#Sea of Wisdom

[bdkinz]

True Greatness Is Knowing Where We Are

This is a short inspiration to help start are day in a brighter way.

We all have those days where we feel we will never amount to what we wish we would become. We feel small, distant, lost. We don’t know how to find our way forward along the path to find our “greatness.” Instead, we spend so much energy and time seeing all the ways we haven’t reached our life goals.  One area I want to focus on is spiritual growth. In working on our spiritual goals, our spiritual…

[felassan]

this post is under a cut in case anyone would consider it to be DA:D spoilers, as the things it mentions came from the leak a year ago (spoiler warning for link) that included screenshots and a gif of the game. (the things this post mentions are therefore not new information and this does not reference a new leak)

I'm just thinking again about Rook (which seems to be the PC's name or title) and the imagery conjured by the name. ◕‿◕ this post is just speculation and overanalyzing for fun. also this post is a now-finished draft from my draft section from a while back.

I think it would work as a surname (like "Hawke") or a codename (think Leliana's spies and contacts such as "Butler", "Farrier", "Butcher", "Charter", etc although these are all professions that end in "-er" or "or" iirc). it could also be a title (like Warden, Hero, Champion, Inquisitor, Herald) or a nickname - like maybe it's short for "Rookie", it's a Varric-assigned nickname and it references how the DA:D PC is the newest member of the team after he recruits them?

I think it sounds catchy, and cool - it's snappy and short, Hawke-like in this way. and it sounds like the kind of name a spy or secret agent might have in a fantasy, superhero or sci-fi-type setting.

a rook is a black bird, Corvus frugilegus, a member of the corvid family. rooks have been perceived as vermin and nuisances by people in the past, and persecuted due to this. they bear a resemblance to their crow and raven relatives, both birds which have a large cultural footprint and lots of symbolism in areas such as folklore and art. Hawke obviously also had a bird motif going on from their surname and associated art pieces. corvids also bring to mind the Antivan Crows (assassins, thieves, & spies), reminding of the stuff about how in this game the PC may be trying to operate under the radar, and the reporting on a previous iteration of DA:D which had the game concept as being focused on spies and heists. rook plumage is inky black, bringing to mind darkness and shadow.

from the bird angle, a "rook" sounds neat opposite a "wolf" imo. wolves are obviously another animal that have large footprints in culture, myth and folklore. in the natural world there is symbiosis sometimes between wolves and corvids when hunting/feeding. there are lots of photos of wolves and corvids together.

a colony of rooks is called a rookery. of course, the fortress of Skyhold has a rookery. it's from there that Inquisition Spymaster Leliana operates (operated) sending her black birds on missions with letters and messages to her many agents and spies throughout Thedas. what if Rook is one of Leliana's... "rooks"? a spy or agent of the remnants of the Inquisition.

A rook is also defined as "A cheat or swindler; someone who betrays" [noun], "mist, fog" [noun] and "to cheat or swindle" [verb]. it's also a type of trick-taking card game. these sorts of things bring to mind a rogueish, stealthy aspect, and the shady, shadowy dealings and card-game played in Minrathous Shadows.

a rook is also a chess piece. they're castle-like (since "rook" can also mean a castle or fortification) and usually have their top in the shape of a battlement. they can move in any direction along a rank or file on a chessboard on which they stand (horizontal/vertical, not diagonal). they can also do the "castling" move. in history, rooks have also been called towers, castles, rectors and marquesses. in chess, each player starts the game with two rooks at opposite ends of the first rank. chess itself is a game of strategy and tactics. "the chessmaster" as a trope is a character type who manipulates events, tugging on strings and moving 'pieces' into place on a metaphorical chessboard. [Solas' DA:I dialogue about his past, like the one he has with Sera about cells of spies/agents, hark to this]

in the castling move,

"Castling is a move in chess. It consists of moving the king two squares toward a rook on the same rank and then moving the rook to the square that the king passed over. Castling is permitted only if neither the king nor the rook has previously moved; the squares between the king and the rook are vacant; and the king does not leave, cross over, or finish on a square attacked by an enemy piece. Castling is the only move in chess in which two pieces are moved at once."

castling rules often cause confusion, even occasionally among high-level players. historically the move has its roots in the "king's leap", of which there were two forms and which arose in part it seems due to increasing importance of king safety as other pieces were given increased powers through time as the game developed. "the king would move once like a knight, or the king would move two squares on its first move. The knight move might be used early in the game to get the king to safety or later in the game to escape a threat." basically it moves the king away to safety and the rook to a more active position. there is also kingside castling and queenside castling. I wonder, symbolically.. is Rook more the king's rook, or the queen's rook? (reminds me of the Left Hand and Right Hands of the Divine hh). who or what is the king in this hypothetical analogy? the World of Thedas itself? as a castle or fortress.. Rook is the bulwark against what's to come? [over-thinking ik ik, tis just for fun hh].

by now we're all familiar with the chess game Solas plays in banter dialogue with Iron Bull during DA:I. in the in-world chess game, rooks are called towers. Solas moves his right-hand tower once. at a later point in the game, Iron Bull's "Arishok" piece takes Solas' left-hand tower, getting a check and leaving him feeling triumphant. Bull asks Solas wth he is doing as Bull takes Solas' remaining tower. "Your last tower, by the way". Bull, a spy and liar himself, bears down on Solas' pieces "with his full army", thinking a win is in sight. Undeterred, Solas executes a few moves in a sneaky plan and entraps Bull in a checkmate, winning the game after sacrificing various pieces to enact his plan.

rook also brings to mind the Tower tarot card and its meanings. it's associated with sudden, disruptive revelation and potentially destructive change. it connotes danger, crisis, sudden change, destruction, higher learning, and liberation, as well as adversity, calamity, deception, ruin and unforeseen catastrophe. reversed, it connotes things such as negligence, carelessness, apathy and vanity (vanity.. pride). in this depiction of the Tower tarot, lightning strikes from the sky, striking a crown (hubris) off the top of a tower and setting it alight as people fall from the tower to their doom. this imagery and the upright meanings of the card bring to mind the sudden massive change Solas seeks to bring about (destroying the Veil), the revelations and liberation for some that it might bring, his identity as Fen'Harel Lord of Tricksters (deception) as well as the destruction he seems to think the Veil destroying action will cause ("as the world burns in the raw chaos"...). the 'Tower scene' has also already played out once before in Thedosian history, when Solas created the Veil and sealed the Evanuris away, leading to the fall of Arlathan and its wonders. in modern Thedas, Morrigan and Flemeth (as well as possibly some side 'prophecy' type things) both allude to a big change coming to the world.

in DA:I, the Tower tarot card is ofc none other than Solas' ending card, if he is not romanced. in the DA:I version of the card, we see Solas, cloaked in a dark robe and holding a mage staff under a half-moon or eclipse. darkness seeps from his shadow, stark against the orange sky, and blends with the giant black Dread Wolf, looming ominously and open-mouthed above him with its many eyes. (the Tower tarot card Solas scene is later referenced in DA:D promotional art and DA:D-era in-world murals). it makes sense to have assigned this to Solas given the above discussed meanings of the Tower tarot card, but it's a verrry inchresting choice imo to then give "Rook" as a name/title for the DA:D PC.

and most inchrestingly, there's the symbol from the front of Mark Darrah's mysterious Red Book. this mysterious red book shows "a flaming rook" on the cover. the book was an internal guide for developer and publisher eyes only that summarized the vision for DA:D, in its Joplin iteration. we know that the Joplin project has since been revised to an extent that it was the newly codenamed Morrison instead, but the red book is known to still contain plenty of ideas likely to appear in DA:D. most pages of the book remain highly classified. it's the symbol on the front that's of most interest to us though for the purposes of this post. there is a castle, tower, or rook, like a fortress or the chess piece. above the tower, a fire burns, reminding us of the burning tower from the Tower tarot card imagery and what that symbolizes, as well as Solas' "world burning in the raw chaos" line from Trespasser. inside the fire is a wolf, the Dread Wolf, in a now very-familiar and repeated motif in DA:D art, merch, murals, teasers etc. whatever else "rook" may connote, it feels like it's not an accident at all that the PC's name is apparently "Rook", given this depiction of a fiery rook and the Dread Wolf together.

what do you think? ^^

[themthistles]

Daily Positive Affirmations:

i am NOT so poorly made as that. i am CAPABLE of surviving in the state to which i am born. i HAVE NOT grown used to the yoke. i SEE progress without it

[voluxpa]

-- VAPOS -- dieu des eaux calmes; vieillard sage, aime se mélanger aux mortels. invoqué en recherche d'une paix de l'âme et de l'esprit. animal totem : la tortue

crédit icons : LUX, crédit idée : GAZAL. nb; ce dieu est une invention sortie d'une imagination fertile et incroyable. je ne peux que vous encourager à zieuter ses pl sur le serment de l'encre que je vous joins en commentaires.

[in-tenebris-et-in-solitudine]

[phoenixcatch7]

Love how every zelda has a special interest and that special interest saves the world.

[gazeofseer]

Relax, Calm Down for Now (;

We are in a collective energy space, and it becomes harder to ignore the agony casting upon the world with each passing day,

But to stand tall through the storms, wind and spring is what spirit is able to go through we actually do not get harmed, if not body and senses, life is untouchable..

And supposed to be safeguarded such way, where it is not open around the grave so the kindred spirits and those who never left to hide around your shadows,

Evilness is there on the surface, hence the battle becomes harder for any human to rise above a level head when it comes to being spiritual because what saves you from every kind of pain you cost at the name sake of happiness which is yet to turned into one soon..

I what being in spiritual journey means, where you do not care anymore about being, doing thing perfect but by simply being and with the ability to do makes you feel enough in every means and ways.

So do let your condition, state and choices cease your life preserved beyond this illusionary defects of action and reactions, focus on the flow, the breath it will elevate you from any kind of cage, be it mental or physical ones - S

[c-ralique]

ngl i was gna do an event at 50 followers but now I'M ALREADY AT 48 ?! sigh... time to procrastinate!

ok but in all seriousness i can't believe im already getting this far js because of some very simple edits ... i can't thank you all enough :)

erm.. if i reach like ,, 60 or smth i MIGHT do an event .. very low chance since i might have to think about the prompts but raffles r fine too ig .. soo , if i do make an event or celebration, would anyone like to be tagged? ^_^

[dramoor]

“As rivers lose name and shape in the sea, wise men lose name and shape in God, glittering beyond all distance.”

~Book III, Mundaka-Upanishad

(Photo © dramoor 2011 Maui, Hawaii)

[bdkinz]

The Path Reveals Itself Over Time

Wouldn’t it be great if we had the roadmap of life in front of us, knowing where we were supposed to go, when to make a turn and when to recognize we had fulfilled what it is we are here to fulfill? Life would be much simpler, though I would guess it would also become too boring. When everything is predictable, we tend to stop trying because we pretty much know the results.  I am always thinking…

[httpcottagewitch]

🌿🍵🍄

[yoga-onion]

- A message from 23 nights temple -

“Putting effort alone does not result necessary in the path opening, but without efforts the path will not unfold.”

-二十三夜堂からのメッセージ-

”努力すれば必ず道が開けるというわけではありませんが、努力なしには道は開けないのです。”

[x-heesy]

Note to myself 📝

don’t just exist, live. 💕

𝗣𝗨𝗥𝗥𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗜𝗦 𝝠 𝗠𝗬𝗧𝗛 / 𝗜𝗧’𝗦 𝝠 𝗧𝗥𝝠𝗣 / 𝗕𝗥𝗘𝝠𝗞 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 / 𝗤𝗨𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝝝𝗡 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚 / 𝗖𝗛𝝝𝝝𝗦𝗘 𝗪𝗜𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗬 / 𝗪𝗘𝗜𝗥𝗗 𝗜𝗦 𝝠 𝗖𝝝𝗠𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 / 𝗡𝝝𝗧𝗘 𝗧𝝝 𝗠𝗬𝗦𝗘𝗟𝗙 / 𝗬𝝝𝗨 𝝠𝗥𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝝝𝝠𝗗 /𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗧𝗟𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦𝝠𝗥𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗕𝗜𝗚𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 / 𝗠𝗬 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗗𝝝 / 𝗟𝝝𝗩𝗘 & 𝗟𝗘𝗧 𝗟𝝝𝗩𝗘 / 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 & 𝗟𝗘𝗧 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 / 𝗞𝗘𝗘𝗣 𝗜𝗧 𝗦𝗜𝗠𝗣𝗟𝗘 / 𝗞𝗘𝗘𝗣 𝗜𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝝠𝗟 / 𝗩𝗘𝗧𝝝 / 𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗜𝗦𝗧 / 𝗠𝝝𝝝𝗗 𝗕𝝝𝝠𝗥𝗗 /𝗣𝗨𝗡𝗞𝗦𝝠𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗗𝗘𝝠𝗗 ​/ 𝗡𝝝 𝗚𝝝𝗗𝗦 𝗡𝝝 𝗠𝝠𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦 / 𝗣𝗥𝝝 𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘 𝗠𝗙𝗭 / 𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗥𝗚𝗬𝗦𝗨𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗥𝗭 𝗡𝝝𝗧 𝗪𝗘𝗟(𝗟) 𝗖𝗨𝗠 / 𝗧𝝝 𝝠𝗟𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝝠 𝗟𝗨𝗩𝝠𝗭

#justanfriendlyreminder 💡

#thelittlethingsarethebigthings 🔎

#autosuggestion #pointofview #codingyourself #programyourself #endlessness #creatingyourself #neverstoplearning

#fantasy #empathy #equality #respect #love #basics

#textart #artfulquotes #typography #expressyourself #iphoneart #newcontemporary #popart #artsyfartsy #artfuckery

#quotes #quotesdaily #quotestoliveby #quotestagram #quotesaboutlife #quotesoftheday #quotestags #quotesgram #motivationalquotes #quotesandsayings #quoteslover #quotesofinstagram #quotesforlife #quotestoinspire #quotestoremember #quotestag #quotesilove #inspirationalquotes #lovequotes @frenchpsychiatrymuderedmycnut #quotesaboutlifequotesandsayings #successquotes #dailyquotes #lifequotes #quotesforyou #positivequotes #quotes4you #quotesaboutlove #instaquotes #quoteslife #quoteslove #qotd

Soundtrack: little things by lamb 🌊

There's so many things that we miss in our everyday lives

We're so busy hustling, bustling chasing far away dreams

We forget the little things

Like blue skies, green eyes and our babies growing

Like rainbows, fresh snow and the smell of summer

We forget to live

Give us eyes like children so we live each day as others

We're so sure we know so much that we forget to listen

Then we wonder fickle things

Like cheap thrills fast fuel and constant consumption

Like TV, CDs and cars that speak our names

We forget to live

There's so many things that we miss in our everyday lives

We're so busy hustling, bustling chasing far away dreams

We forget the little things

Like blue skies, green eyes and our babies growing

Like rainbows, fresh snow and the smell of summer

We forget to live

[probablyuselessstatblocks]

Hi there! Not sure if this is how it works, but could you do a stat block for the nautilus (N. pompillius is its scientific name btw!)

Hell yeah I can! Hope I did it justice.

Apparently Nautilus are predators, and also they jet through the water at speeds of up to two knots! They also sometimes eat other nautilus.

For future submitters, you can either submit through the ask box, or if you have a statblock you made you can submit through the blog as well and if it fits the vibes of the blog then I will post it.

[in-tenebris-et-in-solitudine]

[peggyloraine]

Can someone write a story where

The BRIDGERTONs are Lycan and in service/ related to the Royals-Charlotte and George. Fathers were 2nd cousins. The Featheringtons are unpopular alpha/omega, because Baron Featherington is a puny, weak spirited alpha. Penelope is befriended by Colin when she gets lost at four years old and Eloise becomes her playmate. She is loved and accepted in the BRIDGERTON home.

Edmund dies….The boys are sent away to school. The girls go to a local school. Penelope is picked on because she is small and shy. After Lord Featherington dies and she doesn’t present her first heat Penelope is thrown out of her pack, after suffering years of abuse and bullying. The pack thinks she is weak and has no wolf.

Colin has always cared deeply for Penelope and dreamed of becoming her mate, but he knows that she has not presented by her 18th birthday and Lycan may not marry beta or human females. Yes, he declared it semi publicly and it hurt Pen. But she didn’t hear his full declaration. ‘No, I will never marry Pen, not in your wildest dreams Fife.’ Was all she heard, but after she ran away, he said, ‘because it is not allowed and if I can not marry her, then I will marry no one’. And he starts wandering the globe. (Before, she is kicked out of her pack).

Pen is taken in by the BRIDGERTON family and starts uni. She grows more lovely by the day and her and Eloise have always been best friends. Eloise keeps up correspondence with Colin and let’s him know how Pen is all throughout their university years.

When Eloise has her first heat cycle, she has Penelope write to him and when he receives the letter the heavenly scent on the letter has him rushing home to find his mate. Lycans are still Alpha and Omega but Lycans omegas present older (around 21) and the Featheringtons have not presented Lycan in generations. Colin doesn’t know it is Penelope at first, but knows it is his mate.

I want Lady D and Lady B to always suspect that Pen is a Lycan. I want Edmond to have too. I want them to have always suspected that they were soul mates.

You can put as many book and show elements as you want, but please can you give is Lycan Polin.