The Master Builder: Twenty-Two

In numerology, when we work through the algorithms to determine the elements, we reduce all numbers to a single digit with two exceptions; karmic numbers and master numbers. Master numbers are double digit numbers; such as 11, 22 and 33. Each of these numbers is considered to be very powerful as each contains the double vibrations of each number plus the vibration at the root.

So, for example, eleven contains a double “one” vibration as well as the vibration for the number two. The number twenty-two contains the qualities of the double two and the essence of the number four. Each progressive master number is thought to be more powerful and have more potential than the proceeding one, because each is thought to contain the potential of the proceeding number. Thus, twenty-two is thought to contain the abilities of the number eleven with a much higher potential to express and actualize those abilities.

This image of the twenty-two, the ability to take the capability of the eleven and apply it in a substantive way, is why Numerologists term the twenty-two the Master Builder.

The master builder, conceptually, is someone who lays the foundation for great new things. When the image of the master builder is conjured, think of someone great, like Buddha, who achieved enlightenment and charted a path for others to follow. The vowels of Buddha equal four (order and service), the consonants equal eighteen (nine – humanitarianism) and the total equals twenty-two.

Florence Nightingale paved the way for nursing to be considered a profession; before she brought methods and discipline to the training, nursing was considered to be a menial task and nurses were thought to be servants. The vowels of Florence add up to seven and in Nightingale to six. The total of the vowels add up to thirteen (four – order and service). The consonants in Florence add up to eight and in Nightingale to one. The total of the consonants add up to nine (humanitarianism). The total, nine plus thirteen, adds up to twenty-two.

Joan of Arc, who was born Jeanne d’Arc, and who laid the foundation for France’s liberation from England, also functioned as a twenty-two. The vowels in Jeanne add up to eleven (the number of a visionary) and the consonants add to eleven as well. The total, twenty-two, means that she was able to take her vision and make it into a reality.

Events, in addition to event-makers, are linked to the number twenty-two. Sometimes the twenty-two acts in a positive way. For example, in 1903, the Universal Year twenty-two, Wilbur and Orville Wright made their historical first flight at Kitty Hawk.

Sometimes it is not so positive. In 1939, again the Universal Year twenty-two, Germany invaded Poland, marking the start of World War II.

It was on the twenty-second of November (the eleventh month), that the following events occurred in history. In 1842, Mount St Helens in Washington erupted. In 1943 FDR, Churchill and Chiang Kai-shek meet to discuss ways to defeat Japan and end World War II. In 1989, there was the remarkable conjunction of Venus, Mars, Uranus, Neptune, Saturn and the Moon. In 1963, John F. Kennedy was shot dead in Dallas, Texas allegedly by Lee Harvey Oswald. Incidentally, the letters in Oswald add up to twenty-two as well.

The number twenty-two also has arcane linkages that hint at the great depth and power inherent within. For example, in the Kabalistic Tree of Life there are twenty-two individual paths that may be followed to be brought near to the completeness of Keter. Each path joins two of the Sephirot and is infused with meaning and direction for moving toward that unity of awareness and purpose hinted at in Keter.

The path of Chet, for example, links Tiferet (the heart) with Chesed (loving kindness). The path of Chet is traversed through love by linking your life to another’s. The path of Ayin links Tiferet (the heart) with Binah (understanding). The path of Ayin is traversed by studying and trying to understand other points of view. The path of Ayin holds the certainty that the greatest truths are not expressed in single belief.

In the system of Tarot, there are twenty-two cards in the major arcana. The word arcana, the plural of Arcanum, means profound secret mysteries. The sequence of the cards in the major arcana represents a spiritual journey of enlightenment that begins with the initiate (termed the Fool in most decks) and culminates with a deep, universal understanding (in the World). In following this progression, we gain insight into the learning that we must achieve to progress along the path of enlightenment.

Further, the Initiate is represented as both key zero and twenty-two. This is because there are a multitude of paths that we are set upon throughout our lifetime. Life is cyclical, and the major arcana, with the Initiate placed at both the beginning and the end, represents a discrete cycle. When the Initiate is placed at the beginning as key 0, he symbolizes the raw potential of one who is eager, while not yet experienced or knowledgeable. When the Initiate is placed at the end as key 22, he signifies one who now has the experience, and thus the skills and knowledge.

The strength of the number twenty-two is in evidence in the esoteric roots of the Kabbalah, Tarot and Numerology. It is clearly linked to the destiny of events and event makers. Its intensity is found in the vibration of the double “two,” which enhances the capabilities found in the number eleven with a pragmatic ability to make it all happen. It is the power to develop; to lay the foundation for something new and exciting. It is the Master Builder.