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Sacred Scrolls

2011-04-15T09:52:23Z

Asleifsson: Removed description of 'spawned a culture lasting 150,000 years'.

: ''For the Sacred Scrolls depicted in the comic books, see: [[Sacred Scrolls (alternate)]].''

[[Image:Pythia.jpg|right|thumb|A portion of the Sacred Scrolls, specifically, a portion of the Book of [[Pythia]].]]
The '''Sacred Scrolls''' are a set of writings that form the basis of [[Religion in the Twelve Colonies|Colonial religion]], a polytheistic faith resembling the legends of ancient Greece. The scrolls record much of the alleged history of humanity, including life on [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]] before the great exodus, and the legend of [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]]. Portions of the scrolls are used in religious ceremonies, such as the [[Service for the dead]] ([[Miniseries]], "[[Act of Contrition]]").

Most notable among the Sacred Scrolls is the Book of Pythia, also referred to as the Pythian Prophecy. Written 3,600 years ago by the oracle [[Pythia]], they are believed by some to foretell the current exodus from the [[Twelve Colonies of Kobol]].

==Contents==
The contents of the Sacred Scrolls have only been revealed in glimpses, through brief quotes, paraphrases and explanations.

===The Book of [[Pythia]]===
:'''Roslin:''' Who is Pythia?<br>'''Elosha:''' One of the [[oracle]]s in the Sacred Scrolls. 3,600 years ago. Pythia wrote about the exile and rebirth of the human race. ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====The Cycle of Time====
:'''Leoben:''' ''"All this has happened before, and all of it will happen again."'' ([[Flesh and Bone]])

:'''Six:''' ''"All this has happened before, and all this will happen again."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

:'''Roslin:''' If you believe in the gods, then you believe in the cycle of time that we are all playing our parts in a story that is told again, and again, and again throughout eternity. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

:'''Amanda Graystone:''' Do you remember that old saying? "All this has happened before, and all this will happen again"? ([[The Imperfections of Memory]])

====The Dying Leader====
:'''Elosha:''' ''"And the lords anointed a leader to guide the Caravan of the Heavens to their new homeland."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

:'''Elosha:''' She also wrote that the new leader suffered a wasting disease and would not live to enter the new land. ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

:'''Roslin:''' The scriptures tell us a dying leader lead humanity to the promised land. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====A Vision of Serpents====
:'''Elosha:''' ''"And unto the leader they gave a vision of serpents numbering two and ten, as a sign of things to come."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====The Serpents Lead the People Into Battle?====
:'''Six:''' ''"Led by serpents numbering two and ten..."'' (fragment) ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====A Confrontation at the Home of the Gods====
:'''Six:''' ''"Though the outcome favored the few, it led to a confrontation at the home of the gods."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====The Lower Demon====
:'''Elosha:''' The scrolls of Pythia do speak of a [[Sharon Agathon|lower demon]], who helped the people in a time of crisis. ([[Home, Part I]])

====The Blaze and the High Road====
:'''Elosha:''' ''"And the blaze pursued them, and the people of Kobol had a choice. To board the great ship, or take the high road through the rocky ridge."''<br>
:'''Valerii (continuing):''' ''"And the body of each tribe's leader was offered to the gods in the [[tomb of Athena]]."'' And the great ship was the [[galleon]] that departed from here, where we're standing. And it took the founders of the thirteen colonies to their destiny. And those that didn't board the galleon took the high road, a rocky ridge that lead to the tomb. ([[Home, Part I]])

:'''Elosha:''' The path is supposed to be marked by gravestones. ([[Home, Part I]])

====The Gates of Hera====
:'''Valerii:''' That's the spot where your god supposedly stood and watched Athena throw herself down onto the rocks below, out of despair over the Exodus of the thirteen tribes. Athena's tomb, whoever or whatever she really was, is probably up there. ([[Home, Part II]])

====The Arrow of Apollo====
:'''Roslin:''' ''"And the Arrow of Apollo will open the Tomb of Athena."'' ([[Home, Part II]])

:'''Elosha:''' The scriptures tell us that Kobol points the way to Earth. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

:'''Roslin:''' According to the scriptures, if we had the arrow of Apollo we could take it down to Kobol and we could use it to open the tomb of Athena and find our way to Earth. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====Kobol and the Blood Price====
:'''Adama:''' ''"And [[Zeus, Lord of Kobol|Zeus]] warned the leaders of the twelve tribes that any return to Kobol would exact a price in blood."'' ([[Home, Part II]])

====The Flood====
:'''Baltar:''' ''"Pythia talks about the flood ... wiped out most of humanity ... nobody blames the flood ... flood is a force of nature ... through flood, mankind is rejuvinated, born again ..."'' ([[The Hub]])

===History===

====Pre-Exodus====
:'''Elosha:''' This place is Kobol... birthplace of mankind, where the gods and men lived in paradise until the exodus of the thirteen tribes. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====The Exodus====
:'''Elosha:''' How old are the ruins?<br>'''[[Billy Keikeya]]:''' Well, we won't know for sure until we send a ground team, but the initial estimates have it on the order of approximately 2,000 years.<br>'''Elosha:''' That's around the time the thirteen tribes first left Kobol. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====The Thirteenth Tribe on Earth====
:'''Starbuck:''' The scriptures say that when the thirteenth tribe landed on Earth, they looked up into the heavens and they saw their twelve brothers. ([[Home, Part II]])

===Other verses from the Sacred Scrolls===
*'''Adama:''' "Life here began out there." These are the first words of the Sacred Scrolls…<ref>The phrase is an homage to the voiceover in the [[Original Series]] opening credits.</ref> ([[Miniseries]])
*During a [[Salt Line Ceremony]] on ''Galactica'': "Their enemies will divide them. Their colonies broken in the fiery chasm of space. Their shining days renounced by a multitude of dark sacrifices. Yet still they will remain always together." ([[Exodus, Part I]])

===Sayings<ref>These sayings are similar to the [[Wikipedia:Algernon Sydney|Algernon Sydney]] quote "God helps those who help themselves"</ref>===
:'''Commander Adama:''' ''"The gods shall lift those who lift each other."'' ([[Home, Part II]])
:'''[[Cavil]]:''' ''"The gods lift up those who lift each other."'' ([[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I]])
:'''[[Duck]]:''' ''"The gods help those who help themselves."'' ([[Battlestar Galactica: The Resistance|The Resistance]])

==Notes==

* The book of Pythia, which contains or is identical to the Pythian Prophecy, was written 1,600 years before the final exodus of the last twelve tribes, and documents the exodus of the [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]]. The text apparently contains a detailed narrative of the events of the Exodus, and continues to be interpreted as a source of prophecy 2,000 years after its prophecies have (apparently) already been fulfilled.
* The Cycle of Time is apparently a key component of Colonial theology. The notion of a circular progression of time (also known as [[Wikipedia:Eternal return|eternal return]] or eternal recurrence) is foreign to the ancient Greek religion of which Colonial religion are largely based, but it is a common theme in many modern religions. Some Hindus believe in an endless cycle of ages called [[Wikipedia:Yuga|Yugas]]. The ancient [[Wikipedia:Maya|Maya]] people, as well as the [[Wikipedia:Inca|Incas]] and [[Wikipedia:Aztec|Aztecs]] also believed in the circular nature of time. In philosophy, the [[Wikipedia:Stoics|Stoics]], a movement originating in hellenistic Greece, held the doctrine. In the nineteenth century, the doctrine appears in the writings of [[Wikipedia:Friedrich Nietzsche|Friedrich Nietzsche]] as a method of life-affirmation.

==Analysis==

===Correspondences===
Assuming the events following the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]] are a repetition of the events predicted by Pythia, and which came to pass centuries later, we can make use of the prophecy by first constructing a coherent historical narrative from them and then looking for correspondences with the events of the series.

*The Lower Demon is [[Sharon Agathon|the Caprica copy of Sharon Valerii]]
*The Dying Leader is President [[Laura Roslin]]
*The "serpents numbering two and ten" are the [[Viper (RDM)|Viper]]s of Strike Force Two in the [[Battle for the Tylium Asteroid]].
*The fleet defended by ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'' is the "Caravan of the Heavens".
*The "price in blood" has been paid by various people including [[Crashdown]] and [[Elosha]].
*The Jealous God is Cavil, as he is the humanoid Cylon model that instigated the [Fall of the 12 Colonies] and wanted to be favored by his creators over the other models.
*The "offering of the bodies of the leaders of the 12 Tribes to the gods" is the Final Five's offering the Centurions help creating the humanoid models.

===The "One Exodus" Interpretation===
This interpretation assumes that the timeline is recurring on a scale of 1,600 to 2,000 years, and the exodus from Kobol is a direct parallel to the exodus from the Twelve Colonies. It also makes some correspondences in addition to those above:

*The "Blaze" identified by Sharon Valerii is an earlier parallel to the Cylon attack. The hostile force is the "jealous God", the Lord of Kobol that tried to elevate himself over the others.
*The Home of the Gods is [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]], and the people of Kobol are the [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]], in a somewhat metaphorical sense.

The timeline would proceed thus:

#The people of Kobol lived in divine utopia with their gods.
#A hostile force - of which "the blaze" and the "lower demon" were parts - moves against the people of Kobol.
#The gods appoint a leader afflicted with a wasting disease to lead a "caravan of the heavens".
#The leader, with the aid of twelve "serpents", wins a perilous battle.
#The people make their way to the "home of the gods".
#Athena despairs and commits suicide.
#The leaders of the people are taken to the Tomb of Athena to be sacrificed to the remaining gods.
#The body of the people depart in a "[[galleon]]" for a new home.
#Instructions are left to open the Tomb of Athena.
#Zeus warns against a return to Kobol.
#The twelve tribes settle on the Twelve Colonies. The thirteenth tribe settles on [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]].

However, at least three exodus events are documented. Pythia writes of "the exile and rebirth of the human race" ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]]) 1,600 years before the exodus of the tribes from Kobol. The third exodus (from the Colonies) is underway.

=== The Origin of Mankind ===

There are two types of original man: those found on Kobol and, later, on New Earth.

The humans on Kobol evolved on Kobol, created machines ([[Cylons (RDM)|Cylons]]) on Kobol, and then a war against the machines occurred ("the Blaze"). The great exodus from Kobol split the humans and original Cylons apart: the humans went to settle what would be known as [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|The Twelve Colonies]], and the Cylons (having assumed human form) settled Earth and built their own machines, which rose up and killed their masters in a nuclear holocaust some 2,000 years prior to the [[Cylon War]] ("[[Home, Part I]]", "[[Sometimes a Great Notion]]", "[[No Exit]]").

After the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] discovers Kobol and various "road signs" to the first, real Earth, namely the [[Tomb of Athena]], [[The Temple of Hopes]], and the [[Ionian Nebula]] ("[[Home, Part II]]", "[[The Eye of Jupiter]]", "[[Rapture]]", "[[Crossroads, Part II]]", "[[He That Believeth in Me]]"). After discovering that Earth and the Thirteenth Tribe were Cylons originating from Kobol (of which only five survivors remain in the form of the "[[Final Five]]," who developed the "[[Significant Seven]]" Cylons after the [[Cimtar Peace Accord]]), the Fleet discovers a second planet with genetically compatible bipedal humanoid creatures in a primitive, tribal stage of development. Guided here by [[Kara Thrace|Kara "Starbuck" Thrace]], these humans breed with the Colonials and the only half-human, half-Cylon hybrid [[Hera Agathon]] (later known only as the "Mitochondrial Eve"), and spawned a human-cylon hybrid bloodline lasting 150,000 years ("[[Daybreak, Part II]]").

==== See Also ====

[[History of the Twelve Colonies#Pre-History|History of the Twelve Colonies]]

===The Form of the Scrolls===

The Sacred Scrolls have been seen as an actual, ornate scroll (as shown in the [[Miniseries]]), as well as a book (Both Adama and Roslin read what appear to be identically-created books in "[[Home, Part II]]").

The total volume of the Scrolls has not been revealed, so it is possible that the scroll that [[Elosha]] holds in the Miniseries as she swears in President Roslin and holds during the service for the dead may make up only a portion of the total texts, or key readings from the works. A shortened volume may be a specialized volume containing prayers and readings specific to a celebrant's use during [[temple]] ceremonies, Services for the Dead, weddings, [[dedication ceremony|dedication ceremonies]] and the like<ref>Similar to the Roman Catholic Church's use of [[Wikipedia:Missal|missals]].</ref>.

Much of the Scrolls appear to be handwritten. While the technology of the Twelve Colonies obviously support electronic printing and reproduction, it may be that the most authentic copies of the sacred texts are either authentic reproductions from a handwritten copy, or genuine handwritten copies. This practice may be for reasons of authenticity, custom, or aesthetics<ref>The practice is similar to the work and purposes of the [[Wikipedia:Scribes|scribes]] before the invention of the printing press in real-Earth history. For comparison, an extreme example of the tradition of handwritten sacred texts in real-Earth history are the [[Wikipedia:Sefer Torah|sefer Torahs]].</ref>.

Because Sagittarons are traditionally pacifists and do not believe in modern medicine for religious reasons, while the Gemenese traditionally interpret the Sacred Scrolls literally but do not share these practices, it is likely that the Gemenese and Sagittarons have different versions of the Sacred Scrolls, or that the Sagittarons have some supplemental religious document or oral tradition in addition to the Scrolls, or they may simply, like real world religions, interpret the exact same information differently.

===Last rites at the [[Service for the dead|Services for the dead]]===

[[Elosha]] gives a form of last rites or respects to the fallen crew after [[Battle of Ragnar Anchorage|the Fleet escapes Ragnar Anchorage]] in an unusual language<ref>The actress is singing Sanskrit verses from the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upanishad. Roughly translated, the verse says, "Lead us from Falsehood to Truth, from Darkness to Light, from Death to Immortality."</ref>.

==References==
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div>

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:RDM]]

[[fr:Manuscrits Sacrés]]
[[de:Heiligen Schriftrollen]]

{{featured article candidate previous}}

Final Five

2007-12-17T15:27:50Z

Asleifsson: /* Kara Thrace, The Eye of Jupiter, and the First Hybrid */

[[Image:TheFinalFive.JPG|right|thumb|300px|The Final Five in the Kobol Opera House]]
The term "'''Final Five'''" collectively describes five of the twelve [[Humanoid Cylon|humanoid Cylon models]] whose identity, knowledge, or existence has been deliberately or accidentally lost to seven of the Humanoid Cylon models.

[[Caprica-Six]], when asked by [[Gaius Baltar]] about the five missing models he has not seen on the [[Basestar (RDM)|baseship]] he lives on or on [[New Caprica]], curtly replies that the others do not talk about the subject ([[Torn]]).

==The Unauthorized Quest for the Five==
A [[Number Three]] copy, whom Gaius Baltar calls by her human alias, [[D'Anna Biers]], repeatedly commits suicide to get glimpses of five white-cloaked beings that she believes are images of the Final Five. She attempts to draw what she has seen, but has difficulty in doing so ([[Hero]]).

One detailed sketch which she briefly shows to Baltar depicts her personal artistic rendering of the faces of the Five ([[The Passage]]). The sketch is meant to depict [[Saul Tigh]], [[Galen Tyrol]], [[Samuel Anders]], [[Tory Foster]] and the twelfth and final Cylon. ([[Crossroads, Part II]]).

[[Image:FFSketches.jpg|thumb|left|Sketches of the Five.]]
Baltar's ability to see a virtual doppelganger of Caprica-Six (as well as enjoying her company in various pleasant environments) lead him to suggest that he might be using a Cylon technique known as [[projection]]. This suspicion, in turn, makes Baltar begin a personal inquiry into his own nature after allying himself with D'Anna-Three.

The two eventually make their way to the [[algae planet]], where a Colonial structure, the fabled [[Temple of Five]], awaits with possible answers ("[[The Passage]]", "[[The Eye of Jupiter]]"). When the system's dying star goes nova, a ray of light is generated by the mechanisms of the temple. Number Three steps into the light and suddenly finds herself back in the [[Opera House]] and before the same image of the Five, not persistent. Upon seeing their faces she recognizes one of them in particular, saying in surprise "You... forgive me... I had no idea." She is then pulled back to reality and collapses in Baltar's arms, apparently suffering the effects of a brain hemorrhage. She tells Baltar, "You were right," but dies before answering about what, or telling him what she saw. She tells the [[Cavil]] who greets her in the tank that there are five other Cylons, and he will see them some day.

In a rather striking irony, as the Three sacrifices all to see the Final Five, [[Galen Tyrol]] and [[Samuel Anders]] are just outside the Temple, being shot at by her centurions. Only because Tyrol delays firing off explosives left in the temple does she get a chance to stand within it at activation.

Although four of the final five have been revealed ([[Crossroads, Part II]]), the identity of the person she recognized remains a mystery ([[Rapture]]).

==Awareness of the Five by other seven Cylons==
Caprica Six indicates that the Cylons do not speak of the Five, but she knows how many there are. [[D'Anna Biers]] also indicates to Baltar that they do not discuss the Five. A [[Cavil]] realizes in the [[Temple of Five]] that D'Anna is attempting to see the Final Five, and not simply seeking [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]]. He tells her "That can't happen" and points a gun at her to stop her, but is shot by Baltar. Later, a Cavil explains that because of her obsession her entire line will be [[boxing|boxed]] ([[Rapture]]).

A [[Leoben Conoy]] claims that "Adama is a Cylon" though neither Adama is one of the other six Cylons he should know. If an Adama were a member of the final five, Leoben should not, in theory, know this. It is commonly believed that he is lying ([[Flesh and Bone]]).

The [[Sharon Valerii|Boomer]] copy of Number Eight, interrogated by Baltar, declares there are eight Cylons in the Fleet. Given that season 3 episodes confirm that the Seven do not interact (or are unwilling to interact) with the Five, the number that Boomer gives is likely other Seven copies in disguise. (This tendency to disguise is confirmed through [[Shelly Godfrey]], [[Gina]] and an unnamed Number Six with black hair found on a stricken baseship in "[[Torn]]"). Also supporting this is the scene where [[Three]] and Sharon Valerii discover Samuel Anders and refer to him as human in the episode, "[[Downloaded]]". A later episode, "[[Rapture]]", shows a Three recognizing one of the faces of the Five, confirming the lack of information to the Seven on the Five's identities.

While [[Cylon Centurion]]s are programmed to recognize and obey [[humanoid Cylon]]s, on a number of occasions they shoot at members of the Five, including Tyrol on Kobol, Anders both on Caprica and outside the Temple of Five, and most members during the exodus from [[New Caprica]].

Both [[Caprica Six]] and Sharon Agathon share a dream vision in which the glowing, white-robed figures of the Five are shown in the [[Opera House]] ([[Crossroads, Part II]]).

==Four Revealed, and their nature==
As the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] draws closer to the [[Ionian nebula]], four people begin hearing an [[The Music|unusual melody]] on wireless radio: these four are Colonel [[Saul Tigh]], Chief [[Galen Tyrol]], Ensign [[Samuel Anders]] and presidential aide [[Tory Foster]] ([[Crossroads, Part I]]). Tyrol and Anders say that the song seems like something from their childhoods, while Tigh becomes progressively more disturbed as he begins to hear the music everywhere on ''Galactica''. Foster becomes noticeably distracted, irritable, and unkempt, claiming to have not been sleeping well. When the fleet finally arrives at the Ionian Nebula the song becomes clear to the four who can hear it and they begin to stalk the halls of ''Galactica'' muttering its mysterious lyrics. Eventually, the four arrive at ''Galactica''’s gym and upon seeing each other the truth becomes clear to them; they are Cylons, four of the Final Five. When they learn the truth, they decide to remain loyal to the Colonial Fleet, because they were humans for as long as they can remember, and cling to what they know to make sense of their lives. Moreover, Tigh sees himself as a soldier first and wants to hold up his oath.

After activation, the four revealed Cylons are unaware of any thoughts like Boomer's [[Sharon Valerii#Acts of sabotage|Cylon directives]] other than that they are Cylons. In a sense they know less than the audience and the Significant Seven, who at least know that the Final Five are fundamentally different models.<ref>{{cite_rdm_podcast|episode=Frak Party Q and A|act=|id=ffdifferent|timestamp=19:05|totalrunning=78:27}}</ref> Tigh and Anders painfully and confusedly recite events from their lives which make little sense in the context of their newly revealed nature. With particular pain, Tigh asks "My gods, what about Ellen?" His personal execution of his wife for being a Cylon collaborator, and his pain over it, have been a major theme in the episode.

The nature of these Cylons is clearly different from the other seven. In particular, Colonel Tigh's friendship with William Adama stretches back to shortly after the end of the first Cylon War and in an interview<ref>{{cite_web|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07085/770732-352.stm|title=Post-Gazette Moore interview}}</ref> Ron Moore stated that Tigh "fought in two wars." ([[Crossroads, Part II]])

These Cylons also seem to be susceptible to human infirmities: Tigh's ongoing battles with alcoholism, Tyrol's suffering from decompression sickness - although to a lesser extent than his wife ([[A Day in the Life]]), and Anders's contracting pneumonia ([[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II]]).

As the Seven do not hold (or appear to desire) knowledge of the Five, and with their special nature, their ability to [[Resurrection (RDM)|resurrect]] and the existence of multiple copies for any of the Five are uncertain based on aired events and official responses. <ref>{{cite_web|url=http://www.syfyportal.com/news423878.html|title=Things Get Ugly In 'Battlestar' Season 4|date=Jul-10-2007|accessdate=Jul-13-2007|}}</ref> This failure to recognize could be due to a mental block programmed into their minds or simply because the Final Five left the Cylon homeworld before the Seven were created.

<gallery>
Image:Tyrol Cylon.jpg|[[Galen Tyrol]]
Image:Anders_Cylon.jpg|[[Samuel Anders]]
Image:Tighlon.jpg|[[Saul Tigh]]
Image:Tory Cylon.JPG|[[Tory Foster]]
</gallery>

===Connections between the Colonial gods and Cylon god===
*The Temple of Five was built over 4,000 years prior to the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], long before the Cylons existed. The [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]] would, logically, have no knowledge of these automatons in the strictest sense. However, the Thirteenth Tribe has significant prophetic insight, as shown in the works of [[Pythia]]. According to Colonial scriptures, "Five pillars of the temple were fashioned after the five priests devoted to the one whose name cannot be spoken". This may have been another Lord of Kobol, given that on a deleted scene [[Elosha]] noted that the fall of [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]] and its civilization was due in part to a "jealous god".
*On [[New Caprica]], Number Three meets [[Dodona Selloi]], a human [[oracle]], who relays a message from Three's God, despite the oracle's association with the Lords of Kobol.
*With this information, there is a strong, but unexplained correlation or connection with the the Cylon God and the [[Religion in the Twelve Colonies (RDM)#The Lords of Kobol|Lords of Kobol]].

===Kara Thrace, The Eye of Jupiter, and the First Hybrid===
*The Eye of Jupiter storyline introduced an association between Kara Thrace, a human that [[Eye of Jupiter|"doodled" a circular image as a child]] with no prior derivation (her old apartment on [[Caprica (RDM)|Caprica]] has a painting of the image from the episode, "[[Valley of Darkness]]"), and the mandalas or icons of the eye that decorated a temple built 4,000 years before her birth. No further information is revealed other than the prophecy from [[Leoben Conoy]], who told Thrace of an [[The Destiny|unexplained "destiny"]] ([[Flesh and Bone]]).
*The [[first Hybrid|first Hybrid]] gives a few monologues about his knowledge of the Final Five in the extended version of "[[Razor]]". They state the following, at different approximate timestamps:

Time stamp 1h18m55s:

"At last, The Fifth cometh for me. I feel their lives, their destinies, spilling out before me. The denial is their one true path, played out on the world not their own, and will end soon enough."

These words are ambiguous at best, and "The Fifth" could relate to anything. It could be the fifth search & rescue mission, or the fifth of the Final Five other Cylons. In the second sentence, "their" could also refer to the S&R team, Colonials, or the Final Five.

Time stamp 1h20m04s:

"Soon there will be four glorious new awakenings, struggling with the knowledge of their true selves, the pain of revelation bringing new clarity. And in the midst of confusion they will find that enemies are brought together by an awesome sense of belonging. Enemies now joined as one. The way forward, the once unthinkable, yet inevitable. And the fifth is still is in shadow, drawn toward the light, hungering for redemption, that will only come in the howl of terrible suffering."

Its description predicts the internal revelation that four of the Five would experience in "Crossroads, Part II". The fifth Cylon remains hidden, longing to be forgiven for some type of trespass, but will experience suffering in the process.

*The first Hybrid also mentions Kara Thrace to [[Kendra Shaw]], claiming, "She is the herald of the apocalypse, the harbinger of death..." as the end of the human race. He warns Shaw that the humans should not follow her ([[Razor]]). However, the Hybrid never confirms Thrace's nature.

===Illusion or Truth===
*The Threes' hunt for and see visions of the Five, which leads to the other Cylons themselves [[boxing]] the entire line of Threes after her discovery, but whether this is done to suppress the notion or actual information of the final five or to relieve the other Cylons of an aberrant model is unclear.
*Later, in dream visions of the [[Opera House]] shared by [[Laura Roslin]], [[Sharon Agathon]] and [[Caprica Six]], the same 5 glowing figures seen by Three appear, along with the same chamber with six drapes, this time empty. Six sees them for a more prolonged period in a second vision.
*As the [[Temple of Five]] was apparently built for human usage, the Temple may have only allowed the transitional visions that the Threes see to be more persistent and clear. It may never be revealed what Baltar (or another human) would have seen. While Baltar believed Three and actively participated in her quest, both his virtual Six and a [[Hybrid]] noted that he, not Three, was intended to use the Temple's imaging mechanism as the "chosen one". The human association and significance of the [[five priests]], [[The One Whose Name Cannot Be Spoken|the god they worshiped]], and their connections with the Cylons, Kara Thrace and Baltar are not yet explained.

==Notes==
* The podcast for "[[Rapture]]" confirms that the Final Five Cylons have not been [[boxing|boxed]]<ref>{{cite_rdm_podcast|episode=Rapture|act=4|id=firstboxing|timestamp=41:47|totalrunning=}}</ref>.
* During a Q&A session on the official Sci Fi channel ''Battlestar Galactica'' forum Ronald D. Moore notes that he already knows who the last Cylon is, and that he's already left clues as to who it is<ref>[http://forums.scifi.com/index.php?showtopic=2270103&st=0&p=3041263&#entry3041263 20 Answers - SCI FI FORUMS] Retrieved 03-27-2007</ref>.

{{WikiFrakr|Fantastic Four}}

==References==
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div>

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylon Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylons]]
[[Category:Cylons (RDM)]]
[[Category:RDM]]

[[de:Final Five]]

Final Five

2007-12-17T15:27:17Z

Asleifsson: /* Kara Thrace, The Eye of Jupiter, and the First Hybrid */

Final Five

2007-12-17T15:25:40Z

Asleifsson: /* Kara Thrace, The Eye of Jupiter, and the First Hybrid */

[[Image:TheFinalFive.JPG|right|thumb|300px|The Final Five in the Kobol Opera House]]
The term "'''Final Five'''" collectively describes five of the twelve [[Humanoid Cylon|humanoid Cylon models]] whose identity, knowledge, or existence has been deliberately or accidentally lost to seven of the Humanoid Cylon models.

[[Caprica-Six]], when asked by [[Gaius Baltar]] about the five missing models he has not seen on the [[Basestar (RDM)|baseship]] he lives on or on [[New Caprica]], curtly replies that the others do not talk about the subject ([[Torn]]).

==The Unauthorized Quest for the Five==
A [[Number Three]] copy, whom Gaius Baltar calls by her human alias, [[D'Anna Biers]], repeatedly commits suicide to get glimpses of five white-cloaked beings that she believes are images of the Final Five. She attempts to draw what she has seen, but has difficulty in doing so ([[Hero]]).

One detailed sketch which she briefly shows to Baltar depicts her personal artistic rendering of the faces of the Five ([[The Passage]]). The sketch is meant to depict [[Saul Tigh]], [[Galen Tyrol]], [[Samuel Anders]], [[Tory Foster]] and the twelfth and final Cylon. ([[Crossroads, Part II]]).

[[Image:FFSketches.jpg|thumb|left|Sketches of the Five.]]
Baltar's ability to see a virtual doppelganger of Caprica-Six (as well as enjoying her company in various pleasant environments) lead him to suggest that he might be using a Cylon technique known as [[projection]]. This suspicion, in turn, makes Baltar begin a personal inquiry into his own nature after allying himself with D'Anna-Three.

The two eventually make their way to the [[algae planet]], where a Colonial structure, the fabled [[Temple of Five]], awaits with possible answers ("[[The Passage]]", "[[The Eye of Jupiter]]"). When the system's dying star goes nova, a ray of light is generated by the mechanisms of the temple. Number Three steps into the light and suddenly finds herself back in the [[Opera House]] and before the same image of the Five, not persistent. Upon seeing their faces she recognizes one of them in particular, saying in surprise "You... forgive me... I had no idea." She is then pulled back to reality and collapses in Baltar's arms, apparently suffering the effects of a brain hemorrhage. She tells Baltar, "You were right," but dies before answering about what, or telling him what she saw. She tells the [[Cavil]] who greets her in the tank that there are five other Cylons, and he will see them some day.

In a rather striking irony, as the Three sacrifices all to see the Final Five, [[Galen Tyrol]] and [[Samuel Anders]] are just outside the Temple, being shot at by her centurions. Only because Tyrol delays firing off explosives left in the temple does she get a chance to stand within it at activation.

Although four of the final five have been revealed ([[Crossroads, Part II]]), the identity of the person she recognized remains a mystery ([[Rapture]]).

==Awareness of the Five by other seven Cylons==
Caprica Six indicates that the Cylons do not speak of the Five, but she knows how many there are. [[D'Anna Biers]] also indicates to Baltar that they do not discuss the Five. A [[Cavil]] realizes in the [[Temple of Five]] that D'Anna is attempting to see the Final Five, and not simply seeking [[Earth (RDM)|Earth]]. He tells her "That can't happen" and points a gun at her to stop her, but is shot by Baltar. Later, a Cavil explains that because of her obsession her entire line will be [[boxing|boxed]] ([[Rapture]]).

A [[Leoben Conoy]] claims that "Adama is a Cylon" though neither Adama is one of the other six Cylons he should know. If an Adama were a member of the final five, Leoben should not, in theory, know this. It is commonly believed that he is lying ([[Flesh and Bone]]).

The [[Sharon Valerii|Boomer]] copy of Number Eight, interrogated by Baltar, declares there are eight Cylons in the Fleet. Given that season 3 episodes confirm that the Seven do not interact (or are unwilling to interact) with the Five, the number that Boomer gives is likely other Seven copies in disguise. (This tendency to disguise is confirmed through [[Shelly Godfrey]], [[Gina]] and an unnamed Number Six with black hair found on a stricken baseship in "[[Torn]]"). Also supporting this is the scene where [[Three]] and Sharon Valerii discover Samuel Anders and refer to him as human in the episode, "[[Downloaded]]". A later episode, "[[Rapture]]", shows a Three recognizing one of the faces of the Five, confirming the lack of information to the Seven on the Five's identities.

While [[Cylon Centurion]]s are programmed to recognize and obey [[humanoid Cylon]]s, on a number of occasions they shoot at members of the Five, including Tyrol on Kobol, Anders both on Caprica and outside the Temple of Five, and most members during the exodus from [[New Caprica]].

Both [[Caprica Six]] and Sharon Agathon share a dream vision in which the glowing, white-robed figures of the Five are shown in the [[Opera House]] ([[Crossroads, Part II]]).

==Four Revealed, and their nature==
As the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] draws closer to the [[Ionian nebula]], four people begin hearing an [[The Music|unusual melody]] on wireless radio: these four are Colonel [[Saul Tigh]], Chief [[Galen Tyrol]], Ensign [[Samuel Anders]] and presidential aide [[Tory Foster]] ([[Crossroads, Part I]]). Tyrol and Anders say that the song seems like something from their childhoods, while Tigh becomes progressively more disturbed as he begins to hear the music everywhere on ''Galactica''. Foster becomes noticeably distracted, irritable, and unkempt, claiming to have not been sleeping well. When the fleet finally arrives at the Ionian Nebula the song becomes clear to the four who can hear it and they begin to stalk the halls of ''Galactica'' muttering its mysterious lyrics. Eventually, the four arrive at ''Galactica''’s gym and upon seeing each other the truth becomes clear to them; they are Cylons, four of the Final Five. When they learn the truth, they decide to remain loyal to the Colonial Fleet, because they were humans for as long as they can remember, and cling to what they know to make sense of their lives. Moreover, Tigh sees himself as a soldier first and wants to hold up his oath.

After activation, the four revealed Cylons are unaware of any thoughts like Boomer's [[Sharon Valerii#Acts of sabotage|Cylon directives]] other than that they are Cylons. In a sense they know less than the audience and the Significant Seven, who at least know that the Final Five are fundamentally different models.<ref>{{cite_rdm_podcast|episode=Frak Party Q and A|act=|id=ffdifferent|timestamp=19:05|totalrunning=78:27}}</ref> Tigh and Anders painfully and confusedly recite events from their lives which make little sense in the context of their newly revealed nature. With particular pain, Tigh asks "My gods, what about Ellen?" His personal execution of his wife for being a Cylon collaborator, and his pain over it, have been a major theme in the episode.

The nature of these Cylons is clearly different from the other seven. In particular, Colonel Tigh's friendship with William Adama stretches back to shortly after the end of the first Cylon War and in an interview<ref>{{cite_web|url=http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07085/770732-352.stm|title=Post-Gazette Moore interview}}</ref> Ron Moore stated that Tigh "fought in two wars." ([[Crossroads, Part II]])

These Cylons also seem to be susceptible to human infirmities: Tigh's ongoing battles with alcoholism, Tyrol's suffering from decompression sickness - although to a lesser extent than his wife ([[A Day in the Life]]), and Anders's contracting pneumonia ([[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II]]).

As the Seven do not hold (or appear to desire) knowledge of the Five, and with their special nature, their ability to [[Resurrection (RDM)|resurrect]] and the existence of multiple copies for any of the Five are uncertain based on aired events and official responses. <ref>{{cite_web|url=http://www.syfyportal.com/news423878.html|title=Things Get Ugly In 'Battlestar' Season 4|date=Jul-10-2007|accessdate=Jul-13-2007|}}</ref> This failure to recognize could be due to a mental block programmed into their minds or simply because the Final Five left the Cylon homeworld before the Seven were created.

<gallery>
Image:Tyrol Cylon.jpg|[[Galen Tyrol]]
Image:Anders_Cylon.jpg|[[Samuel Anders]]
Image:Tighlon.jpg|[[Saul Tigh]]
Image:Tory Cylon.JPG|[[Tory Foster]]
</gallery>

===Connections between the Colonial gods and Cylon god===
*The Temple of Five was built over 4,000 years prior to the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]], long before the Cylons existed. The [[Thirteenth Tribe (RDM)|Thirteenth Tribe]] would, logically, have no knowledge of these automatons in the strictest sense. However, the Thirteenth Tribe has significant prophetic insight, as shown in the works of [[Pythia]]. According to Colonial scriptures, "Five pillars of the temple were fashioned after the five priests devoted to the one whose name cannot be spoken". This may have been another Lord of Kobol, given that on a deleted scene [[Elosha]] noted that the fall of [[Kobol (RDM)|Kobol]] and its civilization was due in part to a "jealous god".
*On [[New Caprica]], Number Three meets [[Dodona Selloi]], a human [[oracle]], who relays a message from Three's God, despite the oracle's association with the Lords of Kobol.
*With this information, there is a strong, but unexplained correlation or connection with the the Cylon God and the [[Religion in the Twelve Colonies (RDM)#The Lords of Kobol|Lords of Kobol]].

===Kara Thrace, The Eye of Jupiter, and the First Hybrid===
*The Eye of Jupiter storyline introduced an association between Kara Thrace, a human that [[Eye of Jupiter|"doodled" a circular image as a child]] with no prior derivation (her old apartment on [[Caprica (RDM)|Caprica]] has a painting of the image from the episode, "[[Valley of Darkness]]"), and the mandalas or icons of the eye that decorated a temple built 4,000 years before her birth. No further information is revealed other than the prophecy from [[Leoben Conoy]], who told Thrace of an [[The Destiny|unexplained "destiny"]] ([[Flesh and Bone]]).
*The [[first Hybrid|first Hybrid]] gives a few monologues about his knowledge of the Final Five in the extended version of "[[Razor]]". They state the following, at different approximate timestamps:

Time stamp 1h18m55s:
"At last, The Fifth cometh for me. I feel their lives, their destinies, spilling out before me. The denial is their one true path, played out on the world not their own, and will end soon enough."

These words are ambiguous at best, and "The Fifth" could relate to anything. It could be the fifth search & rescue mission, or the fifth of the Final Five other Cylons. In the second sentence, "their" could also refer to the S&R team, Colonials, or the Final Five.

Time stamp 1h20m04s:
"Soon there will be four glorious new awakenings, struggling with the knowledge of their true selves, the pain of revelation bringing new clarity. And in the midst of confusion they will find that enemies are brought together by an awesome sense of belonging. Enemies now joined as one. The way forward, the once unthinkable, yet inevitable. And the fifth is still is in shadow, drawn toward the light, hungering for redemption, that will only come in the howl of terrible suffering."

Its description predicts the internal revelation that four of the Five would experience in "Crossroads, Part II". The fifth Cylon remains hidden, longing to be forgiven for some type of trespass, but will experience suffering in the process.

*The first Hybrid also mentions Kara Thrace to [[Kendra Shaw]], claiming, "She is the herald of the apocalypse, the harbinger of death..." as the end of the human race. He warns Shaw that the humans should not follow her ([[Razor]]). However, the Hybrid never confirms Thrace's nature.

===Illusion or Truth===
*The Threes' hunt for and see visions of the Five, which leads to the other Cylons themselves [[boxing]] the entire line of Threes after her discovery, but whether this is done to suppress the notion or actual information of the final five or to relieve the other Cylons of an aberrant model is unclear.
*Later, in dream visions of the [[Opera House]] shared by [[Laura Roslin]], [[Sharon Agathon]] and [[Caprica Six]], the same 5 glowing figures seen by Three appear, along with the same chamber with six drapes, this time empty. Six sees them for a more prolonged period in a second vision.
*As the [[Temple of Five]] was apparently built for human usage, the Temple may have only allowed the transitional visions that the Threes see to be more persistent and clear. It may never be revealed what Baltar (or another human) would have seen. While Baltar believed Three and actively participated in her quest, both his virtual Six and a [[Hybrid]] noted that he, not Three, was intended to use the Temple's imaging mechanism as the "chosen one". The human association and significance of the [[five priests]], [[The One Whose Name Cannot Be Spoken|the god they worshiped]], and their connections with the Cylons, Kara Thrace and Baltar are not yet explained.

==Notes==
* The podcast for "[[Rapture]]" confirms that the Final Five Cylons have not been [[boxing|boxed]]<ref>{{cite_rdm_podcast|episode=Rapture|act=4|id=firstboxing|timestamp=41:47|totalrunning=}}</ref>.
* During a Q&A session on the official Sci Fi channel ''Battlestar Galactica'' forum Ronald D. Moore notes that he already knows who the last Cylon is, and that he's already left clues as to who it is<ref>[http://forums.scifi.com/index.php?showtopic=2270103&st=0&p=3041263&#entry3041263 20 Answers - SCI FI FORUMS] Retrieved 03-27-2007</ref>.

{{WikiFrakr|Fantastic Four}}

==References==
<div style="font-size:85%"><references/></div>

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylon Religion (RDM)]]
[[Category:Cylons]]
[[Category:Cylons (RDM)]]
[[Category:RDM]]

[[de:Final Five]]

Sacred Scrolls

2006-09-03T17:24:37Z

Asleifsson: /* The "Three Exodi" Interpretation */

[[Image:Pythia.jpg|right|thumb|A portion of the Sacred Scrolls, specifically, a portion of the Book of [[Pythia]].]]
The '''Sacred Scrolls''' are a set of writings the form the basis of [[Religion in the Twelve Colonies|Colonial religion]], a polytheistic faith resembling the legends of ancient Greece. The scrolls record much of the alleged history of humanity, including life on [[Kobol]] before the great exodus, and the legend of [[Earth]]. Portions of the scrolls are used in religious ceremonies, such as the Service of the Dead ([[Miniseries]], [[Act of Contrition]]).

Most notable among the Sacred Scrolls is the Book of Pythia, also referred to as the Pythian Prophecy. Written 3,600 years ago by the oracle [[Pythia]], they are believed by some to foretell the current exodus from the [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]].

==Contents==
The contents of the Sacred Scrolls have only been revealed to us in glimpses, through brief quotes, paraphrases and explanations throughout the series. This section serves to catalog those snippets, and is followed by more detailed analysis.

===The Book of [[Pythia]]===
:'''Roslin:''' Who is Pythia?<br>'''Elosha:''' One of the oracles in the sacred scrolls. 3,600 years ago. Pythia wrote about the exile and rebirth of the human race. ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====The Cycle of Time====
:'''Leoben:''' ''"All this has happened before, and all of it will happen again."'' ([[Flesh and Bone]])

:'''Six:''' ''"All this has happened before, and all this will happen again."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

:'''Roslin:''' If you believe in the gods, then you believe in the cycle of time that we are all playing our parts in a story that is told again, and again, and again throughout eternity. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====The Dying Leader====
:'''Elosha:''' ''"And the lords anointed a leader to guide the Caravan of the Heavens to their new homeland."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

:'''Elosha:''' She also wrote that the new leader suffered a wasting disease and would not live to enter the new land. ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

:'''Roslin:''' The scriptures tell us a dying leader lead humanity to the promised land. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====A Vision of Serpents====
:'''Elosha:''' ''"And unto the leader they gave a vision of serpents numbering two and ten, as a sign of things to come."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====The Serpents Lead the People Into Battle?====
:'''Six:''' ''"Led by serpents numbering two and ten..."'' (fragment) ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====A Confrontation at the Home of the Gods====
:'''Six:''' ''"Though the outcome favored the few, it led to a confrontation at the home of the gods."'' ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]])

====The Lower Demon====
:'''Elosha:''' The scrolls of Pythia do speak of a lower demon, who helped the people in a time of crisis. ([[Home, Part I]])

====The Blaze and the High Road====
:'''Elosha:''' ''"And the blaze pursued them, and the people of Kobol had a choice. To board the great ship, or take the high road through the rocky ridge."''<br>
:'''Valerii (continuing):''' ''"And the body of each tribe's leader was offered to the gods in the tomb of Athena."'' And the great ship was the [[galleon]] that departed from here, where we're standing. And it took the founders of the thirteen colonies to their destiny. And those that didn't board the galleon took the high road, a rocky ridge that lead to the tomb. ([[Home, Part I]])

:'''Elosha:''' The path is supposed to be marked by gravestones. ([[Home, Part I]])

====The Gates of Hera====
:'''Valerii:''' That's the spot where your god supposedly stood and watched Athena throw herself down onto the rocks below, out of despair over the Exodus of the thirteen tribes. Athena's tomb, whoever or whatever she really was, is probably up there. ([[Home, Part II]])

====The Arrow of Apollo====
:'''Roslin:''' ''"And the Arrow of Apollo will open the Tomb of Athena."'' ([[Home, Part II]])

:'''Elosha:''' The scriptures tell us that Kobol points the way to Earth. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

:'''Roslin:''' According to the scriptures, if we had the arrow of Apollo we could take it down to Kobol and we could use it to open the tomb of Athena and find our way to Earth. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====Kobol and the Blood Price====
:'''Adama:''' ''"And Zeus warned the leaders of the twelve tribes that any return to Kobol would exact a price in blood."'' ([[Home, Part II]])

===History===

====Pre-Exodus====
:'''Elosha:''' This place is Kobol... birthplace of mankind, where the gods and men lived in paradise until the exodus of the thirteen tribes. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====The Exodus====
:'''Elosha:''' How old are the ruins?<br>'''Billy:''' Well, we won't know for sure until we send a ground team, but the initial estimates have it on the order of approximately 2,000 years.<br>'''Elosha:''' That's around the time the thirteen tribes first left Kobol. ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]])

====The Thirteenth Tribe on Earth====
:'''Starbuck:''' The scriptures say that when the thirteenth tribe landed on Earth, they looked up into the heavens and they saw their twelve brothers. ([[Home, Part II]])

===Sayings===
:'''Adama:''' ''"The gods shall lift those who lift each other."'' ([[Home, Part II]])
:'''Cavil:''' ''"The gods lift up those who lift each other."'' ([[Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I]])
:: These sayings are similar to the [[Wikipedia:Algernon Sydney|Algernon Sydney]] quote "God helps those who help themselves".

==Notes==

The Cycle of Time is apparently a key component of Colonial theology. The notion of a circular progression of time (also known as [[Wikipedia:Eternal return|eternal return]] or eternal recurrence) is foreign to the ancient Greek religion of which Colonial religion are largely based, but it is a common theme in other religions. Some Hindus believe in an endless cycle of ages called [[Wikipedia:Yuga|Yugas]]. The ancient [[Wikipedia:Maya|Maya]] people, as well as the [[Wikipedia:Inca|Incas]] and [[Wikipedia:Aztec|Aztecs]] also believed in the circular nature of time. In philosophy, the [[Wikipedia:Stoics|Stoics]], a movement originating in ancient Greece, held the doctrine. In the nineteenth century, the doctrine appears in the writings of [[Wikipedia:Friedrich Nietzsche|Friedrich Nietzsche]] as a method of life-affirmation.

The book of Pythia, which contains or is identical to the Pythian Prophecy, was written 1,600 years before the exodus of the thirteen tribes from Kobol, and yet it apparently contains a detailed narrative of the events of the Exodus, and continues to be interpreted as a source of prophecy 2,000 years after its prophecies have (apparently) already been fulfilled. We may thus interpret the entire text as a prophecy, since the events it describes can be firmly dated to a point well after its text was written.

==Analysis==

===Correspondences===
Assuming the events following the [[Fall of the Twelve Colonies]] are a repetition of the events predicted by Pythia, and which came to pass centuries later, we can make use of the prophecy by first constructing a coherent historical narrative from them and then looking for correspondences with the events of the series.

*The Lower Demon is [[Sharon Valerii (Caprica copy)|the Caprica copy of Sharon Valerii]]
*The Dying Leader is President [[Laura Roslin]]
*The "serpents numbering two and ten" are the [[Viper (RDM)|Viper]]s of Strike Force Two in the [[Battle for the Tylium Asteroid]].
*The fleet defended by the [[Battlestar (RDM)|Battlestar]] ''[[Galactica (RDM)|Galactica]]'' is the "Caravan of the Heavens".
*The "price in blood" has been paid by various people including [[Crashdown]] and [[Elosha]].

===The "One Exodus" Interpretation===
This interpretation assumes that the timeline is recurring on a scale of 1,600 to 2,000 years, and the exodus from Kobol is directly parellel to the exodus from the Twelve Colonies. It also makes some correspondences in addition to those above:

*The "Blaze" identified by Sharon Valerii is an earlier parallel to the cylon attack. The hostile force is the "jealous God", the Lord of Kobol that tried to elevate himself over the others.
*The Home of the Gods is [[Kobol]], and the people of [[Kobol]] are the [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]], in a somewhat metaphorical sense.

The timeline would procede thus:

#The people of Kobol lived in divine utopia with their gods.
#A hostile force - of which "the blaze" and the "lower demon" were parts - moves against the people of Kobol.
#The gods appoint a leader afflicted with a wasting disease to lead a "caravan of the heavens".
#The leader, with the aid of twelve "serpents", wins a perilous battle.
#The people make their way to the "home of the gods".
#Athena despairs and commits suicide.
#The leaders of the people are taken to the Tomb of Athena to be sacrificed to the remaining gods.
#The body of the people depart in a "[[galleon]]" for the colonies.
#Instructions are left to open the Tomb of Athena.
#Zeus warns against a return to Kobol.
#The twelve tribes settle on the [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]]. The thirteen tribe settles on [[Earth]].

Questions and Predictions:
*Can [[Earth]] be at once the "promised land" in this iteration and the last?
*Can we expect the deaths of the leaders of the tribes (the [[Quorum of Twelve]]?) to propitiate the Gods?

This history is admittedly not especially coherent, but suggests the possibility of predicting at least some unfulfilled pieces of scripture. Another interpretation which deals with the repetition of historical events on a larger scale is offered below.

===The "Three Exodi" Interpretation===
This interpretation does not assume that the flight from the [[Twelve Colonies]] mirror the original exodus from [[Kobol]]. Instead, it assumes that these two exodi are part of the same event-continuum and posits a third, implied, exodus. Like the "One Exodus" interpretation, this one assumes that Pythia's prophecies have and will come true. Below is the proposed order of events for Pythia's prophecies:

#The people of Kobol live in divine utopia with their Gods.
#The "blaze" moves against the people of Kobol.
#The body of the people depart in a "[[galleon]]" for the colonies (the four inset items are roughly concurrent).
#*Athena despairs and commits suicide.
#*The leaders of the people are taken to the Tomb of Athena to be sacrificed to the remaining gods.
#*Instructions are left to open the Tomb of Athena.
#*Zeus warns against a return to Kobol.
#The twelve tribes settle on the [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|Twelve Colonies]]. The thirteen tribe settles on [[Earth]].
#The Cylons decimate the Twelve Colonies (Whether this is prophesied is unknown, but this clearly happened).
#The gods appoint a leader afflicted with a wasting disease to lead a "caravan of the heavens".
#The leader, with the aid of twelve "serpents", wins a perilous battle.
#The people make their way to the "home of the gods".
#A "lower demon" helps the people of Kobol find the Tomb of Athena.

Note, too, that this is only a part of the story according to the "Three Exodi" interpretation. It assumes that passages not yet revealed in the series outline (however vaguely) the finding of Earth and some time spent there, and then an event that spurs a migration back to Kobol. In this interpretation, the people of Kobol are actually the remnants of [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)|the Twelve Colonies]], both their descendants and their ancestors. From there, the cycle starts again. The cycle is much longer in this interpretation (roughly 4,000 years, as opposed to roughly 1,600-2,000 years)

It is helpful to think of no particular part as the beginning. This is how the pictures of the constellations (only visible from Earth) would be accessible to the people of Kobol "before" any of them had been to Earth. It also explains how the Scrolls can speak about the fate of the Thirteenth Colony and yet be in the possession of people from the Twelve Colonies. In fact, when Pythia was writing about the events in the show, she might have been recording fairly-recent history, rather that far-future prophesy. The vagueness would be mostly due to nearly 4,000 years of linguistic drift, rather than due to the mists of prophecy.

Basically, this interpretation asserts a roughly 3,600-4,000 year cycle which can be illustrated by this crude flow-chart:<br\>
Kobol > Colonies, Colonies > Earth, Earth > Kobol

One description of this theory is as follows:

According to the ancient scriptures of Pythia (which say: “All this has happened before. All this will happen again.”), humanity undergoes a cycle of civilisation, in which humanity advances technologically, but from this seed of advancement and power grows evil and corruption that sows humanities own roots of destruction. Pythia tells how the civilisation of humanity periodically rises and falls, and often has to start over again.

When this need arises, the remnants of the civilisation of the established 12 tribes of humanity might have to return to the last ancestral home of their forefathers, in order to locate the directions to the 13th tribe which left Kobol before the other 12 tribes, which could be seen as a backup pocket of humanity to be located and germinated technologically if the main civilisation should fall.

This 13th pocket of humanity, (earth), probably develops much slower technologically than the rest of their brother tribes, and so once found by the remnants of the other fallen 12 tribes (the fleet) would probably see these spaceships, technologies and the people aboard them as superhuman, godlike even.

As in history, when civilisations accelerate too fast in technology, they can become unstable, and dangerous, paranoid with conflicting nations or even within themselves, and so the fleet (those from the “caravan of the heavens”), not wanting to cause panic and deterioration of earths society, would probably call upon earth’s religious beliefs system to explain their presence and technology.

Those from the space fleet would declare to the people of earth that yes, they are indeed the gods the people of earth have been worshiping, (which would be the same as the fleets too, since the believe systems stem from the same root), and that they (the fleet), who would probably call themselves Lords not gods, have come to take the people of earth to live in harmony with them, to the land of the gods.

At some point, the fleet would realise how this cyclic order of civilisation occurs, and their part in it, and so the fleet would take the last pocket of humanity with them to start live elsewhere, on a planet somewhere distant from earth, rich in natural resources to be potentially exploited and mined later, which leaders of the fleet’s Quorum of Twelve (having to call themselves “Lords”) would call Kobol. The Lords of Kobol take them there to rekindle the civilisation (in the eyes of the remnants of the previous 12 tribes), and in the eyes of the people of the 13th tribes, to live in the city and land of the gods.

In this new land, a few cities would be first built by the Lords of Kobol for the people of earth to live in, and the advanced technology of the fleet could be kept out of reach from the main population of the new planet of Kobol until a later time. Maybe one ship would be situated at the top of a mountain, possibly called Olympus, (keeping with religious doctrine as the home of the gods) as a link between the primitive civilisation on the planet surface and the ships still in the planets orbit protecting the planet.

No doubt some people higher up in the old earth’s (new Kobolian’s) society (politicians, possibly believers in faith), would be told the truth, to integrate earth’s leaders in the affairs of running the planet and developing technology publicly on Kobol. Also, the remnants of at least the civilians from the old fleet would wish to leave the fleets’ ships and live with the new budding civilisation, emerging in the new civilisation as a new set of 12 tribes which people from earth would integrate themselves into, continuing the cycle of the civilisation of the tribes of Kobol.
Eventually, as the civilisations structure, political cohesion and publicly known technology increases on Kobol, more and more power would get relinquished to the new leaders of the 12 tribes on Kobol, and less power is held by the old leaders (Lords of Kobol), seated at Olympus. Technology would increase on Kobol to a point where by it’s possible once again for public space exploration.

In terms of what the Lords of Kobol have now become, at this stage in Kobol’s’ development, they would have almost died out as a race of humans, having integrated into Kobol’s new civilisation of 12 tribes, and would have dismantled all of the ships and technological facilities they didn’t need any more (like the old fleet) as to hide their true nature from the budding new tribes. They would have withdrawn from society almost, communicating through trusted religious and political tribe leaders, and as a community would hold a skeleton command, guiding the tribes until they are ready once again to leave Kobol and control their own destiny.

The Lords of Kobol, once their new growing civilisation of 12 tribes is ready, would make preparations to carry on the cycle of demographic movement and would secretly (hidden from the public knowledge of Kobol) assemble a 13th tribe, which contained a diverse selection of people from all the 12 tribes in Kobol. The Lords of Kobol would take this small, backup pocket civilisation to another safe, habitable planet, settle them there, plot 12 new constellations from the sky seen from that planet to use as a clue as to how to get to this pocket civilisation from Kobol, should the need ever arise to find them. The Lords of Kobol would later a recognisable astronomical phenomenon amongst the clues that would be recognised easily by a well travelled space race, to point them in the right direction to earth.

At the same time, the Lords of Kobol would make some reason for their children civilisation to have to leave from Kobol. This would be either a natural disaster or something else like stressing to the new civilisation of tribes that it is time they found their own place in the galaxy, and this would lead the now established new 12 tribes of Kobol to start making preparations for an exodus to a new land, either found by the Lords of Kobol or themselves. Some of the community of people descended and living still with the Lords of Kobol might not want this cycle to continue, might want the people of Kobol to know the truth, which might instigate conflict amongst the “gods”, and this war might trigger the 12 tribes to leave of their own accord.

The people of Kobol would have been kept naive to the Lords of Kobol’s true identity (as that of a previous race of colonies of Kobol), but would have advanced by this point to an understanding of the technology of space travel. The new tribes are instructed/ would have each incorporated patterns (made from the constellations seen as from earth) into each of the new 12 tribes’ flags (as a hidden clue unknown to most in the tribes) born from the 12 tribes of Kobol, as they leave Kobol to spread the wings of a new civilisation of humanity in the Galaxy.

What remains of the race of the Lords of Kobol? One can only speculate. They would probably have dissolved completely, integrating themselves fully into the 12 colonies setting out from Kobol, or followed them, keeping a distance but developing so far ahead technologically as to be able to communicate unconsciously with people in the new colonies, through thought somehow. It would explain how prominent figures in both series were able to know events and insights which are unexplainable otherwise, but the only way of knowing what happened is to wait and see!!!
--[[User:Asleifsson|Asleifsson]] 12:24, 3 September 2006 (CDT)

===The Form of the Scrolls===

The Sacred Scrolls have been seen as an actual, ornate scroll (similar to a [[Wikipedia:Torah|torah]], as shown in the [[Miniseries]]), as well as a series of flat papers and books ([[Home, Part II]]). The total volume of the Scrolls has not been revealed, so it is possible (albeit improbable) that the scroll that [[Elosha]] holds in the [[Miniseries]] as she swears in President Roslin and holds during the Service for the Dead may make up only a portion of the total texts, or key books from the works.

Much of the Scrolls appear to be handwritten. While the technology of the Twelve Colonies obviously support electronic printing and reproduction, it may be that the most authentic copies of the sacred texts are either authentic reproductions from a handwritten copy, or genuine handwritten copies. This practice may be for reasons of authenticity, custom, or aesthetics. The practice is similar to the work and purposes of the [[Wikipedia:Scribes|scribes]] before the invention of the printing press in real-Earth history. For comparison, an extreme example of the tradition of handwritten sacred texts in real-Earth history are the [[Wikipedia:Sefer Torah|sefer Torahs]].

===General Questions===

*Are the [[Lords of Kobol]] still an agentive force in this iteration of the cycle?
*Who were the Lords of Kobol? The Caprica Valerii does not deny their existence, and the Tomb of Athena strongly attests to her life and death, but she does not believe they were gods. They were evidently distraught at the calamity which befell their people. Who was responsible for it, and why were the gods powerless to intervene?
*Which god was the "jeaous god" that sought to be raised above the others? Is he the same person as the Cylon's one true god?
*Was Kobol the original home of the [[Lords of Kobol]], or did they originate from some other place?
*Did the people of the colonies leave Kobol with the assistance of the gods, or under their own power?
*What was the nature of the "[[galleon]]"? Was it a large STL colony ship? Did it have an FTL drive?
*If Roslin is now cured of cancer and not dying, can she be the leader of the Pythia Prophecy?
[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]][[Category:RDM]]

Kobol

2006-09-03T17:11:57Z

Asleifsson: /* Etymology of "Kobol" */

'''Kobol''' is the ancestral homeworld for humanity in both ''Battlestar Galactica'' sagas. In both series, an unexplained event or catastrophe causes humanity to leave Kobol and settle on the planets that form their new homeworlds known as the Twelve Colonies.

==Kobol in the Original Series==
[[Image:BattleofKobol.jpg|thumb|left|The tombs of the Lords of Kobol as seen in the Original Series. This shot is obviously based on the [[Wikipedia:Egyptian pyramids|Egyptian pyramids]] of real-world Earth.]]

In the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]], Kobol was the mother world where mankind originated. An ecological / environmental disaster led to humanity's migration. During the migration, 12 tribes set out for the stars, but became lost in a starless void before stumbling into the worlds that would become the new [[The Twelve Colonies (TOS)|Twelve Colonies of Man]], while the 13th again headed for a world called "Earth".

Kobol is rediscovered in the two-part episode, "[[Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I|Lost Planet of the Gods]]." A team from ''[[Galactica (TOS)|Galactica]]'' arrive among the ruins of [[Eden]], the planet's largest city, seeking to enter the tomb of the [[Ninth Lord of Kobol]] in order to find clues as to the route taken by the Thirteeth Tribe. A [[Cylon]] attack ultimately prevents them from doing so.
<div style="clear: both;"></div>

==Kobol in the Re-imagined Series==
[[image:Home_pt1-Kobol.jpg|thumb|right|'''Kobol''' as seen from space in the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]].]]

Kobol is said to be the original home of mankind, once shared with the [[Lords of Kobol]].

Kobol is a verdant world of seas and continents, the latter having large swathes of woodland, grassland and forests. It was located in [[Sector 218]] of the galaxy ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]).

Kobol was a place where humans and the gods dwelt in harmony, the seat of power being the [[City of the Gods]] in the northern hemisphere, itself dominated by the [[Forum]] and [[Opera House]] ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]), structures which were duplicated on [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Caprica|Caprica]] in the city of [[Delphi]].

===Great Exodus===
The Great Exodus from Kobol took place some 2,000 years prior to the events of the [[Miniseries]]. At that time, the Twelve Tribes [[Galleon Meadow|departed Kobol]] for another star system.

It is unclear whether all the gods themselves departed Kobol at this time, although the [[Sacred Scrolls]] indicate that [[Athena, Lord of Kobol|Athena]] commits suicide in sorrow at the human exodus, suggesting that one or more gods or humans remained to record the death before [[Tomb of Athena|entombing Athena]] and leaving themselves.

It is known that the [[Thirteenth Tribe]] departed Kobol some time before the main exodus ([[Miniseries]]), to seek a planet known as "[[Earth]]." The gods appear to have abandoned Kobol as well, but aired information does not establish a time of departure.

===Religious Texts===
During the time humans lived on Kobol, many texts were written, some of which have survived through time, and are regarded by some as religious artifacts, and by others the documenting of myths and legends. Chief among these writings are those of [[Pythia]], who wrote some 1,600 years prior to the Great Exodus, fortelling of another exodus featuring a "caravan of the heavens" lead by someone dying of a "wasting disease" ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]]). This exodus would lead humanity to a new home, although the leader would die before he/she could enter the new home.

Some of the writings of Pythia have apparently come true: President [[Laura Roslin]], the civil leader of the Colonial fleet is dying of cancer at the presumed fulfillment of the prophesy. Further, Roslin has several visions, including one of 12 snakes ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]]), a vision specifically foretold by Pythia.

According to an image of [[Number Six|Six]] that appears to [[Gaius Baltar]], the Cylons have very different beliefs about Kobol, including that human sacrifice was practiced there, and that the souls of all who die on Kobol are forever lost ("[[Valley of Darkness]]," "[[Fragged]]"). Since this "virtual Six" appears to be some [[Cylon-Related Hallucinations|sort of hallucination]], this belief may be a falsehood.

===Rediscovering Kobol===
Kobol is re-discovered by chance when ''[[Galactica]]'' dispatches her [[Raptor]]s to locate planets which may provide materials needed to re-supply the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]).

Following the discovery (as predicted by the [[Cylon agent]] [[Leoben Conoy]]), Roslin becomes convinced that Kobol will lead the fleet to Earth, providing the [[Tomb of Athena]] can be accessed. To do this, the [[Arrow of Apollo]] must be retrieved from the [[Delphi Museum of the Colonies]] on [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Caprica|Caprica]].

However, before the surface of Kobol can be reached safely (and the crew of a crashed Raptor rescued), a [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] force lead by a [[Basestar (RDM)|basestar]] must be eliminated. Commander [[William Adama|Adama]] plans to use the captured [[Cylon Raider]] to help with this, but before any plan can be put into action, Lt. [[Kara "Starbuck" Thrace]] uses the Raider to go to Caprica in an attempt to recover the Arrow ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]). Commander Adama eventually uses a Raptor armed with a nuclear warhead to destroy the orbiting basestar.

President Roslin played up her role as "the Leader" sent by the Gods, and convinces a third of [[The Fleet (RDM)|the Fleet]] to return to Kobol with her ([[The Farm]]). With the Arrow of Apollo retrieved, Roslin descends to the surface with a small team, including [[Lee Adama|Lee "Apollo" Adama]], Starbuck, [[Helo]], and [[Tom Zarek]]. The [[Sharon Valerii (Caprica copy)|copy of Sharon Valerii]], who accompanied Helo on Caprica, claims to know how to help Roslin reach the [[Tomb of Athena]], and is brought along as guide. Along the way on the surface, Roslin's team fights with additional Centurions, resulting in the death of priestess [[Elosha]], Roslin's personal religious advisor ([[Home, Part I]]).

Commander Adama (who locates Roslin's group on the surface) joins her and the rest of the team shortly after Elosha's death. The team soon finds the Tomb of Athena. They are the first people to see the inside of the Tomb in centuries, and use the Arrow to activate a holographic map display which indicated the general direction of [[Earth]] ([[Home, Part II]]).

==Similarities of Kobol between Original and Re-imagined Series==

*It is the original home of humanity
*It is found by chance by both Fleets
*A tomb may hold the key to the location of Earth
**[[Ninth Lord of Kobol]] - [[Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I]]
**[[Tomb of Athena]] - [[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]
*Special keys are needed to open or access the secrets of the tomb
**[[Adama's Medallion]]
**The [[Arrow of Apollo]]
*The Colonials encounter Cylons during their quests.

==Etymology of "Kobol"==
"Kobol" originally appears to have derived from "Kolob" which, according to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_articles_about_Mormonism Mormon] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Abraham Book of Abraham] is the "star nearest unto God". [[Glen A. Larson]], creator of the Original Series. is a member of the of the [[Wikipedia:Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]. As such, he used Mormon imagery within the show, together with elements of Eygptian imagery that tend to reflect the time of [[Wikipedia:Abraham|Abraham]] and the Israelites.

Kobol could also have been derived from the Greek word "Kobalos" for mine/source, the name suggesting Kobol was originally a planet which the lords saw as having a wealth of natural resources to be potentially exploited by their children, humanity. Also, it could have been called Kobol, (again the Greek word meaning “mine/source”), because the planet contained not just natural resources, but also later on (during the time of the great exodus of the 12 tribes) but also contained something far more important for the 12 tribes to find (mine/look for) there, should the dire need arise. Kobol could contain within her somewhere the key to finding the last hope for humanity, should the civilisation of the 12 tribes of Kobol fall: The direction and map to the location of the last pocket of humanity, the 13th tribe of the Lords of Kobol.

--[[User:Asleifsson|Asleifsson]] 12:11, 3 September 2006 (CDT)

==Cinematic Note==

In the Re-imagined Series, much of the scenic, expansive landscapes of Kobol were filmed at [http://www.spacesfornature.org/greatspaces/pinecone.html Widgeon Slough], the largest freshwater marsh in the the Pinecone Burke Provincial Park, Britsh Columbia, Port Coquitlam (Source in part: [[The Official Companion]]).

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial History]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Planets]]
[[Category:RDM]]
[[Category:TOS]]

Kobol

2006-09-03T17:11:04Z

Asleifsson: /* Etymology of "Kobol" */

'''Kobol''' is the ancestral homeworld for humanity in both ''Battlestar Galactica'' sagas. In both series, an unexplained event or catastrophe causes humanity to leave Kobol and settle on the planets that form their new homeworlds known as the Twelve Colonies.

==Kobol in the Original Series==
[[Image:BattleofKobol.jpg|thumb|left|The tombs of the Lords of Kobol as seen in the Original Series. This shot is obviously based on the [[Wikipedia:Egyptian pyramids|Egyptian pyramids]] of real-world Earth.]]

In the [[Battlestar Galactica (TOS)|Original Series]], Kobol was the mother world where mankind originated. An ecological / environmental disaster led to humanity's migration. During the migration, 12 tribes set out for the stars, but became lost in a starless void before stumbling into the worlds that would become the new [[The Twelve Colonies (TOS)|Twelve Colonies of Man]], while the 13th again headed for a world called "Earth".

Kobol is rediscovered in the two-part episode, "[[Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I|Lost Planet of the Gods]]." A team from ''[[Galactica (TOS)|Galactica]]'' arrive among the ruins of [[Eden]], the planet's largest city, seeking to enter the tomb of the [[Ninth Lord of Kobol]] in order to find clues as to the route taken by the Thirteeth Tribe. A [[Cylon]] attack ultimately prevents them from doing so.
<div style="clear: both;"></div>

==Kobol in the Re-imagined Series==
[[image:Home_pt1-Kobol.jpg|thumb|right|'''Kobol''' as seen from space in the [[Battlestar Galactica (RDM)|Re-imagined Series]].]]

Kobol is said to be the original home of mankind, once shared with the [[Lords of Kobol]].

Kobol is a verdant world of seas and continents, the latter having large swathes of woodland, grassland and forests. It was located in [[Sector 218]] of the galaxy ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]).

Kobol was a place where humans and the gods dwelt in harmony, the seat of power being the [[City of the Gods]] in the northern hemisphere, itself dominated by the [[Forum]] and [[Opera House]] ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]), structures which were duplicated on [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Caprica|Caprica]] in the city of [[Delphi]].

===Great Exodus===
The Great Exodus from Kobol took place some 2,000 years prior to the events of the [[Miniseries]]. At that time, the Twelve Tribes [[Galleon Meadow|departed Kobol]] for another star system.

It is unclear whether all the gods themselves departed Kobol at this time, although the [[Sacred Scrolls]] indicate that [[Athena, Lord of Kobol|Athena]] commits suicide in sorrow at the human exodus, suggesting that one or more gods or humans remained to record the death before [[Tomb of Athena|entombing Athena]] and leaving themselves.

It is known that the [[Thirteenth Tribe]] departed Kobol some time before the main exodus ([[Miniseries]]), to seek a planet known as "[[Earth]]." The gods appear to have abandoned Kobol as well, but aired information does not establish a time of departure.

===Religious Texts===
During the time humans lived on Kobol, many texts were written, some of which have survived through time, and are regarded by some as religious artifacts, and by others the documenting of myths and legends. Chief among these writings are those of [[Pythia]], who wrote some 1,600 years prior to the Great Exodus, fortelling of another exodus featuring a "caravan of the heavens" lead by someone dying of a "wasting disease" ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]]). This exodus would lead humanity to a new home, although the leader would die before he/she could enter the new home.

Some of the writings of Pythia have apparently come true: President [[Laura Roslin]], the civil leader of the Colonial fleet is dying of cancer at the presumed fulfillment of the prophesy. Further, Roslin has several visions, including one of 12 snakes ([[The Hand of God (RDM)|The Hand of God]]), a vision specifically foretold by Pythia.

According to an image of [[Number Six|Six]] that appears to [[Gaius Baltar]], the Cylons have very different beliefs about Kobol, including that human sacrifice was practiced there, and that the souls of all who die on Kobol are forever lost ("[[Valley of Darkness]]," "[[Fragged]]"). Since this "virtual Six" appears to be some [[Cylon-Related Hallucinations|sort of hallucination]], this belief may be a falsehood.

===Rediscovering Kobol===
Kobol is re-discovered by chance when ''[[Galactica]]'' dispatches her [[Raptor]]s to locate planets which may provide materials needed to re-supply the [[The Fleet (RDM)|Fleet]] ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]).

Following the discovery (as predicted by the [[Cylon agent]] [[Leoben Conoy]]), Roslin becomes convinced that Kobol will lead the fleet to Earth, providing the [[Tomb of Athena]] can be accessed. To do this, the [[Arrow of Apollo]] must be retrieved from the [[Delphi Museum of the Colonies]] on [[The Twelve Colonies (RDM)#Caprica|Caprica]].

However, before the surface of Kobol can be reached safely (and the crew of a crashed Raptor rescued), a [[Cylons (RDM)|Cylon]] force lead by a [[Basestar (RDM)|basestar]] must be eliminated. Commander [[William Adama|Adama]] plans to use the captured [[Cylon Raider]] to help with this, but before any plan can be put into action, Lt. [[Kara "Starbuck" Thrace]] uses the Raider to go to Caprica in an attempt to recover the Arrow ([[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]). Commander Adama eventually uses a Raptor armed with a nuclear warhead to destroy the orbiting basestar.

President Roslin played up her role as "the Leader" sent by the Gods, and convinces a third of [[The Fleet (RDM)|the Fleet]] to return to Kobol with her ([[The Farm]]). With the Arrow of Apollo retrieved, Roslin descends to the surface with a small team, including [[Lee Adama|Lee "Apollo" Adama]], Starbuck, [[Helo]], and [[Tom Zarek]]. The [[Sharon Valerii (Caprica copy)|copy of Sharon Valerii]], who accompanied Helo on Caprica, claims to know how to help Roslin reach the [[Tomb of Athena]], and is brought along as guide. Along the way on the surface, Roslin's team fights with additional Centurions, resulting in the death of priestess [[Elosha]], Roslin's personal religious advisor ([[Home, Part I]]).

Commander Adama (who locates Roslin's group on the surface) joins her and the rest of the team shortly after Elosha's death. The team soon finds the Tomb of Athena. They are the first people to see the inside of the Tomb in centuries, and use the Arrow to activate a holographic map display which indicated the general direction of [[Earth]] ([[Home, Part II]]).

==Similarities of Kobol between Original and Re-imagined Series==

*It is the original home of humanity
*It is found by chance by both Fleets
*A tomb may hold the key to the location of Earth
**[[Ninth Lord of Kobol]] - [[Lost Planet of the Gods, Part I]]
**[[Tomb of Athena]] - [[Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I]]
*Special keys are needed to open or access the secrets of the tomb
**[[Adama's Medallion]]
**The [[Arrow of Apollo]]
*The Colonials encounter Cylons during their quests.

==Etymology of "Kobol"==
"Kobol" originally appears to have derived from "Kolob" which, according to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_articles_about_Mormonism Mormon] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Abraham Book of Abraham] is the "star nearest unto God". [[Glen A. Larson]], creator of the Original Series. is a member of the of the [[Wikipedia:Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints|Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]]. As such, he used Mormon imagery within the show, together with elements of Eygptian imagery that tend to reflect the time of [[Wikipedia:Abraham|Abraham]] and the Israelites.

Kobol could also have been derived from the Greek word "Kobalos" for mine/source, the name suggesting Kobol was originally a planet which the lords saw as having a wealth of natural resources to be potentially exploited by their children, humanity. Also, it could have been called Kobol, (again the Greek word meaning “mine/source”), because the planet contained not just natural resources, but also later on (during the time of the great exodus of the 12 tribes) but also contained something far more important for the 12 tribes to find (mine/look for) there, should the dire need arise. Kobol could contain within her somewhere t--[[User:Asleifsson|Asleifsson]] 12:11, 3 September 2006 (CDT)he key to finding the last hope for humanity, should the civilisation of the 12 tribes of Kobol fall: The direction and map to the location of the last pocket of humanity, the 13th tribe of the Lords of Kobol.

==Cinematic Note==

In the Re-imagined Series, much of the scenic, expansive landscapes of Kobol were filmed at [http://www.spacesfornature.org/greatspaces/pinecone.html Widgeon Slough], the largest freshwater marsh in the the Pinecone Burke Provincial Park, Britsh Columbia, Port Coquitlam (Source in part: [[The Official Companion]]).

[[Category:A to Z]]
[[Category:Colonial History]]
[[Category:Colonial Religion]]
[[Category:Planets]]
[[Category:RDM]]
[[Category:TOS]]