In-Depth Collation Between Argonians and Hinduism: Gods, Spirit, and Reality (Part 2)
Part II: Applying These ideals To The Argonians
In Terms of Gods
We have all taken it as fact that the Argonians within their native home of Black Marsh do not worship any gods, only venerating the Hist, the great trees of their homeland which gave them life. Even the other Tamrielics know of this, as detailed in Varieties of Faith: The Argonians:
Except for a few of the most assimilated, Argonians worship neither Aedra nor Daedra. They do not have "religion" as it is known elsewhere in Tamriel. They are known to venerate the Hist Trees of Black Marsh, but they do not appear to have prayers, priests, or temples.
However, it is also known that the Argonians are unbelievably tolerant of other religions, and we have evidence of many different saxhleel joining Aedric or Daedric cults and covens throughout all of The Elder Scrolls games. They even have a connection with the primordial god Sithis, which many throughout Tamriel view as evil and vile. Varieties of Faith: The Argonians also touches on that as well:
Argonians also venerate Sithis, the primordial Shadow/Chaos that existed before the gods were born. Unlike most citizens of Tamriel, they do not regard Sithis as "evil." In fact, Argonians born under the sign of the Shadow are taken at birth and presented to the Dark Brotherhood, which in Black Marsh is considered an integral part of society.
Veneration only means deeply respect, so that doesn’t necessary mean that the Hist or Sithis are worshipped by the Argonians, right? Actually, might want to rethink on that one again, because here’s some more information.
For Sithis, here is the The Dark Husband and some dialogue from the Argonian No-Fingers from the Dominion quest Scars Never Fade:
Spoiler Like Secunda follows Masser, Sithis follows the Night Mother. Her husband pursues, but she seldom pauses, leaving him eternally in shadow.
Sithis has many names, and many parents … or none at all. But his Fangs … the Fangs of Sithis still bite. They take particular pleasure in envenoming the weak-minded, the foolish, the greedy, or the headstrong, but the Fangs can destroy the powerful and the wise as well.
Beware those born under the Shadow, and all those who seek to use its power. The downfall of our ancestors is tied to the Fangs of Sithis, and our scales remain darkened by his touch.
“Slim-Jah was once a Shadowscale, a holy assassin feared throughout Black Marsh. To sanction Uta-Tei as she did was a signal.”
“I was once a Shadowscale, just like Slim-Jah. For me to kill her without sanction would be true heresy. I've lived my life without angering the Night Mother, and I'd rather not start now.”
“Argonians born under the sign of the Shadow are special. Some are taken at birth and trained as assassins. We follow the god Sithis, and through his consort-wife we receive kills.”
The above tells us that the Argonians do in fact fully acknowledge Sithis as a god, and view the Shadowscales as ‘holy’ because they kill in his name. Uta-Tei also says that Night Mother is also deeply respected as the consort-wife of Sithis, and is probably worshipped by them as well. The book interestedly hints that the Argonians may have been cursed in the past by Sithis, resulting in the creation of the Shadowscales. If one looks at Hinduism, it can be explained that the Argonians don’t view Sithis as evil because he is just another face of the Supreme Being; he is neither good nor evil, and simply exists with his own coven of followers (the Dark Brotherhood). All in all, some Argonians are confirmed to worship at least one deity.
It has been long debated if the saxhleel worshipped or venerated the Hist, the great trees that gave them life. After perusing ESO (I’m actually coming to like this game), I discovered three in-game books that delve into the connection the Argonians have with the Hist, and how they commune with them regularly. The first is an excerpt from The Lost Communion:
Spoiler Before the Hist, nothing existed. The Hist meant everything and provided all.
Jaraleet knew this. Every Argonian knew this, instinctively, from hatching. Why, then, wouldn't the Hist speak to them? Didn't the old stories say the Hist talked to its people?
Day after day, Jaraleet burnt offerings and made sacrifices. He chanted and prayed. He ate little, his efforts concentrated upon renewing the ancient connection between the Hist and its people.
The Trials of Hissmir:
Spoiler The trials serve as an offering of one's self to the Hist. For the Hist to trust the participant, the participant must first trust the Hist.
The participant's mind, heart, and will are tested. Without a disciplined mind, one cannot comprehend the message of the Hist. Without a pure heart, one's purpose does not serve the will of the Hist. Without a warrior's will, one cannot safeguard the Hist for future generations.
Be resolute, and stay moist.
Path of the Pilgrim:
Spoiler While many of the purportedly civilized nations refer to our homeland as Black Marsh, the pilgrims and priests of Hissmir know better. The lands of Argonia are far from a garbage heap. The soil is rich and full of life. Plant and animal life flourishes. The Hist speaks to those who listen.
Our Argonian brothers and sisters who venture outside miss a piece of themselves if they are unable to commune with the Hist. It is for this reason pilgrims from across the land travel to Hissmir and offer up themselves to the trials and communing.
The first of these sources reveal that at least some Argonians burn offerings, make sacrifices, chant, pray, and partake of the Hist sap in order to commune with the trees. The second shows that the saxhleel engage in ‘trials’ so the Hist can judge them and decide on who is worthy of their trust. And the third refers to Argonian ‘pilgrims’, a term applied to people who travel to a sacred place for religious purposes. Another interesting tidbit is that the latter two writings were both authored by Hissmir Oblates; in real life oblates are people dedicated to a religious life, but have not taken their full monastic vows. All three pieces reveal that some Argonians do indeed outright worship the Hist rather than just venerate them.
By looking at the way Argonians have behaved in past Elder Scrolls, in The Elder Scrolls Online, and IC & LoS, I am of the opinion that the traditional Argonian belief system is based around the concept of Amaranth. The saxhleel were created by the Hist, who were imported into the Dream by Anu the Godhead. Similar to how the Godhead’s influence spreads throughout his Dream, the Hist’s influence spreads throughout their creations the Argonians. The Argonians can even feel the Hist within their mind as a constant hum that only diminishes over distance, which reminds me of the concept of shakti. And while it is indeed possible for an Argonian to be born without the Hist’s influence – as described in The Strange Case of Ja-Reet – it hardly ever occurs:
Spoiler It is very rare for one of our people to be born away from the Hist. We are, in a very real way, part of the Hist. To be born away from it is to be born without something essential.
The Argonians see themselves as individuals that are a part of a greater whole, mere extensions of the Hist. Similarly, the Hist see themselves as mere extensions of the Godhead. But the Hist aren’t trying to create their own Dream, however – they came from outside the Dream, and know they are within one. If they wanted to, they could leave whenever they wanted to (it’s been long established that the Hist are exo-kalpic). They’re merely using the ‘format’ of the Dream for the Argonian mindset, resulting in the saxhleel looking at the universe as it really is without actually knowing what it is.
The Supreme Being for the Argonian people as a whole (undeniably and unknowably) is the Godhead; everything in the Dream is merely a part of him and created by him, and his influence is everywhere. This is why the Argonians, like the Hindus, appear to be very tolerant of the religions of the other races of Tamriel. To them, each pantheon is only a different way of worshipping the Godhead. For Shadowscales, Sithis is the Supreme Being. For the Hist devotees, the Hist are the Supreme Being. For the Lukiul who venture out of Black Marsh and adopt the religion of another race, the beings or being in the pantheon that pantheon is/are their Supreme Being. The Argonian Uta-Tei actually describes her desire to become a Spinner of Y’ffre and leaving her life as a Tree-Minder of the Hist fully behind her in these two dialogues:
“In Black Marsh I was a tree-minder. I tended the Hist, the great trees of our people. Here I will become a spinner, to speak with the trees of Grahtwood. I will lead my people to Y'ffre, the Wood Elf god of the forest.”
“We've always thought that without the Hist, there can be no hatchlings. But with Y'ffre's guidance, I will find a way. Think of it, Argonians native to Grahtwood to our new way of life.”
And what of the Triad of the Creator, the Preserver, and the Destroyer? Well, judging by the fact that Sithis (along with his consort-wife the Night Mother) is at least worshipped by the Shadowscales, I would say that the Triad of the Argonians (if they indeed have a Triad) would be built around Anuiel (Creator), Nirn (Preserver), and Sithis (Destroyer). Anuiel is the Creator and is the personification of the Aurbis, the totality of all things. Nirn is the Preserver, and is the personification of the Mundus, and keeps all things. Sithis is the Destroyer, and is the personification of the Void, and is the totality of nothing. Keep in mind that is just me speculating on things found in and out of game, but I do stand by this choice.
So does this mean that the Argonians have their own Enlightenment, their own Moksha? Yes, they indeed do. It is known as Ixtaxh-thtithil-meht, or “Exact-Egg-Cracking” when translated from Jel. When asked what it was, Michael Kirkbride replied it was the Hist’s version of the Nu Man, or at least how they would do it. And if this is the Hist’s version of the Nu Man, it is only natural to associate it with the saxhleel as well. While we do not know the exact steps to attain Ixtaxh-thtithil-meht, the concept fits in well with my theories. To the Argonians, the Three Worlds probably sit within an Egg (actually, in Where Were You When The Dragon Broke? it’s mentioned that some in Tamriel saw the universe become an egg and that was probably the Argonians). Therefore, “Exact-Egg-Cracking” is exactly what it sounds like – cracking out of the egg and leaving the cycle of rebirth behind through CHIM (Moksha). Ixtaxh-thtithil-meht is the ultimate escape that leads one towards Amaranth (Parabrahman).
In Terms of Reality
In The Elder Scrolls Online, the Argonians refer to the Mundus as the ‘river’. It is mentioned by many Argonian NPCs and also in-game books. In Racial Motifs 9: The Argonians, the Xanmeer Desh-Wulm tells Doctor Lupus that the dangerous game Divayth Fyr and Morian Zenas are playing for her affection is endangering all who swim the river (walk upon the Mundus):
Spoiler "You can beware!" he croaked, scaled hands emerging from the mud and levering him up on the rim of the bathtub. "Your dryskin mages—the weft unravels about them," he said, more calmly, making an unfamiliar spiral gesture above the tub. "It is wrong. The Aurbic skeins should not be disjoined with intent of malice."
I had been around wizards long enough to guess at what he meant. "Morian?" I gasped. "And Divayth? They're in danger? What can I do?"
Desh-Wulm clacked his jaws twice, and then said, "You are capable. You must stop them. You will prevail. If not," three sharp spines rose up from his brow, "there will be ill dreams and serration for all who swim the river. Kaoc!" The old Argonian suddenly began thrashing about in the tub, spilling muck over the sides. "Theilul!"
Why is it so dangerous for Divayth and Morian to use the forces of Oblivion to meddle with the Mundus? Because Mundus is the First World and Oblivion is a part of the Third World. Along with the Second World, the Three Worlds are supposed to flow equally with another in harmony. To use the forces of the Third World for the intent of pain or destruction in the First World goes against this harmony, and thus the Aurbis begins to unravel due to these machinations. One should not use the powers of either World to attempt to damage another.
In the ESO quest Enslaved in Death, the Player Character gets to speak to the spirit of Ix-Utha, an Argonian from the time before the Battle of Red Mountain when the Dunmer were still the Chimer. Not only does she reveal that the Chimer enslaved the Argonians (and is quite unsurprised that the saxhleel of today were enslaved by the Dunmer), she also says this:
“A living soul? It has been so long. To walk the river again, it is so strange. And so sad.”
When asked why she is sad, Ix-Utha will go on to say this:
“I and the other saxhleel have not returned willingly. We Argonians were slaves to the Chimer in our time, as I sense they can be today. Even in death we serve our cruel masters. Slaves to their will.”
And after being asked how she can be freed, she then releases this particular gem:
“The Chimer would not see us to Aetherius. To set their souls free on the river you will have to destroy the keepers. If you wish to do this, you will find me on the road away from here. I sense something I must see for myself.”
Throughout all of this, she refers to the river, which is Mundus. Ix-Utha states that it is sad to walk the river once again because Argonians in general believe in reincarnation; her soul is supposed to be in the Second World (Dreamsleeve; the Hist), but when the Chimers’ souls were brought back into the First World, so was hers (which is interesting, as it hints that the Chimer somehow connected their souls with the souls of their Argonian slaves). We also learn that she and her fellow slaves wish to go onwards to Aetherius, despite the fact that throughout ESO several Argonians also believe they will go to the Void (“Praise Sithis!”; “Don’t send me to Sithis!”) or the Hist (“Embrace the Hist.”).
Here’s my own speculation. If Mundus (First World) is the ‘river’ to the Argonians, then I believe that the Dreamsleeve/Hist/Waters of Oblivion (Second World) would be referred to as the ‘shore’. One swims through the river to make it to the shore, and then reenters the river only to return to the shore once again; this river to shore to river metaphor symbolizes the act of reincarnation. Aetherius/Void/Planes of Oblivion (Third World) are probably referred to as the ‘sky’ by the Argonians; once one enters them they cannot return to the Second or First World (well, usually; ‘rain’). We also learn in The Elder Scrolls Online that when someone dies their memories become ‘water’ (I can’t remember where I saw that, but there’s a screenshot floating around here somewhere). When someone dies, their soul goes on to the Second World to be recycled while their memories go on to the Third World or – for some reason – are earthbound to the First World. Because of this, Argonians (depending on their own individual beliefs and worship) can go to either afterlife; the memories of Shadowscales go to the Void, the memories of Daedra worshippers go to the Planes of Oblivion, and the memories of Aedra worshippers and non-worshippers go to Aetherius. It is also possible that ‘copies’ of all of these memories go to the Hist itself, allowing the trees to contain the combined knowledge and memories of the saxhleel as a whole. This assumption comes from two pieces of dialogue, the first from the Argonian Ah-Mudeska and the second from the Argonian Mysteries-of-Trees:
“Will Uta-Tei return to the Hist, or the graht-oaks of her new forest god? Ah. Such discussions are better with a drink in hand.”
“You've done well. Permit me to tell you a secret, behind which hides another: Any true Shadowscale is also a true child of the Hist. The Hist provides a measure of eternity, true as it also shapes the minds of our people. Think upon this.”
My “Argonians believe in the Three Worlds” theory is also supported by dialogue of Argonians in ESO as well. In the quest Giving for the Greater Good, a trio of Argonians give their souls to the land (literally in their own words “becoming one with the land”) to allow life to grow once again. The Argonian named Utadeek says this to the Player before it is his turn:
“Yes, and I am grateful. When we meet in the next world, tell me how beautiful the land became.”
The above hints that while his soul will join with Stonefalls to help heal the land, the memories of Utadeek will go on to the Third World, probably Aetherius. Also, in the quest Breaking Fort Viraak, the Argonian mystic Walks-In-Ash does something to the Player that hasn’t happened before in an Elder Scrolls game before, along with this dialogue:
“My grandsire was a powerful shaman. He passed down an ancient formula for an elixir that allows a traveler to walk in the ‘otherworld’ between the living and the dead. It works on those who've become attuned to the realms beyond.”
“Yes, drink it. Then you'll be able to go where we cannot. Of course, not all in the otherworld will welcome you. Contact with the beyond can be unpleasant, so avoid any creatures you see there. Good luck.”
After consuming the potion, the Player is then transformed into a wisp-like creature to be able to pass through the obstacles in the way of their objective. While in this state, the Player must avoid detection from the souls of this ‘otherworld’. To me, this ‘otherworld’ is in fact the Second World which the consumer of the potion is briefly using to travel across a great distance in short time. If the Dreamsleeve can be used for communication and sending messages across large distances, then isn’t it just as possible that it could also be used as ‘shortcut’ of sorts so an individual can travel large distances in a short period of time?
This also brings up the reason why the Argonians might have joined the Ebonheart Pact in the first place. At first, many people (with myself included) thought that the grouping of the Dunmer, Argonians, and the Nords together – who view each other as bitter and hated enemies – into one union was ridiculous. However, as advocated since launch, the Pact is the most “mystically attuned” of the three alliances in The Elder Scrolls Online. The Dunmer have their Living Gods, the Tribunal. The Nords have their worship of the Old Gods, and their thu’um. And of course, the Argonians have their Hist. But why would the Argonians join forces with the Northern Men and the Ash Elves, people they have had to fight with on a daily basis since times immemorial?
Well, look at what Molag Bal is trying to do – he wants to merge Nirn and Coldharbour together in the event known as the Planemeld. But if Nirn is a part of Mundus (or more like Nirn is Mundus), that means that is also the First World. In other words, Molag Bal is trying to forcibly combine the Third World (his plane of Oblivion) with the First World. This is far from just mere “unharmonious” actions between the Three Worlds; Bal is literally trying to get rid of the First World. In other words, the Planemeld is going to seriously screw up everything on a cosmic level. To the Argonians, this is something that simply cannot happened. And if that means joining with their former masters and enemies make sure it doesn’t, then that’s just what they’ll have to do.
While watching more gameplay footage (because I regret to inform you I do not have the money to afford ESO right now) I also noted that Argonians in The Elder Scrolls Online seem to be very fond of these two expressions:
“You are the sun on my scales.” – Onuja
“[Molag Bal!] May he burn in the glare of a thousand suns!” – Guildmaster Sees-All-Colors
In ESO, it is actually confirmed (at least, from a Breton perspective) that the Argonians are cold-blooded in the in-game book On Argonians:
Spoiler In studying the various races of Tamriel, I have found a few strange aberrations. Among the human-shaped, the Argonians may be the most fascinating. They are cold-blooded, in both the physiological and psychological sense, and yet they somehow manage to operate in all climes with the same resilience as mammals. Their preference for sub-tropical and tropical climates notwithstanding, to see an Argonian moving through sub-arctic or arctic regions with the same facility as their mammalian rivals is simply astounding.
While these expressions can be attributed to the Argonian’s reptilian nature and physique, I would to like go deeper into it than that. In my speculations, the Argonians probably refer to the Third World as the ‘sky’. Therefore, the use of the word ‘sun’ in these sayings are also referencing the Et’Ada (Mahadevas)/Supreme Being, who reside in the Third World. For the first phrase, it is a sign of appreciation. “You are the sun on my scales” can be taken to mean “God/The Gods have blessed me with your presence.” The latter phrase, however, is a sign of scorn and anger. “May he burn in the glare of a thousand suns!” can be taken to mean “May God/the Gods punish him for his actions!”
» Thu Apr 24, 2014 12:29 pm 
