Questions about Eneera Tor

[Meleros]

King of Sartar introduces the Feathered Horse Queens with a myth regarding the Pure Horse People versions of Ernalda an her sisters.

Eneera Tor became the first FHQ in 1455. Here, a connection to Queen Bruvala of Esrolia is hinted, and 1455 is also the year in which the Shakers priestesses incarnated Sorana Tor into their High priestess. So, are these "historical" events simply an echo of the myth above (an example of synchronicity, without causal relationships between them), or are there some events or hidden meanings I am missing? Is the death of Erantha Gor in some way related to the above?

Also, citing from Glorantha Sourcebook (or from the previous link),

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In 1495, Eneera Tor proved she was the incarnation of Sorana Tor (and thus the avatar of Kero Fin) when she married Prince Sartar and became the Queen of Dragon Pass.

Isn't the wording a bit strange? I mean, she became Queen of Dragon Pass, hence she proved to be the incarnation of Sorana Tor? Also, how could she prove to be the incarnation of Sorana Tor if, during her life, someone else already was recognized as such?

At first I thought that, maybe, "incarnation of Sorana Tor" is just a title, but isn't it odd in a world with real incarnations?

[jajagappa]

2 hours ago, Meleros said:

a connection to Queen Bruvala of Esrolia is hinted

Connection in length of life (clearly something symbolic in Earth cult rituals), and in timing. Clearly there was some level of emergence/reassertion of the Earth Mother at this time in both Esrolia and in Dragon Pass with both Eneera Tor and Queen Bruvala incarnating Ernalda.

I don't know that there is any explicit causal relationship, but... it often turns out that multiple people/peoples perform similar rituals in synchronicity. The Birth of Nysalor/Sunstop was a classic example. The Rise of the Boat Planet is another. 

Eneera Tor had to achieve certain steps in her progression to incarnate Sorana Tor. One was to require competitors to perform the Marriage Contests and to marry the one who succeeded. This allowed her to prove herself to be Sorana Tor and Kero Fin, Queen of Dragon Pass.

Bruvala did similar in her progression to incarnate Ernalda and prove herself to be Queen of Esrolia. Both underwent Earth rituals. Both became the Sovereign Queens of their respective lands. 

This appears to be happening again in the respective efforts of Samastina in Nochet/Esrolia and of Inkarne in the Grazelands.

[soltakss]

It may well be that the Shaker high priestess who incarnated Sorana Tor had died before Ereena Tor incarnated Sorana Tor, or perhaps she passed the mantle on to Ereena Tor as her successor. 

[jajagappa]

3 hours ago, soltakss said:

It may well be that the Shaker high priestess who incarnated Sorana Tor had died before Ereena Tor incarnated Sorana Tor, or perhaps she passed the mantle on to Ereena Tor as her successor.

I suspect that the Shaker high priestess, representing Maran Gor and the destructive power of the Earth, cannot actually incarnate Sorana Tor, who must be Ernalda/Kero Fin.

 

[Sir_Godspeed]

1 hour ago, jajagappa said:

I suspect that the Shaker high priestess, representing Maran Gor and the destructive power of the Earth, cannot actually incarnate Sorana Tor, who must be Ernalda/Kero Fin.

 

I honestly think Kero Fin has as much of an affinity to Maran Gor as with Ernalda, imho.

[Meleros]

1 hour ago, jajagappa said:

I suspect that the Shaker high priestess, representing Maran Gor and the destructive power of the Earth, cannot actually incarnate Sorana Tor

 

That is indeed a possibility. Blond Arim forced the Shakers Temple into submission the same year, so it's possible that their incarnation was a fake one, done in order to legitimize the claims of Arim over the kingdom of Tarsh. Also, KoS tells us that under Sorana Tor's leadership

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the temple was cleared of troublemakers, all of whom had six toes.

Could it be a reference to the followers of Erantha Gor?

However, isn't Sorana Tor an incarnation of Ana Gor? Her sons must be sacrified after seven years of reign, which is something in Maran or Ana Gor's style, isn't it?

[Sir_Godspeed]

2 hours ago, Meleros said:

However, isn't Sorana Tor an incarnation of Ana Gor? Her sons must be sacrified after seven years of reign, which is something in Maran or Ana Gor's style, isn't it?

This is part of the reason why I think Maran Gor (or rather, "Hard Earth" in the generic sense) is closely tied to the overal divine identity/expression of Kero Fin. Sure, people need to grow grains and graze animal in Kerofinela just as much as anywhere else agriculture is practiced, but Kero Fin's nature is not quite the same as lowland Kethaela, Maniria or Peloria, which is why I think that Maran Gor/Ana Gor, and the "Hard Earth" (whether you consider that a subset or synonym for Dark Earth or not) is as much part of Kero Fin as Ernalda is, and possibly moreso than most other places in Glorantha. 

Admittedly all of this ties into my personal hobby-horse of talking about how the Earth Goddesses intersect in a more complex and interwoven manner (due to, imho., being more in touch with the Prime Earth of which they are filtered expressions/emanations) than perhaps most other pantheons/classes of gods. The various goddesses that intersect in the local goddess complex are to a limited extent interchangeable (sort of on a spectrum, perhaps). Ernalda and Maran Gor probably aren't except in very speculative ways, but Ana Gor can be seen as Maran Gor in a particular aspect/role, and I suspect Kero Fin can act in both manners, or to reverse it, both Ernalda and Maran Gor can act as Kero Fin (because utimately, the difference between them is somewhat artifical, as I see it).

Anyway, sorry to get into this bewildering train of thought. Basically, what I'm saying is that to be the earthly incarnation of Kero Fin is as much about embodying the Dark Earth as it is the Fertile Earth when it comes to Kerofinela in particular, perhaps to the point of Kerofinela being to Maran Gor almost what Esrolia is to Esrola (although this might be pushing it a bit too far, I don't know).

[Joerg]

7 hours ago, Meleros said:

However, isn't Sorana Tor an incarnation of Ana Gor? Her sons must be sacrified after seven years of reign, which is something in Maran or Ana Gor's style, isn't it?

That's not how I understood the Illaro dynasty - IMO it is the king who is the sacrifice, although the king can survive the sacrifice by overcoming his magical executioner and providing that entity as a sacrifice. Illaro managed to do that twice. His successors didn't.

[scott-martin]

7 hours ago, Joerg said:

That's not how I understood the Illaro dynasty - IMO it is the king who is the sacrifice, although the king can survive the sacrifice by overcoming his magical executioner and providing that entity as a sacrifice. Illaro managed to do that twice. His successors didn't.

That is my understanding of their deal with the goddess. But shifting the blood algebra of the sacrifice will probably be tried at some point in the Tarsh Civil War if it hasn't opened up in the past. When you need shaker magic some people think of the kids.