42 is themagic constant of the smallest non-trivialmagic cube, a cube with entries of 1 through 27, where every row, column, corridor, and diagonal passing through the center sums to forty-two.[9][10]
42 can be expressed as thesum of three cubes: (80,435,758,145,817,515)3 + (12,602,123,297,335,631)3 + (-80,538,738,812,075,974)3 .[11]
InJudaism, by some traditions theTorah scroll is written with no fewer than 42 lines per column, based on the journeys of Israel.[12] In the present day, 42 lines is the most common standard,[13] but various traditions remain in use (seeSefer Torah).
42 is the number with which God creates the Universe inKabbalistic tradition. In Kabbalah, the most significant name is that of the En Sof (also known as "Ein Sof", "Infinite" or "Endless"), who is above the Sefirot (sometimes spelled "Sephirot").[14] The Forty-Two-Lettered Name contains four combined names which are spelled in Hebrew letters (spelled in letters = 42 letters), which is the name of Azilut (or "Atziluth" "Emanation"). While there are obvious links between the Forty-Two Lettered Name of the Babylonian Talmud and the Kabbalah's Forty-Two Lettered Name, they are probably not identical because of the Kabbalah's emphasis on numbers. The Kabbalah also contains a Forty-Five Lettered Name and a Seventy-Two Lettered Name. 42 letters make the Ana beKo'ach prayer.[15]
In 1994, Adams created the42 Puzzle, a game based on the number 42. Adams says hepicked the number simply as a joke, with no deeper meaning.
Google also has a calculatoreaster egg when one searches "the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything." Once typed (all in lowercase), the calculator answers with the number 42.[17]
Thejersey number ofJackie Robinson, which is the only numberretired by allMajor League Baseball teams. Although the number was retired in 1997,Mariano Rivera of theNew York Yankees, the last professional baseball player to wear number 42, continued to wear it until he retired at the end of the 2013 season. As of the 2014 season, no player ever again wore the number 42 in Major League Baseball except onJackie Robinson Day (April 15), whenall uniformed personnel (players, managers, coaches, and umpires) wear the number.
In Japanese culture, the number 42 is considered unlucky because the numerals when pronounced separately—shi ni (four two)—sound like the word "dying",[18] like the Latin word "mori".
^Ganzfried, R. Solomon (1902).קסת הסופר [Keset haSofer] (in Hebrew and English). Translated by Friendman, Jen (First ed.). Bardejov: דפוס יוסף מאיר בלייער.It is the custom to have no fewer than 48 lines, representing the journeys of Israel, and some say no fewer than 42, because of what God did in the Sinai wilderness at Kadesh. Also, we don't have more than 60 lines, representing the 60 myriads of Israel who received the Torah.
^Jacobs, Joseph; Eisenstein, Judah; Executive Committee of the Editorial Board; Blau, Ludwig (1906)."Scroll of the Law (Hebrew, "Sefer Torah")".Jewish Encyclopedia. Retrieved12 February 2020.(At the present day the forty-two-lined column is the generally accepted style of the scroll, its length being about 24 inches.)
