Tamyrlin, and an unexpected RAFO
Ray Chason
"Lews Therin wore the Ring of Tamyrlin. Whom or what was this named for?"
RJ replied: "ah, Read And Find Out."
I didn't quite expect that. I thought this question was so far removed from
the plot that Hizzoner wouldn't mind answering it. Furthermore, I had hoped
to settle some of the local Looney Theories on this topic, most of which
sound like just that to me. But he said something about patterns of
speculation that he didn't want us getting into just yet.
Two explanations for this unexpected RAFO present themselves:
1) RJ is just being extremely careful.
2) This question isn't so far removed as I believed.
#1 is a disappointing thought; asking questions at signings seems almost
pointless if the only ones permitted are of the how-tall-is-Moiraine
variety. (She's about 5'3" BTW; the guy in front of me asked this one.) So
I'm going to engage in wishful thinking and assume #2 is the case.
Three hypotheses on just what is the Ring of Tamyrlin follow:
1) Mat's signet ring. (I need to reread Mat's scene in Snake-land.)
Evidence: Chekhov's rule, something about not bringing a rifle on stage
if you don't intend to use it. This ring has some importance to
somebody.
Counter-evidence: Mat's ring bears no known Aes Sedai symbol, ancient
or modern.
Counter^2-evidence: We don't know for sure that the Ring of Tamyrlin
was an Aes Sedai artifact. It is possible that Lews Therin was a
political leader as well as the Aes Sedai head honcho.
Counter^3-evidence: Ishamael makes no mention of Lews Therin's being
anything other than "first among the Servants." Also, the truncated
form "Amyrlin" is very much Aes Sedai related.
2) Something resembling a modern Aes Sedai ring, with the snake in the
infinity-sign shape biting its own tail.
Evidence: Modern Aes Sedai wear such rings; perhaps ancient ones did
too. Perhaps the Ring of Tamyrlin was a ring like this, only larger.
Counter-evidence: Rand has seen dozens of such rings, and they have
evoked no memories from Lews Therin.
3) Some object yet to be discovered (this overlaps #2); perhaps it was among
the Ebou Dar stash.
When and if Rand and Mat ever meet again, and if Mat still has that ring by
then, we may have confirmation or refuting of #1.
Now for some really wild (and tangential to this post) speculation.
I repeat my assertion that Tamyrlin was an Aes Sedai leader, and that the
Ring was his symbol of office. The use of this word in context fits with a
personal name, but not with a title (Ring of *the* Tamyrlin would suggest a
title), and the resemblance to Tamerlane is too much to ignore.
Now for the Looniest Theory I've ever posted. Be warned that I have
practically no support for this whatsoever:
Tamyrlin was...the Dragon.
Tamyrlin was the incarnation of the Dragon prior to Lews Therin, the one who
came to Earth at the end of the First Age, discovered the One Power and its
nature, and founded the Aes Sedai. He founded the Aes Sedai for the First
Age equivalent of Tarmon Gai'don, to do battle with the minions of Sh**'t*n.
The Light was clearly victorious in this battle, the Shadow routed from the
earth, and so began the Age of Legends.
--
--------------===============<[ Ray Chason ]>===============--------------
PGP public key at http://www.smart.net/~rchason/pubkey.asc
Delenda est Windoze!
Porlilme
Sedai......then again, may be not>"
Brian Gibbons
>Now for the Looniest Theory I've ever posted. Be warned that I have
>practically no support for this whatsoever:
>
>Tamyrlin was...the Dragon.
>
>Tamyrlin was the incarnation of the Dragon prior to Lews Therin, the one who
>came to Earth at the end of the First Age, discovered the One Power and its
>nature, and founded the Aes Sedai. He founded the Aes Sedai for the First
>Age equivalent of Tarmon Gai'don, to do battle with the minions of Sh**'t*n.
>The Light was clearly victorious in this battle, the Shadow routed from the
>earth, and so began the Age of Legends.
Hmm, I could buy the basic idea that the Tamyrlin was the First Age's Dragon,
but he would not have faced the Dark One's minions. We're told a few times
that the Second Age had not even heard of Sh**'t*n and based on how much
knowledge has filtered down from the Second to Third Age, if the closing of
the First Age had been another Tarmon Gai'don, it's likely they would know of
him.
I've generally thought that our present age is supposed to be the First Age
(artifacts and legends from our time are present in the Third Age, and that
becomes increasingly more unlikely if we add two Ages in between ours and the
Third), with the end of Age event being the discovery of the True Source which
either is a result of, or results in, some sort of cataclysm.
Perhaps in this case, Tamyrlin was the researcher who found the True Source,
in many ways like Mierin, except not so unlucky.
ObLooneyTheory: If I'm correct, then in the First Age, we had neither saidin
nor saidar; in the Second Age, we had both saidin and saidar; in the Third
Age, we have saidin tainted and saidar pure. For balance's sake, the Fourth
Age will have saidin pure and saidar tainted.
--
Brian Gibbons
br...@virginia.edu
David Misener
Ray Chason wrote in message <737m7g$m...@enews3.newsguy.com>...
>My question at the Bailey's Crossroads signing (21 Nov 1998) was:
>
Tamyrlin is the title of the Head of the Aes Sedai in the Age of Legends.
At least I think thats what I got out of reading the Guide.
David "BabyKosh" Misener
Head of the '03 International DFS
Ray Chason
>
>Ray Chason wrote in message <737m7g$m...@enews3.newsguy.com>...
>>My question at the Bailey's Crossroads signing (21 Nov 1998) was:
>>
>>"Lews Therin wore the Ring of Tamyrlin. Whom or what was this named for?"
>
>Tamyrlin is the title of the Head of the Aes Sedai in the Age of Legends.
>
>At least I think thats what I got out of reading the Guide.
I'll check that out. I don't have the Guide (it's forty bucks and the
artwork makes Sweet look like Michael Whelan). Anyway, it seems that
anything explicitly stated in the Guide would draw a "Read the _Guide_ and
Find Out" (RGAFO?)
This seems to be the leading theory; but it doesn't fit with the way the
word is used in context in tEotW.
Further musings on this topic and surrounding tangents:
* Like "Ring of Tamyrlin," "Amyrlin Seat" properly refers to an object,
specifically the throne in the White Tower; it is by a figure of
speech, much like the way "High Seat" refers to the head of a noble
house, that "Amyrlin Seat" became a title.
* Come to think of it, Lews Therin sat in the High Seat. Perhaps "High
Seat" was his title?
* The conflation of "Ring of Tamyrlin" and "High Seat" into "Amyrlin
Seat", along with other evidence including the loss of so many
Talents, strongly suggests that the White Tower is not continuous with
the Hall of the Servants except in name. That is, no founder of the
Tower had been an Aes Sedai in the Age of Legends; life during the
Breaking was nasty, brutish, and short. Otherwise somebody would
surely have remembered the political structure of the Hall, and
perhaps a few otherwise-lost Talents.
What knowledge was preserved by the Tower might have come from the few
writings that survived the Breaking, and from female channelers who
learned the Power second- and third-hand from AoL Aes Sedai.
Riikka Alanen
Ray Chason wrote:
> I repeat my assertion that Tamyrlin was an Aes Sedai leader, and that the
> Ring was his symbol of office. The use of this word in context fits with a
> personal name, but not with a title (Ring of *the* Tamyrlin would suggest a
> title), and the resemblance to Tamerlane is too much to ignore.
>
Also, this would fit in the way RJ mixes snippets of myths/history by
swapping attributes of various characters: if my memory serves
me correctly, the historical Tamerlane, with his conquests and reputation
for justice AND cruelties, bears a certain resemblance to Artur Hawkwind,
another powerful ta'veren.
Rica
David Misener
>I'll check that out. I don't have the Guide (it's forty bucks and the
>artwork makes Sweet look like Michael Whelan). Anyway, it seems that
>anything explicitly stated in the Guide would draw a "Read the _Guide_ and
>Find Out" (RGAFO?)
convention in Calgary.