COUNTING YOUR BLESSINGS: SACRED NUMBERS AND THE STRUCTURE OF REALITY

Abstract. Although numerical systems have been regarded as static models of a symbolic system and treated as mythological behavior, it is postulated that these systems are more profitably analyzed as dynamic models, better understood as ritual behavior. As ritual, numerical systems, limited in number and expressive of rhythmicity, contribute to the biogenetic structuralist's notion of "equilibration" between the central nervous system and the environment.
The relationship between concrete and abstract numeration is also examined, showing that counting behavior, requiring asymmetrical use of the hands, may contribute to understanding the relationships between handedness and brain hemisphericity, as well as enumeration and memorization.