God learners and missionaries

From: Jeff Richard <jrichard_at_cnw.com>
Date: Thu, 8 Feb 1996 14:58:08 -0800


In response to my cautionary lecture about the dangers and impossibility = of imposing an "objective" Gloranthan myth-language, Nils wrote:

>But we should all remember that the god learners weren't wrong, in fact
>they were too much _right_ for their own god, they were so right that
>the bigger players had to strike back to protect themselves.

I agree with your first proposition: that the god learners weren't = wrong; but I do have a semantic quibble with your second: that they were = much too "right".

The god learners attempt to impose their "translation" of other = culture's mythic-languages was extremely useful but ultimately = counter-productive. Not necessarily because the "gods struck back" (how = many Brithini would agree with that interpretation?) but because the god = learners had believed that had discovered a universal, objective and = Platonically true understanding of the Gloranthan myth-languages. = Unfortunately for them, what they had was simply a very effective tool = for "translating" various Gloranthan myth-languages. =20

The ongoing attempt to "prove" the varacity of the messianic mysticism = of the Red Goddess as interpreted by the Dara Happan/ neo-Pelandrans as = opposed the comprehensive and self-referential Orlanthi myth-language is = fascinating, but ultimately irrelevant. It has simply come down to a = subjective argument of whose culture is "superior" - a doomed debate. = My recommendation to the great missionary Nikolai of Brokius (is that in = First Blessed?) is to attempt to translate the Goddess' revelations into = the myth-language of Orlanth and "prove" to the tribes that the Goddess = and their Storm-King are not irreconcilable. Granted, none have = accomplished that deed since the great Hon-Eel gained the support of the = Sylilian and Sairdite tribes. . . .

Yours truly,

Jeff Richard


End of Glorantha Digest V2 #375


WWW material at http://hops.wharton.upenn.edu/~loren/rolegame.html

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