Numerology in Tarot - Number Seven

In Tarot, VII The Chariot, is the power of the mind to direct the body. The charioteer is never depicted holding the reins, his mind is in control. This card signifies the Exalted One who rides in the chariot of creation. The vehicle of the solar energy being numbered seven reveals the arcane truth that the seven planets are the chariots of the solar power which rides victorious in their midst. A sign of benevolent dominance, signifies victory for one who has conquered and held control of the unruly forces of the emotions and the mind. Seven is the number of work perfected, and the charioteer has accomplished this. In some decks the victor signifies the regenerated man, for the body of the chariot is a cubic stone. The Chariot's number seven connects it with fate, destiny, and transformation.

In Numerology, seven is the number of the scholar, the philosopher, the mystic and the occultist. Sevens are natural recluses. They like to withdraw from the maddening bustle of the world and be alone to meditate and reflect. Diginified, reserved, self-controlled, serious, they have no patience with foolishness or frivolity. They care nothing for money and very little for physical comfort. They have powerful and penetration intellects, but there is also a dreamy side to their character, highly imaginative, sometimes fey and strange. They are often extraordinary bad at explaining themselves and their ideas and they tend to dislike being questioned or argued with. They are sometimes deeply unhappy people, pessimistic, disappointed, aloof, superior, witheringly sarcastic.

Seven has long been considered a magically charged number. An ancient folk belief is that the seventh son of a seventh son will have special powers of clairvoyance and healing - this is derived from ancient Celtic mythology, in which 7 is the number of the archetypal make hero or god. The cult of the sun-god Mithras was particularly strong among Roman legionaries, and so it took hold vigorously in Britain during the Roman occupation in the first 4 Century AD. In Mithraism, which is Babylonian in origin, the soul is believed to ascend through seven planetary spheres before attaining heaven. The later Christian notion of seven levels of purgatory through which the soul must pass also ultimately drives from Mithraism. Mithras himself was a warrior/hero-type god which would make his association with 7 even more acceptable to the Romano-British Celts.

The Bible abounds in events which occur in sequences of 7, particularly in the Book of Revelation, in which are mentioned: seven stars, seven churches of Asia, seven spirits before God's throne, seven horns, seven vials and seven plagues. The Apocalypse is revealed to St John in seven visions, and the end of the world will come when the seven angels open the seven seals which release retribution on the Earth, seven trumpets sound, and the scarlet woman rests upon seven hills. Medieval scholars saw in 7 in the combination of the holy 3 with the mundane 4, and so 7 was seen as the number of all living sequences. 7 also represents the end of a sequence, a time for change.

In tradition, seven is the most interesting and magical of the nine single numbers. In myths, seven is associated with sleep, peace, and death. God created the world in six days, resting on the seventh; and in the ancient Babylonian 'Epic of Gilgamesh', after six days of flood and tempest the hero related how the sea grew calm on the seventh day. This is the number of the waning moon, which can presage sickness, and even death. It is also the number of occult knowledge and the unconscious mind. Our universe is full of sevens (heptads). Seven days of the week, colours of the rainbow, pillars of wisdom, levels of Babylonian ziggurat and branches of Jewish menorah. For the Chinese, it governs female life, being associated with the Moon cycle. It represents time in general, through its association with the Chronos, the Greek god of time, who was the seventh son of Uranus. Physically, sevens are of short of medium stature, with a tendency to weight and skin problems. Smart clothes and general appearance are of no interest. However, the inner self could not be more amenable, friendly and genial reflecting seven's colour, azure blue. Weaknesses include a tendency to over-indulge.