Amusements
When Mawgri arrived home that evening, terse as always about what he had been doing, I amused him with my account of my day: the mountain temple inside a cave, the logbook of the mess officer, eating with the house servants, and my study of the logbook for the rest of the day.
After I had finished, Mawgri said, “So a mess officer of a solar starship was the founder of Kandizam. That is rich.”
“He was a good cook and organizer, but religion was not his strength.”
“Did you mention any of this when you had lunch with the servants?”
“No, should I have?”
“Absolutely not. I am reticent and maintain my distance not because I have any feelings of superiority, but because I have to lessen the chance that I might let something slip and jeopardize my business.”
“You know they won’t bring up a subject; they waited for me.”
“Did you?” He had a look that I had seen before: it showed amusement at my naiveté, and apprehension that I might have given up a secret, and pity for my callow approach to existence.
“I asked about democracy,” I said, a trifle annoyed.
“Interesting, and what did they say? You know only Luvark can read, although I suspect Natwik [the valet] has been studying on his own.”
“They expressed a desire to read and write; they thought that would be good. About democracy they weren’t so sure. They have a limited concept of what it is. Natwik seems to be the most disposed toward it.”
“Have you noticed that they have a special pride in their little domains: the cook with the kitchen, the gardener with the plants, Luvark with the auto, the housekeeper with cleaning?”
“Yes, I see that, and I see they have the seeds of being proud free people.”
“When we go to Kunwyz, you will see free people.”
“Sacacon is enlightened, but I wonder if there are citizens of Saca who want to retain the old ways?”
“Of course, there is a conservative movement—mostly nobles—who like the old system and want to retain their elevated status. You saw how guarded the palace is. That is to protect Saca more from a coup or an assassination than an attack from any outside enemies.”
“Could our attackers have been sent by that faction?”
“The thought has crossed my mind. They fear me as a liberalizer and think that I am influencing Sacacon to make reforms. But it is truly the other way; Sacacon has his own ideas, but he asks for my input because he knows I understand democracy.”
“How about the Radimeen daggers?”
“Those would not be hard to get. They are a popular gift from Radimeen nobles to others, and it wouldn’t be hard to knock off copies.”
“Would the conservatives collude with Radimeer to try a coup if he attacks?”
“Mmm . . . Kra would love that . . . but I’m not so sure a Saceen nobleman would go for it. There is a history of distrust and animosity between Saca and Radimeer; any Saceen thinks he is the better of any Radimeen. And such a mutiny would involve acts of both treason and heresy. Part of the conservatism is allegiance to Sacacon. Such a revolt would put them in a quandary, a quagmire of moral choices. No, I don’t think a Saceen noble could do it; most would rather cut off an arm than offend Zacon’s chosen leader. Furthermore, Saceen nobles have invested heavily in Saceen corporations; they would be betting against their own enterprises, which constitute the military-industrial complex. Besides, their ally is the third most powerful military force: Kunwyz. And don’t forget Stuwkrik. The most powerful force in the Za System is supporting their side. No, I can’t see a coup succeeding. ”
“Well, enough of politics.”
“Before we leave politics, let me ask if you’ve heard the news on the television or the radio.”
“No, I spent all my time with the logbook.”
“Then you don’t know that four of the kingdoms on Luka have appealed to Sacacon to let them join the alliance against Radimeer. Only Ladimeer—which has linguistic, cultural and historical connections to Radimeer—is seeking neutrality. The rest feel threatened that Radimeer will take them over.”
“Will Sacacon let them in?”
“I doubt it. There’s no advantage for Sacacon. They would only be a burden on him, and he could not practically defend them except by conquering Radimeer. He’s giving a televised speech on the subject tonight.”
“Speaking of Sacacon, I have a question about Kandizam.”
However, Mawgri ignored my statement and instead asked, “Did the cook prepare anything for supper? Sorry to interrupt, but my stomach is demanding some attention.”
“I don’t think so. Your standing order is to not to fix anything unless you call since you so often work late.”
He headed toward the kitchen and I followed him. He pulled open the refrigerator, and I leaned against the entrance walls and watched him gather items. I found him extraordinarily beautiful. He pulled out and set on the kitchen table sliced tak bread, slices of smagos, gwarg butter, and kepoc cheese. “I’ve grown fond of your sandwiches,” he said as he buttered the bread and piled on the other ingredients. To top off the masterpiece, he sprinkled some salt and then some slazza. He grinned as he sat at the kitchen table and took his first bite.”What?”
“I find you very attractive when you are taking pleasure in simple things.”
He chewed while smiling, but refused to try to talk while he was eating.
I got him a clean glass and poured him some cool, clear water. He nodded his thanks.
Then I made a sandwich for myself and sat across from him. We happily chewed and admired each other.
I had seen a picture of his mother and father. His mother Tatmil was the Saceen Putkur, and her scales were the same green and yellow as his but darker and covered her entire body except for palms and soles and genitalia; he also had her almond shaped eyes and yellow eyeball, although the center of his eye was the round brown iris of a Stuwkreen, his father.
His father Bonli Qampoq had been a son of one of the first ambassadors to Saca. There he had met an extraordinary woman, for in a society in which women had second-class citizenship, his mother, the daughter of a powerful relative of the Sacacon, had insisted on learning everything her brothers learned, so she read and wrote and became a scientist in her own right, specializing in biology. She was the one who had darkened the leaves of Putkwyz agricultural plants and allowed the greater productivity which had supported an explosion of population. She was also the first noble to pay her servants a small wage, so they could have their own money (which has become standard procedure decreed by Sacacon and has contributed to the healthy economy of the empire).
Naturally, Bonli had seen her as a worthy mate, for on Stuwkrik men and women were equal and shared the duties of work and home. Since Tatmil knew she was the equal of any man, she appreciated that Bonli treated her as an equal and loved her for who she was, so she had no fear of leaving Putkwyz for Stuwkrik.
Most of Mawgri’s appearance was more Stuwkreen: five-fingered hands and five-toed feet, mammalian genitalia, and where brown skin showed, hair. On the top of his head he had thick, shiny brown hair. The Stuwkreen part made him suspect in the eyes of Putkeen, but the fact that he had genetic gifts from the line of the Sacacon made him accepted.
His sandwich eaten and washed down with water, Mawgri burped quietly and looked at me. He sighed and said, “Ah, I feel much better now. What was it you were going to ask me about Kandizam?”
I put down the remaining corner of my sandwich and said, “Oh, yeah. Is Kandizam a global religion or just Saceen?”
“Good question. Before Kandizam, most Putkurs worshipped a pantheon of gods and goddesses and chose one of those to be the special god or goddess of the family and house. And there was no stigma attached to choosing any of them, although different tribes had different preferences based on their myths and folklore. Among the nobility, there was a tendency to worship Za, the sun god, who gave light and helped plants to grow and was the symbol of sustenance. The nobility called him the chief god. This pattern of worship was universal except that Kuneen might have a different word and Radimeen another for the same god concept. The Kuneen believe the Miki tree is sacred.”
“How is Za different from Zacon?”
“As a name for a god, Za means ‘sun god’; Zacon means ‘Ruler of Za,’ in effect ‘Lord of the Za System’ or ‘Lord of the World’ because at that time, none knew of a world beyond the Za System.”
“How about the word ‘Kandizam’?”
“When the god appeared on Mt. Zaput, he told the people that he was the representative of Zacon and we should call him Kandi. From that the priests called the religion Kandizam or ‘the word of Kandi”; in effect, the teachings of Kandi on which the religion is based.”
“So is it a global religion or not?”
“Both. It is primarily a Saceen religion because it makes Sacacon God’s representative on Putkwyz, but because it is written down and has wisdom for all, the books have been carried to other continents where Kandizam has become popular. There are worshippers on Kunwyz and on Luka with one difference: They reject that Sacacon is God’s representative and claim that any Putkur can read the book and gain knowledge and wisdom to help his life. They don’t need a caste of priests telling them what to believe.”
“Captain Hennessey would be proud.”
“In fact, Kandizam now has the status of the one true religion and has pushed all other religions onto the edges of acceptability. There are a few holdouts for Za the sun god, especially in Radimeer because the emperor is considered descendant from the sun god. His flag is gray and brown, representing the bright light on the brown earth. In the center is a green spotted egg of an aubligado, representing royalty and fertility.”
“Are there any pantheists left?”
“Oh, many continue to have a special house god, but it is a tradition more than a belief system. In the tribal polities, the old gods are still worshipped to some degree among the illiterate masses on the other side of the planet on the other five continents that are ruled by kingdoms.”
“You haven’t talked much about those continents.”
“Two of the continents are near the polar zones, one north and one south. Those are frigid with ice year round and sparsely populated with illiterate tribes.
“The largest continent is Myunk; the literacy rate is very low and it is divided into about fifty kingdoms that are in perpetual warfare with one another. Borders are continually shifting and states rising and falling. Because of the constant warfare, none of them have developed the infrastructure that could support large nation states or an industrial economy. Radimeer has begun supplying modern small arms to certain states who have vowed allegiance to the emperor. Meanwhile, Sacacon has pledged support to others if they begin literacy programs and Kunwyz has sent ambassadors to promote democracy. But Myunk remains a murky, unstable land.
The other two small continents are more peaceful. One lies in the equatorial belt and the other in a temperate zone; both have agricultural systems. Each is one kingdom, and both are desperately trying to stay out of any conflicts brought on by other states. They supply food and textiles to other continents and in return have gained modern industrial items and are transitioning from animal and wind power to fossil fuels. They also have beautiful beaches and lagoons, so are a favorite vacation spot for others.”
That night we watched Sacacon give the speech about Radimeer’s aggressive stance. He warned that the rest of Putkwyz could not stand idly by while Radimeer gobbled up other states and caused trouble around the planet. He said that there was a point of no return that would compel his alliance to fight, and he hoped other nations would help them to beat back the imperial menace.
End of Chapter 6
Malcolm is pleased to have fallen in with a chief supporter of democracy against autocratic regimes. He hopes that this side has an edge over the Emperor of Radimeer.
Below are items related to this blog.
No comments:
Post a Comment