Still more on the humakti

From: Mikko Rintasaari <rintasaa_at_mail.student.oulu.fi>
Date: Thu, 26 Feb 1998 13:41:55 +0200 (EET)


> >Excuse me? How do we "know" this? Whose campaign material is this
> >strange sounding HQ?

> Simon:
 

> Greg Stafford's. I've heard him refer to it at Convulsion at least
> twice.

Hmm... I see. And is this a generally known quest, something integral to the whole religion of Humakt?
  The quest itself doesn't necessarily say anything about Humakt himself. A powerful and skilled individual can "prove" almost anything with a successful HQ-path, and establish it for others to follow. I'm sure there can be temples of Humakt with total lack of respect to life, and those that believe death to be an end in itself.

Humakt the God is something different though.

   When death was released, first on Old Man and then Yelm, Humakt saw it had the potential to destroy the world. Death had to be controlled, and so Humakt bent it to his will. To control death Humakt shed from himself all forms of compromise and weakness. He cut himself away from his kin, so they could not force nor stay his hand. Death had to be universal and impartial.
  Humakt succeeded, and now death is part of the _cycle_ of existence.

> >Humakt severed himself from his Storm God kin, because death needed to
> >be in responsible hands.
>
> How would that make him more responsible? He's either responsible or
> not. You've already said he was truthful and honourable already, so why
> now does he need to make himself more responsible? He severed his ties
> to his kin so that they could not be held accountable under Orlanthi law
> for what he would do - for what he believed to be necessery.

You misunderstood me. Humakt _was_ already responsible, but his kin weren't. Through their ties to him they could force him to act against his better judgment. Humakt could not allow his impulsive kin control Death.

                                   .... The cycle requires that we (they

> - - gloranthans) give up our personal existence, and be re-integrated into
> Glorantha in body and spirit, our souls moving on to the next phase of
> being. Resurection prevents this, taking you back against the flow in
> the wrong direction, and so it is wrong in the eyes of Humakti.

Let's take a peek in the research library.

"Humakt has maintained his position as bringer of Death to all throughout recorded Time. He is the god of mercenaries and soldiers, and can be found on all sides in any conflict. He encourages honor and courage, and disdains pointless slaughter."

The bit about pointless slaughter seems rather odd in the light of your version of the Humakti beliefs. Wouldn't it then just be best to kill everything off as quickly as possible, so they get to the next phase (what is it supposed to be btw?)
  Do you really mean that all mortal life; plant, animal and sentient should be permanently killed? Remember Humakt is the universal god of Death, he who waits every mortal. Does this new phase mean gathering all the soul force of Glorantha into hell?
  Death is "absolute" only for the humakti themselves. Humakti have pledged themselves to be guardians of Death, and defenders of Glorantha.

Another quoute:
"The worshippers of the cult can look forward to a special section of Hell reserved for them to practice their and prepare for the Final Days, or at least the next full-scale War of the Gods. By doing this they also protect Hell from in-roads by chaos. Humakt worshippers are never resurrected."

The humakti themselves are not reincarnated or resurrected, they join Humakt. This is a special case however, not something they want to impose on the world.

On the issue of Humakt and Chalana Arroy, remember that they were both "enlightened" by Rashoran, the god that was seems to have been the original Zen wiseguy of Glorantha. (If only I could find that reference in the research library again). Rashoran traveled among the old gods, and talked about not being afraid. Many of those he spoke to succumbed to passivity, but some became strong and focused, namely Humakt and CA. Does this sound familiar to anybody?

        -Mikko, the Adept


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