A Practical Object Identity Question?

From: Alex Ferguson <abf_at_interzone.ucc.ie>
Date: Mon, 19 May 1997 02:15:19 +0100 (BST)


Erich Schmidt:
[What difference does it make if the myths are wrong?]
> If an Orlanthi is fighting Lunars with Pentans in the Redlands
> and needs to refresh his rune magic, what happens if he prays at the
> West King Wind shrine of his allies?

That's a entirely reasonable question, but I don't think one need necessarily appeal to Objective Reality for the answer. Greg was asked a similar question at a Convulsion, and answered in the Affirmative. (I'm assuming that people's supposition that WKW's cult is Very Similar to Orlanth's is correct (though I have my doubts), and that they're on Mythicly Friendly Terms, as implied by the question.)

As to why it doesn't "prove" anything; well, bear in mind that you can do the same thing in the temple of a associate, which no-one would (as a rule) suggest was the "same" god. Furthermore, if you assumed that "similar enough to share ritual sites" meant an Identity between the two, and accepted the sort of similarity arguments that fly around here regularly, you could quickly "prove" that Barntar was Tolat, say.

Transitively,
Alex.


Powered by hypermail