(urth) Hieros

[b sharp]

Roy C. Lackey takes me to task for using the abbreviation "Hieros" to refer 
collectively to the groups named Hierogrammates, their larvae the Hierarchs 
and their servants, the Hierodules.  This is a convention used by others in 
this archive (see Dan'l's most recent post) but Roy has a point.  The term 
"Hiero" is used  by Tzadkiel and Apheta to refer specifically to the human 
cognate race which produced the other three (although Roy, your page 
references never match up to my edition).  I'm not sure what a good 
substitute abbreviation might be-  Hiero-'s  H x3's?  HHH's?

In his recent posts Roy finds explanation for the origin of the HHH's  in 
Urth and then in Malrubius' "secret of the Universe" speech to Severian in 
Citadel.  These are the most explicit explanations but I find Cyriaca's 
story in Sword also to be relevant.  Her story comes from her...uncle's book 
which hasn't been opened in a chilliad, but she assumes everyone knows parts 
of it anyway (they don't).

In her story, humanity expands across the galaxy and evolves into non-animal 
entities.  These entities create servants which seem to be 
machines/robots/computers of some sort ("thinking engines").  The servants 
turn on their creators and give them back their animalistic nature by 
introducing artifacts and knowledge from their past, and by assigning each 
human a sort of guardian presence that no other human can see or hear to 
provide knowledge.

Isn't this exactly what the hierodules, Barbatus, Famulimus and Ossipago do? 
  They give Baldanders artifacts and knowledge. They give Severian a 
personal "Malrubius" (and Triskele) to guide him. (I'll note that the old 
autarch, Appian, seems to have been given a similar aquastor from his past, 
Paeon;  Gurloes and perhaps some others have invisible presences they talk 
to...).

Roy says:
>The "holy slaves" (of which Barbatus and Famulimus are examples) were a 
>race of beings
>created by the Hierogrammates to serve them in Briah. (URTH, 36) They are
>not humans, as their living quarters on Tzadkiel's Ship clearly shows.

But, Malrubius' story says the "created beings" escaped to Yesod then had to 
look back to Briah to find (not create) the Hierodules (and humanity).  I 
notice Roy doesn't include Ossipago in his examples of Hierodules.  There 
are suggestions that Ossipago is a machine (deus ex machina, lol).  So, 
maybe some of the created beings/machines from Cyriaca's story escaped to 
Yesod, becoming Hierarchs/grammates while some stayed behind?

To me a way to reconcile all these conflicting accounts is to suggest there 
are two sorts of Hierodules.  There is the original machine kind that 
originated in Briah, like Ossipago and there is the more fleshly but angelic 
kind like Barbatus and Famulimus who were created in Yesod and sent back.  I 
think this interpretation jibes with all three sources of information, Urth, 
Malrubius and Cyriaca.  It also explains why Famulimus and Barbatus are 
stuck in backwards time, in Briah, while Ossipago isn't.

In Judeo-Christianity, the angels are set in a hierarchy. There are 
archangels and lower angels.  Lofty Seraphim and lowly Cherubim. 
Interestingly, the Cherubim are said to have four faces. And Famulimus 
has..let's see, only three? 
No...stop....must........not........over-........read........

-bsharp