Sunday, December 7, 2008

Lucky 5

Chinese culture developed the notion that certain numbers were more propitious than others.

The number 8 is considered extremely lucky, perhaps partly owing to its unique symmetry, and perhaps partly owing to the fact that the 8, laid on its side, resembles the Greek symbol for infinity. Additionally, in Mandarin Chinese, the sound byte for "eight" is close to that for "prosperity, wealth", while in Cantonese it is similar to the sound byte for "fortune". To give an idea of how highly the number 8 is prized, the telephone number 8888-8888 was sold for a sum corresponding to USD $270,723 in Chengdu, the capital of China's Sichuan Province.

The number 5 is associated with adventure, sensual expression, changes, and travel.

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