Re: Abiding Book

From: David Dunham <dunham_at_pensee.com>
Date: Tue, 6 Apr 1999 13:52:37 -0700


Charles Corrigan speculates on the Abiding Book. I think he's substantially correct, but

> They distilled out the "best" ideas from existing
> Malkioni writings (i.e. threw out anything they disagreed with),
> integrated ideas from the Arkati, simplified the complex and, where
> there were gaps, wrote entirely new doctrine. ...
> I am sure that they explored the mythical planes using
> Arkat's techniques to "prove" that they were correct.

It's possible there was some Arkatism involved, but there were several reasons why there wouldn't be.

#1: Arkat was the mortal enemy of the Malkioni. He had once betrayed them, and then returned to conquer their homeland of Seshnela.

#2: The Abiding Book was written in Jrustela, which had little contact with the Arkati.

#3: I don't think Arkat's secrets were known until the Dark Empire came under serious attack. Access to the secrets was IMO one of the reasons the God Learners whipped up fervor agains the Stygians. (Which wasn't hard, see #1.)

> But. The cynicism at the core of the new Malkionism infected the GLs.

I believe the authors of the Abiding Book were essentially sincere folk (though at least some of them felt that the ends justified the means). They were the original God Learners, in the sense of learning about God. They distilled what they learned into the Abiding Book, and perhaps used a few excusable theatrics to spread the word. But the astonishing rapidity of its spread suggests there is something there, not a core of cynicism.

I don't think you can blame the excesses of the God Learners on the Witnesses, any more than Karl Marx is responsible for the Killing Fields of Cambodia.

> The political/temporal rulers of the MSE were not necessarily GLs
> themselves but would have continued to support and encourage the GLs
> for the material and military benefits they provided.

Very true.

> With the possible exception of the mythical Feldichi in Dorastor

I think the Feldichi are intentionally enigmatic, but I've always figured they weren't human.

FWIW, here is the the bit on the Abiding Book from my Jrusteli campaign background:

        A hundred years ago, each city worshipped not only the Creator, but also its own deity. Petty wars troubled the island. In the late 640s, the Makanites spread the word of the Abiding Book, which contained direct guidance from Malkion. Hyrafos, a nobleman of Piskosol, was the first to accept Malkion. With his backing, the practice of the One God quickly spread, and provided a unity in which the Confederation was born.

David Dunham <mailto:dunham_at_pensee.com> Glorantha/RQ page: <http://www.pensee.com/dunham/glorantha.html> Imagination is more important than knowledge. -- Albert Einstein


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