93
As it is written in The
Book of the Law, the Law of Thelema is stated as "Do what thou wilt shall
be the whole of the Law." It is further said, "Love
is the law, love under will." The two primary terms
in these statements are Will and Love, respectively. In
the Greek language, they are Thelema (Will)
and Agapé (Love).
Using the Greek technique of isopsephy,
which applies a numerical value to letters, the letters of
both of these words when added together equal 93:
- Thelema = Θελημα
- Θ (Theta) = 9
+
- ε (Epsilon)
= 5 +
- λ (Lambda) =
30 +
- η (Eta) = 8 +
- μ (Mu) = 40 +
- α (Alpha) 1
- = 93
- Agapé = Αγαπη
- Α (Alpha) 1 +
- γ (Gamma) 3 +
- α (Alpha) 1 +
- π (Pi) 80 +
- η (Eta) 8
- = 93
The relevance
of this technique is found in the art of correspondence.
When two words have the same value, they are said to have
a meaningful connection. In this case, it is considered significant
that the two central concepts of Thelema—Will and Love—are
of equal value, and therefore have a direct connection.
"93" as Salutation
It is common for Thelemites to
greet each other with "93" in
person as well as in the opening and closing of written correspondence.
This custom derives from Aleister Crowley's guideline that
Thelemites should greet each other with the
Law. Since saying the entire Law can be cumbersome, using
93 has become a kind of shorthand.
In informal written correspondence,
one often finds the number singly at the head of a letter
and in the form "93
93/93" at the end. In this case, the initial "93" stands
in for "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the
Law," and "93 93/93" stands for "Love
is the law, love under will." Some Thelemites find this
usage excessively informal, even for everyday use; others
point out that it is attested in Crowley's own letters and
deem it acceptable as a result.
| Authors
Details: From Thelemapedia |
|
