From: Nils Weinander (niwe@ppvku.ericsson.se)
Date: Wed 29 Jun 1994 - 19:07:55 EEST
Nils Weinander writing
Nick on eastern views of magic/the otherworld:
>I've just come up with a couple of quick suggestions for integrating them.
>Maybe Nils can comment: he handles the Eastern material better than I ever
>will.
I'm most flattered.
>Add: Mystics (including the Draconic, Kralori and Illuminated varieties).
>
>> The shaman jumps into the pool of water.
>> The priestess cautious sticks her toe in, with a lifeguard handy.
>> The sorcerer cuts off his toe and throws it in the pool - "That's not
>> me, it's something else that I can reach into the Otherworld with"
>
>The mystic says, "What pool?" Or perhaps the mystic is a fish, or water.
>He does not "jump into" anything: he becomes a part of it, and it of him.
>The two are indistinguishable.
Here is what Red Tiger says of the matter:
'...
The realm of magic can be likened to a pool of water. A child is
afraid of the pool, because he knows not what lurks under the
surface. A wise man knows that the water in the pool comes from
the same source as the water he drinks. Thus the pool is present in
the man, and the man is present in the pool. When you see that,
there is nothing to be afraid of.
...'
>> Things that were once part of you are always part of you, in a magical
>> world.
>
>And so the Kralori strive to eliminate the self? Different, less limited
>kinds of magic would become possible for the one who Is Not. You have no
>"handles" any more: the world cannot affect you, because you are not part
>of it. Or, perhaps, because you *are* it. (Not a part: the whole). (The
>whole which is the hole: as all is nothing).
I.e. the paradox of the Void: everything springs from nothing => every object == nothing => every object == every other object.
Martin on Dayzatar:
>Nils, anybody can CONTACT Dayzatar, but few would want to. His
>rune spells are useless, and his cult restrictions are
>burdensome. That doesn't mean the Teshnans can't _claim_ that
>their worship of him is the most ancient in the world, but how do
>you verify that claim?
As for contacting Dayzatar, yes you _can_, but it's mighty difficult. As for the rune spells I wouldn't call Compel truth useless. As for the Teshnans I must have expressed myself in unclear words. I wasn't writing about the Teshnans' own view of things. I quote myself:
NW>Another thought: if we see Zitro Argon/Dayzatar as more oftenly NW>worshipped in Teshnos than in other lands this can have two NW>implications: either the Teshnans know some secret on how to NW>reach this aloof god, or his worship, Teshnos mode, started in NW>incredibly ancient times, before he withdrew beyond the sky NW>dome. The second would make Teshnan society _very_ old
What I meant was, which is more likely from an _objective_ view- point. {gasp! objective history - heresy! :-)}
Anyway, I got a new idea the other day: the proto-Teshnans before time did worship Zitro Argon as god of the Sacred caste. When the god withdrew they were of course affected, more difficult to use his rune magic etc. The proto-Teshnans' reaction was to see this as a dicine punishment. So they set out to better themselves by striving for spritual perfection. This has evolved to the way of life interpreted by others as the lethargy of Teshnos. Thus Nick's idea of a 'curse of the gods' is back in the picture. Plausible?
I then continued the same line of thought: what if Harstar is Teshnos' contribution to the hero wars? Maybe he succeeds in lifting Teshnos from its philosophizing torpor, leading fierce solar warriors to greatness, with the surprising result that more action, not more thinking and meditation is what was needed to draw Zitro Argon closer to the world again? I am going to use this plot in my upcoming eastern campaign.
/Nils W
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