If forty two is the answer
could it be that you get
by the doubling of twenty one, or
by tripling fourteen;
or is there a meaning going beyond
a simple division?
Can you mate it with units
of length, or a distance in
parsecs?
Does it tell the story of stars?
Is it financial as in billions or trillions?
Is it a debt or a profit?
Is it a time,
in seconds, or in years?
Is it the past or the future?
Can it be eaten, consumed
by bottles or plates?
Is it tasty, or is it a poison?
Is it yours? Is it mine?
Or is it simply the answer
to the ultimate question of life
the universe
and everything else?
Mish hosts at dVerse poetics with a prompt on the use of numbers in poetics. For those that are not familiar yet, the number forty-two is a reference to the book “the hitchhikers guide to the universe”. What i like most is the fact that posing the right question is so much more important than giving the right answer.
November 25, 2025
Björn Rudbergs writings 
As a fan of the Hitchhiker’s Guide, I got the reference straight away, Björn, and I enjoyed the way you structured your poem with questions. I was never confident with maths, but I do appreciate their importance and believe that there is ‘a meaning going beyond a simple division’. I love the thought of a numbers telling the story of stars.
There is always a number to tell the why and when of stars.
love all the questions but you will have to ask the mice!
Nice! 🐁🐭🐁🐭
😉
Fantastic, the way this evolves with aspects of math and numbers becoming philosophical. Those questions are so interesting and amusing. Especially love “Does it tell the story of stars?” and ”Is it yours? Is it mine?”
Isn’t that what’s really nice with a number like that…. all the questions we may have.
I caught that reference right away and wondered what you’d do with it. Isn’t part of math being able to prove how you got your answer? You’re right, the questions are all.
We should question all the ansers
lots of questions to ponder. Nice one
much♡love
At least 42 questions
I had a wise math student who’s answer was always 42. Wish I’d had this poem to counter with. Love it, for you are so right, “posing the right question is so much more important than giving the right answer”
Which is the lesson i think
Mr Adams would certainly give this a thumb’s up … or held out with a towel under his arm. And yes, definitely more important that you pose the right question.
Or he would have sent some Vogon’s to read some poems for me
HeHe. Yeah, we don’t want no part of listening to any Vogon poetry.
Douglas Adams would delight in this engaging poem – perhaps there is no big answer. We all just do what we must in any given time – Jae
Maybe he would…. but the answer is not important really it is the question.
Interesting questions, Bjorn. Maybe they are just figments of our imagination!! :>)
Answers often only are what we imagine.
:>)
As the 43d person like to this poem, 42 works for me. Now what was the question?
Ha… too bad you missed being number 42
Fab, Hitchhiker’s Guide one of my favourite books Björn🙌
It is a favorite of many…. maybe it is generational
Maybe but I still think it’s popular 😊
I asked myself these questions a lot in my 42nd year…
My favourite lines here are:”Can it be eaten, consumedby bottles or plates?”
I’m a fan of discomforting line breaks and inducing rereading…
(Interestingly that book was published as Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy here…I prefer the alliteration! AND it’s maybe the seminal novel about AI…quite relevant just now.)
Thank you…. so great that 42 can mean so much for anyone but also a 42 year old
Ah, this makes me think. A number means nothing unless it is in relation to something. Such a clever response, Bjorn.
Numbers are essentially worthlesss without a connection except mayba zero
42. So many possibilities.
Much more than 42 possibilities.
It seems amazing to me that 42 has made into the zeitgeist. I guess we are really stuck for a better answer.
Perhaps there will be a religion built around THGTTG in the future.
Nicely done Björn