Dream Theory

The following article contains player-created lore or theories. It is not necessarily an accurate reflection of official game lore.

Dream Theory

Discussed in game on 2/16/2020 at 9pm

A Dance for the Spirits
As many of you know, I am part of a small group of lunar researchers whose goals have been to learn more about the nature of our magic, how our actions could have caused a rift between us and the creatures from the Plane of Probability, and how we might make peace. Our efforts continue.

We have presented several theories at past meetings dealing with the nature of time, including the theories of Temporal Shadows and the Cosmic Pendulum. Our latest efforts are geared toward understanding how our minds – in their conscious and unconscious states – may affect the web of fate.

We looked at the effects of our specific intentions when we discussed our theory about the naming ritual, Binding Infinite Probability Into Finitude. Now we ask a different question: What effect does the unconscious mind have on prophecy?

The researcher in Throne City states that the intentions of our unconscious minds formed the great Pillars in the microcosm – meaning that the mind can make something so in the Microcosm without any present intention to achieve that result.

We previously submitted that the Microcosm is an area where two planes overlap - the Astral Plane and the Plane of Probability. Given this overlap, could it be that the unconscious mind can shift a small portion of the Plane of Probability?

At the Eye of Power, we attempted to reach out to the great nomad prophetess Nera by creating A Curious Anomaly on the Plane of Probability. We hoped that by threading Fate upon itself we would create a curiosity that might encourage Nera to seek out its source. We hoped that she could help us understand more about our heritage, the Arbiter, and the nature of prophecy itself.

Nera did not appear. We thought our effort was unsuccessful. Then we started receiving visions related to a curious anomaly, nomads and their homeland, the Arid Steppe.

We have received a vision of craftsmen at a loom who shout in alarm at a strange quirk or a warp in a growing tapestry with a pulsating pattern of chaotic energy – symbolism which is disturbingly similar to the curious anomaly that we were hoping to create to attract Nera’s attention.

We have also seen a vision where we find ourselves in a broad tent adorned with red paints and animal pelts, not unlike the those that might have been found near Dor’na Torna in the distant past. In the vision, weapon wielding warriors dressed in skins shout and argue with one another, just as the Nomad tribes argued long ago before the coming of the Kir. Though instead of being calmed by the Kir, the warriors in the vision are calmed by a child.

We are realists in that we understand that perhaps these visions are not related to our efforts, but it is tempting to think that we may have succeeded. Nera could be reaching toward us through the annals of time to speak to us now as a result of our attempt to thread Fate upon itself. But it is also possible that our intentions and desire, both spoken and silent, artificially reshaped fate.

Think of the implications if it is found that our actions led to the visions we now see. This means that, for both the Microcosm and for probability, not only does intention matter, but so, too, do the unspoken, inaccessible desires of the soul. The dreams that lie behind the conscious mind, dreams which we cannot truly control, can become reality.

There is a danger here. The outward actions observed by others are not necessarily a mirror of the unconscious mind that lies beneath, with its unspoken desires and its faults within the soul. Perhaps, it is time that we once again attempt to perfect the soul, transcend our individual desires, purify the inaccessible but powerful unconscious mind, and might I dare say – Learn to control both the conscious and unconscious mind.

Fortunately, our Moon Mage heritage is ripe with traditions that taught individual mages the esoteric wisdom they could use not only to enhance their own power but also their understanding of themselves and their place in the great Tapestry of Fate. Monks, for example, have taught methods of perfecting the self along every possible dimension. G’nar Peth teach that when the eye be empty, the sight be full – perhaps meaning that when we stop seeking with our eyes, our minds will see the truth. And Nomads have been known to enter ritual dance to open their minds and hearts, entering into a dream-like state so that they could better hear their ancestors.

Finding common ground between the sects was instrumental to the formation of the guild, and ultimately led to the signing of the Lunar Accord. But embracing the common ground caused us to lose sight of the unique traditions of each sect which took a lifetime of dedication to master. I submit that we now must reclaim this knowledge.

The Moon Mage paths to enlightenment are many, and we might be wise to seek out all of them, but the thrust of recent visions point our eyes again towards Nera and the people of the tribes, who, once upon a time, found a way to transcend their conscious minds and danced to connect with their ancestors. Tradition holds that in ages past, the spirits spoke to those who had the wisdom to sit and listen.

And therein may lie our fault – we have forgotten how to simply listen.

You see…. our unconscious minds have reshaped the microcosm, our conscious efforts via the Naming Ritual arguably altered the fabric of the plane of probability, and, we submit, that our attempt to contact Nera may have affected the visions we have seen. It could be that our very thoughts are altering the fabric of Probability so that by seeking it out and by grasping for it, the fabric of Reality is changing as we grasp. We might not be able to reach the very thing we seek.

Our next step, then, should be to release our intentions, to seek out stillness and open ourselves to probability, whatever it may hold. We will listen. This may seem impossible, but there are those that believe this has happened before. Just as the Nomads did long ago, we shall gather in ritual and dance, to seek out a dream-like state where we transcend our own minds, removing our own bias from our thoughts, and simply listen. Perhaps, like the Nomads once did, we will hear the whisperings of our ancestors.