Tesla has recently (July 2017) been in the news with the introduction of an electric car, Tesla’s (the company founded by Elon Musk) Model 3. I think that it is very auspicious that the car is named ‘Model 3’ as Nikola Tesla was a very superstitious man during his lifetime and the number three was significant for him. For example, he would not stay in a hotel room if the number was not devisable by three. This college dropout did not receive much recognition during his lifetime and I wished to honour him with this new and exciting poetic form to coincide with his birth date in July. He was born around midnight, between 9 and 10 July 1856, during a fierce lightning storm. He never married and it was said that he preferred the company of the pigeons to that of the fairer sex. I don't buy into the conspiracy theories relating to his work.*
Alleged quotes by Nikola Tesla—no citations were found to substantiate these claims:
SEE: https://www.truthorfiction.com/nikola-tesla-369-theory/?fbclid=IwAR2x-R0Ng6qcxT2kDFn0EnFxQR_-WgacPqwIUFJ9hxr7psqmNh7XVTVN5V0
1. If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.
2. If you only knew the magnificence of the 3, 6, and 9, then you would have a key to the universe.
The rationale behind the naming of this poetic form:
Let’s say there are 2 opposites, call them light and dark, if you may. They are like the North and the South poles of a magnet. One side is 1, 2, and 4; the other side is 8, 7 and 5; Just like electricity, everything in The Universe is a stream between these 2 polar sides, like a swinging pendulum: 1, 2, 4, 8, 7, 5, 1, 2 … (and if you imagine the movement it’s something like the symbol for infinity).
However, these 2 sides are governed by 3 and 6: 3 governs 1, 2, and 4; while 6 governs 8, 7, and 5. And if you look at the pattern closely, it gets even more mind-boggling: 1 and 2 equal 3; 2 and 4 equal 6; 4 and 8 equal 3; 8 and 7 equal 6; 7 and 5 equal 3; 5 and 1 equal 6; 1 and 2 equal 3 … The same pattern on a higher scale is actually 3, 6, 3, 6, 3, 6 …
But even these two sides, 3 and 6, are governed by 9 which show something spectacular. Looking closely at the pattern of 3 and 6 you realise that 3 and 6 equal 9, 6 and 3 equal 9, all the numbers together equal 9, both ways excluding and including 3 and 6!
So, 9 means the unity of both sides. 9 is The Universe itself! The vibration (9), the energy (3), and the frequency (6)!
3 + 6 – 9 = 0!
(See the schematic depiction (under the gallery) on my website Suzette - Poet & Author)
Ergo, the design and the naming of this poetic form ©The Tesla 3–6–9 are based on anecdotal evidence.
THE DESIGN of © The Tesla 3–6–9, 2017:
This was posted on my personal Facebook page and on the poetry website, PoetrySoup.com, as my newly designed poetic form on 30 July 2017. [It also appeared on my website Suzette - Poet & Autor on that date.]
- It is to be written over nine lines, as one verse and on one single topic per poem,
- the 3rd, 6th and 9th lines must rhyme,
- the 9th line is the punch line (the reason for the poem having been written in the first place),
- metre and punctuation are optional, and
- any topic relating to the poem which incorporates one of Tesla’s many interests and/or quotes should be included as a footnote to the poem and italicised.
See the edited update below, dated 29/6/2025.
SYZYGY†
The sun is the past—
crucible of the
epigenetic light.
The earth’s the present—
inexorably
our arrogant might.
The moon’s the future—
a desolate orb
frozen in its plight.
Modern science says: “The sun is the past, the earth is the present, the moon is the future.” From an incandescent mass we have originated, and into a frozen mass we shall turn. Merciless is the law of nature, and rapidly and irresistibly we are drawn to our doom. ~Nikola Tesla
© Suzette Richards July 2017
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†syzygy: n. [siz-i-jee] It is an alignment of three celestial objects, such as the sun, the earth, and the moon. From the Greek word συζυγια which means conjunction, yoked together. The same word is used for spouse in Greek.
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Extract from my book Copyright © The Eutony of Words, by Suzette Richards 2018; revised 2021. ISBN 978-0-6399382-0-2
NB No part of my designed poetic forms may be copied/used in any manner, including the unique names of the poetic forms - it would constitute Paraphrasing plagiarism.
*https://www.wondersofphysics.com/2021/07/8-times-when-nikola-tesla-was-wrong.html?fbclid=IwAR30uxT1NaknM6PWAU2Eji-IhyC1b_zILfiChMEapNo_Gg29ftugfX0wGl0
FOOTNOTE
3, 6 & 9 are not to be found in The Power of 2 Binary System or in vortex math (the science of torus anatomy). Furthermore, the sequence tied to the enneagram links personality types, but these repeated sequences avoid digits 3, 6 and 9. However, the ZERO shows up as the total circle of personality types. 3 Is found in the Fibonacci series, but not 6 or 9. Maths is fascinating!
Save for Tesla's known obsession (OCD) with the number 3, it is unlikely that he ever linked it to his many theories. Whatever explanation you favour becomes mute as no written evidence, either in magazines or newspaper articles, etc during his lifetime can be traced to substantiate that he ever uttered those words.
3–6–9: I use the en dash and not a hyphen in the name of my poetic form because the en dash connects things that are related to each other by distance, for example, pages 147–48; Horace (65–8 BCE); etc.
[EDIT 29/6/2025]
The Design of The Tesla 3-6-9 (updated June 2025)
- A 9-line verse.
- Lines 3rd, 6th and 9th rhyme.
- The syllable count of lines 3, 6, and 9 correspond to the line number.
- The 9th line is the punchline and includes a tonal slippage.
- Metre, capitalisation and punctuation are optional. Poetic devices such as alliteration, enjambment, metaphor, juxtaposition, etc, may be used.
- Any topic relating to the poem which incorporates one of Tesla’s many interests and/or quotes should be included as a footnote to the poem and italicised.
Tonal slippage: Tonal slippage is a powerful narrative device—often subtle, sometimes jarring—that occurs when the emotional register of a piece shifts in a way that complicates the reader’s expectations. In poetry, it can feel like the ground quietly tilting beneath one’s feet. In other words, a quiet shift in emotional register that complicates what came before. It doesn’t snap—it slides. It invites ambiguity and layered resonance, often crystallised in the final line.