Understand the power of three
SUJATA C.
|
What's with the number three? No matter where you turn, be it books or mythology, religion or pyramids — it's all three!
|
THE HOOGLY BRIDGE: An assembly of several congruent triangles.
Three billy goats gruff, three blind mice, three stooges, three musketeers... Three is never a crowd in a child's story. Why are there always three characters in children's stories and comic books? It is not just the writers of these stories who have a fascination for the number three. Religion, art, literature and the very nature of man have long been preoccupied with the number three.
Time has three phases — past, present and future.
The nature of the human being consists of three distinct levels — body, mind and soul.
Thought, word and deed (manasa, vacha, karmana) completes the sum of human capability.
Things seem to occur in threes or multiples of three.
There are nine planets in the solar system.
A baby is born after nine months of gestation.
The very foundation of the Hindu religion is based on the Trimurti — Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara. They represent the sum total of all cosmic and divine forces. The sacred chants are repeated thrice — Om Shanti, shanti, shanti. All japas are done in multiples of three. In Celtic art, one finds clusters of three centuries with three heads and objects that repeat thrice.
Art and geometry
In Greek mythology there are three Fates, three Graces, three Gorgons, three Furies. Cerebrus was a three-headed dog. Multiples of three are also used, as the nine muses and the 12 Olympian gods.
Three is an important number in geometry. A triangle is the strongest form in construction. A triangle forms the base of three-dimensional pyramid. It is considered the most stable and strongest of all shapes. The Pyramids of Egypt stand as a testimony to this fact and are one of the wonders of the world for no small reason. The geometric constructions of a long gone civilisation continue to fascinate and awe mankind across the world.
A cantilever bridge like the one on the Hoogly in Kolkata is an assembly of several congruent triangles. Together they can withstand the forces of nature. Every bar on a cantilever bridge experiences a pushing or pulling force. But the bars rarely bend. The triangular form is strong and can absorb any amount of force applied on any of its sides. That is why cantilever bridges can span further than beam bridges.
Triangles have innumerable uses in science and every day life. A hexagon structure forms the base of a windmill and the giant wheel.
Psychologists say that the brain finds it relatively easy to grasp things when they are in threes. Put them in fours and the brain gets all muddled.
One could go on, but the fact remains that the number three is deeply embedded in the psyche of the human mind and we would do well to harness the power of three whether we are trying to communicate or build, it pays to stick with threes.
Let the "fours" be with Star Wars.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Quest
