Confiteri: Hubris Will Be Our Savior: Notes on Breath of Fire V and Tales of Destiny

Some stories act as a mirror for the soul, which help us to see more clearly who we are. Elements of the stories found in Breath of Fire V: Dragon Quarter (PS2) and Tales of Destiny (Playstation) do this particularly well for modern man.

We will begin with BoF. The story-telling in BoF is a nice change from typical RPG fare. It is much more focused, not branching off into a dozen different side paths but following fairly closely the journey of Ryu, Nina, and Lin as they try to reach the surface of the earth from the underground dwelling where humanity has been living since an environmental cataclysm occurred generations ago.

There is a strong Kaballastic overtone to BoF, just as we saw in the analysis of Tales of the Abyss:

https://confiterijournal.blogspot.com/2019/08/what-awaits-in-tales-of-abyss.html

Many of the drawings and other aesthetic features of the game (images on doors, etc.) strongly suggest the ‘Tree of Life’ and other such diagrams and symbols from the Kaballah:

http://luminanti.com/Images/@Menu/Sound/Kabbalah/treecolorbuttonscrop_50.jpg

The main structure of the game’s world (with a low sector, middle sector, and top sector) also suggest the three main divisions of Kaballah’s Tree:

http://www.soul-guidance.com/houseofthesun/media/kabalah/treeveil.jpg

Furthermore, the progression of the game unfolds as an ascent, starting in the lowest underground darkness and ending in the blazing light of the sun. This is a classic esoteric theme (ascent/the quest for enlightenment). The symbol of enlightenment, the third eye, is seen on the facemask of one of the characters in the game:

https://bof.fandom.com/wiki/Tantra

https://www.cleopatraegypttours.com/travel-guide/the-eye-of-ra/

https://www.gaia.com/article/how-to-awaken-your-third-eye

The final obstacle to reaching the surface/enlightenment is the battle with the dragon Chetyre, which is very close to Kaballah’s Kether – the highest point on the Tree of Life:

http://www.soul-guidance.com/houseofthesun/treeoflifetraditional.htm#The%20Sephiroth

The most important feature, though, is how the journey to enlightenment begins in BoF. It is initiated by a horrible genetic experiment to turn a young girl, Nina, into a living filter to purify the air of the underground human settlements. Ryu takes her under his protection and tries to reach the surface with her, where the air is clean and her premature death (from purifying the toxic underground air) can be avoided.

A similar theme is observed in Tales of Destiny. When a certain rare metal is required to repair a ship that will take the heroes to the final battle, it is finally found in an old industrial waste site (the specific cave turns out to be full of toxic air also).

The mythology being woven in these instances is that man’s hubris towards the creation, while causing it harm together with himself – at least for a time, will in the long run also be his salvation. Thus, there is no need to worry about trespassing the limits God has laid out in revelation or in our consciences – with enough scientific advancement and/or destruction, the supreme beatitude will come within our grasp (this is, in essence, Crowley’s teaching – that if we bring mankind to the depths of depravity, the Savior will be forced to return and set things right). Some of the dialogue from Tales of Destiny makes this clear:

Garr: "Are you trying to say that Hugo's plans are different than those of Lydon?"

Baruk: "Master Hugo plans to create a perfect world by harnessing the Eye of Atamoni's power."

Garr: "You're contradicting yourself!!

Hugo is a human just like the rest of us!

You just said yourself that it's impossible for mere mortals to achieve order and perfection."

Baruk: "Master Hugo will transform himself into a superior being by using the Eye of Atamoni's powers."

Garr: "Don't make me laugh... Is he trying to become a god?"

Baruk: "You may laugh now, but it is the truth."

--https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps/198886-tales-of-destiny/faqs/45866

There are other reasons (eugenics, a desire to eradicate ‘useless eaters’, etc.), but it may be that some of the scientific elite are pursuing such a reckless path with GMOs, mRNA vaccines, 5G, brain-machine interfaces, and so on, because they really believe that their own versions of ‘Nina’, true to her name’s meaning, will some day lead mankind to some sort of paradise:

Lastly, Nina is a Babylonian fertility goddess of the watery deep whose name is said to mean ‘enclosure of fish’. She was the daughter of Ea (the spirit of the oceans, rivers and streams). The ancient people who dwelled around the Tigris and Euphrates rivers worshipped her as a life-giver by providing them nourishment with fish to eat. Not only was she the patroness of fisherman, but she was also the goddess of maternity. She had the capability to create and destroy and was so greatly revered by temples built in her honor in Babylonia and Assyria. Her symbols are associated with fish and water and her themes are connected to nourishment, abundance, creation (Life and Death).

--https://ohbabynames.com/all-baby-names/nina/

But in reality, this pride will only take us further into the devil’s hell we already know so well because of it.