ക WhyAskWhy¿ (9) ~ SEVENs

Thanks to Jingle for the 'Versatile Award' to tell 7 random facts about yourself and also to Mariuca for the 'Stylish Blogger Award' to share 7 things about yourself. Sorry for the delay to recollect my thoughts to fulfil the requirements. Could not take it any longer as the guilt has been haunting and bugging Bananaz for quite some time. A blessing in disguise that the tags gave me the inspiration to share 7 Good, Bad & Ugly of Bananaz into seven separate posts. Will have to wait for my next post before I can embark and begin to peel off the 7 yellow skins after I get over with this SEVEN thingy. Why*Ask*Why the significance of this number 7 is so common in fairy tales, advertisements, trade marks, various religions, folklore and casinos etc.

Why does this recurring #7 so magical and mystical to be selected and obsessed by so many? To kick off shall start with The 7 colors of the Rainbow ~ Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet famously abbreviated as 'vibgyor' or the mnemonic “Roy G. Biv.” To keep the ball rolling there is this 7-UP; 7 Eleven; 7 Dwarfs; 7 Seas ~ The Arctic and Antarctic, North & South Pacific, North & South Atlantic, and the Indian Ocean; 7 classical planets ~ the Sun, the Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn; 7 chakras ~ Root, Sacral, Solar Plexus, Heart, Throat, Third Eye & Crown; 7 cardinal sins ~ pride, avarice, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth; 7 wonders of the natural/ancient World; 7 basic musical notes do-re-me-fa-so-la-ti; 7 days a week; 7 heavens; 7 directions ~ north, south, east, west, up, down and center; 7 spot ladybird; 7 ~ the neutral pH value between acidity and alkalinity; 777 Jackpot and lastly the often over used lame excuses, the 7-year Itch (probably there are more but will have to stop here else its never ending).

Bananaz is typing and scratching the head trying to figure out how and why the #7 gets all the limelight shinning radiantly head and shoulders above the rest? Could it be based on science and technology or superstition or because 7 is the most spiritual of all numbers and considered most 'lucky' that's why they used 777 for jackpots? It beats me, your guess is just as good as mine. Anyone to throw in some light please?

Click here for more details of seven

Now what will the Chinese people got to say about #7七 in their very own way? Heard of 7 early 8 early? 七早qī zǎo 八早 bā zǎo, cracking up your brains early in the morning hey! Here you go:

1. 七情qīqíng  : 7 effects of traditional Chinese medical theory and therapy ~ joy 喜xǐ, anger 怒nù, anxiety憂yōu, thought 思sī, grief 悲bēi, fear 恐kǒng, fright 驚jīng;

2. 七方qīfāng : 7 kinds of Chinese medicine prescriptions 大方dàfāng, 小方xiǎofāng, 缓方huǎnfāng, 急方jífāng, 奇方qífāng, 偶方ǒufāng and 重方chóng fāng or 複方fùfāng;

3. 亂七八糟 luàn qī bā zāo : everything in disorder (idiom);

4. 七上八下qī shàng bā xià : perturbed state of mind (idiom);

5. 七仙女qī xiān nǚ : seven fairies

6. 七七八八qīqī bābā : 7788 ~ Its our slang for 'almost complete' or 'near completion'. To make it a complete 7 have to add one more which is quite timely with 清明節 QīngMíngjié (lit. pure brightness or tomb-sweeping) festival, beginning of April in China, September in Japan in relation with souls.

7. 七七 qīqī : (seven sevens equals 49), a Daoist services for the auspicious reincarnation of the departed. Chinese of the Daoism faith believed in 三魂sānhún three (immortal souls) and 七魄qīpò (seven mortal forms). So both these four words will go together forming 三魂七魄sānhúnqīpò. It is believed that when a person dies his/her soul would return on the 7th day. Special prayers and chanting will be conducted every week until seven sevens ie 49 days then all prayers and chanting will come to an end and that the soul has reincarnated. Strangely enough both these two Chinese words 魂hún & 魂pò have got a radical ghost 鬼guǐ in each word. o.O

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