Great piece—I hope someone can preserve that on a web page somewhere.
I do have a few additional thoughts.
First, the impact of the Star Watch. Although the star watch is not a religious obligation as such, providing the star watch does fulfill the Elmali need to defend the Heortlings during the darkness, as well as giving them an important role in tribes. Most clans have a only a handful of Elmal worshippers, who would mostly guard individual steads. I think it is the Elamali clan (in those tribes that have an Elmali clan) that provides the roving patrols at night.
On the one hand, most people appreciate this, and occasionally the star watch does catch something nefarious and this cements this feeling. On the other hand, they can't catch close to everything, and sometimes they will be blamed for this failure. Worse (from the Elmali POV), sometimes when something happens an nobody knows who did it, rumors circulate that it was the star watch themselves. This could be the source of a lot of the Beren the rider stealing cows rumors—cows were stolen, the star watch was around that area that night, they claim not to have seen anything, what is to prove it wasn't them?
Also, because of the star watch, the typical Elmali probably actually interact with other clans in the tribe more than would most Heortlings. So although they may be very conservative and cautious in many ways, they are probably more apt to think of the tribe rather than just the clan or stead in comparison to most Heortlings.
Second, about Elmali attitudes. In the myth in Storm Tribe, we are told that Challana Arroy healed Elmal's sight so that he could see beyond his own brilliance. I interpret this to mean that he had been mostly aware only of the splendor of the emperor's court, and the degree of importance of his own place there. After CA, he saw that although his own abilities were a legitimate source of pride, there were more important things. I think this is a re-occurring theme in Elmali clans. There may even be a ritual, song, or something that the people do when a chief is getting too full of himself. This ritual may have magic behind it, or mostly just moral force. Either way I think no chieftain can afford to forget the possibility.
Finally, if you read the holy days carefully in Storm Tribe, you will notice traditional divinations performed on each of them. I think there is an aspect of Elmal as the all-seeing sun, which doesn't show up so much in worshippers magic, but which will affect clan life. Elmal, in his daily voyage, sees much of what is going on, and so can provide his worshippers with advanced notice of many things. Combine this with the Elmali knowledge that steadfast adherence to duty is the only sure road, and I think the clans are generally less willing to make chancy decisions on their own. You can view it much like being very superstitious or tied to mystics--they get more guidance from their god than most Orlanthi clans do, but are less willing to act when there is no guidance. As a result, they do well at surviving bad times, but don't do so well at prospering in good times. I think this was probably partially behind the Yelmalio corruption, the fire tribe shows how you can become part of a rich and dazzling court, and some let their brilliance blind them to the fact that there are more important things.
--Bryan
Powered by hypermail