Pentagonal Relationships

Daniel Kahn

Geometries are the foundation of our physical reality. They are any arrangement of

boundaries in space that appear to us as form. Without the concept of boundary we would have no way to differentiate between physical objects. The various ways of assembling these boundaries has an inuence on our perception of the object in question. In nature it is often quite difcult to discern a specic geometric pattern of an object, but it is always there with perhaps such complexities that it requires us to break something down into pieces to understand the interconnections of the parts to create the whole. Basic polygonal shapes such as circles and triangles can be used to essentially create any form imaginable, if only arranged in a very specic way. From a very early age in the indoctrinated educational system, society is introduced to specically outlined shapes of varying number of sides, of which are connected at specically designated angles. We have labels for each of these, the rst possible being three sides is called a triangle, and at the opposite extreme the circle has an innite number of sides. In between these there are a myriad of designated labels for shapes having specic number of sides. These basic geometric forms are often implemented as symbols within companies, government agencies, as well as religious and occult groups. Perhaps one of the most intriguing because of its wide use across many different sections of society is the Pentagon. The number 5 seems to have some type of signicance in relation to the human psyche. Emotional responses to the presentation of the basic pentagon shape from human test subjects will help us to better understand how this shape inuences society. ! Starfruit, starsh, the seed housing in an apple, and many owers such as the morning

glory are all in formations revolving around the number 5. We can see the presence of the number all around us in nature. As 5 seems so inherent to some unknown aspect of creation in the universe it would be logical to deduce its signicance in the mind as everything is

intrinsically related and formed of the same origin and building blocks. Dating back to ancient times, humans have found 5 to be an important feature of reality. The so called Platonic solids are three dimensional organizations of equal sided and equal angled polygons. They were symbols of the ve elements re, earth, air, water and ether. One of these is the Dodecahedron which represents ether, or otherwise the universe. This shape has twelve pentagons put together into a shape loosely resembling that of a soccer ball. Among the experimental data collected, there were two subjects who related the basic pentagon shape to the ve elements. This is a potential instance of an interpretive code which relies on prior knowledge and association with specic schools of thought. Many test subjects also made reference to sacred geometry, where the platonic solids play a critical role in the conceptual architecture of not only our experiential reality but also the structure of the energetic systems of the metaphysical world. There are certain psychoactive plants which are believed to have metaphysical resonance and also are oriented around the number 5. Certain varieties of Morning Glory owers contain a substance that has been used historically in spiritual ceremonies and rites of passage. This is yet another symbol of the integration of all things in the universe, both physical and metaphysical, united through a bridge designed with respect to a pentagon. Metaphysical signicance seems to be a very strong factor in terms of the inuence that 5 has on human beings. ! Metaphysical connotations are important because they relate to a very large sector of

society. Under the ideology that pentagon represents the element ether (essentially the interconnectivity of the entire universe), a group or organization of some kind could implement the use of the sign by metaphorically symbolizing themselves as that shape thus potentially signifying an omnipresence of their own. Among the responses to the presented image of the pentagon, there were a large number of people that immediately associated the shape to the CIA

headquarters in Washington D.C. Those who thought of this relationship tended to have preconceptions associating the organization with power, fear, war, a general tension and distrust. Different circles of people, however, did not make this association whatsoever, but instead had a feeling of comfort and safety. This appears to be the perception that the CIA intends to portray. This use of the pentagon shape by the CIA has a synecdochical relationship with society. The members of the organization make up only a small portion of the population, however they insist on representing the whole by instantiating themselves as the authority of intelligence in the world. The organization itself seeks to be everywhere in the world, at least politically, which aligns with the historical symbolism of the pentagon shape. Many Americans believe that the CIA helps keep the country safe through their ways of obtaining information about possible threats to the country. Threats such as terrorist attacks, including the one which involved the pentagon building itself. Two responses mentioned this attack, the event happening on September 11th, 2001 when as ofcially reported, a 747 jet airline crashed into the side of the Pentagon building. Both of the subjects who referenced this in their response to the presented image of the shape had a great distrust of the situation and the government as a whole. One response shared an experience at boot camp, where he made a model of the Pentagon building as a centerpiece for the graduating ceremony. As stated, the ofcers allegedly took the model and burned a hole in the side to represent the events that happened. It seems that this would be a trivial action if it were simply for reminder of what had happened. Otherwise there very well could be a hidden motivating factor, one that has intention to deceive people, make people believe that an event occurred in a certain context when it is possible that the reported story is completely invalid. The idea that the government has secret agendas has been a circulating belief among certain social groups. One response pointed out that all of the monuments in Washington

D.C. are aligned along roads which complete the shape of a pentagram. This is a ve pointed star which ts perfectly inside of a pentagon and is often associated with many esoterically oriented groups. One group worth mentioning in this case are the free masons, which according to an exponentially growing societal understanding, is a secret force of organization within our country and around the world. Aside from ideas such as this which are labeled as conspiracy, there is still a resonating perception of power, and strength in association with the CIA. This is useful to them as they can maintain power over the population not only through fear, but also through comfort of protection. ! Collectively, the responses to the presented image have a dichotomous relationship with

each other. There seems to be a group that perceives the shape with a negative connotation, describing fear and distrust in relation to the governments use of the shape as the CIA headquarters. The other branch of perception describes feelings of comfort and happiness. This has a lot to do with the architectural strength of the shape. Upon dissection of the basic pentagon shape, if cut from angle to angle it always breaks down to some arrangement of triangles. Triangles are generally very strong shapes in the physical world because the diagonal vector provides force in two directions. For comparison sake think of a square. Each vector only has strength in one dimension because they are all perpendicular to one another. Given this understanding we can see how a shape built of triangles can have a perceived notion of strength, stability, and protection. This makes people comfortable because they believe they have nothing to worry about, the government knows everything and will protect them from outside forces. Another interesting detail relating to comfort and happiness is the fact that many responses see the basic shape of a pentagon and think of their childhood when they were learning basic shapes in school. For many people, childhood is a place of sanctity, of no worries, just pure happiness. It

is a comforting feeling to think of childhood in regards to not having to worry about responsibility within society. You do not even need to take care of yourself, that is your parents job in most cases. In this respect, your parents and the government are diachronically related, as in your childhood it is your parents responsibility to look after you and then on into adulthood it is expected that the government will take on this role. ! As a whole the integration and analysis of all responses to the basic pentagon symbol

yielded an astounding relation to the government. Whether this was with a negative connotation, as in the case of fear and distrust, or on the other extreme the perception of comfort provided through strength and protection, as well as the association of childhood carefree living and dependence on a higher power, there are a multitude of factors pointing towards this common conception. If we separate the specic association with the United States government, we can still make conclusions of the pentagon symbolizing some strong, protective force which exists as an omnipresent locality, intrinsic to all individuals who perceive it. This simple ve sided shape carries the power to employ ideas that make people feel comfortable as well as represent the people as a whole. In any case, it is always up to the perspective viewing point as has been shown through the dynamics of collected responses to the shape.