Shardpools and Mountains

[Ethan_sedai he/him]

Something I noticed about every natural ”Shardpool” perpendicularity: (meaning every perpendicularity that was not placed or moved) 

They are ALL in the mountains.

On Roshar: Cultivation’s perpendicularity is in the Horneater peaks.

On Sel: the only Shardpool we see is up in the Aonic mountains. 

On First of the sun: Patji’s eye, at the very top of the Island.

On Scadrial: During Alendi’s time, Both the Well of Ascension and Ruin’s Shardpool (the dark lake that someone tried to take a sample of, but was stabbed by the Mist Spirit.)

During Era 1, the Well was placed intentionally placed in Luthadel. The Pits of Hathsin, I think might have also been intentionally placed, and they aren’t really a “Shardpool.” I also don’t have a very intimate knowledge of the geography around the Pits, so I don’t know if they are in a terrain that could be called “mountainous.” (All that to say I don’t know whether or not it counts.)

During Era 2, the perpendicularity is the blue mountain spring that is mentioned in the Broadsheets.

On Nalthis and Taldain, we haven’t seen the perpendicularity, but we also haven’t seen any long walks through the mountains...

Anybody else notice this pattern, or have any idea as to why that is?

[Lunamor she/her]

Leras said that the pools were like a condensation of their power. Could it be just that the power naturally condenses in high up areas as they are “closest” to it?

[Inky]

1 hour ago, Lunamor said:

Leras said that the pools were like a condensation of their power. Could it be just that the power naturally condenses in high up areas as they are “closest” to it?

You can't really be "close" to a being that exists primarily in the Spiritual Realm. You're always near it because everything is connected in the Spiritual Realm

[HSuperLee]

I am entirely serious in the silly sounding answer. Maybe, shards associate themselves with mountains, and thus perpendicularities tend to gather on mountains shards associate with themselves.

[not an Evil Librarian]

A possible connection:

Brandon is a Christian. At many points throughout the Bible a prophet will climb to the top of a mountain to speak to God. This implies that mountains are closer to God, weather that be physically, spiritually, or metaphorically. Maybe the shardpools being located on mountains is indirectly based off the idea of mountains being closer to heaven.

Edited April 17, 2019 by not an Evil Librarian

[+Child of Hodor]

The Lord Ruler moved the Well when he ascended for only a brief time so I assume full-time gods can move their pools after the pools have formed. They may make a mountain to raise them up to a place where people are unlikely to stumble upon them. 

On Nalthis isn't Edgli's pool underneath the earth and the investiture seeps out creating the special flowers Edgli's Tears? Ruin's pool was also underground. 

Bury it or raise a mountain under it ... or have it move like Honor's. They all seem to make their perpendicularities hard to find. 

[Ethan_sedai he/him]

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Brandon lives in Utah, where there are lots of mountains.

I know that sounds dumb, but I also live in Utah, and mountains are just always kind of there, and I miss them whenever I leave.

Also, 300th post!

Edited April 17, 2019 by Ethan_Sedai

[Scion of the Mists]

I think it's more an unconscious writerly decision by Brandon (i.e. an application of his Zeroth Law).  Secret pools of water high up in the mountains just seem cooler than a normal lake.  

[Subvisual Haze]

18 hours ago, not an Evil Librarian said:

A possible connection:

Brandon is a Christian. At many points throughout the Bible a prophet will climb to the top of a mountain to speak to God. This implies that mountains are closer to God, weather that be physically, spiritually, or metaphorically. Maybe the shardpools being located on mountains is indirectly based off the idea of mountains being closer to heaven.

Sure, the Greeks placed their Gods on Olympus too.  Mountains are challenging to climb, but not impossible.  A mountain is a good physical symbol of a god that is distant from human affairs, but not nonexistent or completely impossible to reach, just very challenging.  It also serves a physical function, making it less likely for Joe Schmoe to accidentally wander into the cognitive realm when looking for a place to bathe.

[not an Evil Librarian]

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Subvisual Haze said:

  It also serves a physical function, making it less likely for Joe Schmoe to accidentally wander into the cognitive realm when looking for a place to bathe.

What if that is Hoid's backstory. maybe that is why he is so good at interpreting beggars. He was a hobo looking for a random pool to bathe in, and then became a worldhopper!

[+Invocation]

2 hours ago, Subvisual Haze said:

Sure, the Greeks placed their Gods on Olympus too.  Mountains are challenging to climb, but not impossible.  A mountain is a good physical symbol of a god that is distant from human affairs, but not nonexistent or completely impossible to reach, just very challenging.  It also serves a physical function, making it less likely for Joe Schmoe to accidentally wander into the cognitive realm when looking for a place to bathe.

The Greeks don't count. Olympus is barely a mountain, more a hill, and isn't hard to climb.

[Zelly]

I agree with the idea that they were likely put in remote areas to keep people out of them.

Maybe it also relates to Shadesmar?  Wouldn't high mountains be  "water" there?   I wonder if the Horneater peaks looks like a chain of small islands in the CR.

[Ahriman he/him]

Mountains, among other high places, have been considered holy places in all sorts of areas and mythologies. Olympus, Sinai, Fuji, various mountains revered by Native Americans, all sorts. The belief that they are a connecting point between different worlds, primarily that of humans and gods, is fairly pervasive. It makes sense that Sanderson would call on the same idea, especially when remote areas, as people have pointed out, serve a functional purpose as well.