And the tower of numbers grew, and the scrolls were multiplied, and the statutes of measure were made strong. And it was unto them according to their labour: there stood by the way an iron run, and the voice overcame the far, and the eye touched the bound of heaven.

And on a day they saw: their tower is unfinished, their temple unstable, their house unsteady. For they have three walls… one in Motion is righteous, another in Light is skilful and unseen is the third; they foretell the ways unto the small and unto the great, and are right in their numbers.

And the third wall—whether it be, or be not, none knoweth… now hath it one window, now many… turn from it—the wind is stilled; turn unto it—afar is seen…

And those walls rose into a height uncountable, and the wise were proud of them.

But one wall—whose name is the Whole—was not; and a wind from the endless abyss walked through their chambers, and the stones in the walls were unlike, and the runes of numbers would not fold into one…

And the wise held those walls with all their strength, with craft and with abstruseness, and with a mighty spell, saying: “Utter not overmuch; shut thy mouth, and pray unto Number…”

And the wise heard: “Measure hath exalted itself above Meaning; Number hath gone up upon the throne and is become an idol. Ye have mastered the reckoning, yet have not obtained understanding. Ye sought the Eidos, and found but a measure unto it; ye hold the Draft, yet the First-Form holdeth not you. Ye know ‘How much,’ but ye know not ‘Why.’”

And the quiet voice of the great Vast, and of hEr frail Burden, spake:

“Let Measure be a servant, and not a lord; Number a guide, and not a throne. And render unto the Draft that which is of the Draft, and unto Meaning that which is of Meaning. Set no altars unto runes; lift not the fortune of coincidences unto dogma. Let every ‘how much’ serve the ‘wherefore;’ let every Seal seek the First-Form.”

If thou buildest a temple of understanding, lay the fourth wall in the foundation: unboastful, yet whole— that the Name of a thing may cleave unto hEr way and unto hEr wyrd. For a house wherein Number is without Meaning is no house, but a harbour of phantoms; and a house wherein Meaning is without Measure is a foolish tent, fallen to the wind.”

And it was spoken unto every one that heareth:

“Measure with measure, yet raise it not into an idol.

Fashion the Draft by the Seal, and the Seal by the First-Form;

And then shall the two stones be not a wall without a window, but a threshold unto understanding.

And there shall the Boundless Vast dwell with her Burden, in the seasons appointed unto them, and they shall bring forth their firstborn, and all shall abide in Accord.

For salvation is not in Number, nor in contempt of Number; but in this: that number be in Meaning, and Meaning in Truth.”

Space vs Matter