I don’t think it is a coincidence that the
hotel chain ‘Leonardo’ has taken over Jerusalem with the Vitruvian man as its
symbol. The Vitruvian man is a picture of
an outstretched man who fits both inside a square and inside a circle
simultaneously. A recent article in the Smithsonian magazine,
which questions whether Da Vinci was the originator of this icon, says that the
ancients regarded the square as secular and the circle as something
divine. In other words, man lives in
two worlds, the secular and the divine. This idea is a Jewish one, but there is
another aspect to a circle that we need to call attention to – it is the symbol
of the Satan. [1] Why is it that the Satan’s symbol is a
circle? And how does that also make it divine?
For
an answer, we can examine the famous tussle between Jacob and the angel, which
we identify as the representative of Esav, who is also a representative of
Satan. What was at the root of Esav and
how does it relate to circularity? The
name Esav means ‘done’, which is one of the reasons he is described as being
born hairy. Hair is something that
grows over time, and with Esav, it is as if there was no more room for growth
as the hair was already there. A circle symbolizes
a similar idea. No matter where one is
located on the circle, the destination is known. In other words, there is no room for change
or growth in a circle, a person is destined to end up where he began.
That
was the wrestling match between Jacob and the angel. He defeated the aspect within
himself that desperately resented change. How did he defeat him? He ultimately won with a simple question- ‘what
is your name’? He recognized that the power within that resented change was an
external entity. His real self is not what he is at present but
what he is supposed to become through change.
And that is the symbol of the square- a change in direction. Just when
you get comfortable going down one path, you turn and follow a different path. That is the world human beings are supposed
to live in, the world of changes. The world
of a circle, continuity on the same path, is only relevant when you are divine,
for at that point, no change is necessary as perfection has been reached. That is the dual reality of the circle, on the
one hand the symbol for divine perfection, and on the other hand the symbol for
the status quo, the symbol of the Satan.
[1] Midrash Rabba יז: ו: Reb Chanina the son of
Reb Idi- from the beginning of the book until it has not been written a samech
(circle)- since a woman was created, the Satan was created with her.
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