Duality

In accordance with the title, when I think of the number 2, we are often reminded of the stark contrasts and polarities our world portrays to us; for example, “good” versus “evil”, left versus right, negative and positive electrical charges, or the North Pole versus the South Pole, and so on. So it’s interesting to the see the shift from the unity and oneness of the number 1, to the splitting into opposites seen in the number 2; hence, there’s almost (well, at least in my mind) an implied tendency towards extremes with this number. 

With such splitting into opposites and extremes then comes a tendency towards division, disharmony, adversity, opposition and even fighting, battles and war, since you now have two separate entities with radically different and opposite characteristics being a possibility. Furthermore, there may also be a tendency towards shifting and oscillating between such two extremes, which may bring out a tendency towards indecision, confusion, doubt, dilemma and even fickle-mindedness. Even within oneself one may find many opposite traits and become a “walking contradiction”, just like the Green Day song. What’s also interesting is that at least traditionally, the number 2 is associated with the ever changing Moon, and hence with emotions, among other things, which only reinforces this point. To elaborate, emotions are a phenomenon which can swing between opposite extremes: you could smash your office computer screen in a fit of rage on a day where everything goes wrong, and then on the next day have a fun, peaceful and contented evening with family and friends at a dinner party. So, we see a possibility of imbalance being introduced here which is implied by the tendency to swing between opposite extremes. 

However, as we all know, emotions are not only capable of reaching extremes, but they can also be quite fluid and change quickly. In line with this, basically everyone alive sees changes in their emotions almost daily: you have days where you feel happy, then you have some neutral and ordinary days which aren’t so bad, but aren’t so good either, and then of course everyone goes through difficult and upsetting crisis-filled days as well. As such then, this number may represent this quality of change; but, if we take this on a positive note, it can represent our ability to consciously flow, adapt and evolve according to circumstances in a controlled manner, much akin to water (which, strangely enough, is also traditionally associated with the Moon). When required, water can explode in all directions like a tsunami, surge forth in a single direction with the unstoppable force of a river, it can gently course along a stream, or it can even sit totally still in a pond or even remain frozen as ice. Well, I see this same versatility in the 2, along with the possibility of extremes and imbalance, but hang on, there’s still more to it. 

How could we possibly gloss over the traditional significance of number 2 with that of relationships, partnerships and harmony? Of course, this may include anything from friendships and professional coworkers, to romantic relationships and love, and everything in between, as any type of relationship or partnership always requires two individuals and the dynamic exchange of energy, emotions, ideas and communication between them, and an obvious unifying harmony, closeness, cooperation and even love amongst them. And such a coupling of 2 entities together, in a positive sense, can be powerful, as the saying goes: “two heads are better than one” or in some cultures: “1 with 1 is equal to 11” a saying meaning that the unity of 2 people together creates a potential far more powerful than the simple sum of those 2 people together, because if you think about it, any couple or even group of people does, in a sense, function like an entity on its own. Take our own bodies for example- we are not purely individuals in a physical sense, because our bodies are made up of almost 30 trillion cells; but, all those innumerable cells work together in a healthy individual to function as one singular individual unit. You could say the same for a pride of lions, a pack of wolves, or even a colony of ants where, though there is the presence of more than a single organism, all those organisms together function as a single greater organism. A prime example of this idea of “the whole being greater than the sum of its parts” is the generation of electricity, where 2 “entities”: both a negative and positive pole or charge, are required to create the wonder of flowing electrons and therefore, electric current, a phenomenon which revolutionized the world to what it is today. And yet, there is an even deeper component to this concept, and that is the creation of a new third individual entity by the union and “coming together” of two individuals to create a child and therefore a family; in this way then, the number 2 leads onwards to number 3, but we’ll leave that for another post. 

Lastly, let’s not forget about the significance of balance, which is aptly represented by number 2, and a sharp contradiction to my first association of 2 with imbalance, but just bear with me here. Whether it be a yin-yang symbol, the scales of justice or even the two wheels of a bicycle, we quickly see the need for the two components of these simple “systems” to be functioning in perfect harmony and equal force in order to achieve a perfectly functioning balance. As I touched on above, in many cases the balance achieved by the alignment of various components actually help to make that system function on a higher level. For instance, take the example of a space shuttle, where all of its thrusters must push out the combustion flames at an equal rate and force in order to effectively achieve the legendary feat of propelling the rocket out into space. Yes, you may now yell at me for stating all these contradictions where number 2 can simultaneously represent adversity, war, division and imbalance; and yet, harmony, love, unity and balance at the same time! Indeed, the 2 is a rather complex number and a contradiction within itself with all the opposites it can possibly represent within a single digit, and this step-up in complexity from the utter simplicity of the number 1, is what makes this number “version 2.0” both literally and figuratively, at least when it comes to such complexity. However, keep in mind that complexity and simplicity each can be either a weakness or a strength, depending on the situation. 

To see number 2 repeatedly then may signify then a state in one’s life where there’s a degree of division, separation, opposition, adversity or even extremes. Of course, this may exist within oneself as a divided and indecisive state of mind; discord, adversity and arguments in one’s family or workplace. Just think of the “di” in “divorce”, this would be aptly represented by the “2.” It may even signify the presence of someone around you who may be two-faced and deceptive, or have a “split” personality in the sense of having very opposite and extreme behaviours with certain circumstances and people versus others. It can also be pointing towards a tendency of getting wrapped up in apices of emotion, or perhaps being too fluid and “going with the flow” too often, where one makes too many changes in their thinking and lifestyle to “fit in” so that no actual solid personal progress or achievement in one’s life occurs. Yet, much in line with title of this post, there’s another side to this idea: you might be acting too rigid in some area of your life, and you may actually need to learn to be more flexible and adaptable. Naturally then, this ties in to the concept of balance, whereby it’s important to be able to have that flexibility of behaviour or action in one’s life to adapt to the environment, people and circumstances, whether that be a nice, quiet suburban neighbourhood, or a battlefield. Lastly, the number 2 could be conveying something to you about relationships in your life: perhaps that a new one is about to begin, or that you’ve been so focused on yourself that you need to pay attention to other people around you, or that you need to connect to others in 1-on-1 relationships with a greater degree of love, caring, sensitivity, cooperation and understanding, whether romantically, or just as friends. Alternately, there may be some problems or hidden issues in relationships that a person is ignoring, or fails to see, that require attention.