Have the sermons ever been anolyzed/translated into proper english? Clearly a part of its charm is the mystery and vagueness, but I'd very much like to understand the meaning of MK's blathering.
If not, I think that one is needed.... I'll give you an example right now; Sermon Uno:

"Vivec was born in Morrowind, probably Ashlands. He was born when the Dunmer still were the Chimer, and before the war with the Nords. (The War of the First Council mayhap?)
The Daedric Prince Boethiah manipulated/guided Almalexia to the place where Vivecs mother lived, a small coastal village. She grabbed a woman and said:
"I am the *treacherous/manipulating?* queen of the Tribunal. In you is a foster(?) and a spell: "Almalexia is Sotha Sil is Vivec", which you will repeat until Sotha Sil comes.

Then she threw the woman into the sea, where drueghs took her to castles of glass and coral. (Sounds a bit like Thras... Too far away to be plausible I guess.)
The dreughs gave her gills/the ability to breath underwater and milk fingers (What the?...) They also gave her gynecological surgery, so she could give birth to something that has the shape of/looks like an egg.
She stayed at the castles for 7 or 8 months.

The Sotha Sil arrived and spoke to her. "I am the technology-wizz of the Tribunal. In you is the egg that contains Vivec, who is a warrior-poet. You shall nurture him until the Hortator arrives. (Nerevar I guess...)

He conjured up a whole lot of homonculis that picked up the woman. They put her back down on the shores of Azura Coast, east Vvardenfell. She layed on the coast for 8 or 7 months, whispering to Vivec some neat information that he'd have use of when born: The Codes of Mephala (I'd guess it to be the clan systems that she invented, or the assasin skills that she gave to the Chimer.)
The Teachings of Veloth, and some of the forbidden knowledge of the Dwemer. (Their philosophy and technology I presume)

I won't even attempt to decipher anything more >.>
That's my interpretation of the sermon anyway.... Feel free to correct me in any way.

You're right and wrong about Mephala. He was taught all of the relevant info about assassination and marriage, that is, the unification/elimination of the self. I'll ask you to read these two texts before asking what I mean: http://www.imperial-library.info/obscure_text/chaos.shtml and http://www.imperial-library.info/mwbooks/lessons.shtml#11.


Uhhh...don't you mean Trinimac?

For the other crap, I'll try to give you my take on it:


They taught him to fight. Hella good.

I'm guessing this is talking about the http://www.imperial-library.info/mwbooks/monomyth.shtml#Yokudan The number of the "unmixed conflict path" is 1, I'm sure.

http://www.imperial-library.info/obscure_text/vehk_teaching.shtml#4 is the better way, I'm sure.

The Left/Right Hand crap just deals with the Left Hand Path/Right Hand Path crap, the Right being good. "Love is under [his] will only" because he IS Love, i.e. the unification of Opposites. He's male and female, warrior and poet, creator and destroyer.

Ask if i need to clarify.

They don't need to be, even shouldn't be, translated into more simple terms.

They may seem overly complicated, but their not...

Have you ever seen a women become pregnant with a God? Vivec is simply trying to describe to the reader what that actually is.

Here's something Nalion told me once.



~Lost

Sounds you're doing fine Jero. Just don't take it all literally and not every line has world a shattering truth hidden behind it.

You'll like http://www.imperial-library.info/obscure_text/vehk_teaching.shtml though, it's a collection of explanations Vivec gave when he went to Cyrodiil. It should clarify a few things.

Another thing to do is perhaps to follow some of the debates about chim, gods, Dragonbreaks all that. They don't happen all that often anymore but the forum has stored a few.

@94600: Ah, right! Trinimac, not Kagrenac. I sometimes mix those two up :S Don't understand the "egg motions" though >.<

@LostGateToCruelty: So Vivec is describing things that we can't understand without him using metaphors? I'm not ashamed to admit that I don't understand most of the metaphors. Maybe I'm just stupid, but why shouldn't we try to find the thruth in Vehks poetic ramblings? Don't you need to understand what the metaphor is being a metaphore for, in order to get the sermons? That's what I wish for. To understand what the metaphores are for, in other words; simplifiy. Do you understand? Once again, my language problem :/

@ Thanks, and advice taken. I'll try not to overthink everything. I'll read the teachings, and... looks like the 36 lessons in TIL already has "notes" that explains some parts of the sermon already! Oh, joy!

Keep in mind that the notes are a bit dated, nobody had the sermons quite figured out at the time back then. You'll see a reference to Ningendo in the preface though, he had it by the right end. Still good enough for somebody who just got started though.

Also think off egg in the sense of "the world egg", as a prototype from of divinity. In the sermons Vivec is born for the second time, but now as a god.

---

Also feel free to pop on the Storyboard if you have specific questions. Some knowledgeable folks frequent it a bit more often then over here.

Perhaps you should read http://www.imperial-library.info/fsg/astionarticle1.shtml before you read the other Sermons. It explains about the Dragon Break that allowed Vivec to be born anew as a God, which is what the first few Sermons are about.



I should have said 'In my opinion' at the beginning of my earlier post, and I apologize for it.

I simply believe that what is written in the Sermons is what was intended to be read. And if you simplify it, you'll be changing it.

Remember, the Aurbis, and by extension the Mundus, is a place of Myth and Magic. Some things in the Sermons that you may think not literal, could be.

~Lost