Extract – How Vith Pacified the Anti-Gods (2000)

Vith, the Father of Gods and Antigods, lives in a simple cottage high in the celestial mountains. Now, in the modern Cycle, Vith has no great palace, and no vast armies of servants. He is waited upon by his two wives and his steed, and visited by only a few. But at first Vith lived with his whole family, all in one place. In that place, called Merenederi, or Place of Dance, all the gods and antigods mingled when they were young and unformed, like children.

When they learned their dance, which was their place in the newly created world, then they went forth out into the world and inhabited it. That way Veldru inhabited the airy realm, Maluraya the Sun, Oro the vast deep sea, and so on.

Herevens and Oro were the first children, brought forth in the fullest possible life from the body of Laraloori. The Mother of All held them to her breasts and they were nurtured upon her cosmic milk. They, the first, are the strongest and most permanent of all the gods. They made the earliest world, and learned their way in the same manner as a lord’s entertainers. They were the Orchestra, the Singers, and the Dancers.

The children of Gebkeran often left the house before they learned how to play their instrument, dance in step with the others, or sometimes even before they learned the names of their own family! Others waited too long, because they learned too much, or wanted to learn a different step than the one they were born to. That was the main difference between the Gods and Antigods: the gods knew their places, and the antigods did not.

This was natural of course, and no one was upset by it. The Gods were all servants of and for the great unchanging cosmic principles upon which all the world was made. They were the denizens of the cosmic mandates that are always true, except in the mystical realm. The antigods, however resided in the changeable world which was nestled inside Time and Space and Consciousness, and so the antigods were always less comfortable than the gods, and always much more erratic and excitable.

Eventually, some of the antigods became united with themselves in the way that was eternal and appropriate to them. They were the Sheradpara. This is a story of how three Sheradpara obtained that noble status.

Vith was once time assaulted by three great demons:

Martalak. The Sorcerer.
Festanur. The Shaman.
Ombardaru. The Priest.

Martalak

Martalak was a child of Vith and Gebkeren. Martalak left the house early because he was given a great piece of knowledge, the secret of Reasoning. Martalak thought he was stealing it, and ran far away. He went to Heonarmalo and practiced with this great tool until he had used it in every possible way. He was so adroit that he had discerned and mastered the power of Ignorance as well.

One day Martalak determined to go home to Vith’s house and show off the great knowledge he’d acquired through use of the Reasoning powers he thought he’d stolen. He calculated that he would dazzle Vith with knowledge, and then give him Ignorance, which seemed new. Vith welcomed his wayward son home with great happiness and ceremony, calling for a feast and a celebration instead of being angry. Martalak was surprised, but figured that Vith had recognized his superiority. He dressed in fine clothing and went to the feast. There he drank too much wine, and got careless, and boasted incessantly of his virtues that Vith had recognized. Everyone was scandalized by this, and urged him to be quiet and more modest. Instead, he demanded from his father to confirm these statements.

Vith refused, though he did compliment Martalak on his great knowledge. But it was no excuse, he said, to be offensive and antisocial. Martalak, being short on training in understanding, was angry with this and he decided to prove himself at Vith’s expense. Martalak drew forth Ignorance before anyone could act, and released it as a naked bird that flew towards Vith. It was abruptly transformed in mid-flight and dropped neatly into a dish, being just another course at the table of Vith.

Ignorance was that way accepted by Vith, and shown to be something minor and inferior to him, who has experienced Unknowing, which is the source of Experience. Vith overcomes Ignorance, for he is the source of experience. At that Martalak felt slighted even more, and slunk away to sulk and brood mischief.

Festanur

Festanur was a son of Vith and Gebkeren. Festanur stayed at home for a while, and left with Spirit Power. He stayed at Vatalemo. After a long time Festantur determined to return home to Vith’s house and show off the great knowledge he’d acquired through use of the Spirit powers he thought he’d stolen. He calculated that he would dazzle Vith with knowledge, and then give him Necromancy, which seemed new.

Vith welcomed his wayward son home with great happiness and ceremony, calling for a feast and a celebration instead of being angry. Festanur was surprised, but figured that Vith had recognized his superiority. He dressed in fine clothing and went to the feast. There he was too critical of the good, and got careless and claimed incessantly that he could do better and that Vith had recognized this superiority. Everyone was scandalized by this, and urged him to be quite and more modest. Instead, he demanded from his father to confirm these statements.

Vith refused, though he did compliment Festanur on his great knowledge of Spiritism, Necromancy, and Elemental Control. But it was no excuse, he said, to be offensive and antisocial. Festantur, being short on training in understanding, was angry with this and he decided to prove himself at Vith’s expense. Festanur drew forth an entire horde of dead before anyone could act, and released them as a horde of skeletons that rushed towards Vith. They were abruptly tripped and fell, in midattack, and were swept up neatly and dropped into a deep dish of hot soup, and became just another course at the table of Vith.

Death and Undeath were that way accepted by Vith, and shown to be something minor and inferior to him, who has experienced Life and Death that are the source of Experience. Vith overcomes these, the primal powers of nature, for he is the source of experience. At that Festanur felt frightened, and slunk away to sulk and brood mischief.

Ombardaru

Ombardaru was a child of Vith and Gebkeren. Ombardaru left the house early because he was given a great piece of knowledge, the secret of Worship. Ombardaru stayed the right length of time, and got it as a gift. He went to Deralo and practiced with this great tool until he had used it in every possible way. He was so adroit that he had discerned and mastered the power of worshipping any god.

One day Ombardaru determined to return home to Vith’s house and show off the great knowledge he’d acquired through use Worship. He calculated that he would dazzle Vith with knowledge, and then worship him, which seemed new.

Vith welcomed his wayward son home with great happiness and ceremony, calling for a feast and a celebration instead of being angry. Ombardaru was pleased, and recognized that Vith had recognized his superiority. He dressed in fine clothing and went to the feast.

Ombardaru offered perfect sacrifices to the gods before the feat, at appropriate times during entertainment, and every time it was perfect. Every deity gave to Ombardaru a special gift. At last he worshipped Vith, and then asked for a gift. But Vith had none to give.

Ombardaru was enraged! Ombardaru, being short on constancy, became angry with this and he decided to prove himself at Vith’s expense. Ombardaru drew forth his gifts from the deities there, and commanded all of them to harm Vith. All the deities made an effort to do so, but none of them came close. They, too, ended as dishes for Vith to eat from upon his table.

The way of the Gods was that way accepted by Vith, and shown to be something minor and inferior to him, who is at once always sacrifice and sacrificer, and sacrificed-to. Vith overcomes these, the primal actions of nature, for he is the source of experience. At that Ombardaru felt frightened, and slunk away to sulk and brood mischief.

The Challenge of Three Against One

Three great Antigods lived in Meksornmali. Their power naturally attracted others to follow their ways, and they were great leaders as well as founts of personal power.

Martalak, the Sorcerer, lived in Heonarmalo, in the west.
Festanur, the Great Shaman, lived in Vatalemo, in the distant south.
Ombardaru, the Priest, lived in the north in Deralo.

These three all got together one time, and together they so quickly defeated the mountain peoples that nearly the entire population was taken away in chains by the three commanders. All three had been insulted or offended by Vith. After many promises and oaths and swapping of hostages, sacred relics, and ancestral body parts, they made an agreement. They got together to confront Vith.

They worked together so well that no one could stop their approach. They met Vith in his own house. They had to greet him to be there at all, and when they did Vith asked them to introduce each other. This made them define each other, and once they began this they argued among themselves about who was what.

Once, Martalak stopped them all peacefully, and insisted they instead all define Vith. They tried, but two would agree, but the specialist would not. They could not decide either what or where Vith actually was, and so they lost sight of him altogether.

They were angry enough to destroy each other, but instead Festanur stopped everyone. He took out of them all their spirits of anger and fear and hatred and made them into a thing to hunt down Vith. The result was called, then, Hakka, and was so repulsive that they tried to banish it themselves. However, Hakka was too powerful for even these great antigods, and could have devoured them except that Vith returned, and banished it for good. [It was the future Dogsalu.]

The Three, now cleansed of their anger and mischief, saw Vith anew now. They were ennobled by this, and they saw the with clarity the rules within which they must act. Of course, none of them could resist their nature, and could not restrain themselves from doing what they had always done. And they taught many others who deliberately abused their great powers. But these three have served within Vith’s realm without harm ever since, and are the teachers for their specialties.

The Ombardu do all the common sacrificial activities across the islands. They help in doctoring, in lawyering, in blessings for private affairs, and for purifications from 100 deities. They have a “low church,” compared to the urban “high church” overseen by the High Gods. They have the simplest Feats to promote worship, and occasionally sometime surprising form some deity that favored them in the past.

Festanur’s people are the necromancers, spirit speakers, spirit medicine people, and controllers of elemental spirits.

Martalaks are sorcerers, alchemists, enchanters, and makers of charms.

[The significance of this was that Vith proved himself superior to the other methods, but without confronting them. This is an illustration of the particular Easter Mystical power that many eastern deities have against the apparently superior Genertelan counterparts. A Secret Dodge, which allows them to not be where the blow falls, causing the attacker to fall over himself.]

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