YGWV
> Ah ha!
>
> Greg intimates one of Glorantha's foundational myths:
I must be feeling age creeping up on me to blurt out these subtleties?to be giving maps to find these secrets hidden deep in the texts and behind the stories?
>> There's a major difference between the immortals and mortals, in that
>> the immortals are in large part a story of DESCENT, while for mortals
>> it is of ASCENT.
>
>> Humans... ultimate spiritual quest is not to create
>> the world, but to uncreate their connections with it and reunite
>> themselves with the UNITY that was lost when the gods created the
>> cosmos.
>
> Echoes of Old Jo I think, in one of our Ur-texts, his invocation of the
> "the universal heroic goals as the dissolution of ego consciousness"
> (H1KF).
Let us put the popularization of these observations into his mouth (or typewriter) but they are not original to him, but are in fact deep and universal within the realms of this mythic landscape we romp within.
> I'm currently writing a rather long essay that started in
> discussion with Jeff about about the Durengard Scrolls and an effort on my
> part to pull out the great themes of Orlanthi mythology.
I look forward to these, my good friend John.
> Along the way it
> has diverted to the essential nature of myth in Glorantha and the big
> question at the root of all our campaigns: What is a Hero?
Oh, you philosopher.
That you, you recondite Orlanthi you, drag this forth for discussion
reinforces my belief that such curiosity and philosophy exists among
savages and even semihuman beings of all stripes and colors.
> It might seem a bit abstract, but it comes down to understanding,
> sustaining and creating a unique Gloranthan genre for our games.
It certainly is abstract! It is also, I think, not necessary for folk to understand, or indeed, even to consider, for the everyday lives of their movers, shakers and makers of the world?
> Glorantha has a a lot of Campbell and Eliade in its makeup, but its two
> parts Stafford and one part campaign, so I'm not drawing any automatic
> inferences from extra-Gloranthan theorist.
Thus proving your wisdom.
> Greg, what do you see as the game implications of a PC "reuniting with the
> unity". Can it go beyond learning a secret and being retired from play? And
> if a NPC hero achieves this unity, does it entail him or her leaving the
> world (and human morality) behind to serve the eternal values
> of their god: perfect Storm, perfect Darkness, perfect Moon?
The difficulty of playing a cosmically aware character, whether PC or NPC, is vast. Such achievement is, in its way, ?winning the game.? Theoretically, doing anything subsequent to this success constitutes failure if it is at all outside the Nature of the Being achieved.
It just seems natural that such a person would insubstantiate, or at least join with the cosmic forces and lose individuality.
I can barely even imagine what would be done with a character that decided to go the bodhisattva route. I?d be interested in seeing what options other players or GMs think could be done.
Issaries, Inc.
c/o Greg Stafford
1942 Channing Ave, #204
Berkeley, CA 94704 USA
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