HoidMyDrink

Forgive me if this is discussed elsewhere... What if the so-called “Shattering” of Adonalsium was never a literal event? What if, instead, the division of Adonalsium into distinct Shards was the result of collective belief—a metaphysical shift not brought about by force, but by perception? Throughout the Cosmere, we’ve seen that Splinters of power often take on form, behavior, and even identity based on what people believe they should be. Their very nature is shaped by expectation. This points to a deep relationship between Investiture and thought—a reality where power bends to perception. Now extend that principle further. If a mere Splinter can develop a personality through the influence of belief—and Honor, left to itself, can evolve distinct traits—why couldn't the same be true of all the Shards themselves? Or even of Adonalsium as a whole? Perhaps Adonalsium was not violently shattered, but fragmented through the widespread belief that it had been. In this view, the Shards we know—Ruin, Preservation, Cultivation, and the others—are not primordial fragments from a divine explosion, but the emergent manifestations of belief. They behave not according to some original nature, but according to how people believe they ought to behave. The Dawnshards may have even played a role in shaping those perceptions, acting not as tools of power, but as catalysts of collective understanding—sculpting belief, which in turn sculpted reality. Or perhaps Adonalsium never existed at all. Perhaps the idea of a singular divine being was itself a myth born from the need to explain the existence and nature of the Shards—a myth that became truth as people embraced it. In a Cosmere governed as much by perception as by physics, belief may not just reflect reality—it may create it. This would mean that the greatest powers in the Cosmere operate not only through natural laws and Investiture, but through the shaping force of shared thought like the smallest forces of the Cosmere operate. The "Shattering" becomes less of a cosmic event and more of a foundational myth—an origin story accepted by mortals and immortals alike, which over time solidified into the very fabric of reality. Could it be, then, that the Shards were not born from a cosmic crime… but from a cosmic consensus?

Water is a common theme in the Cosmere. Shardblades materialize from mist with water beading down their length, frost cyrstalizes when using stormlight, the mists on Scadrial are water vapor (I think), in White Sand and in Tress water is exchanged for use of investature. Water is a common element. I wonder if there is a connection. Haven't seen much talk of this. Maybe I am overhtinking.

I would like dedicated forum topics for each chapter or two of the books that keeps me from missing things that I tend to miss way too easily. As Wind and Truth chapters are being released every Monday until the book comes out we get good forum posts two chapters at a time. Is there anything like that with all of the Stormlight Archive or other Cosmere books?