Difference between revisions of "Cosmere"

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(I think the given citations are sufficient here to not have this tag here)
Tag: Undo
 
== Properties and Forces ==
{{image|Cosmere symbol.svg|The cosmere symbol|side=left|width=175px|The cosmere symbol}}
=== Realms ===
{{for|Realmatic Theory}}
In the cosmere, everything exists in three Realms: the [[Physical Realm]], the [[Cognitive Realm]], and the [[Spiritual Realm]].{{tes ref|12}}{{epigraph ref|mb3|57}} The three Realms have existed since the beginning of the cosmere.{{wob ref|13066}}
 
When someone in the cosmere dies, their body remains in the Physical Realm and a [[Cognitive Shadow]] forms in the Cognitive Realm.{{msh ref|1|1}}{{book ref|mb6|28}} For most people, this Cognitive Shadow quickly moves on to the [[Beyond]] and their [[Investiture]] returns to the Spiritual Realm.{{msh ref|1|1}}{{book ref|mb6|28}} The more Investiture someone held in life, the longer they can linger before being drawn to the Beyond,{{msh ref|1|1}} but only [[Sliver]]s—those who once held a significant portion of a [[Shard]]'s power—can resist the Beyond forever, though they can still choose to go if they so desire.{{msh ref|6|8}} Before the person passes to the Beyond, however, they can still be restored via Investiture healing{{book ref|mb6|28}}{{book ref|sa2.5|8}} or be infused with enough Investiture to become a more permanent Cognitive Shadow, usually as a result of a Shard's action.{{msh ref|1|1}}{{book ref|sa4|15}} Those killed by [[Nightblood]] or [[anti-Investiture]], however, cannot be resurrected in any way, as nothing remains of their soul.{{wob ref|10440}}{{book ref|sa4|97}}{{wob ref|14623}}
 
==== The Physical Realm ====
In the [[Physical Realm]], the cosmere is a star cluster of about 50 to 100 stars.{{wob ref|9284}} The lawsPhysical ofRealm physicsis arecomposed theof samefundamental particles known as our[[axi]] ownand follows ordinary laws of physics, except when the other Realms are involved.{{wob ref|11359}}{{book ref|sa4|97}}{{wob ref|6360}} Currently, there are ten known planetary systems in the cosmere, which contain a total of twelve notable planets. The cosmere is also home to other celestial objects, including several dwarf planets, gas giants, and constellations.{{article ref|Physical Realm}} At least one person has tried to leave the physical bounds of the cosmere, with unknown results.{{wob ref|13336}}{{wob ref|13558}}
 
==== The Cognitive Realm ====
|[[Shai]] discussing [[Realmatic Theory|the Realms]] with [[Gaotona]]{{tes ref|12}}
}}
The [[Spiritual Realm]] exists beyond space and time.{{wob ref|6129}} As such, it is not truly a place, but rather is the Realm of concepts like [[Intention|Intent]], [[Identity]], [[Connection]], and [[Fortune]].{{wob ref|77}}{{tes ref|12}}{{wob ref|10298}} Everything exists in the Spiritual Realm in its ideal form.{{tes ref|12}}{{book ref|sa3|103}}
 
{{sidequote
|Intent matters. Intent is king. You cannot do what I attempt by accident. You must mean it.
|[[Navani Kholin]] on the role of Intent{{epigraph ref|sa4|72}}
|side=left|size=300px
}}
'''Intent''' is the Spiritual property that expresses a person's considered will or purpose. Intent cannot be formed accidentally; if Intent is required to do something, then the person attempting to do it must not only do it, but ''mean'' to do it.{{book ref|sa3|57}}{{epigraph ref|sa4|72}} Many Invested Arts require their user to act with Intent in order to properly use their magic.{{book ref|elantris|part=ars}}{{book ref|sa3.5|19}} Invested entities, like [[spren]], [[Cognitive Shadow]]s, and even [[Shard]]s have a fundamental Intent that describes the purpose of the Investiture that constitutes their essence. Indeed, the longer they exist, the more they will become bound by their Intent, unable to act against it.{{book ref|sa4|15}}{{epigraph ref|sa4|40}} An extreme example of this is [[Ati]], the original Vessel of the Shard [[Ruin]], who was initially a "kind and generous" man,{{epigraph ref|sa1|18}} but became so consumed by his Shard's Intent that he sought the complete destruction of [[Scadrial]] and even viewed it as necessary.{{book ref|mb3|57}}
 
{{image|Dawnshard by ML Malandrino.jpg|[[Rysn Ftori]] discovering one of the [[Dawnshard]]s|side=right|width=350px}}
Along with Intent, there is also the associated concept of '''Command'''. [[Command]]s are more limited than Intent, but they help to focus the Intent so that Investiture can respond appropriately.{{wob ref|14636}} While most Commands are related to a certain Invested Art or some other specific method of manipulating Investiture, there are also the [[Dawnshard]]s, four fundamental Commands that were involved in both the creation of the cosmere and the [[Shattering]] of [[Adonalsium]].{{book ref|sa3.5|19}}
 
'''Identity''' is the Spiritual property that demarcates one person or object from another and describes who or what they are.{{book ref|mb6|3}} Losing their Identity during the [[False Desolation]] turned the [[singer]]s into [[singer#slaveform|slaveform]].{{book ref|sa3|17}} Identity also serves as the lock and key for metalminds; [[Feruchemy|Feruchemists]] can only withdraw attributes stored by someone with a matching Identity—ordinarily, this means only attributes they stored.{{book ref|mb6|3}} Because Identity describes who a person is, it is closely tied to the concept of a [[Spiritweb]], which is sometimes called Spiritual DNA.{{wob ref|115}} Spiritwebs are not entirely understood, but they are quantifiable in some way,{{wob ref|13361}} and seem to record information about a person's Investiture, such as the genetics that make one an [[Allomancy|Allomancer]].{{wob ref|9687}}
 
=== Investiture ===
{{image|The Lights of Roshar by Connor Chamberlain.jpg|A depiction of the different forms of Investiture on [[Roshar]]|side=right|width=300px}}
{{quote
|[I]t seemed you were Soulcasting to give your illusions weight. But then, concentrated Stormlight has a faint mass to it.
Investiture has a property that associates it with one of the sixteen [[Shard]]s of [[Adonalsium]]; at the [[Shattering of Adonalsium]], all Investiture was divided evenly between the Shards.{{wob ref|8605}}{{wob ref|9385}}{{wob ref|5313}} Even though, as a result of the Shattering, all Investiture is associated with a Shard, Investiture also remains linked to Adonalsium in some way and the Shattering meant "everything and nothing at the same time" to Investiture.{{wob ref|9385}}
 
When one form of Investiture attempts to co-opt or corrupt another form of Investiture, it will often produce a red effect.{{wob ref|8340}} Examples of this include the red smoke given off by [[Shai]]'s [[soulstamp]]s when she uses them to temporarily tweak [[Gaotona]]'s soul,{{tes ref|30}}{{wob ref|13830}} the red haze of [[Trell (Trellism)|Trell]] invading [[Scadrial]],{{book ref|mb6|28}}{{wob ref|13074}}{{wob ref|8345}} and the red coloring of some of the spren Enlightened by [[Sja-anat]].{{book ref|sa3|78}}{{book ref|sa3|89}}{{book ref|sa3|115}} Similarly, when some entity possesses or has a strong influence over a person, the person's eyes will often grow red, as seen with the bodies controlled by Trell's Faceless Immortals,{{book ref|mb6|epilogue}} the soldiers possessed via [[Nergaoul|the Thrill]] at the [[Battle of Thaylen Field]],{{book ref|sa3|115}}{{book ref|sa3|117}} and many of Odium's servants, whose souls are corrupted by his power.{{book ref|sa4|38}}{{book ref|sa4|42}}
A Shard can also "co-opt" another Shard's Investiture or interfere in a planet where they are not already present. When this happens, the effects will often be colored red.{{wob ref|8340}} For example, when [[Trell (Trellism)|Trell]]'s Faceless Immortals on [[Scadrial]] possess someone, their eyes glow red.{{book ref|mb6|epilogue}} This effect is also seen with many of [[Odium]]'s servants on [[Roshar]],{{book ref|sa2|81}} as Odium is primarily Invested in [[Braize]], not Roshar.{{wob ref|13074}}
 
{{sidequote
|This is a powerful magic, and one where humans themselves have often had access to grand bursts of strength. I would challenge one to identify another planet, save only Roshar, where one can find such strength of Investiture so commonly in the hands of mortals.
|[[Khriss]] on [[Allomancy]] and [[Feruchemy]]{{au ref|Scadrial}}
|side=rightleft|size=300px
}}
Investiture can be divided into two categories: '''Kinetickinetic Investiture''' and '''Innatestatic''' or '''innate Investiture'''.{{book ref|sa4|89}}{{wob ref|5715}} Kinetic Investiture refers to Investiture actively doing something. When Investiture is kinetic, it can often be detected by various methods, such as [[Allomancy|Allomantic]] [[bronze]] or [[sand (Taldain)|sand from the Dayside of [[Taldain]].{{wob ref|5715}}{{wob ref|9521}} InnateStatic or innate Investiture refers to all Investiture not actively doing something, from the piece of [[Preservation]] in all [[Scadrial|Scadrians]] to [[Feruchemy|Feruchemical]] charge in a metalmind.{{wob ref|5715}}{{wob ref|1072}}{{wob ref|6927}} At least some forms of static Investiture, including [[Lights]] not actively powering anything, can also be detected by [[Taldain]]'s sand, though they affect the sand much more slowly than kinetic Investiture does.{{book ref|sa4|89}}
 
Cosmere scholars term the various methods of utilizing Investiture (such as the [[Metallic Arts]], [[Surgebinding]], and [[Awakening]]) '''Invested Arts''',.{{book ref|sa3|part=ars}} Since the Shattering, these can be grouped into three main categories. The most common are those powered directly by the Shards,{{wob ref|4097}} which arise from the interactions between a Shard and the planet they are Invested in.{{wob ref|5269}} Such Invested Arts are capable of far more spectacular results than other Invested Arts.{{wob ref|9385}}{{wob ref|4097}} If a planet does not have a Shard in residence, itits inhabitants can still access and use Investiture by the ordinary laws of Realmatics, but, without a Shard to provide additional power, the results are far more limited.{{wob ref|9385}} The last category is the few Invested Arts left over from before the Shattering of Adonalsium,{{wob ref|4097}} of which the only known example is [[Yolen|Yolish]] [[Lightweaving]].▼
 
==== Anti-Investiture ====
▲Cosmere scholars term the various methods of utilizing Investiture (such as the [[Metallic Arts]], [[Surgebinding]], and [[Awakening]]) '''Invested Arts''',{{book ref|sa3|part=ars}} Since the Shattering, these can be grouped into three main categories. The most common are those powered directly by the Shards,{{wob ref|4097}} which arise from the interactions between a Shard and the planet they are Invested in.{{wob ref|5269}} Such Invested Arts are capable of far more spectacular results than other Invested Arts.{{wob ref|9385}}{{wob ref|4097}} If a planet does not have a Shard in residence, it inhabitants can still access and use Investiture by the ordinary laws of Realmatics, but, without a Shard to provide additional power, the results are far more limited.{{wob ref|9385}} The last category is the few Invested Arts left over from before the Shattering of Adonalsium,{{wob ref|4097}} of which the only known example is [[Yolen|Yolish]] [[Lightweaving]].
Much like there is both matter and [[wikipedia: Antimatter|antimatter]], at least some forms of Investiture can be transformed into a substance known as '''anti-Investiture'''.{{book ref|sa4|part=ars}} Currently, the only known forms of [[anti-Investiture]] are [[anti-Stormlight]] and [[anti-Voidlight]], which can be made by at least partially isolating [[Stormlight]] or [[Voidlight]] respectively from their Shard's pure tone and then exposing it to their Shard's opposite tone;{{book ref|sa4|97}}{{book ref|sa4|104}}{{wob ref|14778}} [[Khriss]] seems to believe additional forms of anti-Investiture are possible.{{book ref|sa4|part=ars}} Anti-Voidlight, at least, looks mostly similar to regular Voidlight, but appears to warp the air around it.{{book ref|sa4|97}} When anti-Investiture mixes with Investiture of the same type, the two annihilate in a violent explosion; if the Investiture in question is the soul of a person or that of an entity composed entirely of Investiture, like a [[spren]], then this annihilation results in their permanent death.{{book ref|sa4|97}}{{book ref|sa4|104}}
 
=== Perpendicularities ===
{{image|I am Unity.jpg|[[Dalinar Kholin]] summoning [[Honor's Perpendicularity]]|side=left|width=200px}}
{{quote
|Anytime too much power—too much Investiture, too much self—congregated, realms became porous and time behaved oddly.
|Honor's Perpendicularity. A well of power that pierces all three realms. A pathway home.
|[[SylSylphrena]] toon entering the [[Kaladincenterbeat]] of the [[highstorm]]{{book ref|sa3sa4|i|1191}}
}}
When a sufficient amount of Investiture coalesces in one place in the Physical and Cognitive Realms, it creates a junction between all three Realms known as a [[perpendicularity]]. Most stable perpendicularities form from the presence of a [[Shard]] on a planet and the massive amount of Investiture they bring with them.{{au ref|Drominad}}{{wob ref|9665}} Sentient beings can use perpendicularities to travel between the Physical and Cognitive Realms, which in turn facilitates easier travel on and off a planet for those with the knowledge to use them.{{au ref|Drominad}}
|-
| [[Valor]]
| ''Unknown Female''
|-
| [[Whimsy]]
|The [[Stormfather]] on [[Shard]]s of Adonalsium{{book ref|sa3|16}}
}}
During the [[Shattering of Adonalsium|Shattering]], Adonalsium split into sixteen pieces, referred to as [[Shard]]s of Adonalsium. Each of these Shards has an [[Intention|Intent]] that represents a particular facet of Adonalsium. Sixteen people involved in the Shattering then took up those Shards, becoming the first Vessels and effectively ascending to godhood.{{msh ref|3|2}} There was some sort of force or property of the cosmere that caused Adonalsium to shatter into the sixteen Shards that it did,{{wob ref|9956}} and the distribution of the Shards to the Vessels was not random.{{wob ref|5490}} The number sixteen is significant to the mechanics of the cosmere,{{epigraph ref|mb3|71}} though whether that is an underlying principle that influenced the Shattering or something that arose afterwards is unclear.
 
Though the power of a Shard requires a mind to control it, known as a Vessel, the intentIntent of a Shard will slowly warp the minds of those that hold it, overriding their independence.{{epigraph ref|sa1|18}}{{wob ref|5485}} For example, after [[Leras]] Ascended as [[Preservation]], he became unable to cause harm, even to preserve other things.{{book ref|mb3|81}}{{msh ref|2|3}} It is unclear whether the original Vessels knew this when they took up their Shards, but, eventually, the Vessels came to be known simply by their Shard's name.
 
The Shards have access to infinite power, but the Vessels' minds, even though they are expanded by holding the Shard, are not capable of wielding it all at once.{{wob ref|8605}}{{wob ref|8702}} The Shards are also limited by certain rules that restrict how they can act;{{book ref|sa3|16}}{{book ref|sa1|75}} for example, they must fulfill a formally made oath.{{wob ref|13144}}{{book ref|sa3|122}} Failing to do so can give others an opening to act against the Shard who broke an oath; this has, on at least one occasion, resulted in the death of a Vessel.{{book ref|sa4|99}} Shards can also intervene to block another Shard's actions, though not perfectly.{{book ref|mb3|76}}
 
Despite these restrictions, however, the Shards are generally capable of both subtle and incredible changes. Among other things, they can change the orbit of entire planets, make changes to individuals and entire species on a genetic level, and alter some of the mechanics of an Invested Art resulting from their presence on a planet, and speak into the minds of people.{{book ref|mb3|82}}{{wob ref|5971}}{{book ref|mb5|17}} Since Shards exist primarily in the Spiritual Realm, they also have some ability to look into the future, though not all Shards are equally good at this and it fragments into more and more possibilities the further they look.{{wob ref|8147}}{{book ref|sa3|75}}
 
{{sidequote
|We also instruct that you should not return to Obrodai. We have claimed that world, and a new avatar of our being is beginning to manifest there.
|[[Patji (being)|Patji]], one of [[Autonomy]]'s avatars, to [[Hoid]]{{book ref|sa3|50}}{{wob ref|12761}}
|side=left|size=300px
}}
Shards can also create '''avatars''', beings with access to a portion of the Shard's power who can act autonomously from their Shard, but remain part of the Shard and ultimately cannot act against the Shard's instructions. Avatars stand in contrast to [[Splinter]]s, who are pieces of a Shard's power that have or could develop free will.{{wob ref|14744}} Avatars often seem to be used when a Shard wants to influence events on a planet other than the one they are primarily Invested in; for example, [[Autonomy]], who is Invested in [[Taldain]],{{au ref|Taldain}} has avatars on [[First of the Sun]] and [[Obrodai]].{{wob ref|13220}}{{epigraph ref|sa3|50}}
 
Since the Shattering, the Shards have been the primary source of magic in the cosmere.{{wob ref|4097}} The interactions between their Investiture and a planet give rise to Invested Arts that are far more powerful than those formed by people accessing background Investiture.{{wob ref|5269}}{{wob ref|4097}}
 
Each Shard also has its own '''pure tone''' and '''rhythm''', that can often influence and be heard emanating from their Investiture and can become part of the worlds they Invest in.{{book ref|sa4|69}}{{book ref|sa4|67}}{{wob ref|14482}} For example, the [[Lights]] of [[Roshar]] pulse softly to their Shard's tone and [[rhythm]] and will follow a source—vocal or instrumental—generating their Shard's tone{{book ref|sa4|69}} and both the [[Well of Ascension]] on [[Scadrial]] and the pulses a [[Seeker]] can pick up from someone using [[Allomancy]] are related to Preservation's tone and rhythm.{{wob ref|14482}}{{wob ref|14586}} Harmonizing the tones and rhythms of two different Shards is part of the creation of hybrid Investiture, like [[Warlight]] and [[Towerlight]].{{book ref|sa4|76}}{{book ref|sa4|110}} Shards also have an opposite tone, which sounds identical to most people but is unpleasant to those attuned to that Shard's Investiture, and can only be created by Intent. This opposite tone can physically repel its Shard's Investiture and can help create anti-Investiture associated with its Shard.{{book ref|sa4|97}}
 
== Planets ==
Retrieved from "https://coppermind.net/wiki/Cosmere"