Hah! I bet I got you all on this one. Allow me–if you will–to
elucidate and illuminate and even explain a bit. Lemniscate is the
word sometimes used to describe the Infinity Symbol. “A sidways 8”.
And the Ouroboros. well… that’s the Eternity Symbol. “A snake
eating it’s tail”. Which leads one to ask: Just what is the
difference between Infinity and Eternity? They both depict forever do
they not? Well. yes… with a slight difference. Infinity tends
toward a mathematical reference… and Eternity tends toward
religious and mythological reference.
Where to begin? Eeny meeny tippa teeny. Snake it is. One can not
leave these choices to fate you know. The Ouroboros–while in the
process of swallowing its own tail–demonstrates in this procedure a
process of self-reflective cyclicity as well–in an oblique sort of
way–the act of re-creation itself. The circle of its own making is
the eternal return. The end begins the beginning. As the tail reaches
into its mouth. the head begins again. And so it goes forever. with
the final goal being. for you dear reader… the knowledge that you
will all see this in an ultra-well crafted piece of jewelry. Oh
magificence thy name is wonder.
Which brings us by the most logical segue imaginable. to the
Lemniscate aka The Infinity Symbol. (Hold down the alt key on your PC
keyboard and punch in 236. Unlike Eternity. Infinity is scientific.
Most knoweth not from whence the sideways eight came to become the
Infinity symbol. but they say that a John Wallis introduced it in
1655… taking it from a variant of the Roman numeral for 1000 which
was (I). (That’s a C, an I, and a backward C). As an aside. the
Ouroboros is also sometimes drawn as a sideways figure eight form and
so one can at times view eternity and infinity as interchangeable
concepts. For those of you out there who are beginning to think this
is all getting a bit weighty and hard to understand. not to worry.
you are correct. Even I am having trouble following this. and I’m
writing it. As a quick aside, which serves no purpose other than to
befuddle you more than you already are. the Tibetan Buddhist “Endless
Knot” is also used as a symbol for Eternity. And this
Tidbits–believe it or not–may also last forever. Shall I proceed?
Hmmm?
In India infinity was defined in quite a few different way. I shall
show you a single variant of three. Infinite: nearly infinite, truly
infinite, infinitely infinite. There are two other variants of three
but I don’t want to make you crazy. There is also–in simplistic
terms–a fractal curve with an infinite perimeter which is commonly
known as a snowflake.
From hither to thither and sometimes to yon. the description of
infinity seems to be endless. And perhaps it is. And as a last and
final thought–I know I know. it’s about time–Infinity as well as
Eternity are also often depicted in jewelry. How do you say–with a
pendant–I love you up to the sky and back. Well. a diamond Infinity
pendant will do quite nicely thank you very much.
And so I shall show you one of each. A sideways eight and a snake
eating its tail. Will wonders never cease? Who wants to see. By a
show of hands. One, two, three. by Jove. the numbers are infinite.
Heh heh.
Okay. So go. Run. Fly. Vamoose. No dilly-dallying en route. Look.
Enjoy. Home page. http://www.tyler-adam.com. Scroll down. Left side.
Tidbits. The old wizard. Click.
And there ya have it. That’s it for this week folks.
Catch you all next week.
Benjamin Mark