Creation of the World
The Seats
To me, as I meditate and consider in my mind concerning the creation of this world in which we are kept enclosed, even such is the rapidity of that creation; as is contained in the book of Mosheh, which he wrote about its creation, and which is called Genesis. Vahan produced that entire mass for the adornment of His majesty in an instant; all to which He consecrated . . . with a blessing . . .
First, there was Vahan, and he created the gods. “Take thy place among the stars!” he said, and then the Seats came from nothing. They shone as stars and were gloried like kings.
These are all their names, which are ranked in given powers. Firstly, the Kings of the Earth; they sit on high thrones: Hundimar, who is Seat of the sky and lord of the winds, closest to Vahan; Lur, who is Seat of the sea and lord of the waves, his voice is grave and deep as the depths, he runs through all the waters of the world and is alone, as he did not wed; Velziel, who is Seat of burning, lord of life, and his booming voice shakes the hearts of evil men; Morrôs, who is Seat of truth, lord of the dead and those who pass through death, and his heart is like iron; Lerluft, who is Seat of day, lord of light, and he rides his steed Hiffne across the blue sky in the long cycle; Yernaud, who is Seat of foundation, he is alone in his great work, and on his shoulders lay the many worlds, he does not speak much, but is rough and wild and untamed and may upend his joyous burden at any moment.
Then the Queens of the Earth; on their brows sit wisdom: Nos, who is seat of night, lady of dark, wife to Lerluft, and she stands on the moon in the long cycle; Hod, who is the seat of glory, she is wife to Velziel, and sings with silver voice as she hunts with her beloved, she grew the verdant plants of the world for her delight and she formed the animals out of the earth to be the world's delight; Chesed, who is seat of love, she wed last to Gendûet, and she is slain but will be reborn; Chemtmay, who is seat of faith, she is wed to Morrôs, and she weaves a tapestry of things done and things yet to come; Koter, who is seat of majesty, she is wed to Hundimar, and from her mind came the architecture and the many arts of Boryen, which was the gods’ place of power, from her works came the starry expanse, and she is most loved by the Elves
Last is Gendûet, who is betrayer, and fallen. He was Seat of Judgement, but renamed himself Choice and Freedom. Doing so he enslaved the hearts of many.
The Powers
And then Vahan raised his right hand and called out, “Be filled with thought!” and then the Powers — Seers and Solitudes — arose from nothing. They glittered as the dew on the morning grass, and were colored like the silver twilight.
The Seers are greater than the Solitudes, but the Powers of the World are without equal so long as they are in their abode. These are some of their names: Matania, he is Seer, and is Power of rain, sorrow, and fate. He is ever-present in the realms of Morrôs and lies on the isle of Runimens where he is borne with sorrowful weight, and teaches of longing and wisdom in pain. Then is Shpl, she is a Seer, and is Power of snow, peace, and past. She is wed to Matania, and she sings on his isle, playing her lyre. She brings rest to the weary and helps the lost find home. Euilez comes next, they are Seer, and are Power of floods, frenzy, and forgetfulness. Euilez gives to all things that move their vitality and animation, and grants virility. They are a spirit of unthought, and love the green things of the earth the most, and above all love the vine. They are patron to the hopeful couple, winemakers, and the Wizard. They will free you from Thought's tyranny. Together, the three seers will teach you the lessons of the Holy Present.
Next is Malkuth, he is Solitude and Power of reason. He once lived in the realm of Gendûet, but then moved to the halls of Morrôs, where he writes poems in honor of Chemtmay, who is most beautiful to him. The artists and philosophers of the world honor him. Now is Da’at, he is Solitude and Power of containment. He brings himself between both the halls of Hundimar and Lur. From him, one will learn of a life well-lived. Then is Netzach, she is Solitude and Power of endurance. She is a maiden warrior of Hod, and runs on her bare feet, faster and longer-lasting than the deer that follow her in the wild. In days past she danced on the evergreen lawns of Boryen. She grants all living things their longevity, and she above all adores the plant, and has granted them the longest lives of all mortal things. Now is Binah, he is Solitude and Power of understanding. He is vassal to Lur, and in the sounds of the sea one will hear his echoes and then long for further shores. Then is Tiferet, she is Solitude and Power of reflection. She is vassal to Hundimar, and is wife to Binah. In the bite of the wind one will hear her sighs. In the storms where wind and water meet, one will see and hear Tiferet and Binah’s joyous and thunderous meeting. Moroi, he is Solitude and Power of change. He is vassal to Yernaud. In the heat of the forge, with the crackling of burning wood, and with the twisting of iron, you can hear him most clearly. For his is the delight of the manipulation of things. Inventions are his joy, and turmoil is the fire with which he creates. He chases Netzach, and he desires her affections, but she will forever rebuff him, it is said, at least until the end of days when all things are reborn, and at last she will return his advances and they will be wed.
The Principalities
Then Vahan raised his left hand and called out, “Take thy heavy form!” and then the Principalities arose from nothing. They were created least like the great spirits before them. On them was the glory of the mundane. There were innumerable numbers of the Principalities, and they all dripped with sap or foam or sweat, laden in clothes of bark or soot or metal, and they clamored with happy noise in an exaltation of their new life. Greatest among these spirits was Tevil, the Principality of Voice.
Vahan then said to the gathering, “Go you all and make this void full and formed. Soon, others not thyself will accompany you, and they will be of the matter from which you create.” And to the gathering of spirits, it was like the air split in two, and they saw a vast darkness before them, formless and deep. Vahan then stood. He raised both his hands, and a bright flame burst from his fingers and lit the darkness, trailing a rainbow path. “Go then, and use the far path to reach the world.”
And the desire to shape the world filled many spirits, for in the trailing fire they saw a vision of a place which was hitherto hidden from their knowledge. They saw a green world with great straits of water between the green. And in that world were great works of dirt and stone, and there were weathers and ice and sand. Then they saw many moving things, and there were many beings like them, who stood tall and spoke, but these beings were also totally unlike, and the gathering was enraptured by the glory. So, many of the spirits descended down the path and headed towards the earth, but many also stayed by Vahan, for they rather saw splendor in the immaterial.
Nevertheless, all the Seats, many of the Powers, and many of the Principalities descended to the earth. Then they saw the full vastness of their work to come, for there was naught but shadowed wasteland, and they set about their long labor. For many ages of the world did they work, setting valley and hill, wood and plain, cave and cliff, but their work was only finished when Lur released the floods of heaven and filled the basins of the earth. So water was the final creation, and in it yet lives the echoes of the gods; so the Children of God still hearken unsated to the voices of the sea, and know not for what they listen. And with Lur's final work all was created, and was good. On the green fields of Boryen the gods reclined, resting from long years of creation. And they were glad. For the world was made, and it lay in the midst of innumerable stars.
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