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What are dæmons?
Topic Started: Jul 3 2008, 07:13 PM (66 Views)
Damien and Keeru
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Overlord
If you have no idea what a dæmon is, here is a short explanation. After all, this could have gone on for pages and pages. =p

Everyone has a dæmon, whether they are in contact with it or not. If you didn't have a dæmon, you wouldn't be alive, because your dæmon is you -- they're your soul.

The idea of dæmons is not a new concept; it has been around since at least the time of Socrates, an ancient Greek philosopher that was alive from 469-399 BC. He frequently spoke of a "guiding voice", which many consider to be "intuition". That is, a kind of knowing that goes beyond simple logic, or even our physical senses. The dæmon that Socrates spoke of would speak to him, and tell him when he was about to make a mistake.

In modern times, you might have heard about dæmons if you've read the novel series by Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials. This is a trilogy that begins with The Golden Compass, which has been made into a movie. In this trilogy, everyone in the main character, Lyra's, world has a dæmon that is in the form of an animal. These are solid beings that stay close to their human half, and can change shape at will, at least until the human is an adult, when the dæmon will settle into their "true form".

In this world, dæmons are not corporeal -- that is, they do not have a physical form that you can see or feel. How, then, can we contact our dæmon?

Your dæmon may be incorporeal, but they're still there. You can hear them, sense them, and you can definitely feel it when they don't want you to do something. If you've ever gotten a very strong sense that seemed to come from nowhere that you shouldn't do something, that was your dæmon letting you know what they thought about your plans. The next time you get an intuitive sense of something, pay attention to it! Your dæmon has been ignored for years, because our society tells us not to listen to the "voices" that are completely natural, and very useful.

You may think this sounds crazy, because you've been led to believe that it is, but please continue reading, and then decide what you think of this.

If you've ever felt that you were alone, even with a group of friends, perhaps that's a natural response when someone has been ignoring their dæmon. Believe me when I say that once you've found your dæmon, things certainly do improve. They can be your guide, your best companion, and especially your other half. Humans are not simply flesh, after all. There's far more to us than that.

Close your eyes now and let the image of an animal come to your mind. What is the first animal you think of? Do you feel a sense of rightness about the form? If you feel drawn to it, and understand it, then that may be your dæmon. If, once you realize this, you get a sense of happiness, or even that a part of you is screaming, "Yes!", then you can be sure that is your dæmon. If you're still having trouble with this, don't worry. It's not always easy to contact your dæmon, and it's different for each person. Your dæmon's personality is your own personality, most likely buried under the shell that you've had to put on to be accepted by society. Therefore, if you are not a talkative person at the core, then your dæmon will not talk to you very often. They will still be there for you, though, so don't worry about that.

Even if you are having trouble "visualizing" your dæmon, you can move on to the next step, because some people find this easier: talking to your dæmon.

There are a few different ways of talking to your dæmon, just as there are different ways of talking to your friends. First is to talk out loud with them. This is, I must say, the least favorable method of communication. After all, talking to yourself is the first sign of insanity, isn't it? /sarcasm

The second way is by thinking. Try to direct your thoughts somewhere else, and you may get a reply. You won't hear it the same way that you hear your human friends speak, but it's still communication. You may get a sense of what your dæmon is saying, or you may mentally "hear" words being spoken to you.

Another way you can talk to you dæmon is by writing down your thoughts. This is slow, but the replies may be clearer. You could even write down what your dæmon says back to you, if you like.

And now, on to projecting your dæmon.

"Projecting" your dæmon does not mean that you will be able to clearly see them. You won't see with your eyes a tiger prowling beside you, a falcon soaring above your head, a mouse curled up on your bed, or anything else. You may visualize them, and "see" them in your mind, but in this world dæmons will always be incorporeal, unless, perhaps, we someday become evolved enough so that our dæmons can take a physical form and walk beside us. However, if that is to happen, it won't happen anytime soon.

What "projecting" really means is that you become aware of where your dæmon is. Right now, I feel that my dæmon, Keeru, is sitting on my bed beside me as I type. I have to focus my mind on where hei* is to be able to know what exactly hei is doing. It's difficult to explain, and it's best when someone figures out how to do it by themselves. However, I can say that it does take a while.

Now, onto the subject of names.

You see that I referred to my dæmon as Keeru. That is, after all, his name. Every dæmon has a name that is their "true name", but it is not one that is simply given to them as you might give a name to your pet. You and your dæmon must think on this together, and choose a name that you both instinctively feel belongs to your dæmon. These names are not usually common, human names. Keeru, for example, is not a name that I have ever heard, yet it came into my mind when I thought about him, and it seems to suit him very well.

In The Golden Compass, the names of dæmons were usually very unique and complex, yet some were simple. It depends on the personality of the person (which is what the dæmon is, in a sense). Some characters' dæmons were called names such as Pantalaimon, Sophonax and Sayan Kötör, while others were called Ratter and Hester. The complexity of the name does not mean that you are a simple or complex person, however. There are many people with dæmons that have simple names, and yet that person's personality is very complex.

The gender of your dæmon is usually the opposite of your's, but there are cases of people having a dæmon that is the same gender as they are. Though some have theorized that the gender of a person's dæmon indicates which gender the human is attracted to, that is not the case.

Gender does not really affect anything; after all, dæmons have no sexual interest, and they do not breed. Though some dæmons may make sexual jokes, they have no interest.

I hope you have learned something from this, and I hope that, if you have not yet found your dæmon, you will try to find them. ^^ Thank you for taking the time to read this, and if you have anything you wish to add to this (or, if you want to compliment or criticize this), please post a reply to this thread!




* when talking about a dæmon, people generally add an "i" on to certain words, so that others know they are talking about a dæmon (such as "hei", "shei", or "wei" if referring to yourself and your dæmon). These words are pronounced the same way they normally are.
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