A Theory on the Origin of Adonalsium [Calamity Spoilers]

[Amanuensis he/him]

Hello all. Like my previous theory, this is one I've had for a very long time, but I've just been too lazy / busy to write it all out. Unlike my previous theory, I'm going to have to actually quote parts of the relevant book and explain my thought process. Be aware that these two theories intersect quite a bit, so if you haven't read my previous one, you should give it a look through now, as some statements I make later in this post reference it. Finally, in case you missed the brackets in the title, you should not read any further if you haven't yet read Calamity, or at least if you are not aware of the information revealed during the climax.

To begin, I will briefly mention the God Beyond. Whatever the God Beyond is, It is mentioned on multiple worlds. What this infers to me is that belief in the God Beyond was either carried over from Yolen, or was developed later on and spread by Worldhoppers. Due to how often Brandon himself mentions it outside of his writing, I believe that the God Beyond is what we could consider the Cosmere's "true" God. It's important that I say this in order to emphasize the fact that Adonalsium is not really God, but like the Shards, just another being with godlike power. The thing is, in the case of the Shards, we know where they came from. As of right now, however, we have no idea where Adonalsium himself came from. While I imagine many people believe he always existed in the Cosmere, my theory is that he came to this particular galaxy from somewhere else. More specifically, I believe he came from the same place as Calamity. Here's why.

In Chapter 48 of Calamity, the main protagonist and primary antagonist have a fascinating discussion, which includes some details about the godlike entities origins.

Spoiler

"You are to destroy yourselves," he said quietly. "I am but the harbinger; I bring the powers. You use them to orchestrate your own end. It is what we have done in countless realms. I'm... told."

"You're told? By who?"

"It is a wonderful place," he said, as if he hadn't heard me. "You wouldn't be able to comprehend it. Peace. Softness. No terrible lights, no lights at all. We don't sense with horrid appendages like eyes. We live there, as one, until our duty arrives." He sneered. "And this is mine. So I came here and left it all. And exchanged it for..."

In the first paragraph we learn that Calamity brings mortals power, and that he is one of many, and that his kind does similar things in multiple realities. As we know in the Cosmere, magic cannot exist without Investiture, which is the very essence of Adonalsium (and later, his 16 Shards). But rather than express confidence, Calamity says "he's told," though he never answers who tells him this information. This implies that Calamity, much like the Shards in the Cosmere, have access to a limited (albeit vast) amount of information.

In the second paragraph we learn a little about where Calamity came from specifically. What we learn is that in this place, things are perceived very differently. They exist there "as one" until their "duty" arrives. Does this statement of "oneness" remind anyone of anything else? How about Ym's religion? Let me quote the coppermind here, to save myself time summarizing it.

Quote

He believes, long ago, there was only one being which he simply calls One. One knew everything but had experienced nothing. And so One became Many in order to experience all things. As each experience is different, it brings completeness to One. Eventually, all will be gathered back in when the sum of land is attained and they will once again become One. Every person is a different mind of a single being experiencing different lives. As Many, they need ignorance. Each fragment of the One’s mind has its own body with different passions and inclinations. They exist in variety to experience all kinds of thought. That means some people must know and others must not. Just like some people must be rich and others poor. This is why he is interested in collecting other people's experiences.

A lot of people have theorized that this One is Adonalsium. I posit that this One is the God Beyond, and this "breaking up into Many to experience all things" is the process at which beings like Adonalsium and Calamity are thrust into one version of reality. Although Calamity implies that his "duty" is to bring doom to mankind, I suspect this is either a deliberate or accidental misinterpretation of his purpose, which is gain experience for the One and inevitably return. Speaking of which, here's another quote from the same chapter...

Spoiler

"Calamity! After you granted our powers, were you supposed to leave?"

"Why would I remain in this terrible place longer than I had to?" he said, dismissive.

"In Megan's parallel world," I whispered. "There you did leave, and the darkness never claimed the Epics. Here, you remained... and you infected us somehow. Your hatred, your loathing. You turned each Epic into a copy of you, Calamity."

What David is referring to is an alternate reality which he visited through Megan's powers, which referred to Calamity as Invocation, and essentially was a mirror of his world, just without the inherent evil that affected the Epics. Personally, I don't necessarily believe that Invocation and Calamity are one in the same. I believe in that reality, a different "Many" was given a duty similar to Calamity's, only minus the whole, cause an apocalypse, thing, and once it was fulfilled, was allowed to return to the One, as indicated by this next statement.

Spoiler

"Calamity," I said, "you have to go. Leave us."

He sniffed. "I am not allowed to go until my work is done. They made that clear, after I-"

"What?"

"I do not see you answering the questions I gave you," he said, then turned back to look out his window.

Calamity himself says that he can't return to the One of his own accord. This contradicts David's assumption that Calamity and Invocation are the same being. Also, note how he Epicly (pun intended) deflects the conversation away from what we really want to know again.

Fortunately, we get a little more context about this in the next chapter.

Spoiler

"I've wondered if I should simply tell them," Calamity mused, and turned to me. "You should understand that you need to destroy yourselves. But you see, I am not supposed to interfere. Even the small infractions - like being forced to make devices for your assault on Sharp Tower - worry me. It is against our way, though maintaining my cover required it."

"Calamity, you're already interfering. Deeply. You make them go mad! You make them destroy!"

He ignored me.

Sparks... how could I get him to see? How could I show him that he was causing the darkness and destruction, that men wouldn't take to it as naturally as he claimed?

"You are worthless, as a whole," he said softly. "You will destroy yourselves, and I will bear witness. I will not shirk my duty as others have. We are to watch, as is our calling. But I must not interfere, not again. The acts of youth can be forgiven. Though I was never truly a child, I was new. And your world is a shock. A dreadful shock." He nodded, convincing himself.

Does this non-interference remind anyone of something? Perhaps Frost's insistence of staying out of recent develops, or the 17th Shard's policy on non-intervention? I posit that this is all connected. That Ym's religion, Frost's reluctance, and the 17th Shard's policy, are all examples of mortals exercising the same beliefs as their God, Adonalsium. Now, we know for a fact that Adonalsium heavily Invested himself in the Cosmere. We also know that Adonalsium was killed by mortals, presumably as their last option to save their world from destruction. Does any of this sound familiar? If I'm right and Adonalsium and Calamity come from the same One, then this all makes sense. Like Calamity, Adonalsium got involved, and was reprimanded for it. He was told to stop interfering, and he did. It seems he became a watcher, and suddenly the mortals were mad because he was letting the fainlife consume their world. Presumably he had the power to stop it, but for some reason, wasn't. That is why they killed him. With his power, and without the urgings from the One, the Vessels could save their reality, just like David was trying to accomplish by killing Calamity himself.

On the theory itself, I think it has serious merit. I have been somewhat hesitant about posting it because I've heard stories about people getting worked up about people thinking Reckoners is Cosmere. Keep in mind that in this theory, Reckoners is not Cosmere, and Cosmere is not Reckoners. They're just two alternate realities with similar origins, which in my mind seems hard to refute, although I welcome any criticisms on this theory / counterpoints that exist in writing or in WoB with open arms.

Edited December 7, 2016 by Amanuensis

[JUQ he/him]

Your theory is unfortunately blown out of the water by the fact that Brandon says that there is not necessarily a God Beyond. There's no hard proof of Him, merely things that could have been a coincidence or were caused by him, such as Kelsier realizing what to do in order to become a Cognitive Shadow, and then taking up Preservation so Vin could eventually get it, or Syl arriving with the blackbane at precisely the right time.

[Amanuensis he/him]

Has he said that? Hm. I've only been able to find three WoBs about the God Beyond. That being said, just because there's no hard proof of something doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Especially when the God Beyond (or Unknown God) is mentioned on nearly every world, and even by Hoid in the extra scene from the 10th Anniversary of Elantris.

Edited December 8, 2016 by Amanuensis

[JUQ he/him]

I dunno where it is, but it's something like: "There are gods, lowercase, but whether there's a God is up for debate." I assumed this refers to the God Beyond, but maybe it doesn't.

[Amanuensis he/him]

Thank you very much, JUQ. You've got me more evidence for my theory

From 10th Anniversary Elantris Epilogue:

Spoiler

 

 

Beneath him, the city of Elantris glowed with a splendid light. Soft, reassuring, the light seemed to ascend high into the sky, to the Unknown God's domain itself.

This seems to imply that space is the Unknown God's domain. Which aligns very well with another statement of Calamity's.

Spoiler

 

 

"This place," Calamity said, "which is closer to my home than anything else in this rotten realm. But... I found I had to start going down again, among you. I had to know. What did you see in all of this? Eleven years and more, and I haven't been able to find it..."

"This place" he is referring to is space, where had put his station. I don't believe it's a coincidence that space is the Unknown God's domain and that space is also the most similar thing to Calamity's "home" (AKA the "Beyond").

But this is just a theory. A Sanderson theory.

Edited December 8, 2016 by Amanuensis

[Spoolofwhool]

So, if I understand this theory correctly, it's positing that the One created Calamity and Adonalsium in separate realities? Therefore, at their root, the Cosmere universe and the Reckoner universe are connected? Interesting thought. I don't agree with it, but interesting. If I can be honest, it's probably never going to be confirmed or expanded on. There is also the arresting fact that both universes operate on what appear to be completely different principles. Cosmere has a scientifically and well-explained magic system while Reckoners just has powers, which seemingly operate on a plot device system. 

[Amanuensis he/him]

That is correct. I don't believe that the two will ever intersect. But there does seem to be something here. I suspect that Apocalypse Guard will help further this theory, as we know it expands on the multiverse introduced in the Reckoners. Either way, we'll just have to see when we get there

I personally believe that's a result of the personalities of Adonalsium and Calamity. We see that in an alternate reality, Invocation didn't react the same way as Calamity (whether or not they are the same "Many"). It's not a good example since the two worlds have the exact same magic system. That being said, Reckoners does seem to have some rules to it, such as the fact the Megan and Prof were able to claim the powers entirely for themselves by overcoming their fears (something Calamity was incapable of), and the fact that there's something in an Epic's DNA that carries their powers and allows them to be used for technology. That's a pretty close analogy to Fabrials on Roshar and Mistech in Southern Scadrial.

Either way, according to Calamity, he is not young (likely has no real definable age), but his introduction to the reality in Reckoners was frightening for him, and had a large impact on how things formed. It's possible Adonalsium did not have such a fear, and instead immediately felt love for his new reality, hence why he got so involved in the start, but like Calamity, he was told to stop interfering (this is based off the fact that he's crafted specific worlds, like Roshar, for example, but then had no part in stopping the fainlife and seems to have been killed / his power taken so that the Vessels could save Yolen).

Questions I would like to ask Brandon, but would likely receive an RAFO (last one's more of a joke than an actual question):

• Would you say that Adonalsium is one of many?
• Did Adonalsium always inhabited the Cosmere?
• Can we expect to see a Desolated Roshar or Scadrial where Ruin won in Apocalypse Guard?

Edited December 8, 2016 by Amanuensis

[Spoolofwhool]

Fair enough. Like I said, it's an interesting theory, though one I think is incorrect. Honestly though, I don't think it would be that hard to get an actual answer on whether this theory is correct or not. My issue with it actually is the coloured lens you place on Adonalsium as a result of it.

[emailanimal he/him]

I disagree with this theory on several grounds. First, WoBs from Brandon that any book with Earth is NOT a Cosmere book.

Next:

On 12/6/2016 at 7:00 PM, Amanuensis said:

While I imagine many people believe he always existed in the Cosmere, my theory is that he came to this particular galaxy from somewhere else.

There is a third explanation, probably more likely (and it actually gives me a good question for Brandon).  The relationship between Shardic powers and their vessels is VERY similar to that (and I am sorry I have to bring Pierce Anthony into this, but bear with me) of the offices of War, Time, Fate, Nature (?), Death, Evil and Go(o)d in Anthony's Incantations of Immortality series: these are offices that require a human officeholder to perform the duties.   We know this to be the case for the 16 Shards in post-Shattering Cosmere. We also, I believe, have a WoB that Adonalsium had a Vessel too.  So, a pretty sound theory is that Adonalsium's Vessel is from Yolen, and another aspect of that theory is that while Adonalsium may have existed forever (since the whatever beginning of time/big bang Brandon postulates for Cosmere), the Vessels might have changed. Which brings me to my question to Brandon: "Has Adonalsium always had the same Vessel pre-Shattering?". 

More:

 

On 12/6/2016 at 7:00 PM, Amanuensis said:

How about Ym's religion?

I am a big fan of Ym's religion being important. It was pointed out to me that Ym's religion is in fact an old Irali religion of "the One". There is a confirmation of that in "The Thrill" (albeit an off-hand one, so, not treating it as a major spoiler).  But the other thing mentioned in Irali's religious associations is The Long Trail. To me, it is MUCH MORE LIKELY that Irali remember the Shattering (First there was one, then there were many  - the first time I read it I was like "Holy COW! Ym's divined the history of Cosmere!!!")

I mean, just read this again:

On 12/6/2016 at 7:00 PM, Amanuensis said:

. Each fragment of the One’s mind has its own body with different passions and inclinations. They exist in variety to experience all kinds of thought.

This is a textbook definition of a Shard, for crying out loud!

I believe, the religion of One is extremely important for us, because, outside of Hoid and a certain dragon, this may be the only memory of Yolen and pre-Shattering that there is (and the first such memory we get to see),  and if it is, it may contain an explanation, even if corrupted by time, lack of understanding and misinterpretation, of the reasons behind the Shattering. But it is important not for the reasons you posit.

 

Now, this on the other hand, is a really good simile:

On 12/6/2016 at 7:00 PM, Amanuensis said:

Like Calamity, Adonalsium got involved, and was reprimanded for it. He was told to stop interfering, and he did. It seems he became a watcher, and suddenly the mortals were mad because he was letting the fainlife consume their world. Presumably he had the power to stop it, but for some reason, wasn't. That is why they killed him.

. I agree with a LOT of it, but I think that one does not have to believe that (a) Adonalsium was reprimanded by someone/something, and (b) Adonalsium's Vessel is not a Cosmere native in order to support your core observation: that Adonalsium may have chosen a policy of non-interference.

Let me cite two works for you that deal EXACTLY with this type of God:  the above-mentioned Incarnations of Immortality (..And Eternity, and for the most part the preceding For the Love of Evil are essentially ALL about a GOD who is NO LONGER listening), and of course  Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. However, in order to believe that Adonalsium may have exhibited similar behavior: no longer being able/wanting to act to protect humans from fainlife or other dangers, and effectively standing in their way of defending themselves, I do not need to create theories that Adonalsium is related to Philip Pullman's God.

 

The non-interference bit can be surmised from purely in-Cosmere evidence and WoB's in which Brandon keeps stressing how hard it is for Sazed to act (and how Rayse does NOT want to take other Shards for himself, but wants to evaporate them).

 

[Windrunner he/him]

I do not believe that we've had any sort of confirmation that Adonalsium had a Vessel, unless it slipped by me, which is possible. Do you recall where you saw that fact?

[Amanuensis he/him]

To quote Brandon from his twitter, "the cosmere is a distinct universe, and our world is not a part of it." I thought it was clear already, but I do not believe, nor am I advocating that any story of his that involves Earth is a part of the Cosmere. What I'm saying is I believe that the two universes are entirely separate, but both Adonalsium and Calamity came from the same place, and this is based on the fact how many textual analogues there are. Mind you, they could not be connected in this way. We might never know that, but I doubt Brandon won't eventually reveal the origins of Adonalsium. This is just a theory that Adonalsium is the same type of extradimensional being we witness in another series of his, and will likely witness again in Apocalypse Guard.

While Ym's teligion definitely seems analogous to what happened with the Shards, there are some pretty huge differences, such as the entire motivation of the separation. When you compare Ym's religion to what Calamity says, the two align much better. That being said, we already know that Splintering is Shattering on a smaller scale, and that's because it deals with the same energy, Investiture, just in different scales. Likewise, we know that Splinters are pieces of Shards. What I'm pointing out is the possibility that what the Shards once were (Adonalsium) in turn is just a fragment of something else, but in the terms of the Cosmere, is the largest.

That being said, Adonalsium not being the original holder of the power is a possibility. I've considered it before, too, though there doesn't seem to be evidence of it, other than the fact that Shards can transfer between people. At the very least, that doesn't appear to have been foreshadowed at all yet. I suppose one could argue that Adonalsium and Cephandrius are relatively similar names, but it's reasonable that Adonalsium can just be Yolen's name for their god, and that he actually has an entirely different one (such as Elinthanithile - Honor - Tanavast).

That being said, all very fascinating information, although I hesitate to compare two authors work in this scenario.That's very different than looking at two completely different series by the same author and noticing a few striking similarities that might point to them being connected in a vague, internally meaningless way.

Either way, it's one of those things we'll just have to wait and see.

As for my using the word "reprimanded" I suppose it's not necessary that Adonalsium was. It just seemed that Calamity had been somehow based off of what he said, which if this theory is correct, makes it possible to have happened to Adonalsium, too.

As an aside, Yolish lore claims fainlife came from the corpses of gods, right? I wonder if those gods are somehow involved.

[emailanimal he/him]

3 hours ago, Windrunner said:

I do not believe that we've had any sort of confirmation that Adonalsium had a Vessel, unless it slipped by me, which is possible. Do you recall where you saw that fact?

Checked the obvious places and cannot find it. Really strange, because "Did Adonalisum have a Vessel?" sounds like an obvious question to ask Brandon after Secret History (and I still am sure that I saw something like this somewhere).

Going back to Secret History, here is the part that gives me reasons to strongly believe this was the case:

 

Quote

"So... my world, and everyone I know," Kelsier said, "is the creation of a pair of ... half gods?"

"More like fractional gods," Nazh said, "And ones with no particular qualifications for deityhood, other than being conniving enough to murder the guy who had the job before".

Emphasis mine, quote from the Kelsier's meeting with Khriss and Nazh.

Even though in an earlier quote Khriss said "I don't know if it was a force or a being", she later said "though I suspect the latter", this subsequent quote from Nazh is telling. In the first part of his statement ("And ones with no particular qualifications") he clearly refers to Ati and Leras (among others), NOT to  Ruin and Preservation as Intents. He then continues to refer to Adonalsium as "the guy who had the job before". To me, this is not just a metaphor: rather this is an acknowledgement that Adonalsium's Shattering killed his Vessel (and consequently that Adonalsium had a Vessel).