> Nick's argument that you must be bound before you are free starts
> to make some sense. Does this mean that a good, highly religious
> Lunar would voluntarily enslave themself in order to better reach
> an understanding of the Goddess? That could be an intersting
> scenario...
Your excellent suggestion was anticipated (to some degree) in Mike Hagen's cult of Danfive Xaron. Although the Xaroni are *not* slaves, the experience of hard labour in the penitentiaries is surely similar. One of the teachings of Cenobius may be relevant here (Tales #16, p.31):
"Servitude is no more than ignorance of the truth. He who values what is of no importance is truly a slave."
Further, the cult writeup says: "Most penitents are criminals, either seeking sanctuary from the law, or else learning the discipline of the Sevenfold Path to cure their antisocial tendencies and make them reformed members of society. Others are moved by feelings of guilt, inadequacy or sincere religious feeling to seek out the certainties of Danfive's Three Noble Truths and the Sevenfold Path. The cult does not discriminate between these in any way."
Miriros Conradin, the Black Army Colonel in "Life of Moonson", is an example of the latter:
"You were born to a citizen family of Raibanth. Your father lived his life by the ancient Solar Way, but as you grew older you could see the meaninglessness of these empty rituals: the Empire is no longer directed by the Sun God but by the Lunar Way, and it was here that you sought certainty. As soon as you were old enough to make a free choice, you volunteered to enter the Penitentiary and learn the discipline of Danfive Xaron. You have never seen your family since the day its doors closed behind you.
"In the Penitentiary, you learned to embrace the Three Noble Truths and the Sevenfold Path of Danfive Xaron. You devoted yourself to perfecting the disciplines and corrections of the cult..."
http://www.etyries.com/moonson/miriros-conradin.htm
Cheers, Nick
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