been helpful, I hope you’ll look a little deeper into Numerology as a practice that you can incorporate into your craft, just as you might with your astrological chart. There’s a lot to uncover, and it can be really helpful.

So, thank you for being here with me today, and for this whole year. Enjoy the full moon in Aquarius tonight, I know I will. It’s the fourth supermoon in a row, and the last one of the calendar year, so if you can find a little time to bask in that energy tonight, definitely treat yourself. Find me on social media, at @middleagedwitch, or online at middleagedwitch.com. My name is Eli, and this has been the Middle-Aged Witch podcast.