Theology

Is there meaning hidden in Phi, the symbol for the Golden Number?

The use of the Greek letter Phi Phi to represent the golden number 1.618 … is generally said to acknowledge Phidias, a 5th century B.C. sculptor and mathematician of ancient Greece, who studied phi and created sculptures for the Parthenon and Olympus.

The message from scripture of all the major monotheistic religions is that God is One, Who created the universe from nothing, splitting nothingness into offsetting forces and elements.  Today we understand the universe to consist of positive and negative atomic and subatomic particles and charges, matter and anti-matter, all coming from a singularity in what we term the “Big Bang.”

Curiously, the mathematical constant of 1.618 … that is found throughout creation is represented by the symbol Phi, which is the symbol 0 for nothing split in two by the symbol 1 for unity and one.  Could this be the true meaning behind the symbol Phi?  (Oddly enough, to type Phi on your computer, you hold the Alt key and enter 1000 on the number pad, an interesting “alt”ernate look at 1 with a trinity of 0’s!)

Note:  This original insight by the site author was added on 3/15/2003.

Adding Unity to nothingness produces the Fibonacci series, which converges on Phi

Now ADD God to the void, or Unity to Nothing.  In other words, add 0 plus 1 to get 1, and then follow this pattern to the Infinite.  This is the Fibonacci series.  The ratio of each number in the series to the one before it converges on Phi as you move towards infinity, ∞!

The Golden Proportion is analogous to God’s relationship to creation

The Golden Section, or Phi, found throughout nature, also applies in understanding the relationship of God to Creation.  In the golden section, we see that there is only one way to divide a line so that its parts are in proportion to, or in the image of, the whole:

The ratio of the larger section (B) to the whole line (A) is the same as the ratio as the smaller section (C) to the large section (B):

Only “tri-viding” the whole preserves the relationship to the whole

And so it is with our understanding of God, that we are created in His image.  Not by dividing the whole, but only by tri-viding the whole does each piece retain its unique relationship to the whole.  Only here do we see three that are two that are one.

The Book of John begins with these words that capture the essence of this:

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.

Jesus, in John 14:9, expressed a similar thought:

Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.

Here the human Jesus (the Son of Man) is to the divine Jesus (the Son of God) as the divine Jesus (the Son of God) is to God (the Father or whole).

Insight on the relationship of Christ to God as analogous to the golden section contributed by Steve McIntosh.

Phi as an insight to deeper spiritual connection and oneness

Phi can be calculated in an iterative process, such as those shown in the equations below:

Φ = 1 + (1/Xn), e.g.,

or

 

Miika Kuisma observed that the act of “part of the whole adding the whole onto itself” can be thought of as a “mathematical way of describing conscious recognition of being part of the whole.” In application, this would suggest that “when someone sees himself/herself as part of the world without personal attachment to it, and stays firmly in that perspective, then he/she will also become into a harmonic relationship with the world. One cannot help but to become in Phi relationship with the nature. This could suggest even a healing process.”

The Golden Section as a universal constant of design

The teachings of most religions express the thought that part of God is within each of us and that we are created in His image.  The pervasive appearance of phi throughout life and the universe is believed by some to be the signature of God, a universal constant of design used to assure the beauty and unity of His creation.

(More thoughts on the evidence of Divine creation)