Book:Small Gods/Annotations - Revision history

Guybrush: Updated to new formatting, moved annotations from main book article

2025-06-19T11:18:21Z

Updated to new formatting, moved annotations from main book article

Moishe Rosenbaum: ce and revelations --> revelation

2022-12-10T19:26:15Z

ce and revelations --> revelation

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:26, 10 December 2022
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	''The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.'' (Bible, N.I.V., Revelation 4:7)		''The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.'' (Bible, N.I.V., Revelation 4:7)

	Theology ascribes several meanings to this symbolism, all tied into the Biblical rule of Fours. They symbolically represent the Four Gospels, and the four writers of the Gospels. It is especially noticeable in ~~Revelations~~ that each is a herald to one of the Four Riders of the Apocalypse. (~~the~~ Eagle is the herald of the arrival of DEATH into the world, completing the four riders. Contrast this to the Eagle here being the harbinger of Death to Vorbis ~~- just~~ after Brutha declares, with absolute confidence "Vorbis? you're going to die." the eagle-headed creature announcing "Come And See" to the fourth rider, Death, is fitting here; in the citadel, EVERYBODY came and saw. And believed in Om.)		Theology ascribes several meanings to this symbolism, all tied into the Biblical rule of Fours. They symbolically represent the Four Gospels, and the four writers of the Gospels. It is especially noticeable in Revelation that each is a herald to one of the Four Riders of the Apocalypse. (The Eagle is the herald of the arrival of DEATH into the world, completing the four riders. Contrast this to the Eagle here being the harbinger of Death to Vorbis. Just after Brutha declares, with absolute confidence "Vorbis? you're going to die," the eagle-headed creature announcing "Come And See" to the fourth rider, Death, is fitting here; in the citadel, EVERYBODY came and saw. And believed in Om.)

	In the Christian mysticism of Rosicrucianism, the four creatures represent stages in human evolution: the eagle, winged, majestic and capable of flight, is the highest, transcending Man's earthbound limitation. It also represents the soul freed from the chains of body. An eagle certainly helped earthbound tortoises shake off dull Earth, and as a bonus liberated their souls from the shackles of bodily incarnation.... tortoises equate to the Bull - plodding, dull, and patiently enduring. Note Om's transition from the bull to the tortoise...		In the Christian mysticism of Rosicrucianism, the four creatures represent stages in human evolution: the eagle, winged, majestic and capable of flight, is the highest, transcending Man's earthbound limitation. It also represents the soul freed from the chains of body. An eagle certainly helped earthbound tortoises shake off dull Earth, and as a bonus liberated their souls from the shackles of bodily incarnation.... tortoises equate to the Bull - plodding, dull, and patiently enduring. Note Om's transition from the bull to the tortoise...

Goldfritter at 12:09, 20 August 2021

2021-08-20T12:09:33Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 12:09, 20 August 2021
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	''Go tell that to the mariners''. Or to the Marines.		''Go tell that to the mariners''. Or to the Marines.

			'''''Corgi Paperback (2013) p.238'''''

			Didactylos: ''"'Life in this world,' he said, 'is, as it were, a sojourn in a cave. What can we know of reality? For all we see of the true nature of existence is, shall we say, no more than bewildering and amusing shadows cast upon the inner wall of the cave by the unseen blinding light of absolute truth, from which we may or may not deduce some glimmer of veracity, and we as troglodyte seekers of wisdom can only lift our voices to the unseen and say, humbly, "Go on, do Deformed Rabbit... It's my favourite."'"''

			This is a reference to Plato's Allegory of the Cave, given the classic Pratchett treatment. People who have not yet seen the "truth" are compared to prisoners chained in a cave, watching a shadow-play projected on the cave wall by actors. They end up believing this play is reality, as it is all they know. True philosophers can exit the cave and, provided they are not blinded by the light, see the truth.

			"Do deformed rabbit, it's my favourite" also appears in Moving Pictures, when a spectator thinks the moving picture will be like a shadow-play.

			'''''Corgi Paperback (2013) p.249'''''

			''"'I'm just going out,' said Brutha. 'I may be some time.'"''

			These are the famous last words of Antarctic explorer Lawrence Oates. Realising he was hindering his companions' progress, he sacrificed his own life by stepping out of the tent into a blizzard.

	'''''Corgi Paperback p.317'''''		'''''Corgi Paperback p.317'''''

Cerddaf: Death by Falling Tortoise

2016-11-28T14:24:41Z

Death by Falling Tortoise

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:24, 28 November 2016
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	The Lion is best known as Christian icon in Narnia via CS Lewis' polemic. The lion encountered in the Omnian desert is very emphatically no Aslan!		The Lion is best known as Christian icon in Narnia via CS Lewis' polemic. The lion encountered in the Omnian desert is very emphatically no Aslan!

			'''''Corgi Paperback p.346'''''
			Death by Tortoise actually happened to the Greek playwright [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeschylus Aeschylus] (b 355BC). In 456 or 455 BC he was visiting the city of Gela where he died. Valerius Maximus wrote that he was killed outside the city by a tortoise dropped by an eagle which had mistaken his head for a rock suitable for shattering the shell of the reptile. Pliny, in his Naturalis Historiæ, adds that Aeschylus had been staying outdoors to avoid a prophecy that he would be killed by a falling object.

	'''''Corgi Paperback p.354'''''		'''''Corgi Paperback p.354'''''

AgProv: one of those minor one letter correctinos that make all the difference....

2016-04-13T14:00:24Z

one of those minor one letter correctinos that make all the difference....

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:00, 13 April 2016
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	'''''Corgi Paperback p.100'''''		'''''Corgi Paperback p.100'''''
	''I have to walk that lonesome valley/I have to walk it all alone'' These are lines from a fundamentalist Christian hymn which occur in the book when Brutha has to confront the idea of walking through the Desert (both on the physical Discworld and when ushered by Death into the Afterlife). It's certainly popular: a lyrics site lists sixty different recordings, perhaps the most prominent of which was by Elvis Presley:-[http://www.sing365.com/music/Lyric.nsf/Jesus-Walked-That-Lonesome-Valley-lyrics-Elvis-Presley/~~E0768A015892B53F482568740035BEA5~~]		''I have to walk that lonesome valley/I have to walk it all alone'' These are lines from a fundamentalist Christian hymn which occur in the book when Brutha has to confront the idea of walking through the Desert (both on the physical Discworld and when ushered by Death into the Afterlife). It's certainly popular: a lyrics site lists sixty different recordings, perhaps the most prominent of which was by Elvis Presley:-[http://www.sing365.com/music/Lyric.nsf/Jesus-Walked-That-Lonesome-Valley-lyrics-Elvis-Presley/E0768A015892B53F482568740o35BEA5]

	The hymn recurs throughout {{SG}}, and is seen here when General [[Fri'it]] is contemplating the assassination of [[Vorbis]].		The hymn recurs throughout {{SG}}, and is seen here when General [[Fri'it]] is contemplating the assassination of [[Vorbis]].
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	''The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.'' (Bible, N.I.V., Revelation 4:7)		''The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.'' (Bible, N.I.V., Revelation 4:7)

	Theology ascribes several meanings to this symbolism, all tied into the Biblical rule of Fours. They symbolically represent the Four Gospels, and the four writers of the Gospels. It is especially noticeable in Revelations that each is a herald to one of the Four Riders of the Apocalypse. (the Eagle is the herald of the arrival of DEATH into the world, completing the four riders. Contrast this to the Eagle here being the harbinger of Death to Vorbis - just after Brutha declares, with absolute confidence "Vorbis? you're going to die." the eagle-headed creature announcing "Come And See" to the fourth rider, Death, is fitting ~~herre~~; in the citadel, EVERYBODY came and saw. And believed in Om.)		Theology ascribes several meanings to this symbolism, all tied into the Biblical rule of Fours. They symbolically represent the Four Gospels, and the four writers of the Gospels. It is especially noticeable in Revelations that each is a herald to one of the Four Riders of the Apocalypse. (the Eagle is the herald of the arrival of DEATH into the world, completing the four riders. Contrast this to the Eagle here being the harbinger of Death to Vorbis - just after Brutha declares, with absolute confidence "Vorbis? you're going to die." the eagle-headed creature announcing "Come And See" to the fourth rider, Death, is fitting here; in the citadel, EVERYBODY came and saw. And believed in Om.)

	In the Christian mysticism of Rosicrucianism, the four creatures represent stages in human evolution: the eagle, winged, majestic and capable of flight, is the highest, transcending Man's earthbound limitation. It also represents the soul freed from the chains of body. An eagle certainly helped earthbound tortoises shake off dull Earth, and as a bonus liberated their souls from the shackles of bodily incarnation.... tortoises equate to the Bull - plodding, dull, and patiently enduring. Note Om's transition from the bull to the tortoise...		In the Christian mysticism of Rosicrucianism, the four creatures represent stages in human evolution: the eagle, winged, majestic and capable of flight, is the highest, transcending Man's earthbound limitation. It also represents the soul freed from the chains of body. An eagle certainly helped earthbound tortoises shake off dull Earth, and as a bonus liberated their souls from the shackles of bodily incarnation.... tortoises equate to the Bull - plodding, dull, and patiently enduring. Note Om's transition from the bull to the tortoise...

AgProv: Death in his manifestation as Bob Dylan

2014-11-14T10:12:03Z

Death in his manifestation as Bob Dylan

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:12, 14 November 2014
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	'''''Corgi Paperback p.354'''''		'''''Corgi Paperback p.354'''''
	{{death\|i see a hundred thousand people}}. Death may be imperfectly quoting Bob Dylan. He gets the context of ''A Hard ~~rain~~'s ~~gonna~~ Fall'' perfectly correctly - Vorbis is reaping ''exactly'' what he sowed and experiencing a Hell of his own making - but he's out by a factor of ten.		{{death\|i see a hundred thousand people}}. Death may be imperfectly quoting Bob Dylan. He gets the context of ''A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall'' perfectly correctly - Vorbis is reaping ''exactly'' what he sowed and experiencing a Hell of his own making - but he's out by a factor of ten.
	''I heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin'...''		''I heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin'...''
	Vorbis cannot see he is far from alone. ''His'' experience is of a place where ''~~Where~~ black is the color, where none is the number...''		Vorbis cannot see he is far from alone. ''His'' experience is of a place where ''black is the color, where none is the number...''

AgProv: Death in his manifestation as Bob Dylan

2014-11-14T10:10:52Z

Death in his manifestation as Bob Dylan

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:10, 14 November 2014
Line 100:		Line 100:
	The Lion is best known as Christian icon in Narnia via CS Lewis' polemic. The lion encountered in the Omnian desert is very emphatically no Aslan!		The Lion is best known as Christian icon in Narnia via CS Lewis' polemic. The lion encountered in the Omnian desert is very emphatically no Aslan!

			'''''Corgi Paperback p.354'''''
			{{death\|i see a hundred thousand people}}. Death may be imperfectly quoting Bob Dylan. He gets the context of ''A Hard rain's gonna Fall'' perfectly correctly - Vorbis is reaping ''exactly'' what he sowed and experiencing a Hell of his own making - but he's out by a factor of ten.
			''I heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin'...''
			Vorbis cannot see he is far from alone. ''His'' experience is of a place where ''Where black is the color, where none is the number...''

AgProv: Theological reflection on Small Gods.

2014-11-14T09:56:26Z

Theological reflection on Small Gods.

← Older revision		Revision as of 09:56, 14 November 2014
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	The Romans were recorded as having used this torture device to kill some Christian martyrs, notably Saint Eustace, who, according to Christian tradition, was roasted in a brazen bull with his wife and children by the Emperor Hadrian. The same happened to Saint Antipas, Bishop of Pergamum during the persecutions of Emperor Domitian, and the first martyr in Asia Minor, roasted to death in a brazen bull in c. 92.apparently this was still used two centuries later, when another Christian martyr, Saint Pelagia, is said to have been burned in one in 287 by the Emperor Diocletian.		The Romans were recorded as having used this torture device to kill some Christian martyrs, notably Saint Eustace, who, according to Christian tradition, was roasted in a brazen bull with his wife and children by the Emperor Hadrian. The same happened to Saint Antipas, Bishop of Pergamum during the persecutions of Emperor Domitian, and the first martyr in Asia Minor, roasted to death in a brazen bull in c. 92.apparently this was still used two centuries later, when another Christian martyr, Saint Pelagia, is said to have been burned in one in 287 by the Emperor Diocletian.

			The bull and the eagle are two of four archetypes that recur throughout the Bible and are a repeating motif in Christian iconography. In Ezekiel 1:10 and 10:14, there is a description of a race of angels who each have four faces: of a man, a bull, an eagle and a lion. At the the end of the Bible, in the apocalypse of St John (Revelation), Rev. 4:7 lists four separate creatures - not explicitly identified as angelic, although they are in Heaven - whose job is to ceaselessly chant praise of god, pausing only to make a prophetic announcemet when one of the seven seals is broken.

			''The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.'' (Bible, N.I.V., Revelation 4:7)

			Theology ascribes several meanings to this symbolism, all tied into the Biblical rule of Fours. They symbolically represent the Four Gospels, and the four writers of the Gospels. It is especially noticeable in Revelations that each is a herald to one of the Four Riders of the Apocalypse. (the Eagle is the herald of the arrival of DEATH into the world, completing the four riders. Contrast this to the Eagle here being the harbinger of Death to Vorbis - just after Brutha declares, with absolute confidence "Vorbis? you're going to die." the eagle-headed creature announcing "Come And See" to the fourth rider, Death, is fitting herre; in the citadel, EVERYBODY came and saw. And believed in Om.)

			In the Christian mysticism of Rosicrucianism, the four creatures represent stages in human evolution: the eagle, winged, majestic and capable of flight, is the highest, transcending Man's earthbound limitation. It also represents the soul freed from the chains of body. An eagle certainly helped earthbound tortoises shake off dull Earth, and as a bonus liberated their souls from the shackles of bodily incarnation.... tortoises equate to the Bull - plodding, dull, and patiently enduring. Note Om's transition from the bull to the tortoise...

			The Lion is best known as Christian icon in Narnia via CS Lewis' polemic. The lion encountered in the Omnian desert is very emphatically no Aslan!

AgProv: starting to re-read SG to resolve a timeline problem

2014-09-07T15:00:42Z

starting to re-read SG to resolve a timeline problem

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:00, 7 September 2014
Line 37:		Line 37:

	Terry Pratchett returned to this theme much later with a second book that explored the nature of social community, social history and religious belief, this time set on a tropical island where a handful of survivors are rebuilding things after a tsunami. ({{N}}) Is this a foreshadowing, that even then TP was exploring an alternative way a book like {{SG}} might have been written?		Terry Pratchett returned to this theme much later with a second book that explored the nature of social community, social history and religious belief, this time set on a tropical island where a handful of survivors are rebuilding things after a tsunami. ({{N}}) Is this a foreshadowing, that even then TP was exploring an alternative way a book like {{SG}} might have been written?

			'''''Corgi Paperback p67'''''

			''most Gods find it hard to walk and think at the same time'' - originally said about a god-like figure, President Gerald Ford of the USA, who famously stumbled and fell on the steps out of an airliner. He was chewing gum at the time, apparently.

	'''''Corgi Paperback pp.81-82'''''		'''''Corgi Paperback pp.81-82'''''

Old Dickens: alph

2013-09-10T21:30:42Z

alph

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:30, 10 September 2013
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	[[Category:Annotations]]		[[Category:Annotations\|Small Gods/Annotations]]