I thought I would briefly intrude in the resurrected Yelmalio debate. Like so many Gloranthan debates, this one seems bogged down on several semantic issues. One of the biggest problems about the study of comparative Gloranthan mythology is that in many cases, we use a generic cultic name to describe similar cults in other cultures. Case in point: Yelmalio. Yelmalio - Elmal - [Elf-Yelmalio], etc. have in common the "Lesser Sun" and some common archetypes. As for the mythic geneologies claimed by a specific cult's worshippers, we have to first ask the question, "which culture are we talking about?"
Are we talking about the mythic identity of the Dinacoli Yelmalio worshippers, the Enhyli Elmal cultists, the Yelmalions of Sun County or whatever the hell the South Pelorian Sun Dome cult is (I'm not at all convinced that it bears much relationship to either Khelmal or the Monrough Yelmalio cult. Trying to come up with a "unified mythic identity" of all [K][Y]elmal[io] cults is IMO a rather pointless endeavor beyond certain vague generalities. The cult(s) of Orlanth have developed certain nearly Genertelan-wide characteristics because of the massive and repeated cultural heroquests of Vingkot, Heort, Lokamayadon, Harmast, Orlanth the Dragon, Alakoring Dragonbreaker, and so on. Since none of these cultural heroes ever managed to encompass all of the "Orlanthi" peoples, there is incredible variation even within this rather defined cult (just see the recent Ralian LBQ of Garundyer and Aruzban).
Elmal certainly hasn't had heroes of that sort of massive cultural significance (maybe Vuranostum and Kuschile amongst the Hyalorings and Rastazar of the Broken Council are candidates, surely there are some other significant avatars of Elmal - maybe even Vingkot?), Khelmal's mythic legends seem confined to Imther and maybe Vanch, and Monrough's newbie little cult has. . . Monrough. My point is that the "Lesser Sun Cults" most likely have incredible regional variation throughout Southern Peloria. Much of the significance of Monrough's vision of the Multiple Suns is that the hero "understood" that there isn't just one Lesser Sun cult but many, "both Elmal and Yelmalio, and even some others".
In Dara Happa, the Sun Cult is also the cultural sovereignity cult, promoted (some say created) by Khordavu, perhaps after a different vision of the Multiple Suns. I am always curious by attempts to find a Dara Happan association with Yelmalio - in Greg Stafford's "The Birth of Elmal or 'Why I screwed up your Glorantha'", a journey to Teshnos by Tarkalor and his companions seems to have been the catalyst for the eventually Monrough-Yelmalio cult. Dara Happa is not even mentioned in the short story, instead there is this strange passage:
"We went to foreign lands where they had strange gods and customs. Lord Tarkalor wished to see some elephants, but what I marveled at was that they summoned great powers from their sun, Somash. When our lives depended upon my explanation of how our god and their god had never met, I told of my vision of the Many Suns. We proved it was true, We survived. It was the spark of Elmal which brought me back to life."
I don't doubt that there is a strong South Pelorian influence on many of the Lesser Sun Cults of Dragon Pass in the 16th and 17th century. However, how much of that influence is Dara Happan and how much of that is the South Pelorian Elmal[us] cult (which IMO is much more important amongst the south Pelorian tribes than in the Quivini-Heortlending tribes) has yet to be answered.
Yours truly,
Jeff Richard
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