The secrets of mathematics (Maât e maât ics) : the end of arrogance

Here is an english summary of the chapter titled "THE SECRET OF THE MAÂT AND THE MAÂT-ICS” from my book“The End of Economic Science, The Beginning of the Golden Age”. The end of economic science

For centuries, mathematics has been regarded as the language of absolute truth, the ultimate expression of human reason. Yet, despite its apparent precision, mathematics remains a language of approximation. Imagine a square one meter wide: its diagonal is √2, approximately 1.414 meters—an irrational number that can never be computed exactly, not even by the most powerful quantum computer. We can approach it indefinitely, but never touch its essence. Thus, the myth of “exact sciences” dissolves, revealing a more profound reality: humanity is condemned to approximation.

The ancient sages of the Śulba Sūtras knew this long before us. Written between 800 and 500 BCE, their texts offered astonishingly precise values of √2 while humbly acknowledging them as approximations. Their wisdom reminds us that the true meaning of science lies not in numbers but in consciousness—the awareness that what we call “knowledge” is but a reflection of deeper truths.

Mathematics and the Forgotten Spirit

Economics, my field of reflection, rests entirely on mathematical foundations. Yet, our so-called “scientific” economists have forgotten the essential: spirituality. Without the spirit, mathematics becomes what the French language of the birds might call a “scie-anse”—a “saw-handle,” cutting but empty of life. Mathematics, in its purest form, is not merely a tool for measuring the world; it is a doorway to understanding the hidden order behind it.

Numbers, in this view, are not arbitrary inventions. They are spiritual archetypes. Pythagoras saw them as the keys to cosmic harmony. Take zero, for instance—the most mysterious of all numbers. In Arabic, sifr means emptiness. The zero represents the void encircled by a line, the serpent biting its own tail—the Ouroboros—a universal symbol of balance found in atoms, cells, the Earth, and the soul of man.

The circle of zero echoes through every spiritual tradition:

·       The Ensō of Zen Buddhism, symbol of emptiness and enlightenment.

·       The Ein Sof of Kabbalah, the Infinite that created a space of freedom.

·       The Śūnyatā of Buddhism and the Bindu of Hinduism, both representing the point of origin.

·       The fanâ’ of Sufism, the annihilation of the self into the One.

·       And in Christian mysticism, apophasis—the belief that God cannot be defined, only approached through silence.

Across these paths, emptiness is not nothingness but potential—the space where creation unfolds. It is therefore no coincidence that the invention of zero revolutionized mathematics and gave humanity the ability to compute, divide, and multiply from “nothing.” From the void, everything emerges.

The Sacred Roots of Numbers

The ninth-century scholar Al-Khwarizmi, summoned by Caliph Al-Ma’mûn, integrated Indian numeration into the Islamic world, giving birth to algebra (Muqābala) and the “algorithm.” Yet, few know that the Arabic sifr is also connected to the Sephiroth of Kabbalah—the ten emanations of divine knowledge.

Likewise, the Ka-Ba-Lah mirrors a universal pattern already known in ancient Egypt:

·       Ka – the vital force, divine breath;

·       Ba – the soul, the personality that rises like a bird;

·       Lah – the supreme divinity, the link to the Absolute.

These are not coincidences but echoes of a single truth: man is bound to the divine through number, form, and vibration. The sacred cube of Islam, the Ka‘ba, the Tree of Life of Kabbalah (Ka'ba Allah), and the geometry of Ma’at—all speak the same language.

Ma’at and the Birth of Ma’at-ics

To grasp the true nature of mathematics, we must look at its root. The very word hides an ancient secret: Mathematics = Ma’at + Ma’at-ics. Ma’at, the Egyptian goddess of truth, harmony, and balance, governed the dance between order and chaos. The suffix “-ics” means “related to.” Thus, mathematics literally means “what relates to Ma’at,” or what unites order and disorder.

In esoteric tradition, this is the principle of Ordo ab Chao—order born from chaos. The universe expands and contracts in cycles, just as the breath of life alternates between inhalation and exhalation. Even our economic systems obey these same rhythms: expansion through compound interest, contraction through collapse, and eventual return to zero—the Great Reset. Nothing can grow infinitely. The wall of the void awaits all who ignore equilibrium.

 

The Geometry of the Spirit

The equilateral triangle, with its three equal sides, embodies perfect harmony. It represents the triad of creation, found in all traditions:

·       Father – Son – Holy Spirit in Christianity,

·       Brahma – Vishnu – Shiva in Hinduism,

·       Isis – Osiris – Horus in Egypt. 

·       ISIS + RA = EL (God) :  ISRAEL

It is the balance between stability and dynamism, the union of opposites. And at the foundation of this geometry lie the prime numbers—indivisible, fundamental, unpredictable—spiritual atoms of the arithmetic universe. Their mysterious structure still defies reason, as Riemann’s hypothesis reminds us.

From Science to Wisdom

Mathematics, then, is not a cold science but a sacred language. It reflects the same laws that govern the cosmos, the same patterns that shape both galaxies and souls. What we call “economic science” must now reconnect with this understanding if it wishes to survive. For without Ma’at—without balance—our civilization will continue to oscillate wildly between excess and collapse.

The age of approximation is ending. The age of wisdom begins.