"Number mysticism was not original with the Pythagoreans. The number seven, for example, had been singled out for special awe, presumably on account of the seven wandering stars or planets from which the week (hence our names for the seven days of the week) is derived. The Pythagoreans were not the only people who fancied that the odd numbers had male attributes and the even female... Many early civilizations shared various aspects of numerology, but the Pythagoreans carried number worship to its extreme..."