Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Dhe’nar Visual Art and the Tsara

08/01/2007

As is their nature, the Dhe’nar rarely engage in tasks for which there is no clear tangible, practical benefit. So it is with what passes for Dhe’nari art. The concept of “art for art’s sake” is not unknown amongst the First Born, but it is generally regarded as a waste of time. This is not to say that the Dhe’nar do not produce art, but rather that when they do so, there is always more to it than mere aesthetics.

Take, for example, Dhenari painting and sculpting. While a superficial look at the products of such may seem no different than that of other cultures, the Worker Caste, over the millenia, has devised a method of delivering a great deal of information through subtleties in the work. In this way, something such as a wall frieze can deliver a lesson, or even a full treatise, regarding important elements of Dhe’nar society.

An element of this “visual code” is the tsara - a series of hand gestures each of which possesses its own unique meaning based on finger and wrist position. It is rare indeed to find a representation of a humanoid in Dhe’nari art that is not performing a tsara of some sort.

Of course, as Dhe’nar are educated in the meaning of the tsara as part of the extensive training in their youths, many Dhe’nar use the tsara while communing amongst themselves as well. Use of the tsara is not a true “sign language” in that it does not replicate the full range of their spoken tongues. It is, however, useful in delivering discrete social and philosophical concepts, and thus can be used to supplement verbal communication, if so desired.

Examples of a few tsara and their meanings follow.

(This list is by no means comprehensive, and is merely provided as a small sample of possibilities. I was originally going to illustrate the hand positions, but felt that was probably irrelevant for a text based game and so translated them into Act commands instead.):

Agreement - One expresses one’s agreement with another. Often used while the issue one agrees with is being spoken, so that one can express his opinion immediately without having to verbally interrupt.
(XXXX extends the fingers of his right hand and grasps his thumb with his left)

Arkati - One or related to one
(XXXX forms a loose fist)

Ascendant - Used when discussing an Ascendant, in combination with Greeting if actually meeting one
(XXXX touches his ring finger to his thumb)

Ascension - Used when discussing a topic relevant to Ascension
(XXXX touches his index finger to his thumb)

Asceticism - One is eschewing material reward
(XXXX touches his ring finger to his palm while extending the others)

Bond - Signifies a bond with another, be it mental, physical, or spiritual
(XXXX folds his ring and little fingers, while extending the others)

Caste: One signs one’s own caste, never another’s

Temple
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing inwards)

Warlock
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing right)

Warrior
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing left)

Worker
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing outwards)

Comprehension - One understands the instructions given or the discussion at hand
(XXXX touches his index fingers together)

Disagreement - One expresses one’s disagreement with another. Used in the same manner as Agreement.
(XXXX extends the fingers of his left hand and grasps his thumb with his right)

Family - Signifies a blood relation with another
(XXXX touches his middle finger to his thumb)

Greeting - Less formal than a full bow, typically combined with a nod
(XXXX extends his little and index fingers, folding the others across his palm)

Instruction (request)
(XXXX turns his palm downwards, and folds his thumb across it)

Instruction (offer)
(XXXX turns his palm upwards, and folds his thumb across it)

Knowledge - One has knowledge of a given subject that one wishes to impart
(XXXX crooks his index finger)

Protection (requesting)
(XXXX turns his palm inwards, fingers extended)

Protection (offering)
(XXXX turns his palm outwards, fingers extended)

Warning - One is signaling another to take caution
(XXXX angles his hand upwards, extending his index and little finger)

Saturday, September 02, 2006

Dhe’nar Language: Various Types

09/02/2006

Dhe’nar have four languages in common. These four languages are:

1) Common

2) Elven

3) Dark Elven

4) Dhe’narsi

The number of languages all Dhe’nar speak raises a few questions:

Why do a people as long-lived and tradition-bound as the elves have so many language variations, over comparitively few generations?

Why do both Faendryl and Dhe’nar speak “Dark Elven”, when both cultures have had no contact, with the exception of a handful of individuals only recently?

I have come up with answers for these, as they relate to the Dhe’nar. The explanations are as follows:

Common - This is the standard trade language, based mainly on the human tongue. All folk who travel through Elanthia are expected to know this. Though likely not needed in the South, it would make sense for Dhe’nar who travel through the areas the game takes place in to know Common. No special explanation is needed for this.

Elven - All elves speak this language, because it is the standard form of communication for all elven cultures, barely changed since they were first created, ages ago. To the Dhe’nar, this is high speech, used for formal discussion. It is the “mother language”, and as tradition-bound as the Dhe’nar are, believing themselves to be the truest branch of elven culture, it would make sense for this to be the most revered of their various forms of speech.

Dark Elven - There is only one thing that both the Faendryl and the Dhe’nar have in common, and so, by process of elimination, it is most probably the reason they share a common tongue. This shared experience is their time spent in Rhoska-Tor.

It has been established that the magical energies of Rhoska-Tor changed the biological makeup of the Elven people who dwelled there, and these morphological variations - such as silver hair, ebon skin, etc. - demonstrate such changes outwardly. As these traits are still passed onto children, obviously the changes were permanent. Even those who look similar to standard elves outwardly are capable of producing children who look distinctly “dark elven”, so it is clear that the changes are permanent, and internal, and simply do not always express themselves in an obvious, external manner.

It is my belief that of these permanent internal changes, one is the ability to communicate with others who have been similarly changed by the energies of Rhoska-Tor. This could be a mental/psychic ability, an innate magical one, an ability to speak at higher frequencies than the normal range of sentient hearing - there are countless possible explanations. The fact remains, however, that even dark elves who have never had contact with each other or their respective cultures are capable of communicating in a manner that only other dark elves can comprehend.

Obviously, part of this communication is spoken aloud in the normal audible range, since non-dark elves can hear and recognize dark elven speech being spoken, even though they cannot translate it. I am of the opinion that dark elven “language” is really just elven or common speech, but with enough of the words being transmitted in a manner that makes deciphering the meanings impossible to non-dark elves.

Thus, dark elven communication would be equivalent to transmitting encrypted data along a path. Others may be able to intercept the data, but they do not have the capacity to decode and understand it, because only the intended recipient has the necessary tools for unencryption.

And that is how two cultures who evolved separately can have a similar “language”, because it is not a true language at all, but rather a proprietary form of communication.

Dhe’narsi - This is the Dhe’nar specific language, newly made universal to the Dhe’nar through game mechanics. It is a form of Elven with a few generations worth of evolution in structure and sound. This is a more conversational language for the Dhe’nar than pure Elven. All Dhe’nar understand it, though some choose not to speak it, preferring the purity of the mother tongue for all dealings with fellow Elves, either Dhe’nar or Fallen. 

Friday, September 01, 2006

Dhe’nar Language Changes

09/01/2006

Due to the fact that all Dhe’nar can now speak Dhe’narsi via game mechanics, my previous post attempting to explain the multiple languages spoken by Dhe’nar will have to change. Keep an eye out for this update in the near future.