Dilandu wrote:Krenn wrote:
Or, more simply, just create a forgery of one of Shan-Wei's bunkers, then "discover" it. Complete with interior lighting that's exactly the same as what's in the temple, and lots of highly convenient confessions labeling everything, carefully diagramming and explaining the sinful use of electricity in each case....
And what exactly it would prove beyond that Shain-Wei is very good in luring humans into sin?
Again: you made the same mistake, attributing electricity in Holy Writ with some "demonic power". But it is not - it is the power, available for Archangels, but forbidden for mortals. It is perfectly obvious that Shain-wei could use such power - she was an Archangel, after all! - but for mortals it would be sin of disobeying the God.
I don't think the text evidence works that way...
an ebook search found two relevant references to "electricity", once in Armageddon Reef, once in Fiery Trials...
Armageddon Reef:
The kinetic bombardment platforms which had been used against Shan-wei were still there, sweeping silently in orbit around the planet. It was impossible to be certain, but Merlin was virtually positive the platforms were tasked to bombard and destroy any ground-based energy signature which might indicate that Safeholdians were straying from the dictates of The Book of Jwo-jeng’s limitations on technology. The energy footprint of an electrical generating plant, for example.
The exact level of emissions necessary to activate them was impossible to estimate, but The Book of Chihiro clearly warned that the same Rakurai which had smitten the evil Shan-Wei waited to punish anyone so lost to God as to attempt to follow in her footsteps. According to the Writ, the lightning associated with natural thunderstorms was God’s reminder of the destruction awaiting those who sinned, a sort of inverted mirror image of the symbology of the rainbow’s promise to Noah following the Deluge.
TFT:
“Because it’s looking for electricity?” Merlin suggested. “I’ve always thought it’s significant that the Book of Jwo-jeng specifically anathematizes electricity whereas the Proscriptions are defined in terms of what’s allowable. They don’t say ‘You can’t do A, B, or C’; they say ‘You can’t do anything besides A or B.’ But not about electricity. And in addition to what she had to say about it, Chihiro says ‘You shall not profane nor lay impious hands upon the power the Lord your God bestowed upon his servant Langhorne.’” His lips curled in distaste as he quoted from the Book of Chihiro. “That’s why I’ve always assumed electricity would almost have to be a red line as far as any automated system under the Temple was concerned.”
“And I tend to agree with you. But don’t forget your own point—Chihiro anathematized it in terms of the ‘Rakurai’ Langhorne used to punish Shan-wei for her defiance of God’s law. Lightning’s sacred, unlike wind, water, or muscle power, so its use in any way is expressly forbidden.”
“But Chihiro goes on to specifically describe electricity, not just lightning,” Merlin pointed out. “People may call the damned things rakurai fish, but they don’t flash like rakurai bugs. They just shock the hell out of anything that threatens them! But Chihiro uses them as a ‘mortal avatar’ of Langhorne’s ‘Holy Rakurai’ placed on earth to remind humans of the awesome power entrusted to him by God.
That’s why the Writ says rakurai fish are sacred in the eyes of God, but where’s the ‘lightning bolt’ in their case? He flat out tells people they have the same power as the Rakurai, and he didn’t have to. For that matter, the Writ even talks about static electricity and links that to Langhorne’s Rakurai, too.”
It was his turn to shake his head.
“There’s got to be a reason that Chihiro gassed on about it that long and that thoroughly, and the most likely one was to make damned sure no one even thought about fooling around with it.”
Reading that carefully, I think that means a few things:
1. MOST of the proscriptions may not technically apply to the Archangels, but the prohibition against electricity is universal, and DOES apply.
2. As a matter of Doctrine, Electricity IS the Rakurai, and the Rakurai is Langhorne's special power. Anything Electrical results in pain, danger, and eventually orbital bombardment. There is no way to use electricity for anything BUT inflicting pain and bombardment on yourself, and the right to summon the bombardments are reserved to Archangel Langhorne.
3. So, playing with electricity doesn't JUST get you bombarded, it is ALSO a violation of Langhorne's holy responsibility to USE bombardment. By using electricity, you bombarded yourself, because that's what electricity IS. And Bombarding yourself is a sinful violation of Langhorne's right to conduct bombardments personally.
4. And, importantly, this is apparently where Shan-Wei fell astray: As a matter of doctrine, she apparently tried to USE miniature electricity-and-or-linked-miniature-bombardments for some personal purpose, in violation of Langhorne's ultimate responsibility to control bombardments himself, So Langhorne called forth the ENTIRETY of the Rakurai, in order to Bombard her entire island as punishment.
5.The lesson here is that EVEN ARCHANGELS CAN'T USE ELECTRICITY, and all forms of electricity result in bombardment. And bombardment is reserved only to Langhorne, which humans shall not touch. ever. Although the writ apparently doesn't use the WORD bombardment, preffering words like "Rakurai".
The people living in the Temple don't even use the word 'electricity' to refer to all the minor miracles the temple contains: they apparently honestly believe that all of those miracles are a DIFFERENT type of divine favor, not related to electricity at all, because profaning electricity with human hands is absolutely forbidden, and all forms of electricity bring only pain, destruction and death anyway.
In fact, if Merlin could get away with it, a really AWESOME prank would be if he could somehow plant a static-electricity-generating invisible film coating onto the light switches inside the temple... thus creating instant 'proof' that the light switches WERE electrical, and therefore forbidden to the hands of man, on pain of pain and very small bombardments....
