Freethinker Sunday Sermonette: wedding vows

It's June, the month of weddings, and as it turns out the 34th anniversary of our own wedding. Mrs. R. and I are off at still another wedding this weekend, but I ran into some romantic vows to share with everyone. It seems two hackers decided to establish a symbolic link and coded their wedding vows so each word had exactly the number of letters of the decimal expansion of a personally chosen mathematical constant. Mako (the groom) chose the complexly tailored constant, phi. phi is also known as the Golden Ratio and is found in logarithmic spirals and numerous other constructions. The bride wore pi, the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. The product of phi and pi (yet to be named) is found in "golden geometries."

Mika's vows (below the fold):

Now, I give a total offertory to joyful union.

I'll honor - joyously, endlessly, loyally, devotedly - you.

In the marriage that unites us, paired Yang and Yin,
Benjamin and me, forever soulmates, shall complement as
partners steadily.

With a doubtless promise, I pledge integrity and stability
sincerely. Our rounded rings, a completely noble treasure;
it represents continual respect, love, perpetual link with
trust, limitless.

My vow: absolutely lasting devotion.

You can read Mako's here (hat tip Boingboing)

Do you think it is of any significance these marriage constants are irrational numbers?

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revere,
Great sermonette - sorry I cannot shake your hand on the way out. Those vows are wonderful and the scope of your knowledge continues to amaze me. The Golden Ratio will have to wait until tommorow when I have time to study it.

Best wishes to you and Mrs. R and may you enjoy many more years together.

By sharpstick (not verified) on 11 Jun 2006 #permalink

Wow, now that's hardcore geekiness. Funny stuff. BTW, I'll be exchanging vows later today too. Mine would be rather mundane compared to those guys.

Heathen: By the time you read this it sounds like you will be a lost man. But since you are reading blogs on your wedding day, there's still life in you. Does she (or he if that is your choice and you live in Massachusetts) know about this vice?

sharpstick: The mathematics of the Golden Ratio goes from the fairly easy to the fairly deep. The link I provided is reasonably tough. An accessible book that's widely available is Huntley's The Divine Proportion (Dover reprint).

...my spelling is terrible ... but... Mozeltoff

By tardigrade (not verified) on 11 Jun 2006 #permalink

"Accessible" is certainly what's called for in my case:). A pleasant walk across campus later and I have it, along with Mario Livio's The Golden Ratio. I shall remain silent now.

By sharpstick (not verified) on 12 Jun 2006 #permalink

Again, I'm running late. Congrats on 34. Having done the deed in January of 1971, I'm far ahead of you. As that Liberal commentator, Paul Harvey, says "on our way to forever together."MoM

By Man of Misery (not verified) on 12 Jun 2006 #permalink