Apologies in advance for the very loose terminology: I'm not into metaphysics, so have probably misused some terms.
The atheist (if Glorantha had such, but let's not get into that), as I understand it, sees the world as controlled and explained by a set of laws. These laws include geometry, physics, chemistry, genetics, and so on. For the purposes of convenient reference, let's group them all together under the heading of Mundane Law.
The theist (and the mystic, and shaman, etc, etc.) sees the world as controlled and explained partly by these (for the minor stuff, where it doesn't matter), but much more by what I want to call Mythical Law. This says things like "when Yelm is stronger than Orlanth, the sun shines through the clouds". It determines that if three sisters attempt a difficult task, only the youngest will suceed. You might summarise it as "things work the way the stories say they ought to work", with an extra helping of "as above, so below". And, of course, Mythic Law isn't as cut and dried as Mundane Law: 1+1=2 everywhere, but there can be disagreements about How the Sun Died.
Mundane Law and Mythic Law often come up with different answers to the same problem. Given that the Sky Dome is a hemisphere, and is thousands of miles across, how high is the centre? The diameter divided by 2, or "you can jump there from the top of the highest mountain"? In Glorantha, both of these answers can be true. It depends on which set of laws you persuade to apply to the situation. If you pull out a theodolite and a set of cosine tables, Mundane Law will apply. If you climb a mountain, pray to Orlanth, and jump, Mythic Law will take over.
Magic, as a general rule, consists of convincing Mythic Law to apply where Mundane Law would normally control things.
On the Heroplane, only Mythic Law applies. Heroquesting consists of using that to alter things in the HP, then convincing the mundane world to follow suit.
Without someone deliberately concentrating on one set of laws or the other, which controls things, Mundane or Mythic? That depends on which is strongest. And that depends on who has been reenforcing each one. Mundane Law tends to win (Entropy being a part of Mundane Law!), but every act of magic or worship in Glorantha strengthens Mythic Law. And this is a very good thing. Take a look at Glorantha: it's a lozenge floating on an ocean, in the middle of a sphere or three. What do you think would happen if Mundane Law won, and Gravity noticed what was going on? That's why the Sacred Time ceremonies are so important. No matter what event they reenact, they reenforce Mythic Law. And without Mythic Law, Glorantha would not exist.
Comments? I don't *think* this contradicts anything, does it?
Jane Williams jane_at_williams.nildram.co.uk http://homepages.nildram.co.uk/~janewill/gloranth/
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