Source of power for the Cthrag Yaska

[tiailds]

What is the source of power for the orb. I have read near all of Eddings books including 13 about the orb but can't remember how powerful the orb is. Unlike my brother, I read a book and after a few day can barely remember the major plot points. I read for the excitement. If anyone can help, without me going through the books page by page, it would be appreciated.

 

[Winters_Sorrow]

The orb is very powerful.
For example, it cracked the continents in two, which seperated the greater body of the Angaraks from the Western countries.

It is basically the physical embodiment of "Destiny" as such.
This is explained in greater detail in Eddings "Mallorean" series, but there are two conflicting destinies at large in the world, each in the form of an orb (you get to see the "bad" orb - Cthrag Sardius - at the end of the "Seeress of Kell"). The whole plot of the Mallorean series is because these two destinies have to confront each other and resolve it so that only one of them continues.

 

[tiailds]

Have the two destinys confronted each other on other worlds. This seems familiar but I might have imagined it. If it is true, then would the orb be as powerful as all the world the destiny has either visited or won an encouter with.

 

[Kynsilaukka]

I think somewhere in the books was stated that the two destinys put the Gods to create the world of Belgarion, so that the two could finish their battle there and confront each other through chosen ones. So, I think the destinys confronted each other only in the Garion-world. Other planets and worlds were mentioned in passing, and it was said that the choice made in the end of Malloreon would affect them all, but it was ony Korim where the choice was meant to happen.

 

[The Ace]

It is mentioned in the Belgariad that men who live on other worlds will never know about Belgarion's achievements, but will feel the outcome. Belgarath himself remarks that the world was made to give Garion somewhere to stand while he fixed the Universe. The necessity made the orb fall to Earth and Aldur polished and studied it. It showed its displeasure at being made to crack the world by maiming Torak and eventually killing him.

 

[Abbot]

Me I dont know but I look as the orb as a focus point. I mean the gods have the power to do anything but with the orb that power gets multiplied. Ul created the world and the gods BEFORE the cracking of the world and BEFORE Aldur found the orb so I think it was just fate that made the orb and sardion land on there wrld, if it was anyother world the necessities would have compencated and chose other ppl to stand in there place.

 

[tiailds]

If it is just a focus point for the universal destiny, and that destiny won the "game" or whatever, then will the destiny continue to power the orb? Does the orb have all the knowledge of the destiny?

 

[Abbot]

Just like Belgarath Says " its just a rock and u a but am man" doesnt that mean it has no power of its own. Otherwise why would it even need the prophocies if it is "all powerfull"

I know Belgarath was refuring to the bolder in the vale but the same concept applies.

 

[tiailds]

Does the orb use the "Will and the Word", or does it have it's own type of power.

 

[devilsgrin]

As far as i could tell, and what i gathered from the expositions of both the Orb and the Sardion is that they are fragments of the Star that died in the wrong place at the wrong time. They are two halves of the same stone regardless and lie at the very heart of the division. If the Orb/Sardion are pieces of a star (however improbable it is in reality for there to be shards of a star) its power would be monumental. As witnessed, capable of cracking the world... even Torak couldn't do it alone. My guesstimate of its power level would be that of one of the Gods. Perhaps more powerful than Ul, but not significantly so.

 

[Abbot]

oh yeh but the power is too great that if the stones fought each other without "pawns" the power would be too great a confrontation that it would destroy everything. Raw powers a bitch.

 

[Abbot]

Im Wondering now if the Cthrag Sardion is the same age as the orb why is it Torak didnt think of using it? I mean if its been all over Malloria dont u think ppl would have mentioned it to the grolims in passing or rumors of it would have reached torak?

 

[devilsgrin]

the sardion had always been hidden. worshipped by primitive karands (well even more primitive karands) and kept hidden in a grotto.

As to their power... the sheer scale of the power of the gods alone was always such that none of them (even torak) would have confronted eachother directly. The Orb and the Sardion being even more powerful therefore would hvae had to resolve issues realting to their respective destinies through Chosen Ones...

 

[white_wanderer]

The source of power for the Orb, is easy to understand. It is that rare substance called "Authorium", harnessing the natural power of the author to perform miraculous tasks.

 

[Abbot]

Lol i think using logic would help us more then making up words to help make sence. Lets try getting everyone to use the word Aurthorium to describe facts in books that cant really be described.

 

[sayn]

the problem with this question is that not only is this a fictional world, but
the orb originally comes from space in a distant galaxy (the orb and the sardion being from the star that blew up)
still it may be possible to answer this question to some extent
lets compile what we know:

the orb and the sardion have a conciousness
they feel emotions like anger (and also embarrassment in the case of the orb)
the orb tries to be helpful sometimes
the orb was found and fashioned by Aldur
Aldur's Will was used to fashion the orb

i havent read thru the books in about a year or so and i've forgetten the other relevant stuff

this was from wiki:
The Orb of Aldur is a blue-glowing rock in the fictional series The Belgariad and also The Malloreon, by David Eddings. It was crafted from a riverstone by the god Aldur. Aldur constantly turned the riverstone in his hands and after considerable time it was moulded into the Orb. Whether Aldur fashioned the Orb himself or whether it came into being and he merely noticed it is never made entirely clear.
The Orb is characterised as having a naiive and slightly mischievous personality (such as spying of Belgarion and Ce'Nedra on their wedding night) and seems to enjoy irritating its warden, Belgarion, throughout the plot.
In Belgarath the Sorcerer it is revealed that the stories about those not "pure of heart" touching the stone being destroyed are a myth, created because the orb bonds itself to whoever it touches.
The Angarak name for the Orb of Aldur is the "Cthrag Yaska", which translates to "The Burning Stone", after its effects on the Angarak god Torak when he split the world using its power.
The Orb is a powerful half of the stone at the centre of the Universe and the Orb's exact antithesis is known as "The Sardion", or in Angarak, "Cthrag Sardius". The Sardion causes the Orb to glow a dark red colour when they are in close proximity. The Orb is intensely dedicated to the Rivan Line, and when Geran, the Rivan Heir, was kidnapped, the Orb was able to act as a supremely accurate divining rod, using the blade of the Rivan King's sword to point and tug in the direction the heir was taken if it should pass over the path followed. The fallibility is that the Orb cannot trail Zandramas (Geran's kidnapper) over water, perhaps due to the nature of the matter of water.
It should also be noted, as a point of interest, that "Yaska Acharya" was the name of a noted Sanskrit scholar and grammarian in ancient India. Given the emphasis on the "Will" and the "Word" as the basis of the magical system in Eddings' books, it's a nice tidbit.
"Sardius" is the Latin word for the sard, a variety of red chalcedony which was popular as a gemstone in the ancient Near East. The name thus relates to the red colour and the milky and clouded appearance of the Cthrag Sardius stone in the book.

hopefully this helps

 

[Hawke]

I always just took it to be that when Aldur was constantly polishing and handling the Orb it took/absorbed some of his power, it was like a form of worship (Strange a God worshiping an object but hey, its fantasy) as for the Sadion the same sort of thing could have happened when it was worshiped by the primitive Karands, the Orbs could have been as much and object/pawn of the prophecies as Garion and everyone else was....

No pun intended on the first book's title...

 

[ghost8772]

I THINK I remember that it was mentioned the Orb and Sardion were both parts of a single original object though I don't think anyone ever said that they werefrom the star that exploded. actually considering how long it took for the LIGHT to reach the Belgariad/Mallorean world, and how long the orb (and sardion) were on the planet, I think it had to be something that broke symbolically (maybe even the universe providing on her own initiative) that represented each side of the possibility for the universe.

speculation of course.