Nightwatcher is Roshar's Grim Reaper

[KaladinWorldsinger]

I was reading in world Way of Kings excerpts when something jumped out at me

Quote

Yes, I could have traveled quickly. But all men have the same ultimate destination. Whether we find our end in a hallowed sepulcher or a pauper’s ditch, all save the Heralds themselves must dine with the Nightwatcher.

The passage is clearly talking about how all men have the same destination, death except for the immortal heralds. But the metaphor used for death is 'dining with the nightwatcher'

So is she the grim reaper? Then the name would make more sense. 'Night' watcher  as she watches you die(your night). 

Mistborn era 2 and SH spoilers

Spoiler

Like Preservation and harmony?

What does dining with her entail? Is this connected to her boons? Was there a time where you could ask her a wish as you died? This puts stormfather fulfilling Eshonai's wish in a new light.

Cultivation made sure NW was unchanged by human perception. Maybe because she wants NW to keep doing the exact same job.

Tinfoil:

I need your help on this. Does NW look anything like a mistspren? Like how stormfather could look like or feel like a giant windspren?

For context, I had a theory that truthwatcher shardplatespren would be deathspren because moelach seems to be drawn to places with death and he could be the truthwatcher corresponding unmade. Then he would be made of corrupted deathspren(like re shephir). If mistspren came from deathspren and Nightwatcher looks like a mistspren, this could be another clue for the grim reaper theory

 

[Rg2045]

Idk why but when I first read it I thought it said 

“moash is the grimreaper of roshar”

and started thinking about different points you’ll make. And started to make it semi poetic, lol. 
 

anyways to your actual topic, it’s an interesting thought and make you wonder if the nightwatcher and the deathrattles got conflated into 1

[Duxredux he/him]

There is that, where did the name "Nightwatcher" come from? My initial thought was that something about the name just made people have a similar association with some process of death, similar to Scadrians referring to

Spoiler

Marsh as Death or Ironeyes. Unless something huge has happened, Marsh has no part whatsoever with ushering the deceased into the afterlife or the Beyond, despite his new role in mythology.

However if the Nightwatcher was named by Cultivation, then there may be greater relevance. 

I at least haven't noticed any sort of connection between the Nightwatcher and the deceased, no souls making a pilgrimage, nothing when we get a dying viewpoint, though many of those have other influences.

Spoiler

Nothing for Teft, though he was in Urithiru an presumably under whatever protection from the Sibling.

Taravangian, though Odium was clearly there.

Eshonai, though the Stormfather had some intervention.

 

[KaladinWorldsinger]

On 7/15/2022 at 6:46 AM, Rg2045 said:

anyways to your actual topic, it’s an interesting thought and make you wonder if the nightwatcher and the deathrattles got conflated into 1

It could be, but now the more interesting question becomes why they would even be conflated. Like what connects death rattles to nightwatcher at all?

1 hour ago, Duxredux said:

There is that, where did the name "Nightwatcher" come from? My initial thought was that something about the name just made people have a similar association with some process of death, similar to Scadrians referring to

  Reveal hidden contents

Marsh as Death or Ironeyes. Unless something huge has happened, Marsh has no part whatsoever with ushering the deceased into the afterlife or the Beyond, despite his new role in mythology.

However if the Nightwatcher was named by Cultivation, then there may be greater relevance. 

I at least haven't noticed any sort of connection between the Nightwatcher and the deceased, no souls making a pilgrimage, nothing when we get a dying viewpoint, though many of those have other influences.

  Reveal hidden contents

Nothing for Teft, though he was in Urithiru an presumably under whatever protection from the Sibling.

Taravangian, though Odium was clearly there.

Eshonai, though the Stormfather had some intervention.

 

I would say that the name probably came from Cultivation herself using futuresight, because cultivation in general seems to be always involved with nightwatcher.

For the scadrians

Spoiler

Marsh isn't in the mythology i think. He is not the death God or anything, rather that inquisitors were associated with death and that he should be dead(spikes thru the eyes right?)

Oh, i don't think that nightwatcher is the grim reaper anymore if she used to be. Something has clearly changed. But nightwatcher seems indicative of death 

[Rg2045]

3 hours ago, KaladinWorldsinger said:

It could be, but now the more interesting question becomes why they would even be conflated. Like what connects death rattles to nightwatcher at all?

My thoughts would be the nightwatcher being said in deathrattles, or the fact that future sight is better used by cultivation and odium. 

[Mr. Misting he/him]

I don't think in any way that the Nightwatcher is this world's version of Harmony and Preservation. Those are both shard well this is just a powerful spren. 

On 7/14/2022 at 3:51 PM, KaladinWorldsinger said:

Quote

Yes, I could have traveled quickly. But all men have the same ultimate destination. Whether we find our end in a hallowed sepulcher or a pauper’s ditch, all save the Heralds themselves must dine with the Nightwatcher.

 

As for the quote I don't know how said it but I do know it was in Way of Kings. That book was filled with superstition and false doctoring taught by old Vorin lessons. This seems more like a poetic version of dying or tall tale of death. 

Another reason it's unlikely that the Nightwatcher is the grim reaper is the fact that Cultivation made the Nightwatcher. If she cared enough to see all the dead souls, she would just do it. Making another entity to do that task feels like something Cultivation wouldn't do. 

One more counterpoint, Preservation is very special, he takes he duty very seriously. But that doesn't mean that every other shard would do it. We see Harmony talk to Wax, but he is a special exception, we don't know if he talks to anyone else.

That's an interesting line of thought, but I think your reading to much into one line of text.

Edited August 11, 2022 by Mr. Misting

[cometaryorbit]

1 hour ago, Mr. Misting said:

I don't think in any way that the Nightwatcher is this world's version of Harmony and Preservation. Those are both shard well this is just a powerful spren. 

As for the quote I don't know how said it but I do know it was in Way of Kings. That book was filled with superstition and false doctoring taught by Vorin lessons. This seems more like a poetic version of dying or tall tale of death.

I don't think the Nightwatcher has anything literally to do with death, but Way of Kings is much much older than Vorinism in its current form. It's Desolations-era, apparently in a time after spren started forming Radiant -style Nahel bonds but before the Ten Orders of KR were formally organized.

The name Nightwatcher itself might have started folklore associating her with death.

Although... where does the name come from anyway? It doesn't really fit with her boon/curse setup. Why isn't she the Nightgiver or Nightchanger or something?

Edited August 11, 2022 by cometaryorbit