His name is Brian and, like many of us, he is seeking answers about his life.
One recent Monday afternoon, he called Alison Baughman, of Akron, via her Internet radio show "Visible By Numbers" and asked for help.
He told her his birthday is April 10, 1975. She did a few calculations and told him that he has had a difficult childhood, but that it has taught him compassion and empathy.
Baughman indicated to Brian that he gives unconditional love to people who aren't always pleasant to him; that he is a humanitarian looking out for the interests of others, sometimes to his own disadvantage.
"Does that make sense to you Brian?" she asked him.
He replied: "Yes, yes, totally."
She also told him good things are in store for him in the coming years, including recognition and financial reward.
He thanked her; and, judging from his tone of voice, he seemed relieved.
Baughman's live show airs at 8 p.m. Mondays over BBS radio, at
www.bbsradio.com, and attracts callers from all over the country. The Web radio station bills itself as the "No. 1 Worldwide Internet Talk Radio Network on the Planet."
Using callers' names and/or dates of birth (both for a comprehensive reading), Baughman says she describes their character traits and their challenges, gives them spiritual advice and predicts what is in their futures. The type of numerology she uses, often referred to as Western numerology, was founded upon the teachings of Pythagoras, a 5th-century Greek mathematician, philosopher and mystic.
"It's a road map, so to speak," Baughman said in an interview earlier this spring at her home.
The numerologist uses basic math to reduce numbers to one digit. Letters in names are given a number based where they are placed in the alphabet. The real work, however, is in the interpretation, a skill that Baughman said takes years to hone. But simply put, each number has a meaning. As an example, people in the 3, 6 or 9 categories tend to be very inspirational, creative and emotional, she said.
Baughman determined that Brian, the aforementioned caller, is a 9 by summing the numbers in his birthday.
"You have a lot of people in your life you have to love no matter what," she told him.
Brian replied: "Yes, it feels like I give more than I receive."
According to a 2005 Gallup poll of 1,002 adults, three in four Americans hold some sort of paranormal belief, which includes numerology, astrology, mental telepathy, haunted houses and reincarnation.
"The poll shows no statistically significant differences among people by age, gender, education, race and region of the country," according to a Gallup news release. "Christians are a little more likely to hold paranormal beliefs than non-Christians (75 percent versus 66 percent), but both groups show a sizable majority with such beliefs."
As with other paranormal beliefs, numerology has its skeptics.
"In the case of numerology, that is a classic case of pattern-seeking behavior," said Michael Shermer, California-based publisher of Skeptics magazine, executive director of the Skeptics Society and author of several books, including "Why People Believe Weird Things."
To find meaning in their lives, people have a tendency to look for "some kind of connection" in things that are random, Shermer said.
"We are naturally built to be magical thinkers. ... ," he said. "The problem is we don't have a baloney-detecting module."
Baughman, 53, said she welcomes skepticism adding that she is a skeptic herself. But she asks that people keep open minds.
She said she became interested in numerology as a child. Her mother was a teacher and instilled in her a love of reading. She spent her summers going to the local library in her native Cortland, N.Y., and one day discovered a book about numerology. As she got older, she started studying it seriously by reading whatever she could find about it and attending workshops. She said she felt a strong connection with the practice, "as if I was being divinely led to it," she said in her biography posted on the BBS Web site.
Baughman has been doing professional readings for the past six years. A full reading, which is far more extensive than the free call-in during her radio show, costs $80.
Baughman said she was particularly inspired by the famous 19th-century numerologist, Juno Jordan, who said: "Your name is an autobiography of your life and your experiences — past or yet to be."
"This quote of hers was particularly meaningful to me given my early penchant for biographies," Baughman said. "It helped explain how, unknowingly, I was lead to be here at this exact moment doing exactly what I was destined for. Once I mastered an understanding of numerology, it became my destiny to help others understand theirs."
She has also studied other metaphysical subjects such as palmistry, astrology and Reiki, which is similar to a laying on of hands to channel so-called healing energy.
But numerology is her favorite, she said, "as I see it as a powerful tool to help people better understand themselves."
She said that as soon as people have their numbers deciphered, they typically have more self-acceptance and willingness to love and understand others.
After they realize that their traits, past and future are a matter of destiny, people forgive themselves and are able to move on.
No matter what anyone else says about you, Baughman said: "You need to be who you are."
Patricia Poist is a staff writer for the Living section. Write to her at ppoist@lnpnews.com.
