Re: Insight Contests in the third age ?

From: Jeff <richaje_at_kkG6y5KcL8wi0Cfd9FTkDHVsp1iKTd6LN2CLjlu2afIFdVft1aTtQEEwVw70xhqAalK2>
Date: Sat, 10 Apr 2010 14:18:22 -0000

> We know the Jrusteli cities, churches and sorcery schools settled their
> differences by Insight Contests, where the most learned and wisest of their
> members would debate among them until Logic proved who was right, and the matter
> was settled bloodlessly and reasonably.

I'm pretty certain that logical tools such as the Four-Fold Paths of Interpretation play an important role in debates between schools of Malkionism. However, in the Third Age, nobody has access to the original True Abiding Book (frex the Rokari wizards have the Sharp Abiding Book, a heavy abridged and annotated version) and many schools and sects are the heirs to revelations and grimoires that cannot be debated.

As a result Insight Contests are of great use between schools that more or less share the same core scripts (such as the famous debate between Theoblanc the Pious and Adegils the Proud over the laws of the castes contained in the Sharp Abiding Book. Following the debate Adegils and his entire family renounced their hereditary lordship and retired from their lands to join Theoblanc's school).

They are of far less use when the debaters do not share core scripts. For example, Rokari and Hrestoli of any flavor simply cannot resolve the debate about the status of Hrestol through the Insight Contests. The Old Hrestoli reject the Rokari revelations and the New Hrestoli reject the Abiding Book and its progeny. Such debates often result in violence and death.

Jeff