Gematria

This is a system whereby different means are used to ascertain the numerical equivalent of names or other words or expressions and to relate these words to others having the same numerical value. It has been used for thousands of years to interpret scriptures and oracles and to build mystic meanings into physical structures such as temples. A most sophisticated system, in which the size and strokes of letters is significant as well as their position in the Hebrew alphabet, was used by Kabbalists to discover secret and powerful names of God and, by incorporating these into chants, to call up and control demons.