Who is the sun?

From: Ian Cooper <ian_hammond_cooper_at_yahoo.co.uk>
Date: Thu, 12 Oct 2000 10:09:06 +0100 (BST)


Just a quick addition to this debate (bit busy with exams and software releases).

The sun as we know it (rises in the East, sets in the West, travels across sky dome and then underworld) only exists in time as a result of the compromise. In GodTime we do not have a 'sun', but the existence of the fire tribe provide 'light'. For the Orlanthi the most important source of light in the darkness is Elmal shining from atop Kero Fin. He is not the 'sun' but their solar god.

The sun is explained differently. To the Elmali it is the torch thrown to Elmal by Orlanth, to the DH it is first Antirius and then Yelm (well an aspect of them).

Who is right? Empircially everyone can travel to the Hero Plane and participate in their god's myth, so empirically they are all true. Remember that when the Elmal worhsipping Orlanthi and the Kargzant worshipping horse barbarians meet KoS tells us that they were both proved true.

Remember also that different places and times have different myths, yet they were empirically provable. The Orlanthi quest was once the Lifebringers quest to rescue Ernalda. It became the Lightbringers quest to return the sun after contact with DH culture. Now you can travel on the Lightbringers quest so it is empirically true. What happened did myth not only change but Godtime? Is it the ability to heroquest that allows you to change Godtime that allows myth and reality to change. In other words if powerful enough individuals or whole groups heroquest could we make Firshala 'the sun'. I suspect so.

The lack of temporal power for the Elmali though leads Monrogh to 'heroquest' Yelmalio into existence, a sort of cross between Elmal and Antirius. Does he exist because heroquest made him? Is in some ways Yelmalio actually Monrogh, who first performed his deeds on the hero plane? Is Orlanth Adventurous in some ways Harmast Barefoot who performed the first lightbringers quest? Was Lokymanadon trying to create a new 'Orlanth' mythology, but never succeeded because he could not perform all the 'Thunderous' myths? Did the Seven Mothers literally bring the Red Moon into existence by heroquesting her mythology?

So many questions?



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