Triads

The classic trichotomy identifies the three parts of man or woman as body, mind and soul. Some philosophers pursued other trichotomies with eager intent. For instance, Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), trying to close the gap between faith and reason, discussed the “causal principles (agent, patient, act), the potencies for the intellect (imagination, cogitative power, and memory and reminiscence), and the acts of the intellect (concept, judgment, reasoning), with all of those rooted in Aristotle; also the transcendentals of being (unity, truth, goodness) and the requisites of the beautiful (wholeness, harmony, radiance).”

Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), seeking an age of reason, adapted the trichotomy of higher cognition—understanding, judgment, and reason—which he correlated with the soul's capacities of cognitive faculties, feeling of pleasure or displeasure and the faculty of desire. Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831) described the process of thesis, antithesis and synthesis “across a pattern of trichotomies (e.g. being-nothingness-becoming, immediate-mediate-concrete, abstract-negative-concrete); such trichotomies are not just three-way classificatory divisions; they involve trios of elements functionally interrelated in a process. They are often called triads.”

From Threes, Chapter Eleven “Threes Forever” 

Threes and the Olympics

The motto of the Olympic Games is the hendiatris Citius, Altius, Fortius, which is Latin for "Faster, Higher, Stronger." Hendiatris (Greek for one through three) is a figure of speech in which three words express one idea. “Wine, women and song” is another example to represent hedonism, a concept now embraced by the more modern expression, “Sex, drugs and rock and roll.”  The Olympic motto was proposed by Pierre de Coubertin when he created the International Olympic Committee in 1894. He introduced the motto in 1924 at the Olympic Games in Paris. 

 

Winners in the modern Olympics receive gold, silver and bronze medals for first, second and third finishes. During the ancient Greek Olympic games, the winner received a wreath made of olive branches, not a gold medal, that was placed on his head. The crown was crafted from leaves from a sacred tree near the temple of Zeus at Olympia. The kotinos was intertwined to form a circle or a horseshoe and was introduced supposedly by Heracles, who was the paragon of masculinity and the greatest of Greek heroes, the son of Zeus. Romans and later those in the West know Heracles as Hercules. In the ancient Olympic Games there were no gold, silver, or bronze medals. There was only one winner per event.

 

From Threes, Chapter Ten, “Threes in Sports and Games” 

Norman Maclean and Threes

“The Oxford was the combination billiard, pool, and card parlor, which for many westerners was the home away from home.  The entering door led past the bar and tobacco stand: the guy behind the bar looked like he was trying to look like the owner.  I bought a bottle of homebrew beer, but if I’d asked for a shot of moonshine, I probably could have got it.  Then I sauntered through the big door into the game room.  It retreated to the rear in geometric patterns.  The farther back it went the higher the stakes, the deeper the sin and the lower the social order.” 

 

From artist Christine Drake (christinedrake.com) who read “USFS 1919: The Ranger, the Cook, and a Hole in the Sky,” A River Runs Through It and Other Stories by Norman Maclean

Groundhog Day and Thirty-three

“Did you know that Groundhog Day lands on February 2, which is the 33rd day of the year?  Which means there will be 332 days left to the year, but it means it is also the 333rd day counting backyards from the year’s end.
 

“The Number 33 is the most influential of all numbers. It is the Master Number of Universal Love. The 33 combines the vibration of both the Numbers 11 and 22, bringing their unlimited potential to the highest level, when realized to its fullest potential.
 

“Thirty-Threes tend to focus their considerable abilities toward the spiritual uplifting of mankind. Thirty-Threes exhibit the highest level of sincere devotion toward humanity, and they are known to practice what they preach. They show determination in seek to understand the world, and display great, real wisdom. The Number 33 in full force is exceedingly rare, but makes itself known in such Spiritual Warriors as Jesus, and Che Guevara, amongst others.
 

“Those under the influence of the Number 33 are on the journey of discovering love’s powerful healing energy, by opening their hearts and showing the masses, unconditional love.”
 

So there you go.  Who would have thought Groundhog Day had more meaning than simply some rodent looking for his shadow?
 

From http://www.goodthingshappeninthrees.com/