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We have seen that Sanderson has been inspired by biblical themes before in mistborn with moash becoming blind do you think he is pulling from the story of paul? After he was healed paul became the apostle of the gentiles, will Moash become the Herald of the singers?

While reading Dawnshard, I couldn't help but notice parallels with concepts in Scripture. I wonder even if those concepts are what inspired Brandon. Maybe. Maybe not. But if so, if we digest the concepts from the biblical text, that could potentially help us understand what the Dawnshard is and maybe even where the whole Cosmere narrative is going. Rather than explaining too much of my thoughts on how they relate, I'd like to hear yours. The first concept to grasp is that the Hebrew word for Spirit is Ruah (or Ruach) which is also translated as breath - or breath that gives life. The Holy Spirit (which is often just called the Spirit) in Hebrew is Ruach HaKodesh which basically means the life-giving breath of the Holy One. Now that that's out of the way, check out these passages and see if you can tell how they might relate to the Dawnshard and the Cosmere as a whole. John 1:1-5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Ephesians 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.(notice here the connection between the Word and the Spirit and it's offensive ability) Genesis 1:1-3 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. (God's Word = Creative Power) (the Spirit hovered over the waters, apparently waiting to act - to become the power behind the Word or the Power that IS the Word) Jesus Praying to the Father in John 17:8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. (WHAAAATTTT!!!!!!!) John 17:14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. John 17:22-23 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: (power of change, of bringing things back to how they were meant to be) Concerning the Shattering of Adonalsium??: Track with me here - this one's a little harder to grasp. 1 Corinthians 12:12-14 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. (What if the will of Adonalsium was to be broken in order to give us parts of himself that we might then reconcile together to reform him but be now many and yet One?) Romans 8:29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many Revelation 13:8 speaks of the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world and it is reiterated here: 1 Peter 1:18-20 or you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Isaiah 53:10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.

So I was flipping through Words of Radiance and I noticed that the name of the spren that causes the death rattles is named Moelach. See Taravingian's POV chapter I-14 for more details. Mr. T describes Moelach in the Diagram thusly: "There is one you will watch. Though all of them have some relevance to precognition, Moelach is one of the most powerful in this regard. His touch seeps into a soul as it breaks apart from the body, creating manifestations powered by the spark of death itself. But no, this is a distraction. Deviation. Kingship. We must discuss the nature of kingship." -Epigraph Chapter 82, page 986 hardcover edition According to the questions Brandon answered on Tor.com, he based some of the Roshar magic system on the Jewish mysticism of Kabbalah. With this connection in mind, I realized that the name 'Moelach' sounds an awful lot like "Moloch", a Mesopotamian god mentioned several times in the Old Testament with a negative connotation as a foreign and false god. Moloch is rather infamous because according to the biblical text, worshippers would sacrifice children to Moloch's flames. But we're not done yet. In Mr. T's POV chapter, he brings up another evil spren named Nergaoul, who many readers think causes the Alethi Thrill: "The Thrill is at least as strong here as it is in Alethkar. Maybe stronger. I will speak to our scholars. Perhaps this will help pinpoint Nergaoul." -Chapter I-14, page 910 hardcover edition Well wouldn't you know it, but Nergal is also a Mesopotamian deity, also brought up in the bible. And Nergal is, among other things, a god of war. I don't think any of this is a coincidence. Are there any other mentions of the names of super spren? Also worth noting is that "Moloch" in Hebrew uses the same letters (מלך) as the word for 'King'. Not sure how deep Brandon got into this, but it is a bit funny that Mr. T went from Moelach to Kingship in the Diagram. Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nergal http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moloch http://www.tor.com/blogs/2014/06/brandon-sanderson-answers-your-questions-about-the-way-of-kings