The Traveler: Messianic Figure

I hope there is enough tolerance in the forum community for this topic.

I have been thinking about the story line that we know of so far regarding Destiny. Humanity had a great golden age thanks to the Traveler, some great enemy pushed us back to Earth and the City, but the Traveler sacrificed itself (to some extent) for the sake of humanity's existence.

This isn't the first time that Bungie uses religious symbolism and language in their stories. The concept of Messianic and God figures and spirituality can be found in Marathon and they are obvious in HALO (Covenant, Ark, Reclaimer, The Mantle).

As a Christian, I can't help but see a link between the Traveler's sacrifice and the the sacrifice of Christ as the cross. When the game starts, the Traveler has been "sleep" or gone for a while, and there is almost an urgency that humanity needs him to awaken or come back to save humanity once more. This, once again, reminded me of the Christian Second Coming belief.

Anyway, I hope I am not stepping on any toes. My purpose here was simply to share and not to preach. If you have any other thoughts and see links with other religious/spiritual elements, feel free to comment along.

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Based on what we know now, it's hard to see the Traveler as anything but messianic. Would've been nice of it to get involved before most of humanity was wiped out, but, there might be good reasons for this. We simply don't know yet.

As far as where it goes from here though, it sounds like humanity's fate is in its own hands. We can't count on the Traveler to do the heavy lifting anymore. I mean, look at the title of the game. ;)

Perhaps the role of the Traveler was more of some equalizer, or gardener even. Can't let space-faring species get entirely wiped out, some kind of universal rule? I'm thinking of how in some sci-fi (Contact, 2001) the universe is more cultivated than we initially realize.

The Traveler might not have entirely charitible reasons for its actions either, a la the Gman in Half-Life or the Reapers in Mass Effect.

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Thank you for posting. These are some pretty good points. You are correct in that we have no idea what are the Traveler's intentions at this point and we may never know. I don't know where I heard or read that the Traveler (or his energy) is what grants the Guardians their powers. If this is the case, then the Traveler is still somehow "helping" humanity in its survival. Who knows at this point...

Im glad you mentioned Mass Effect. One thing I really like about ME is that Humanity (by force and not by diplomacy) enters the universe of space-faring species and civilizations. It was a very complex and well-built universe...which is now mostly annihilated thanks to the Reapers.

Good thoughts!

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If this is the case, then the Traveler is still somehow "helping" humanity in its survival. Who knows at this point...

Or, we broke in and stole some stuff while he was asleep. ;)

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Thank you for posting. These are some pretty good points. You are correct in that we have no idea what are the Traveler's intentions at this point and we may never know. I don't know where I heard or read that the Traveler (or his energy) is what grants the Guardians their powers. If this is the case, then the Traveler is still somehow "helping" humanity in its survival. Who knows at this point...

In the Grimnoir series, humans started exhibiting magic powers around 1850, and we find the source eighty years later. Some sort of eldritch abomination has set up shop around earth and is symbiotically bonding itself to individuals it deems to have potential. It grants those individuals some of its power, which grows and matures the more the person uses it. And when that person dies, the magic is harvested by the creature.

Which makes for a really, really interesting sort of alternate history, like The Maltese Falcon crossed with X-men. Only, there's one problem.

This isn't the first world that the creature has cultivated.
It's on the run from something even more powerful than it is, something that devours worlds and enslaves sapient inhabitants.
We're next.

Back to Destiny, though, it would be kind of interesting if we're not the ONLY ones hiding under the Traveler's shadow. The other races don't play nice, but maybe they're on the run too.

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I hope there is enough tolerance in the forum community for this topic.

I have been thinking about the story line that we know of so far regarding Destiny. Humanity had a great golden age thanks to the Traveler, some great enemy pushed us back to Earth and the City, but the Traveler sacrificed itself (to some extent) for the sake of humanity's existence.

This isn't the first time that Bungie uses religious symbolism and language in their stories. The concept of Messianic and God figures and spirituality can be found in Marathon and they are obvious in HALO (Covenant, Ark, Reclaimer, The Mantle).

As a Christian, I can't help but see a link between the Traveler's sacrifice and the the sacrifice of Christ as the cross. When the game starts, the Traveler has been "sleep" or gone for a while, and there is almost an urgency that humanity needs him to awaken or come back to save humanity once more. This, once again, reminded me of the Christian Second Coming belief.

Anyway, I hope I am not stepping on any toes. My purpose here was simply to share and not to preach. If you have any other thoughts and see links with other religious/spiritual elements, feel free to comment along.

I find this an odd discussion. Its like - Ok. That's cool. Particully BEFORE we have any real meat of story to tell from. With our current comprehension systems, you can't associate with something you don't know. Just because you can doesn't not mean it is. It is simply an element - nothing more.

I'm glad you find a personal joy in such a story mechanism, but ultimately, there is little to discuss here. What is it you want to speak about that furthers the discussion in the understanding (or at least the elements) of Destiny (that we can do of right now)?

Its just seems abit - premature.

Furthermore - I have yet to blow things up with my mind.

Well...

Edit: Stray formatting code. Fixed.

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It is what it is. Just some thoughts to share.

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I'm glad you find a personal joy in such a story mechanism, but ultimately, there is little to discuss here. What is it you want to speak about that furthers the discussion in the understanding (or at least the elements) of Destiny (that we can do of right now)?

Its just seems abit - premature.

Well, maybe there's not much to speak about, but if it's there for him, it's probably there for others too. It's never too early to take things and stuff them into a worldview.

I mean, I'm an atheist, and Destiny has already evoked some pretty strong feelings about humanity's place in the cosmos, what possibilities our future might hold, how we could better live not just on Earth, but on the other worlds in our little solar system.

Geeze, Civ: Beyond Earth had just one trailer so far and it was raining ALL OVER my face.

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I have said this before and I will say it again. I really respect the level of maturity that I have found at DBO Forums. I think the past few posts have been an example of that. I have seen people cut each other up at many other forums. Society is just a little bit too emotionally overcharged.

So, once again, I appreciate the maturity and the respect. And of course, your posts and thoughts.

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I have said this before and I will say it again. I really respect the level of maturity that I have found at DBO Forums. I think the past few posts have been an example of that. I have seen people cut each other up at many other forums. Society is just a little bit too emotionally overcharged.

So, once again, I appreciate the maturity and the respect. And of course, your posts and thoughts.

Hey, anytime. That's why I responded. I love talking about this stuff. :)

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I have said this before and I will say it again. I really respect the level of maturity that I have found at DBO Forums. I think the past few posts have been an example of that. I have seen people cut each other up at many other forums. Society is just a little bit too emotionally overcharged.

So, once again, I appreciate the maturity and the respect. And of course, your posts and thoughts.

It also makes forum moderation really easy. :)

The only users I've banned were all spambots.

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I'm glad you find a personal joy in such a story mechanism, but ultimately, there is little to discuss here. What is it you want to speak about that furthers the discussion in the understanding (or at least the elements) of Destiny (that we can do of right now)?

Its just seems abit - premature.

Well, maybe there's not much to speak about, but if it's there for him, it's probably there for others too. It's never too early to take things and stuff them into a worldview.

Indeed. To double down on clarification I wasn't besmirching the post. I was simply seeking a degree of clarification on what the post was proposing to talk about.

I would be a very bad Warlock otherwise. ;)

Edit:

For the sake of an ever poetic full circle.

Geeze, Civ: Beyond Earth had just one trailer so far and it was raining ALL OVER my face.

The same thing is the case for the Civilization IV music. Its theme song "Baba Yetu" has lyrics that are a Swahili language-translation of the Lord’s Prayer.

/Bam

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The same thing is the case for the Civilization IV music. Its theme song "Baba Yetu" has lyrics that are a Swahili language-translation of the Lord’s Prayer.

/Bam

God I fucking love Civ. You know Poland's music for Brave New World? It's a Christmas carol called, "God is Being Born."

Best. Carol. Ever.

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Geeze, Civ: Beyond Earth had just one trailer so far and it was raining ALL OVER my face.

This. But I did get a buttload of melancholy charged in as well.

Except when the announcer in Rio spoke perfect Brazilian Portuguese. That threw me off for a while. Had to rewatch the trailer twice to finally see it as it is.

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I'm glad you find a personal joy in such a story mechanism, but ultimately, there is little to discuss here. What is it you want to speak about that furthers the discussion in the understanding (or at least the elements) of Destiny (that we can do of right now)?

Its just seems abit - premature.

Well, maybe there's not much to speak about, but if it's there for him, it's probably there for others too. It's never too early to take things and stuff them into a worldview.

Some crazy people have been doing a podcast full of speculation about Destiny and it's story for over a year now.

Some other guy is making an audio drama about how the Traveler influenced humanity's manifest Destiny and other anthropological-sociological issues.

That doesn't even scratch the surface of much of the fan fiction about the Traveler and religious issues that can be found at places like DBO/fanfic, Destiny Dispatch, and elsewhere!

Yeah, people be speculatin' :)

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I kid with the subject line, sensitive ones. Many great stories involve saviors and sacrifice. Maybe all?

Cue Joseph Campbell.

I'm interested in the parallels, too, but I would be. It might be slightly premature for a full discussion, though.

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Many great stories involve saviors and sacrifice. Maybe all?

Yeah, I think it's a common enough element (an individual giving himself up to save others) that it's almost not noteworthy.

But the parallel is definitely there.

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The Traveler: Messianic Figure (Destiny)