Urth Net
Quetzal's Story of Creation
Hello all.
This recent talk about Quetzal and when he came aboard the Whorl, etc. got me to re-reading a few things, one of which was his accounting of the Adam and Eve story to Patera Remora at the beginning of CALDE. It struck me -- "and it struck me indeed, so that I staggered as at a blow" :-) -- was that Quetzal was not only recounting the Garden of Eden story, but was in fact recounting his own species' story of creation!
It's not too long, so read it again:
"You must recall the story, Patera." Quetzal swayed from
side to side, perhaps with silent mirth. "A-man and Wo-man
like rabbits in a garden. The -- what do you call them?"
He held up a thin, blue-veined hand, palm cupped.
"A cobra, Your Cognizance?"
"The cobra persuaded Wo-man to eat fruit from his tree,
miraculous fruit whose taste conferred wisdom."
Remora nodded, wondering how he might reintroduce the
springs. "I recollect the -- um -- allegory."
Quetzal nodded more vigorously, a wise teacher proffering
praise to a small boy. "It's all in the Writings. Or nearly
all. A god called Ah Lah barred Wo-man and her husband from
the garden." He ceased to speak, apparently wandering among
thoughts. "We seem to have lost sight of Ah Lah, by the way.
I can't recall a single sacrifice to him. No one ever asks
why the cobra wanted Wo-man to eat his fruit."
"From sheer, er, wickedness, Your Cognizance? That is
what I had always supposed."
Quetzal swayed faster, his face solemn. "In order that she
would climb his tree, Patera. The man likewise. Their story's
not over because they haven't climbed down."
Obviously, Adam and Eve.
But consider another interpretation: the inhumi (before the Whorl came) can be seen as the "rabbits in the garden" -- i.e., the stupid, mindless beasts that they were. Somehow they discovered a certain miraculous fruit (humanity) that if eaten conferred wisdom (raised them out of their ignorant, beastlike lives and gave them minds). The god Ah Lah (the true God of Gods, the Outsider) barred them from the garden -- that is, they could not revert to their innocent, beastlike selves after tasting such wisdom but felt compelled to seek more of it out. The inhumi then climbed the tree (i.e., ascended to the Whorl) so that they could continue partaking of such miraculous fruit. The Plan of Pas being put on hold, they haven't been able to come down yet.
Anyway, this idea has probably been posted here before, but I couldn't remember seeing it and a quick search through the archives didn't yield anything, so if I'm bringing up something that everybody has already figured out, please forgive. I just thought it was cool, cool, cool that the story could serve as the creation story for both humanity and the inhumu.
Whadya think?
Charles