Two important storylines in this book are getting to know Leto and understanding
Paul/Preacher. Both these storylines are
meant to help us understand the Golden Path.
Although the hints along the way are pretty strong indicators that The Preacher is Paul, Frank Herbert keeps up the suspense and leaves us
with just enough doubt. This is the same
feeling that Paul wants to impart on everyone, especially Alia.
No one must discover that the
mask was merely cloth, not an Ixian artifact at all. His hand must not slip from Assan Tariq’s
bony shoulder. Let The Preacher once
walk as the sighted despite his eyeless sockets, and all doubts would
dissolve. The small hope he nursed would
be dead. Each day he prayed for a
change, something different over which he might stumble, but even Salusa
Secundus had been a pebble, every aspect known.
Nothing changed; nothing could be changed … yet.
(Children
of Dune, p. 102)
This passage preceded The Preacher’s entry to the central square in Arrakeen
to deliver a sermon. Alia watched from
her spy hole with fear and doubt, searching for sure signs of his
identity. After the sermon, she paced
and brooded about what to do, how to deal with this “problem”. She recalled how the Bene Gesserit “codified
the problem” (Children of Dune, p.
108).
“A large populace held in check by a small
but powerful force is quite a common situation in our universe. And we know the major conditions wherein this
large populace may turn upon its keepers ---
“One: When they find a leader. This is the most volatile threat to the
powerful; they must retain control of
leaders.
“Two: When the populace recognizes its
chains. Keep the populace blind and
unquestioning.
“Three: When the populace perceives a hope
of escape from bondage. They must never
believe that escape is possible!”
(Children
of Dune, p. 108)
Alia labors at coming up with strategies to control the Empire. She consults her inner voices but she is not
in control. Duncan Idaho (ghola #1) had
truly loved her but saw that she was losing the battle within. In an early discussion with Alia about
strategy he was trying to explain how he viewed things as a mentat.
“When I was trained as a mentat …
It is very difficult, Alia, to learn how to work your own mind. You learn first that the mind must be allowed
to work itself. That’s very
strange. You can work your own muscles,
exercise them, strengthen them, but the mind acts of itself. Sometimes, when you have learned this about
the mind, it shows you things you do not want to see.”
(Children
of Dune, p. 125)
Duncan has provided
a good description of what meditation helps do for your mind. Of course, with new powers of observation
gained from mastering such things it is quite likely that you will perceive
things that you might not have previously noticed. That is where the saying “ignorance is bliss”
comes from.
This book is filled with philosophy on many aspects of the human condition;
especially government and religion. I’ll
wrap up this entry with the following chapter starter, keenly appropriate in
this presidential election year.
Good government never depends
upon laws, but upon the personal qualities of those who govern. The machinery of government is always
subordinate to the will of those who administer that machinery. The most important element of government,
therefore, is the method of choosing leaders.
-- Law and Governance
The Spacing Guild Manual
(Children
of Dune, p. 148)
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