What is Alduin in fact

[Urtel]

So what the hell is this all about, you might say. Alduin is a world-eater, dragon, end-of-the-world. Correct. But i want to talk about his real nature.

I have a theory, that might make you facepalming, but give me a chance) Introduction finished.

 

So, lets talk about the gods, daedra, their planes. From what i know, Divines are bound to their own planes (stars/planets). Daedric princes also have their planes that are numerous and represent the huge outer space. Im pretty shure about this, but in some cases i can be wrong, so thats why i made this topic.

Now, we know that dragons are the creatures, born by Akatosh, who is represented as one of the eight planets.

And Alduin is known to lead them. But unlike Akatosh, Alduin tends to destroy plane of mortals.

We also know, that in TES universe magic, faith and astronomy are just different sides of science-kind thingy, so we can consider those astronomical statements to be as real, as magic and worshipping. I say this to avoid any arguments about what is true, astronomy or religion.

 

Now we get to the point. Alduin is a comet, or an asteroid. Shure, its not a rock, or piece of metal. More likely its a powerful magical cluster, that is a part of Akatosh's light

 

Now you can throw stale tomato and eggs at me :laugh:

[DeltaWulf]

Alduin was created directly by Akatosh, the God of Time to fulfill his specific title, "World Eater". Alduin has a bit of Akatosh's power, as Paarthurnax mentions at the end of the main quest, which he misused in order to become the most powerful dragon in existence, to the point that he's at a level compared to the Nordic god Shor. Lorkhan and Akatosh were the two deities responsible for the creation of Nirn, Lorkhan being destroyed in order to create it and returning as the god you know, Shor. This means that Alduin must be a being of nearly god-like proportions, thanks to abusing his powers granted by Akatosh when he created him, because Alduin is compared to Shor as his opposite counterpart. So, Alduin was originally not as powerful of a being as he is when you fight him, and theoretically never was Akatosh or Shor. Alduin was created to bring in a new ages of time. It's safe to speculate Alduin's true role, if the Last Dragonborn had failed, was to destroy Skyrim, the Empire, and dissolve all of Tamriel as it is known in the game to ready the world to be recreated again by Akatosh. If you recall the prophecy and answer given by the Last Dragonborn to Paarthurnax (a dialogue option), "The new age will have to find a way on its own" (something to that effect), it's actually foreshadowing to the possible future had you failed to kill Akatosh.

So, it's fairly safe to say that Alduin is a deity, rather than a dragon. If he can be compared on a level of Shor, then he would be a moon, not a comet, if you're speaking astrologically.

Also, the real interesting part is, as you know, Shor is the god of the Nordic afterlife and the leader of Sovngarde, making him a mortal (Daedra don't get an afterlife when they are destroyed and cannot enter Sovngarde). This also means that Alduin must be a mortal being as well, because he is able to enter Sovngarde. Destroying Alduin within Sovngarde was not his final death, however, because he was still living at the time you destroy him and not truly in the "afterlife".

Edited August 2, 2013 by DeltaWulf

[AlduinWorldEater]

Alduin is probably something beyond our normal comprehension. As stated above, he was not truly destroyed in Sovngarde. What exactly happened to him is probably going to remain a mystery until such time as Bethesda sees fit to reveal. However, I have a theory.

 

To truly understand Alduin, you have to understand Akatosh. According to the in-game book "The Monomyth", Akatosh (as we know him) has many names and forms, each one differentiating between the various races of Nirn. To the Mer, he is a great Elf. To the Khajiit, he is a dragon-cat. To the Men, he is a dragon. Akatosh chooses the image he manifests himself in based upon who he is appearing to. Similarly, Alduin chose the form of a great black dragon to appear to the mortal folk of Nirn. Therefore, Alduin is NOT a dragon - he is a shapeless diety who chose the form of a dragon to carry out his role as the World-Eater. When his mortal form is destroyed in Sovngarde, he does not actually die. His "mortal" body is torn asunder, and his "soul", for as much of a soul as a god can have, returned to Aetherius, most likely to sit beside his Father and contemplate his mistakes.

 

Alduin is neither man, nor mer, nor beastfolk, nor dovah. He simply "is". Alduin is Alduin.

[Lachdonin]

There is an ingame book (the name of which escapes me this early in the morning) which indicates that Alduin was not split from Akatosh willingly, but rather "Twas heaven which sundered me(Alduin) from you(Akatosh)". To me, this implies some kind of side effect of creating Mundus. If Akatosh, then, is the representation of time's ability to create and preserve, Alduin is the destructive aspect of time, the part of time which brings the inevitable end to all things.

 

It's worth noting that all the Divines are, in fact, dead. They died in the creation of Mundus, and the planets view-able from Nirn are their 'corpses'. However, belief being such a powerful thing in the TES universe, it was the continued worship of their now mortal kin, the Mer, which kept them going. Because of this basis in worship, rather than the literal existence of say, the Daedra, the Divines are known by many names, and viewed in many ways, creating complex multiple personas. Akatosh and Aur-iel (i probably spelled that wrong) are the same god, even though they have different temperaments and allegiances. I believe it was Sajuukar who likened the current state of the Divines as gems, with each facet representing a different system of belief in said god.

 

Now, that said, it could be that Akatosh's initial demise is what actually separated Alduin and bound to Mundus, meaning that Alduin would be a fragment of divine power, something which can neither be created or destroyed. He IS the end of the world made manifest, and it is his ultimate destiny to destroy Nirn. We know he is more powerful than some of the Daedra, for it is he (according to one myth) that forced Mehrunes Dagon's purpose (wanton destruction) on him. He has no astrological body because he has never died, and can never die. Essentially, he is part of Mundus as much as the Earthbones.

 

It's also worth noting that the planes of Oblivion cannot be directly viewed from Mundus. The mortal world is encased in a shell separating it from Oblivion, and this shell takes the form of the sky. At night, when the power of Magnus' rift has waned slightly, you can see the stars, which are holes left by those Aedra with enough power to flee the creatia-sapping nature of Mundus. Beyond this dark shell is the domains the Daedra formed afterwards, creating Oblivion as a parody of Mundus. The planets actually visible within the barrier are the remains of the original 8 divines, along with Lorkhan's sundered corpse (the moons).

 

So, in closing, Alduin is not a Dragon, though he may appear as one. In truth, he is just another facet of Akatosh, though one which survived the creation of Mundus. Akatosh used all the power for creation he had, leaving only the power of destruction, Alduin. That Akatosh was reborn through the worship of the Mer, and later the other races, creates something of an interesting duality between the two.

[Urtel]

Speaking of Sovngard.

For me a big question is about the Alduin's portal.

With all we stated here, this portal is a very weak point. It is situated in Alduin's keep, and can be open with a staff.

If Alduin is as old as Nirn is, which is no doubt, then how the staff may be a key. Also, why the keep itself is situated in such strange place, and built by human hands.

How is it possible, that warp gates connect Nirn with other Plane, and is built by mortals.

Very weak part IMHO.

[Lachdonin]

Once there were many gateways to other planes throughout Nirn. Most of them collapsed or otherwise changed after the Oblivion Crisis. Still, the gateway to Sovengarde isn't exactly like your normal Oblivion gate, nor do i suspect it was originally created by mortals. More likely, it was there since Lorkhan's death and the creation of Sovengarde, and men built the temple around it, the staff acting like a key to a magical lock built over the portal.

 

As for why Alduin could travel to Sovengarde (something which i didn't bring up earlier) its probably because he's part of the one who created it. Lorkhan and Akatosh are two faces of the same Aedra. Lorkhan created Sovengarde when he became Shor. Akatosh became Alduin. So, in a round about way, Alduin created Sovengarde.

[Urtel]

So, Lachdonin, you mean to say that Alduin IS Akatosh, but the ingame book says its not true. This, thou, can be a just a religious prospect, made to avoid any heresy spreading. I do not think, they are same. Or you mean Alduin is the remaining energy after Akatosh stopped excisting/died/became dead plane.

 

More about Alduin. He was eating souls. Having in mind, what we posted here, where do this souls go? I guess its just a way to bring brave souls back in Nirn, to form new heroes. But i'm not shure, if reincarnatted black souls can remain heroic. They could completely lose their identity.

[Lachdonin]

Well, first, i'd like to say that the 'book' stating that Alduin and Akatosh are not one in the same is written by a barely literate Nord who has an infinitely smaller view of the TES universe than we do from the outside. The same Nord would probably say Lorkhan and Akatosh are not one in the same, but we know that to be false as well.

 

As for the soul thing... It's probably about gaining power. Sovengarde is one of the only real Afterlife's for Aedra worshiping people, there to spend eternity drinking and fighting. Everyone else gets recycled. We know that souls can be consumed to empower objects and certian Et'ada, so it stands to reason that Alduin is capable of consuming souls to increase his own power. If that is the case, Sovengarde makes the perfect stomping ground, since it's full of the souls of powerful heroes.

[Urtel]

Right, absolutely agree.

But this means, when Db defeated A, this soul power went to where?

Since Db adsorbed nothing, those souls might be set free again. But i don't think i saw any

[Lachdonin]

Depends on what happens when a soul is consumed. Souls are weird things and we're not entirely sure what happens to any save for those that pass through the Dreamsleave.