I said:
> >Why can't illumination be: "Hey, the spirits of retribution can't touch
> >me....why is that I wonder...perhaps I've been illuminated?"
Peter Metcalfe said:
> Dorastor and Lords of Terror make it clear that it's a case of
> profound spiritual insight _first_ and then ignore evil sendings.
Yes and no. Most no. The write-up in Land of doom states that what you say is true. But it also states that it is possible to be illuminated without knowing it (in the example the guy who is illuminated is told this by his GM because he is so familiar with the concepts of illumination. Ergo if he had been less familiar with the phenomenon he wouldn't have realized that he was illuminated).
And if you turn to the Oddi saga, in Lords of Terror, you'll se how this works: Oddi is illuminated by some tricksters and he doesn't realize what has happened to him. What makes him realize what has happened? His sense chaos skill failes to warn him of the presence of the Crimson Bat. What happens then? He is confused, he doesn't know what it means to be illuminated. _Only_ when his affliction is interpreted by a (unilluminated) Lunar does he start to view himself in the way the lunars say illumination makes people view the world. Profound spiritual insight my foot! This is indoctrination on a very high level, with a technique as old as the hills. He is socialized into a cultural understanding of illumination.
Illumination isn't an insight, it is a power. It is in light of the power you get insight. The insight seems to vary according to what the illuminate makes of the power. Power is knowledge.
This is of course IMG, IMVHO etc etc. :)
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