Having read some chinese novels, I noted that the number 108 appears with some frequency: you have 108 maidens of destiny, 108 countries, 108 planes, 108 cultivation levels, and so on. Why this exact number? Why not 100, for example?
It's a really nice number. Some people forget/don't know that it's more toward the whole Eastern area in general. It has quite a wide range of cultural + religious mention of it, not just in China.
well if im not mistaken suikoden n even final fantasy also use that number...i remember seeing an acc in FF called 108 something
Because 9 is the max single number and 12 is a "whole" number in chinese. For example a day consist of 12 chinese hour (1 CN hour = 2 EN hour), 12 months in a year etc. So you combine the 2 to get the fullest of something Edit: just my own guess btw
I can understan the misticism, but... why 108 countries, for example? Is that a way to say "I don't know, let's say it's a big number"?
It's like saying that the way of 'Dao' consist of 3000 dao when in fact there are countless number of dao.
But why not? If 108 is already established as a nice and neat number to use, then why wouldn't it make sense to use it in all sorts of situations. Also, bear in mind that using a precise number like 108 will make it look like the writer put more thought into it than just a vague "lots".
Except that in some cases it's only a number, and could have been replaced by "lots" or "5" without any problem. Unless the MC would deal with all 108 towns/countries/kings/pricesses in any way... It's just "a big number" with a symbolism/superstition...
Exactly! It's a big number with something extra and having something extra is a good reason to use it!