Algorithmic Amulet-making, Magic Square Encryption and Other Occult Technologies: Computational Methods Applied to Medieval Intellectual Artifacts

Abstract: The magic square or wifq (in Arabic, pl. awfaq) is a type of mathematical matrix invented separately by several ancient cultures and used in numerological and occult systems, but feature most prominently in the 13th-14th century CE Islamic world. Discussions of their use in medieval Islamic texts has been relegated to folklore and they have largely been ignored. Awfaq do, however, hold up to scrutiny as information objects and represent an early form of complex computation. We propose that they are best understood in terms of their computational properties and in turn can be used to better understand the roots of and possibilities for modern computational methods. The earliest examples of magic squares date from 23rd century BCE China and can be found across the globe in texts on the intricacies of the mathematics used to array numbers in this unique way. Awfaq, however, had a less abstract purpose in the late antique and medieval periods. They are found in a variety of amulets and talismans (i.e. written artifacts believed to have protective power) and in a great many texts on esoteric or theurgic mysticism. Throughout the last century, Orientalist scholars and historians either disregarded them as mere mathematical curiosities or discounted them as aspects of superstition.1 There is renewed interest in this variety of magic square at the beginning of this century, though much of the focus comes from the scholarly tradition that precedes it.2 Against this background of renewed interest, we would like to examine the wifq as a form of encoding technology. In the medieval Islamic mystical tradition awfaq were used to encode the names of God as well as other information. Practitioners in this tradition would have commanded an advanced understanding of algebra, geometry and discrete mathematics in order to construct and array the matrices. Their efforts are an example of what in the modern period would be labeled cryptographic encoding. The aims were the same as those of cryptographers: keeping certain information hidden from anyone without the tools to unlock it. They did this in the pursuit of esoteric mystical knowledge, operating within a cosmology in which every part is alive with encoded meaning. Each square was a microcosmic representation of the macrocosm and the former believed to allow the practitioner to manipulate the latter. The numbers in arrayed within the matrix were combined and further manipulated by practitioners in pursuit of discovering the hidden names of beings believed to be avatars for the forces moving the world. To facilitate computational research into awfaq and their properties, we have developed and continue to refine open source scripts and programs in an attempt to reframe the algorithms codified in the texts of medieval theurgist Abu-l-Abbs Amad b. Al b. Ysuf al-Qurash al-Bn (d. 622/1225). These texts are a cookbook of sorts, which was meant to allow the initiated practitioner to construct textual amulets. They contain information about specific
1

See: Sesiano, J. (2002) Waf. and MacDonald, D.B. (1960). Bud. In Encyclopaedia of Islam, second edition. Leiden: Brill.; Cammann, S. (1969, February). Islamic and Indian magic squares. Part I. History of religions 8(3), 181-209.; Cammann, S. (1969, May). Islamic and Indian magic squares. Part II. History of religions 8(4), 271-299. 2 See: Kruk, R. (2005, May). Harry Potter in the Gulf. British journal of Middle Eastern studies 32(1) 47-73.;
Asatrian, M. (2003). Ibn Khaldn on magic and the occult

mathematical methods for arraying the matrices and deriving numerical values which have arcane correspondences for practitioners. This project serves as an example of the unexpected convergence of digital methods and digital scholarly perspectives with historical, cultural, and textual subjects. The combination of the wifq as subject and computation as method of analysis yield new insights not available to a researcher using either in isolation. The software source is open and is and will continue to be available, along with any binary packages produced, at: http://github.com/johndmartiniii/wifq Technical requirements: Projector with connection for laptop for displaying images and demonstrative examples. We would like to indicate that we are willing to have this proposal considered also as a project demonstration. However, we feel that it would be better as a 15-20 minute presentation with illustrative images and a short demo of how the software works. Biographies: John D. Martin III - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill john.d.martin.iii@unc.edu (919) 442-8014 John is a PhD student in the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and fellow on the ELIME-21 project. His research interests include digital humanities in the Muslim world, mapping Islamic intellectual history, medieval Islamic theology and mysticism. He has worked as an IT consultant at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and has experience in system administration, web application deployment and network integration. John amuses himself in whatever spare time is available with the construction and maintenance of GNU / Linux systems and an increasingly complex home network environment of his own design. His current technological interests are focused on tools which drive and support digital humanities projects, home automation, cataloging his personal research library and the baking of bread, one of humankinds oldest and most important technological activities. Elliott Hauser - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill eah13@mac.com (919) 308-6681 Elliott Hauser is a PhD student in Information Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hills School of Information and Library Science. He is interested in understanding and developing tools for subjective, conflicting, and uncertain datasets, including those used in academic and scientific research, and in developing tools and technology to deliver benefit to data-based research and analysis outside academia. He is also the founder of UNC-Chapel Hills Digital Scholarship working group, co- founder of the Semaphore Working Group on New Media and Technology, and the recent recipient of a prestigious five-year Royster Fellowship.