Heaven's BBS || Text

[mybadhabit]

Posted: 30 Mar 2016
From: Hermes

--------

I know that adjusting to a new name is a serious undertaking for most people, but the common use of an individual's god name does not seem to be wide spread. Admittedly, my sample size is still relatively small, but most of the other gods I have met thus far have introduced themselves with their mortal names first, and then given their god name second. Is this because many have not yet adjusted to the new name, or are we not supposed to use our god names?

I'm making the adjustment myself, and I think it would be easier if I was a little more informed about what my relationship with my god name is meant to be. I, personally, am perfectly comfortable with dropping my old title in favor of Hermes, but if it's something meant for followers only, I can adjust my expectations accordingly.

Comments

logged in as anon

[cyberfly]

i don't think my god likes being called by their god name very much. maybe it's just personal preference.

[mybadhabit]

Why is that? What is it about your god's name that makes it undesirable?

[cyberfly]

i don't know. maybe they're just more used to their old name.

[ Or maybe it's because it's a girl name?? Nagi can be a bit clueless sometimes, sorry. ]

[mybadhabit]

I suppose that's fair. I have noticed that most other people have a stronger connection to their names than I do.

[cyberfly]

why do you think that is?

[mybadhabit]

Cultural differences, I presume. You have only had one name in your entire life, correct? In my village, names are given to you by other people and titles are earned. They change as you progress through life, shaped by your characteristics and achievements. I am proud of the Speed of Sound Sonic title I have held for the past eight years, but there is more prestige in Hermes and the tenements of my godhood will shape my behavior and my priorities for the time to come.

[fullcowl]

From: Deku | Aidos

If you like your god name better, you could use it. But I go by Deku because I chose it, and I don't think Aidos fits me that well.

[Deku is a name that carries a lot of meaning to him. He doesn't want to give it up just because somebody else says that his name is Aidos now. That's not something he chose.

And it's the name of a goddess.]

[mybadhabit]

You got to chose your own name?

[fullcowl]

It's my hero name. Every pro hero gets to choose that.

All Might, Endeavor, Mount Lady and a lot more- all of them chose their name.

[mybadhabit]

Oh, it's Hero nonsense. That's just self-aggrandizing.

[fullcowl]

They worked hard to become pro heroes- they at least get to chose what the public gets to call them.

/peanut gallery

[cursedblood]

That makes sense to me.

[mybadhabit]

The entire concept of professional heroism undermines what it truly means to be a hero. It takes what is otherwise an act of self-sacrifice and nobility and turns it into an obligation, a requirement rather than a personal choice. On top of that, such acts also become a spectacle. How many heroes do you know are in it simply because it's the Right Thing To Do? Most are just after the fame and glory that comes with being in the public eye.

In short, professional heroism is a self-centered grab for attention.

[fullcowl]

[He pauses, he gets up, he pours himself a glass of water.

This is Stain's reasoning all over again. That the only true heroes are the ones that put other's needs before their own, the ones that would run to help anybody just as soon as they're needed- the ones that didn't do it for money and fame. The ones who became heroes because they wanted to help people, heroes like All Might.

Under this logic it leaves him with All Might, Shouto and himself for certain. Probably a handful of his classmates, and some of his teachers, though he's not close enough to all of them to place them here for certain.

Though he doesn't know if Sonic's actually gone out and murdered any heroes himself. He hopes not.]

Maybe some heroes are just there for the fortune and fame, but that doesn't change the fact that they're still out there helping people. Without them the world would be a more dangerous place to live with elevated levels of destruction and crime.

They do provide a service and are paid for it, like the police or firefighters. I don't think there's anything inherently wrong with that.

[connivingbird]

For some people, a name is more then just a word. Some of us prefer our mortal ones because it stands for more then that life. It can stand for what they did or what they see themselves as while the god name might be a little.... lesser in the face of that.

Not by importance to this whole system of why we are here, but to what we at our core is meant to be.

BBS: Sheryl

[galactically]

by the people across the galaxies, i'm known as the Galactic Fairy
by the gods of the Heavens, i'm known as Euterpe

all my life, i had always been Sheryl Nome
even if i'm sent elsewhere and given a new name, i will always be Sheryl Nome

mind you, it's not that i dislike my god name. it's quite lovely with foreign appeal! i just always gravitate towards the name i'm born and raised with, that's all. those who go by their birth names probably feel similarly as me ☆

BBS | Prince Leo of Nohr

[brynwieldr]

Where I come from, "Odin" is simply a name and belonged to a friend of mine. Besides, I assumed it was meant to be more of a title than my name.

[sweetdeath]

It's sort of up to you. If you like your god name you can use it, but I keep feeling like it's not really mine, you know?

It's the real Tajimamori's. I'm just taking the position until we figure out what's going on.

[mybadhabit]

I was under the impression that we are the real gods. Reincarnations, sure, but that essence of the god resided in us the whole time, even if we were not aware of it. Why do you doubt that this is so?

[sweetdeath]

Wait, you mean always? No way. We took the position of the god, and we've got their powers now, but those other gods were here until right when we arrived.

At least that's how it worked with me. I don't know about your god. Hermes, right?

[mybadhabit]

That was the explanation as I understood it. If I was wrong, I am not sure if it makes much of a difference to my opinion. This position is mine now, and I intend to keep it.

Yes, Hermes. Greek emissary and messenger of the gods and conductor of souls into the afterlife. Patron god of herdsmen, thieves, oratory and wit, literature and poetry, athletics and sports, invention and trade, roads, boundaries and travelers.

[sweetdeath]

Greek. So that would've been a long time ago, right? Maybe there wasn't a Hermes here before you showed up. I never heard of him having a temple in Japan.

I mean I could be wrong, I never paid that much attention before I got this job!

So what kind of things are you going to do as Hermes?

[mybadhabit]

I'm not even from a realm that has a Japan. Some of our deities seem to be similar, and the culture of the Near Shore is very similar to my experiences, but "Japan" as a location is not something that exists. Everything is essentially new to me.

I believe our responsibilities lie in defeating Ayakashi and answering prayers, do they not? I am also meant to be a messenger, but no one has yet made use of the postbox at the entrance to my temple, or made any requests in person. From my understanding, my duties as a psychopomp are primarily meant for persons of interest to the Heavens, and I have not yet received any requests in that regard either.

[mybadhabit]

They weren't particularly explicit with its purpose, were they? Where I am from, names and titles are frequently intertwined, and this is not the first time its caused confusion between myself and other.

[brynwieldr]

That does sound confusing. I doubt anyone will stop anyone who wants to use their god name, though. It'd simply be too weird for me.