Eleven

 Eleven

is the number 

of the month I was born in: 

November.

So much more than 

a prime number, this is the first 

of the Master numbers:

intuitive, creative, 

idealistic, prophetic,

unusual, original, inspirational.

In the Tarot, eleven 

of the Major Arcana 

was once the card of Justice —

also meaning Balance, 

which you can see, if you like, 

in those paired single digits.

Now in the Tarot, more often

11 is the number given to Strength,

so that 8 can be Justice / Balance.

(Which may, by some reckonings, 

be esoterically more correct 

but mucks up the Zodiac sequence 

in which Leo should precede Libra ...

oh, you didn’t know you can map

astrology over the Tarot?)

But either is a good quality,

isn't it? And Justice needs Strength

just as Strength requires Balance.

In the Qabala, the Tree of Life,

the eleventh sphere is shadowy Daath,

unseen, of hidden knowledge;

while the eleventh path

appears to be placed 

anywhere a particular person decides.

It might be between 

Severity and Beauty, or

Beauty and Understanding, or …

but most seem to agree 

it goes from Kether to Chokhmah

Crown to Wisdom

so you could be journeying

from Wisdom to Truth (Wisdom

to God) or vice versa. Both make sense.

Although I abhor strict mathematics, 

all this I find fascinating. 

I claim eleven as my prime number.

Poetic Asides prompt #11 for April 2021: a prime number poem.