Hierogrammates, Briah and Yesod

Lee Berman · 11 Aug 2010, 17:52 · from 2010-August.txt.gz

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From: severiansola at hotmail.com (Lee Berman)
Date: Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:52:57 -0400
Subject: (urth) Hierogrammates, Briah and Yesod
Message-ID: <SNT123-W551E0E0D0B9A47CCD333C9CF960 at phx.gbl>

>James Wynn: *From that vantage point they look both forward and back*, and in so looking 
>they have discovered us. Why would the Hierogrammates look _forward_ in hopes of finding 
>Severian if they know quite well that he is behind them and that that one behind 
>them is the only one they care about?

Well, in my view, certainly it is in the Hierogrammates' look back in which they discover
humanity. Like studying their history, they learn that in their Briatic origins the humans
who arose from Ushas evolved into the Hieros which led to them. History also tells them of a 
folk hero named Severian who made Ushas possible.

In this history they learn that the hero, Severian, was advised by beings like Hiero-
dules and judged by Hierogrammates and thus they know that they must send agents back to 
Briah, to interact with Severian and fulfill their history.

Sorta like Severian with the primitive people. He knows he has become Apu Punchau, he knows
in teaching them architecture that he is fulfilling a pre-determined role, but he pretty much
just has to play along and do it.

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