Re: Why is there a holy country anyway ?

From: Greg Stafford <glorantha1_at_7CLD9RQqLAkkXtG7SmZbtKosqhyuMH8V2wYIE0D2axnl290pjjpBdIVJZ-S5getC->
Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 07:37:47 -0700


YGWV
Some mysteries are deep, deep, deep and maybe cannot be solved from the outside.

On Mon, Aug 23, 2010 at 5:11 AM, <hcarteau_at_8QhOjORF6W-fjhJt0LQutpCybY2xwWrQvjGl9IJD-SprqsztRtbG7rbMSJGJNF8gEVpkBBosrndv.yahoo.invalid> wrote:
>
> It all comes back to Belintar.

Yes

> (snip) Belintar's governing philosophy is quite opaque. He's using God
Learner
> systems of government but what really is his reason for rule?
> /// Hear, hear. I'd be curious to know about that too. We don't know who
he/it
> was, where/when he came from. There was never any hint about his
motivations for
> coming in and building over the Holy Country, killing Ezkkakeko, etc.

That is correct.
Nor did he ever give one

> What does he publicly proclaim his mission to be?
> /// "I have brought harmony among all peoples and races, freeing you from
war
> and disorder. Under my rule, we will all serenly walk into the next age,
> sheltered from the horrors of this one". (I just made it up, I know it
sounds
> hollow.)

That is not an inaccurate statement

> He is the Living God but for what purpose?
> /// To have enough power to get ever-new fresh, appropriate bodies ? He's
just a
> survivor, like a healthier Delicti ?

So think many
Some believe he is just such a vampire thing

> (snip) But what's the Holy Country's major problem?
> /// Inertia. As you beautifully highlighted, traditionalists don't care
about
> this weirdo's search for harmony. They do their best, overtly or covertly,
to
> secede from it.

Why find such fault?
Sure, there are always some traditionalists (Heortlings, etc.) who resist--as Peter points out, it is the "normal way" for people who are content and afraid that change will destroy their contentment But most of the people who actually interacted with Belintar's Way were happy--more than just content

> (snip) In addition, there's a general lack of political intrigue and
division.

Overtly, anyway. As hinted there, it is subsumed into the MoLaD quest.

Belintar kindly takes troubled people into his house to discuss maters with them
He points out the bigger picture
He does his best to alleviate the cause of the trouble if it of the common people
If it is an individual issue, or one of ambition, a solution has always been found in his house

> /// Yes, I always wondered why powerful, experienced characters would
blindly
> believe a promise of eternal bliss and simply hand over their body to the
Boss.

the answer is simple: they don't
There is no "blind belief" whatsoever
Everyone participating knows exactly what is in store, and the quest is voluntary
If a person is not already prepared, and voluntarily taking part, she cannot participate.

> There must be some magical / mundane pressure hidden somewhere.

Of course there is.
What did Belintar show them in his house?

> (snip) My last issue is the lack of any feel for the magic of the Living
God.
> /// There was something about that in MoLaD, pp 64-67. It mentions several
times
> a "Belintar's Book", but nothing is said about what it's about.

I just looked to see its status.
I knew I'd never finished writing it.
Most of it, I see, is actually in an old format that I have no way to access at all
I can read only a couple chapters very much reorganized/rewritten/edited by Rob Heinsoo in 1998
Much has been published already elsewhere (Sword story, etc.)

most of it, though, was to be large pieces of art--copies of freizes etc from the palace
some pictures form inside his house

I canot find my opening statement from the book, but from memory (not a quote) it says something like
"Here is the story of the world. Here is your story. Here is my story, written in the time of my life, to serve as a guide back for me. If you who are reading this are part of the legend, you know it. I will ask for your help to return."

Lady Jin An Parana, She of Blessing with Both Hands--she of such generosity that peasants sacrificed to her as if she was the goddess--was asked why she had participated in three quests, even though she had already lost in one. "Because he asked me for my help," she said.

A lot of people were still waiting to be asked when Harrek sank the City of Wonders.

--Greg

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