I Just Shard Myself!

You laughed...at least a chuckle or a titter.

After reading RoW, I hear that Wit finds Jasnah kind of forgettable, though. Just sayin’

If you were coming up with Radiant ideals for your order, what would they be? Conversely, if you had to pick five (5) ideals that define your life currently, what would they be? I’ll go first..... RADIANT ORDER: Grill Tenders 1. “Life before death, strength before weakness, journey before destination” 2. Marinade before grilling 3. Sear before lowering heat 4. Let rest before cutting/serving 5. I will stand firm against ketchup ***Bonus: I will never lick a steak knife!!! CURRENT IDEALS: 1. Treat others as you want to be treated...unless you are into self harm. 2. Mind your own business and keep your hands to yourself. 3. There is no ‘my truth’ or ‘your truth’...there is only THE truth. 4. Life sucks sometimes...get a helmet and carry on. 5. The only failure is quitting...either I will find a way or I will make one ***Bonus: Don’t take life too seriously...no one’s getting out alive. edit: Note to self, writing ***Bonus[*][*][*] without the brackets is reported as trying to ‘skirt the rules’. No attempted rule skirting here. Just a few bonus stars.

Lirin. Just kidding. I hate that guy. As is expected, Kaladin began as my favorite...protagonist and all that. But Adolin is quickly replacing him. It’s probably the clothes.

What did Taravangian's prison guard say when he accidentally jostled Szeth with a piece of furniture he was delivering to the imprisoned king's cell? - I bumped by coffee table on the Shin.

I've only read Sanderson books from the Stormlight Archive to date, but I have noticed there appears to be a strong emphasis on addressing disabilities. From schizophrenia, to depression, to PTSD, to substance abuse, to Alzheimer's, to Amnesia, to Autism, to ADHD, to Insomnia, to Antisocial Personality Disorder, to Narcissistic Personality Disorder, to Intellectual Development Disorder due to umbilical cord around neck at birth, to Selective Mutism, the Stormlight Archive appears to be heavily addressing mental disorders. In the books, Sanderson does a really unique thing in turning these on their heads to be benefits at times for specific characters. Are disabilities a strong theme in other Sanderson books? Examples? ,

One could quite easily point to Kaladin's actions as taking on the sins and sorrows of others upon himself....allegorically. Dalinar explicitly stated in the RoW when asking Jasnah to write the subtext of his book, that he was creating a new religion with his writings. If that isn't an analog of old Joe Smith, I am not sure what a better analog could be. But that's my opinion. You can, of course, disagree. As I said previously, it's all subjective. I don't think there is any reasonable way to suggest that the Cosmere isn't a symbolic representation (aka allegory) of LDS beliefs. As I noted above, "I could be wrong on some of the parallel characters" and, as the books unfold, no doubt I will be...as will many others. However, that doesn't change the relatively self-evident fact that the LDS theology I highlighted is the basis for the Cosmere. As man is, God once was; as God is, man may be...He was once a man like us...God himself was once as we are now,...God is a Being who has attained His exalted state by a path which now His children are permitted to follow...God is a man who worked out his salvation by obedience to the same laws he has given to us so that we may do the same....we can "Find out the generation where Gods began to be"...."God: Creator And Ruler Of Many Worlds"..."and you have got to learn how to be gods yourselves"... I am very glad you have your viewpoint about this exciting work of fiction. It's a very fun read. With regard to the comparisons I have made, I would advise one who is a practicing member of LDS to drop the defenses a little when I bring up these doctrines. I have noticed that when I discuss these with my Mormon friends, half of them minimize them away to ancillary doctrine and the other half claim they aren't there. It would seem these are doctrine that make (at least the many LDS friends I have) many uncomfortable to address. But it's your religion and I hope you don't get defensive about it. If BS decided to do an allegory of your religion here (which I assess he did), there's no reason to try and walk away from it being that. These are your beliefs. It's alright to believe something different than others. While I don't hold with LDS theology, I will readily admit that it makes a REMARKABLE and quite enjoyable setting for this particular fictional world.

Jesus wasn’t a four legged feline. It doesn’t change the fact that Azlan was an allegory of Christ. Allegorical fiction isn’t necessarily a collection of precise analogs. Let’s say Kaladin ascends to become Honor later...would that fit the requirements of a Christ figure? It’s all subjective, of course, but the Cosmere is structured on the premises present in Mormon theology where men can become gods, with their very own planets, presumably following the path of the existing God and his Son Christ.

Yes. The Cosmere is based upon the Book of Mormon. It’s absolutely allegorical. I could be wrong on some of the parallel characters but, the verses at the bottom ARE the Cosmere. Read Kaladin as a (sort of) version of Christ where to be that in the Cosmere, he is also a hidden Dawn Shard. Bear in mind, this would be a Mormon version of Christ in a ‘Cosmere’ where individuals ascend to godhood of their own planets...a Mormon belief. They also believe Christ and Satan were brothers (equals?) which fits the idea of fallen gods like Odium. You can also probably read Dalinar as a version of Joseph Smith. Christ: “Son of Man” and “Son of God”; Completely Indwelt with the Holy Spirit; In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God; rejected by men as dangerous, but delivered salvation as spiritual champion against evil Kaladin/Dawnshard: “Son of Tanavast”; Completely invested with the Dawnshard; the Dawnshard is the ‘word’ or command of a God; rejected (enslaved) by men as dangerous (shash) but delivered a more temporal salvation as champion against evil; Here are a few snippets from LDS beliefs to bolster the point: "We believe in a God who is Himself progressive, whose majesty is intelligence; whose perfection consists in eternal advancement -- a Being who has attained His exalted state by a path which now His children are permitted to follow, whose glory it is their heritage to share. In spite of the opposition of the sects, in the face of direct charges of blasphemy, the Church proclaims the eternal truth: 'As man is, God once was; as God is, man may be.'" (LDS Apostle James E. Talmage, Articles of Faith, Ch.24, p.430 - p.431, LDS Collectors Library '97 CD-ROM) “He was once a man like us; yea, that God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth, the same as Jesus Christ Himself did.' The Father is a glorified, perfected, resurrected, exalted man who worked out his salvation by obedience to the same laws he has given to us so that we may do the same." (LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p.64, LDS Collectors Library '97 CD-ROM) As we stretch our imaginations to absorb the limitlessness of the creations of God we turn to a favorite song: If you could hie to Kolob in the twinkling of an eye, And then continue onward with that same speed to fly, D'ye think that you could ever, through all eternity, Find out the generation where Gods began to be? Or see the grand beginning, where space did not extend? Or view the last creation where Gods and matter end? Methinks the Spirit whispers, "No man has found 'pure space,'" Nor seen the outside curtains, where nothing has a place. The works of God continue, and worlds and lives abound; Improvement and progression have one eternal round. There is no end to matter; there is no end to space; There is no end to spirit; there is no end to race." (LDS Apostle Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, p.250, LDS Collectors Library '97 CD-ROM) "God: Creator And Ruler Of Many Worlds. -- While it is true that evolutionists may be divided between theistic and atheistic groups, yet most of those professing belief in God consider him to be an indefinable force, essence, or power of an incomprehensible nature. According to revelation, however, he is a personal Being, a holy and exalted Man, a glorified, resurrected Personage having a tangible body of flesh and bones, an anthropomorphic Entity, the personal Father of the spirits of all men. (D. & C. 130:22- 23; Moses 6:51, 57; Abra. 3:22-24; Jos. Smith 2:16-19.)" "I will go back to the beginning before the world was, to show what kind of a being God is. What sort of a being was God in the beginning? Open your ears and hear, all ye ends of the earth. for I am going to prove it to you by the Bible, and to tell you the designs of God in relation to the human race, and why He interferes with the affairs of man. ... "God himself was once as we are now, and is an exalted man, and sits enthroned in yonder heavens! That is the great secret....Here, then, is eternal life--to know the only wise and true God; and you have got to learn how to be gods yourselves, and to be kings and priests to God, the same as all gods have done before you, namely, by going from one small degree to another, and from a small capacity to a great one; from grace to grace, from exaltation to exaltation, until you attain to the resurrection of the dead, and are able to dwell in everlasting burnings. and to sit in glory, as do those who sit enthroned in everlasting power. And I want you to know that God, in the last days, while certain individuals are proclaiming His name, is not trifling with you or me." (LDS President Joseph Smith, History of the Church, Vol.6, Ch.14, p.305-6, LDS Collectors Library '97 CD-ROM)