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An Archaeological Perspective

Kyle McAllister, Dreamspeaker Walker of the Ways, Chantrymaster of the Gold Coast
Mikayla Majistrom, Abbess of the Gold Coast
Angelique Donovan, Riteleader of the Gold Coast

There has been much speculation on the history of the 10 Traditions, especially in the light of the obscuring tactics of the Technocracy and their somewhat successful campaign to rewrite history. But from the information we have on hand, we have been able to develop some measure of what happened, relatively unobscured by Technocratic meddling.

There is one disturbing thing to note, however. Many powerful spirits were reluctant to talk of the time before approximately 20,000 BC, giving a hint that the world was a much, much different place then. I will pursue this line sometime in the future.

Hunter-Gatherers, Fertility & Magic

In the very earliest time, before the rise of civilization in Katal Huyuk, Sumeria, China, India and South America, most peoples were primitive hunter-gatherers. They had little time to devote to spiritual matters, as they were busy trying to survive in a world that it seems was not cooperating with their survival. The Technocracy paints this period as just past the last great Ice Age, though whether such an event occurred we cannot be sure.

What we do know is that somewhere along the line, people began learning the most basic of the Arts, those things that were centered upon the self and survival. Healing magic, enhancing the body, speaking with the spirits of the predator and prey, these were things that concerned these early people. And this is where Magic, both the magick of the Traditions and the magic of the hedge wizards and the Arcanum, began to develop.

The oldest magic was of the simple detection level, though apparently from folklore there were some who were highly skilled in the paths of the Spirit and of Life. These people were virtually demigods among their own people. These old shamans and witch doctors were probably the first Dreamspeakers and Verbena.

It is interesting to note that amongst the most primitive cultures there is no knowledge of the role of sexuality or of the male in reproduction. Thus, women tended to hold a level of mystique and thus more commonly were the ones to develop the Arts than men, because it was thought that only the woman could bring new life into the world. This may explain a matriarchal focus in the oldest paths of the Arts, particularly the Verbena.

The other subset of individuals were the first artificers, those that created the tools and artifacts that archaeologists deal with today. They were shapers of form, of matter and were quite likely the progenitors of the technologic mages, the Sons of Ether and the Technocracy.

As the hunter-gatherers settled down, they began using more elaborate techniques to enhance the plants they gathered and the herd they hunted. Somewhere along the line, this crossed the line from hunting and gathering to domestication and agriculture. With these developments, the first of the city-states could arise.

It is useful to note that the Garou Impergium kept the peoples of the world in check much further than the first moment they could have developed cities. Thus you have the relative explosion of cities at the end of the Impergium, approximately 8,000 years ago.

There are a few mysteries left, however. Stonehenge, the Sphinx and the megaliths of the world. Who built them? Many of them are beyond the ken of the Garou, who were possibly the dominant power of the world until they let the Impergium go. Mortal society was discouraged from this practice and the Kindred were most likely so few in number that they could not have masterminded such an endeavor, nor would they have been interested. It is something to explore.

The Beginnings of Civilization and the Rise of the City State

Once towns and cities began to arise, the character of the people changed dramatically. People had more time to devote to the spiritual, to the non-immediate. And out of this came three major developments.

First of these was the development of ritual. People began recording what they were doing and they would teach this to others by rote, giving them exact steps. This method was applied to everything, both material and spiritual. This is quite likely where the Order of Hermes got its start.

Secondly was the development of religion and with it the complex mythical cycle with which it was associated. This was the realm of the Celestial Chorus, the Euthanatos and, to a lesser extent in the West, the Akashic Brotherhood. With more time to devote to the spirit, these areas became more important and those that wielded the mostly incomprehensible powers of the spiritual world became the rulers. Thus came the era of the rule of priest-kings and priestess-queens.

Lastly, but most importantly, came the development of architecture and directed labor. No longer were people working as individuals but rather in teams. People were creating surplus goods, which caused money and trade to be developed. To accomplish this, the artificers of old became master architects and they created the concepts of time and position as regulators of the world. This is the basis of the Ahl-i-Batin, the "missing" Tradition.

It was back during this time that the effects of certain stimuli heightened spiritual sensation. Thus came the discovery and use of hallucinogens, intercourse and other intense experiences to enhance spiritual experience. This somewhat secretive group became the seeds of what would eventually become the Cult of Ecstasy.

Many wonder at the role the Euthanatos played in the earliest religions but the answer is quite simple. The year was governed by a cycle of life, death and rebirth, a tenet at the core of the Euthanatos philosophy. When something has outlived its time it must pass on, to become something useful. Thus we see the "young god" myths in almost every world culture. Baldur of the Norse, Osiris of the Egyptians, Persephone of the Greeks and even in the Christ figure of the Christians, these are all examples of the "lesson" of death; some things must pass beyond before returning. This philosophy lies at the heart of the modern Euthanatos.

If one studies well the history of this time, one can see traditions that carried through to modern times and the seeds of what became, in the modern age, the 10 Traditions. But for now, our research into the past continues, into the nature of the megaliths and that time the Technocracy calls the Ice Age.