Dalinar’s “Dream” and the Spiritual Realm

[Confused]

Before speaking his oaths to the Stormfather, Dalinar has a vision perhaps “stronger” than the others. The Stormfather says he didn’t send it: “No vision was sent this morning…A simple dream. Not of me.”

 

I believe that Dalinar’s “dream” is a vision from the spiritual realm. The vision suggests that Dalinar had access to the spiritual realm as a boy. Now that he has unburdened himself of his guilt for “letting Gavilar die,” the visions reintroduce themselves.

 

Dalinar is a Bondsmith, with Divine Attributes of “pious/guiding.” He may need spiritual realm access to accomplish his tasks. Dalinar’s sensitivity to the spiritual realm may be why the Stormfather chose Dalinar to reveal his visions to and to bond with.

 

In the dream, Dalinar stands in darkness, then turns about and sees furniture and furnishings he remembers (emphasis in original):

 

“My house, he thought. As it was when I was a child. Back before conquest, back before Gavilar…

 

“Gavilar…hadn’t Gavilar died? No, Dalinar could hear his brother laughing in the next room. He was a child. They both were.

 

“Dalinar crossed the shadowed room, feeling the fuzzy joy of familiarity. Of things being as they should be. He’d left his wooden swords out. He had a collection, each carved like a Shardblade. He was too old for those now, of course, but he still liked having them. As a collection.

 

“He stepped to the balcony doors and pushed them open.

 

“Warm light bathed him. A deep, enveloping, piercing warmth. A warmth that soaked down deep through his skin, into his very self. He stared at that light, and was not blinded. The source was distant, but he knew it. Knew it well.”

 

In sequence, the first noteworthy aspect is the snippet, “back before Gavilar…Gavilar…hadn’t Gavilar died?” I interpret this phrasing to mean that Dalinar replaces one chain of thought with another. The unfinished thought refers to something other than Gavilar’s death that we do not yet know (and probably won’t find out until Book 5, Dalinar’s book). I suspect Dalinar remembered something that Gavilar imposed on him that for a long time cut Dalinar off from the spiritual realm and these visions.

 

Some may disagree with this interpretation, believing Dalinar pauses because he remembers that Gavilar is dead. I think my interpretation is supported by the sequence of the “back befores” – the second seeming to come earlier in time than the first as Dalinar’s thoughts are returning to when he was a child. Regardless, the proper interpretation of this snippet doesn’t really affect the overall conclusion. I include it because I believe it is a look forward to what will come out in Dalinar’s book.

 

The second noteworthy aspect is the emphasis on “things being as they should be.” “Should” states an ideal to which to aspire. The spiritual realm is the place of ideals. The paragraph further implies that Dalinar is done playing with swords, wooden or real. This bit foreshadows Dalinar becoming a shardless KR later in the chapter.

 

Now the key passage, how he “knew well” the distant light, that it enveloped him in a “piercing warmth” and did not blind him when he stared at it, that it soaked “into his very self.” The “sun” in the cognitive realm is cold, but this light source embraces Dalinar down to his soul with warmth and comfort. Every aspect of this description reads like a spiritual experience, Moses standing before the burning bush.

 

Further evidence: the surgeon stitching Dalinar’s wound during the climactic battle is amazed that Dalinar can still use his arm after so much scarring from prior wounds. SOMETHING must have supernaturally healed Dalinar over the years. Perhaps it was an incipient bond with the Stormfather, but I think it has more to do with some sort of spiritual bond.

 

My thought is that the light source represents the remnants of Honor in the spiritual realm, just as the Highstorms represent it in the physical realm and the Stormfather represents it in the cognitive realm. Investiture, according to Brandon, exists in all three realms. Perhaps the spiritual realm has infused Dalinar with some limited self-healing power comparable to the resurrecting power of Divine Breath. But such speculation is best explored elsewhere than a post that is already too long.,.

 

What are the implications of a KR with access to the spiritual realm? The epigraph about Melishi the Bondsmith provides some guidance. I’d appreciate hearing what others think on this subject.

[Fifth of Daybreak]

Very well thought out and substantiated. Upvoted!

 

I like the steps you are taking here, and all of the connections you made, but unfortunately, I don't agree. I was under the impression that it was Cultivation that was sending him that vision.

 

First of all is the point you mentioned, that the Stormfather said he didn't send it. The Stormfather seems to be the one running errands listed in Honor's last will and testament, and so any action of Honor seems like it would have to flow through the Stormfather.

 

Next, there are the feelings that are present in the vision, and that it seems to be more personal than of a world altering nature. Cultivation, by definition, would seem to warrant a more personal touch. The warmth bathing into him also seems to be encouraging growth, after all, without light and heat, life is hard pressed to grow. Furthermore, it seems like the vision is almost a vacation from the horrors of the present day. What more would you want to send someone to help them flourish during times of stress, than a vision and feeling of when times were better, when times were more ideal.

 

It's hinted in Lift's chapter that the Nightwatcher is an offshoot of Cultivation, and Dalinar had experiences with the Nightwatcher. It's possible that the light was somehow involved in the Old Magic, and that is why he "knew it well."

 

Still, the implications of the link to the spiritual realm ring true in my mind. I would almost take your speculations here and just switch it to Cultivation. It would make sense that she is residing mostly in the Spiritual realm, and sending this vision from their, conveying more emotion than information, like what has happened with previous visions.

 

I'm also very curious now about what that separate thought about Gavilar. Was it before he wooed Navani? Before he joined the Sons of Honor? Fascinating. 

[Moogle]

The second noteworthy aspect is the emphasis on “things being as they should be.” “Should” states an ideal to which to aspire. The spiritual realm is the place of ideals. The paragraph further implies that Dalinar is done playing with swords, wooden or real. This bit foreshadows Dalinar becoming a shardless KR later in the chapter.

 

I'm confused as to why you think this is supposed to be the Spiritual Realm. All we know is that in it, there's things akin to Platonic ideals. So there's the true 'essence' of a chair, or the form of a sword in there. At what point does this translate into a vision? Why would it translate into a vision?

 

Further evidence: the surgeon stitching Dalinar’s wound during the climactic battle is amazed that Dalinar can still use his arm after so much scarring from prior wounds. SOMETHING must have supernaturally healed Dalinar over the years. Perhaps it was an incipient bond with the Stormfather, but I think it has more to do with some sort of spiritual bond.

 

Nahel bonds are Spiritual bonds. Why would a 'Spiritual' bond like you're suggesting heal him? There's no Investiture powering it, so where does the energy come from? I don't see the need to explain Dalinar's wounds healing as anything but Stormlight usage like Kaladin did on his bridge runs. We know that Dalinar has been bonded to the Stormfather for a very long time as of the end of WoR.

Edited April 6, 2014 by Moogle

[Confused]

Moogle, I'm Confused too! I agree that Brandon has been cagey about what entities inhabit the spiritual realm and has mentioned only the platonic ideals/forms. I'm simply speculating from the scant evidence that Dalinar's "dream" was actually a vision emanating from the spiritual realm. That evidence primarily consists of Brandon's use of the word "should" - which I believe you would agree is an aspirational, almost moralistic (and hence, spiritual) word - and the fact that the light source generated suffusing warmth, unlike visions from the cognitive realm.

 

Since we know so little about the spiritual realm, why must we assume that a platonic form has to be the source, as opposed to the fabric, of a vision? (At least that's how I understand your questions.) If this vision does emanate from the spiritual realm, I would expect that ideals would show up in it. That differentiates this vision from Dalinar's other visions, which incorporated changes, people, lots of moving parts. Any vision that includes change arguably can't represent an ideal, because ideals are perfect as they are. This vision did not have moving parts, other than Dalinar himself.

 

Regarding your second point, I conceded in my OP the possibility that Dalinar's pre-Oath bond with the Stormfather may have helped heal him. But I opted for a spiritual realm alternative mostly because Dalinar's healing occurred over a lifetime of wounds. WoB states that an initial Nahel bond will dissipate with time if no oaths are given. Healing from the Nahel bond would not have endured over such a long period.

 

I also think you overstate how long Dalinar has been bonded to the Stormfather. Brandon has said (and my memory may be faulty on this) that the bond has been in effect for "some time," certainly not a "very long time." Many of us think that the bond began more or less with Dalinar's first vision.

 

(By the way, what is the source of the word "Nahel" bond? I remember from WoK that Nohadon used that term, but the meaning of the word "Nahel" has never been explained, or at least I don't recall the explanation.)

 

In any event, yes, the Nahel bond is a spiritual bond, it affects the soul. But that doesn't mean it's the only spiritual connection. You didn't address the main point that a Bondsmith would be expected to have special access to the spiritual realm. How does that happen? There could be some mechanism other than the Nahel bond itself. I believe such access stems from a Bondsmith's Divine Attributes of piety and guidance; Dalinar, after all, was referred to as a "prophet" somewhere in these books (don't recall, though, whether that was said genuinely or derisively.)

 

And I've assumed that stormlight was an Investiture manifestation in the physical realm. But WoB states that Investiture is present in all three realms. My OP speculates there is some spiritual realm form of Investiture that can have physical realm effects. The difference between stormlight and a spiritual form of Investiture might be analogized to the difference between mere Breath and Divine Breath.

 

I hope I've satisfactorily addressed your questions, but would be happy to continue the discussion. Always entertaining...

 

Now, EMTrevor, I don't disagree with you. My first draft referred to "the Divine" rather than a specific Shard. My second draft referred to Honor and/or Cultivation for many of the reasons you cite. I ultimately opted for just Honor because a cold light in the cognitive realm should be matched with a warm light in the spiritual realm. Hence, I attributed everything to Honor (which really begs the question...)

 

I do have more to say about the relationship among Honor, Cultivation, the Stormfather and the Nightwatcher, but that's not for this post.

Edited April 6, 2014 by Confused

[Arondell]

Well...Kaladin's flashbacks strongly hint that surgebinders exhibit certain traits and aptitudes long before the nahel bond actually takes effect.  It is hard to tell with Shallan since Pattern found and bonded to her at a fairly young age and we don't get any pre-Pattern scenes in Shallan's flashbacks.  Renarin also seems to have traits that could be argued fit with the very limited description of the Truthwatchers.(Particularly the not telling others what they know aspect.)

 

It seems possible that Dalinar had some sort of spiritual aptitude at a young age before the nahel bond could have been active.  We'll probably have to wait until Dalinar's book until we can get to any solid conclusions.

[Maffu17]

I'm intrigued by the collection of wooden swords, that could be easily soulcast into looking like Shardblades. 

 

 He was too old for those now, of course, but he still liked having them. As a collection.

 

he still has them, interesting.

Edited May 4, 2014 by Maffu17

[maxal]

Well...Kaladin's flashbacks strongly hint that surgebinders exhibit certain traits and aptitudes long before the nahel bond actually takes effect.  It is hard to tell with Shallan since Pattern found and bonded to her at a fairly young age and we don't get any pre-Pattern scenes in Shallan's flashbacks.  Renarin also seems to have traits that could be argued fit with the very limited description of the Truthwatchers.(Particularly the not telling others what they know aspect.)

 

It seems possible that Dalinar had some sort of spiritual aptitude at a young age before the nahel bond could have been active.  We'll probably have to wait until Dalinar's book until we can get to any solid conclusions.

 

Shallan had always been creative. She has been drawing since a very young age and even then, she was probably over gifted with it which drew Pattern.

 

Kal always wanted to protect people ever since childhood. This desire was very strong in him years before Tien was sent to war. This attracted Syl.

 

Renarin, well we know next to nothing about Renarin and I have ranted enough on him in another post. We will wait until we get a POV from him to understand what the heck in going on in his head.

 

Now Dalinar, Dalinar has not always been pious. He was quite the opposite actually. He was a drunkard tyrant warlord who didn't hesitate to murder anyone who would oppose him. He was quite dark. He changed over the years. He got "soft". After his brother's assassination, he started following the code, he started getting pious. His nahel bond could not have happened before. He would not have attracted a spren at an earlier time as he exhibited absolutely no primary attribute worthy of an order. If you look at his progression, he started getting the vision once he started loosing the thrill. I believe the visions where one step in his nahel bond although it is quite possible Stormfather had chosen him before, when he started getting so pious.