Plentonius

From: Carlson, Pam <carlsonp_at_wdni.com>
Date: Thu, 7 Nov 1996 10:26:00 -0800


Nick E:

>> What also seems quite odd to me is the exact amount of years that passed in
>>pre-Compromise Glorantha according to GRoY. Why is it always in orders of
>>10,000 years etc...?
>
>Because Plentonius loved the number 10. He dedicates his calender to
>it. Have a look at some of the Indian chronologies and compare them
>to the history of the world. Pretty numbers and not much else. Also
>note that Plentonius's calender falls down because it does not predict
>the Sunstop.

> Which would seem to imply (to me at least) that Plentonius made it all up,
and retroactively applied time to Godtime.

Maybe, maybe not. Why must we assume that simply because Plentonius was a sexist twit writing a history of the world to glorify his employer, he's wrong on all accounts? Presumably, he talked to the starseers in Yuthuppa, and those guys probably have a better understanding of celestial events than anyone else in Glorantha. He probably also talked to the Shargashi priests in Alkoth, whose regime had survived the entire Darkness intact, (even actively guarding Shargash's dead body). If Plentonius chose to describe events in factors of ten, maybe they did happen that way - especially celestial events, or earthly events influenced by celestial events. The Lunars certainly make much use of the ancient Dara Happan myth and numerology, presumeably to help integrate the Dara Happans, but also because it must work for them.

This doesn't mean that Plentonius described the events of the entire lozenge in accurate detail. It does mean that he discovered a powerful myth & numerology system that is very meaningful for a densely populated section of Genertela.

The sunstop was an anomoly, IMO. That was the moment when Brightface saw the Seventh - the key deity to reunite the Seven so that they could rise again. (The prophesy at the end of the Brightface myth states that BF will rule until the Seven rise again.)

 Plentonius works in my Glorantha.

Pam

PS - For those of you who have not yet read the Entekosiad - read it! The myths and attitudes in it really bring to life all the lovely ironies in Pelorian cultures. It also helps one understand the other Gloranthan sources better.


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