Squaring the circle: the marriage of earth and heaven
PhotoView on the original blogTraditionally the circle is associated with heaven and the square with the Earth. Uniting these two geometric shapes by making them equal in area or perimeter, what is called "squaring the circle", means symbolically combining or marrying heaven and Earth, spirit and matter. From a numerological point of view, between the Earth, associated with 4, and heaven, associated with 6, stands man, associated with 5. Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man shows how the height of the human figure coincides with the span of the outstretched arms, how this measurement equals seven times the length of the foot, and other important ratios.
The Earth and the Moon square the circle, in the sense that if the Moon (3 units in diameter) is placed next to the Earth (11 units in diameter), a celestial circle concentric with the Earth and passing through the centre of the Moon has a radius of 7 and a circumference of 44, equal to the perimeter of the square circumscribed around the Earth. The calculation works because π, the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter, is for practical purposes 22/7. In Leonardo's drawing the Moon could occupy the space above the man's head.
Bibliography:
- Quadrivium. Numero, geometria, musica, astronomia (Quadrivium: Number, Geometry, Music, Heaven). Sironi Editore 2011
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