The Number 108

The number "108" has long been considered a sacred number. In Hindu/Buddhist beliefs, there are 108 virtues to cultivate and 108 defilements to avoid, which speaks to the value of balance. Hindu/Buddhist malas (rosary) also contain 108 beads. In Islam, the number 108 sometimes is used in place of the name of God. There are also 108 movements in tai chi. The frequency with which the number 108 appears across religious disciplines is too great to be dismissed as coincidence. 

108 and Growth
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​It may be pointed out that the number 108 connects the Sun, Moon, and Earth: The average distance of the Sun and the Moon to Earth is 108 times their respective diameters. While this is an astonishing example of the number 108 in the natural world, an even more amazing example is in the constant growth of a nautilus shell.
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A nautilus shell is found to illustrate the 1.08 progression, small to large, of the rooms or segments of its shell. In other words, as the sea creature grows, each chamber of its shell's growth is 1.08 times larger than the last chamber, creating a logarithmic spiral within the exterior of the shell.  

Marcus du Sautoy, Professor of Mathematics, at the University of Oxford, reveals how the nautilus uses a 1.08 constant growth rate to build an elegant spiral shell. Part of the BBC Two documentary The Code, he explains how spirals and the power of math can be found throughout the natural world.

108 and The Number 5
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​​The number 108 is related to the number 5. The clue is related to the angle of the Pentagon, being 108˚.​

​108 and The Fibonacci Sequence
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​To fully understand the significance of the number 108, it is necessary to understand the numerical science of decimal parity. 

In many ancient cultures (e.g., Egypt and India) decimal parity was used as a way to understand the truth of numbers.

Decimal parity is a method for breaking numbers down into single digits. For example, the decimal parity equivalent of the number 361 is 3 + 6 + 1 = 10 and 1 + 0 = 1. So the decimal parity equivalent of 361 is 1.

The first 24 numbers of the Fibonacci Sequence are: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, 6765, 10946, 17711, 28657.

When decimal parity is applied to the Fibonacci sequence it is found there is a repeating series of 24 digits being the following: (0), 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 4, 3, 7, 1, 8, 9, 8, 8, 7, 6, 4, 1, 5, 6, 2, 8, 1.

If we add these 24 digits up, we find the number 108.

0 + 1 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 5 + 8 + 4 + 3 + 7 + 1 + 8 + 9 + 8 + 8 + 7 + 6 + 4 + 1 + 5 + 6 + 2 + 8 + 1 = 108

Amazingly, the 1.08 constant growth rate the nautilus uses to build its spiral shell is the same pattern that repeats every 24 numbers in the Fibonacci sequence.