Squared Magick

A riddle: I cast dices, pick dominoes, play roulette, draw tarot cards and mahjong tiles but always find the same numbers…

… Triangular numbers.

T( 3) = 6
T( 7) = 28
T( 8) = 36
T( 12) = 78
T( 16) = 136

666 = 4² + 1²+2²+3²+4²+5²+6²+7²+8²+9²+10²+11²+12²

Meanwhile in Japan, Hokusai in his old age used to sign 画狂老人卍 (Gakyōrōjinmanji). His life long production of painting covers every genres and subjects, like nyotaimori.  

If the idea of having a swastika part of a Kanak charm against creatures from the deep seems strange to you, let me take you for a trip along the coast of Panama.

There, the Kuna indians live on a group of 365 islands off the coast of Panama. They assumed autonomy in 1925. The flag design they adopted at that time incorporates a swastika. Later a variant of the original flag was introduced where a circle representing a nose ring was added.

In Kuna tradition, kikir, which means octopus, is the name of the sacred symbol representing the birth of the world, the divine mother extending its tentacles in the four cardinal directions thus creating the rainbow, the sun, the moon and the stars.

PS: I like the idea of being able to spend each day of the year on a different island and on leap year to have a rest on the mainland.

In The Shadow over Innsmouth ( H.P. Lovecraft, written 1931, published 1936), old Zadok Allen mentions a Kanak’s charm.

“We all hed to take the Oath o’ Dagon, an’ later on they was secon’ an’ third oaths that some o’ us took. Them as ud help special, ud git special rewards – gold an’ sech – No use balkin’, fer they was millions of ’em daown thar. They’d ruther not start risin’ an’ wipin’ aout human-kind, but ef they was gave away an’ forced to, they cud do a lot toward jest that. We didn’t hev them old charms to cut ’em off like folks in the Saouth Sea did, an’ them Kanakys wudu’t never give away their secrets.

“Yield up enough sacrifices an’ savage knick-knacks an’ harbourage in the taown when they wanted it, an’ they’d let well enough alone. Wudn’t bother no strangers as might bear tales aoutside – that is, withaout they got pryin’. All in the band of the faithful – Order 0′ Dagon – an’ the children shud never die, but go back to the Mother Hydra an’ Father Dagon what we all come from onct … Ia! Ia! Cthulhu fhtagn! Ph’nglui mglw’nafh Cthulhu R’lyeh wgah-nagl fhtagn – “

365 = 10² + 11² + 12²

365 = 13² + 14²

365 = 5² + 12² + 14²

365 = 3² + 4² + 12² + 14²