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>as it goes along with Wolfe's caginess about whether we are the ancestors or the descendants of the people of Urth.<<BR>
<BR>
I think Dave Lebling is closest to being on track. There are Wolfe interviews and texual clues that make it clear<BR>
that Urth is a twin to Earth, existing in the alternate universe of Briah (I think Earth might be in Yesod). Our conception of<BR>
normal time runs in each universe, starting with Big Bang and ending with Big Gnab. But Big Gnab leads to another Big<BR>
Bang so there is a more cosmic sense of time than what we can measure with watches. Briah is the predecessor<BR>
to Yesod and thus Urth is older and more spiritually primitive than Earth. While Earth got its spiritual cleansing with the <BR>
Biblical Flood and coming of Jesus, Urth had to wait millions of years longer for the Christ-figure Severian to arrive.<BR>The name Urth conveys this primitive, pre-Christian condition, even though in Severian's time, Urth science is far <BR>
advanced to our own.<BR>
<BR>
-bsharp<BR><br /><hr />Spell a grand slam in this game where word skill meets World Series. <a href='http://club.live.com/word_slugger.aspx?icid=word_slugger_wlhm_admod_april08' target='_new'>Get in the game.</a></body>
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