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Description

Why do we build the wall?
My children, my children
Why do we build the wall?

Why do we build the wall?
We build the wall to keep us free
That's why we build the wall
We build the wall to keep us free

Teresh-gal is the Builder, the god of the titular Walls. He built the City and protects its inhabitants from rapacious and wandering elements. The Walls of the City are a marvel, impossible to build and maintain by human hands, and as such are sustained by his strength. His worshipers give him the power to keep the Walls strong and impassable, even by winged dragons.

Teresh-gal is represented by glass, metal, and flowers, usually in the shape of a shield or armor to denote his guardianship. The lotus specifically is his sigil when by itself, but a variety of flowers adorn his symbols and invocations. The ancient name for wall is 'tel', and the three major sections of the City are named Tel Boss, Tel Aegis, and Tel Shield after Teresh-gal's defender nature. He represents leaders, mages, artisans, and architects, the wise and strong in their craft. He's seen as methodical and disciplined, the idea that hard work will reward. Teresh-gal is the most powerful god in the City, aligned with the Crown, and his followers take umbridge with anything that might weaken him or the Walls. Breaches that damage the City are blamed on a lack of faith. The metal of Teresh-gal represents the inflexibility of his worship: the point of humanity is to feed and nourish the gods. (An actual, real-life Assyrian quote that made me go "Whoa.")

Teresh-gal is the most powerful and influential god by far. He doesn't so much regulate the spiritual realm as he does the physical one. He has associations with law, tradition, and authority, usually within the archetypes of men. Men are considered "metal" and women are "metal-plated", that is, only with the appearance of strength that doesn't go to the core, considered too easy swayed and not strong enough to withstand the rigors of leadership. The term "metallic" is a derisive reference to Hwinna or the coats of her horses: shiny but lacking in substance. Teresh-gal represents the divine hierarchy, the ides that everything has its place and must know its place, so his most obvious worshipers are those at the top. He can be moved to assist with major issues such as redirecting a river for irrigation or creating foundations for a new City block, but these occasions are rare and legendary.

The lyrics are Why We Build The Wall from the Anais Mitchell musical 'Hadestown', which I discovered through PhilosophyTube. I love Ollie's cover of it, but I highly recommend the original as well. This came after I'd finished the rough draft of the whole trilogy, but holy crap, I could not have asked for a better song. So much of the reaction to the song paints it with contemporary struggles, but the struggle within my fantasy Assyria is based on some seriously old politics. Like Hwinna, Teresh-gal represented more cycles of rights rising and fading away.

Teresh-gal is inspired by another Assyrian god, but giving the name would probably give spoilers to anyone familiar with the Mesopotamian pantheon. Not entirely, but enough to make me want to digress. I especially like the "my children, my children" in his song, because he very much regards the City as full of his children.

This is a new fantasy trilogy, the first full-color illustration book of which is The Dragon Wall. Watch for the Kickstarter March 1st 2020.

Description

Why do we build the wall?
My children, my children
Why do we build the wall?

Why do we build the wall?
We build the wall to keep us free
That's why we build the wall
We build the wall to keep us free

Teresh-gal is the Builder, the god of the titular Walls. He built the City and protects its inhabitants from rapacious and wandering elements. The Walls of the City are a marvel, impossible to build and maintain by human hands, and as such are sustained by his strength. His worshipers give him the power to keep the Walls strong and impassable, even by winged dragons.

Teresh-gal is represented by glass, metal, and flowers, usually in the shape of a shield or armor to denote his guardianship. The lotus specifically is his sigil when by itself, but a variety of flowers adorn his symbols and invocations. The ancient name for wall is 'tel', and the three major sections of the City are named Tel Boss, Tel Aegis, and Tel Shield after Teresh-gal's defender nature. He represents leaders, mages, artisans, and architects, the wise and strong in their craft. He's seen as methodical and disciplined, the idea that hard work will reward. Teresh-gal is the most powerful god in the City, aligned with the Crown, and his followers take umbridge with anything that might weaken him or the Walls. Breaches that damage the City are blamed on a lack of faith. The metal of Teresh-gal represents the inflexibility of his worship: the point of humanity is to feed and nourish the gods. (An actual, real-life Assyrian quote that made me go "Whoa.")

Teresh-gal is the most powerful and influential god by far. He doesn't so much regulate the spiritual realm as he does the physical one. He has associations with law, tradition, and authority, usually within the archetypes of men. Men are considered "metal" and women are "metal-plated", that is, only with the appearance of strength that doesn't go to the core, considered too easy swayed and not strong enough to withstand the rigors of leadership. The term "metallic" is a derisive reference to Hwinna or the coats of her horses: shiny but lacking in substance. Teresh-gal represents the divine hierarchy, the ides that everything has its place and must know its place, so his most obvious worshipers are those at the top. He can be moved to assist with major issues such as redirecting a river for irrigation or creating foundations for a new City block, but these occasions are rare and legendary.

The lyrics are Why We Build The Wall from the Anais Mitchell musical 'Hadestown', which I discovered through PhilosophyTube. I love Ollie's cover of it, but I highly recommend the original as well. This came after I'd finished the rough draft of the whole trilogy, but holy crap, I could not have asked for a better song. So much of the reaction to the song paints it with contemporary struggles, but the struggle within my fantasy Assyria is based on some seriously old politics. Like Hwinna, Teresh-gal represented more cycles of rights rising and fading away.

Teresh-gal is inspired by another Assyrian god, but giving the name would probably give spoilers to anyone familiar with the Mesopotamian pantheon. Not entirely, but enough to make me want to digress. I especially like the "my children, my children" in his song, because he very much regards the City as full of his children.

This is a new fantasy trilogy, the first full-color illustration book of which is The Dragon Wall. Watch for the Kickstarter March 1st 2020.