From: Simon D. Hibbs (simon@fcrd.gov.uk)
Date: Wed 07 Aug 1996 - 17:16:46 EEST
Martin Declan Kelly asks :
>It came up in discussion, while the general rules for most Gloranthan
>cults state an initiate cannot be shaman or sorcerer, one assumes this is
>due to the different world-views of said practicioners.... what if the
>shaman follows a tradition that is an integral part of the pantheon of
>the initiating god? Why can't a Kolating shaman be an initiate of
>Orlanth, or Storm Bull?
Initiates are followers, they are humble students and suplicants before
their god. Shamans and Sorcerers are accessing powerful magical forces
that are entirely outside the purview of the Orlanth religion. Initiates
are shown a clear, unambiguous vision of how things are and how they
should be. If the initiate was also privy to the secrets of sorcery and
shamanism, he would find it very difficult to reconcile them. Inevitably,
the apparent contradictions would be a severe test of faith which the
initiate's teachers would be unable to prevent since they would not know
anything about sorcery or shamanism.
The only way for a shaman or sorcerer to become an initiate would be to
wipe the slate clean and renounce their former devotions. This is probably
impossible and it seems unlikely anyone would want to do it.
Note that the fact that a Kolating shaman comes from the same pantheon
would not necesserily help. Kolat and Orlanth have very distinct mysteries
and traditions. For an example, see the Storm Bull story in the latest
edition of Tales. Here, Orlanth is only known as 'little brother'- the
whinging troublemaker, god of puffy little clouds.
There is an alternative to cross-cult initiation, though. Many cults lend
each other divine magic through associate cult status. Presumably a
Kolating shaman could achieve some kind of associate status. It is
possible that some Orlanth temples might have shrines to Kolat and these
temples are likely to be more co-operative than the average.
Simon Hibbs
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