| Gesserit Bene. |
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 | | Homeworld: | None; Based on Wallach IX. |
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| Leader: | Reverend Mother. |
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| Numbers: | Apx 2 million. |
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The Gesserit Bene (pronounced ᴊᴇss-ər-it-ʙᴇɴ-ee-) are a key social, religious, and political force in the Landsraad. They are described as an exclusive sisterhood whose members train their bodies and minds through years of physical and mental conditioning to obtain superhuman powers and abilities that can seem magical to outsiders. Acolytes who have acquired the breadth of Gesserit Bene abilities are called Reverend Mothers within the organization's ranks. Some of these powers were analyzed and deconstructed in The Science Of The Dune Peoples (2428).The Gesserit Bene are sometimes called "witches" due to their secretive nature and misunderstood powers; They are loyal only to themselves. However, to attain their goals and avoid outside interference, they often screen themselves with the illusion of being loyal to other groups or individuals. Their every move is calculated toward an end result. As the skills of a Gesserit Bene are as desirable as an alliance with the Sisterhood itself, they are able to charge a fee to school the females from Great Houses, and install some of their initiates as wives and concubines to their advantage. Princess Irulan is quoted:| "Thus spoke St. Alia-of-the-Knife: 'The Reverend Mother must combine the seductive wiles of a courtesan with the untouchable majesty of a virgin goddess, holding these attributes in tension so long as the powers of her youth endure. For when youth and beauty have gone, she will find that the place-between, once occupied by tension, has become a wellspring of cunning and resourcefulness.'"- Princess Irulan, Muad'Dib, Family Commentaries. |
Brief Overview of Gesserit Bene History Ancient HistoryAs is so often the case in the Landsraad, the ancient history of the Gesserit Bene can not be clearly understood; Crisscrossing histories create questionable provenance to historic claims.The sisterhood claims their founding to Raquella BERTO-ANIRUL of the Sorceresses of Rossak, a group of independent telekinetic women native to Rossak (a toxic world) and conceived a breeding plan to create more powerful telepaths. As a Sorceress was always killed when she unleashes her full power, they sacrifice themselves to destroy some of the Titans (an order of would-be dictators) and Neo-Cymeks (titan cyborgs) during the Butlerian Jihad over 10,000 years before the Dune War. Later, they expand their genetic program to preserve human bloodlines when mankind was endangered by a widespread plague called the "Demon Scourge," genetically engineered and unleashed by the thinking machines. Raquella became the first to access Other Memory and use the power of Voice.The best understood history of the Sorceress was catalogued in detail by HERBERT and ANDERSON in Sisterhood Of Dune, which is required reading for UGC diplomats stationed to the Arrakis March.The Gesserit Bene are a secretive matriarchal order who have achieved somewhat superhuman abilities through physical and mental conditioning and the use of the drug m'elange. Under the guise of humbly "serving" the Empire, the Sisterhood is in fact a major power in the universe, using its many areas of influence to subtly guide mankind along the path of their own plan for humanity's future. In The Dune Report, Frank HERBERT noted that over 10,000 years before the Dune War, in the chaotic time after the Butlerian Jihad and before the unveiling of the Orange Catholic Bible, the Gesserit Bene "consolidated their hold upon the sorceresses, explored the subtle narcotics, developed prana-bindu training and conceived the Missionaria Protectiva, that black arm of superstition. But it is also the period that saw the composing of the litany against fear and the assembly of the Azhar Book, that bibliographic marvel that preserves the great secrets of the most ancient faiths."A millennia later, during the Dune War itself, the Gesserit Bene base of power is the Mother School on the planet Wallach IX, whose graduates are fit mates for Emperors, and whose specially-trained Truthsayers can detect falsehood. But beyond the outer virtues of poise, self-control, and diplomacy, Gesserit Bene training includes superior combat skills and precise physiological control that grants them direct control over conception and embryotic sex determination, aging, and even the ability to render poisons harmless within their bodies. The Gesserit Bene power of Voice allows them to control others by merely modulating their vocal tones. Sisters who survive a ritualized poisoning known as the spice agony achieve increased awareness and abilities through access to Other Memory, and are subsequently known as Reverend Mothers. Every member of the Gesserit Bene is conditioned into singular loyalty to the order and its goals with allegiances to even family being secondary, and no goal is more paramount than the Sisterhood's large-scale breeding program. It aims to create a superbeing that can tap into abilities even the Gesserit Bene cannot, a being whom they can use in order to gain more direct control over the universe. To this end, the Gesserit Bene have subtly manipulated bloodlines for generations, using breeding sisters to "collect" the genes they require.The Gesserit Bene super-being, whom they refer to as the Kwisatz Haderach arrived a generation earlier than expected in the form of Paul ATREIDES, who was free from their direct control though his mother was the Gesserit Bene Lady Jessica. Paul gained control of the harsh desert planet Arrakis (with the help of the Fremen), the only source of the all-important spice m'elange; By threatening to destroy all spice production, he forced the Padishah Emperor to come to Arrakis. This was the final campaign of the Dune War- A campaign that ended horrifically for House CORRINO, as the Emperor himself was taken, along with his daughter Irulan, who was married to ATREIDES to seal his seat at the throne, then essentially imprisoned for the rest of her life, thus extinguishing the CORRINO family (or so was thought). A decade later, the Gesserit Bene participate in a conspiracy to remove the "God-Emperor". They succeeded in blinding him, and with it, many CENTURIES later, he chose to "retire," walking into the desert to die, when his sister Alia took regency of the Empire; She kept the Gesserit Bene at bay until Paul's young son Leto II took control for himself. Over 3,500 years later, Leto still dominated the universe as the tyrant God Emperor, who, through prescience, foresaw mankind's possible destruction, and had forced humanity into what he called the Golden Path, a plan which he believed will assure their survival. Having halted all spice production and thus making his own stockpile the only source of m'elange left in the universe, Leto was able to maintain firm control over the various factions and effected a "forced tranquility." He had taken the Gesserit Bene breeding program from them and used it for his own mysterious purposes, and their limited spice supply is subject to their obedience to Leto, and his whims. Recognizing that his work was finally done, Leto allowed himself to be assassinated.Fifteen hundred years later the Gesserit Bene regained their power and relocated to a hidden homeworld they call Chapterhouse, and the spice cycle has been renewed on Rakis (Arakis). New opposition arrived in the form of a violent matriarchal order calling themselves the Honored Matres, a ruthless and brutal force who sought domination over the Old Empire and who did not use or rely on m'elange for their powers. The Matres all but exterminate the Tleilaxu race and next targeted the Sisterhood; Gesserit Bene Mother Superior Taraza implemented a bold plan to release humanity from the oracular hold of Leto II by goading the Honored Matres into destroying Rakis.The Gesserit Bene terraformed Chapterhouse into a desert planet like Rakis, and brught a single sandworm there to begin a new spice cycle. With this, the Honored Matres began to destroy all of the Bene Gesserit-controlled planets and enslave the populaces of the other planets they conquer. The Matres themselves were being hunted by a far more powerful force from out in the Scattering. The new Mother Superior Darwi ODRADE recognized that the threat of this unknown enemy was greater than that of the Honored Matres, and formed another bold plan. The captive Honored Matre Murbella, who has been assimilated into the Gesserit Bene and gained the full powers of a Reverend Mother, defeated the leader of the Honored Matres in combat and thus becomes Great Honored Matre. She immediately succeeded ODRADE as Mother Superior of the Gesserit Bene, joining the two forces under a single leader in an uneasy truce that was hoped would be able to defeat the unknown enemy.Murbella adopts the new title of Mother Commander and struggled to bring the opposing factions of her New Sisterhood together. Among the Gesserit Bene, some are willing to accept the merge with the Honored Matres, while others oppose allying with their enemies; A group of dissenters led by Reverend Mother Sheeana had previously fled Chapterhouse aboard a no-ship upon Murbella's ascension to leadership. Within the Honored Matres, many admired Murbella's strength and abilities and desired Gesserit Bene training, but resisted assimilation. Additionally, a number of Honored Matres refuse to acknowledge Murbella as their leader; the largest such rebel group is led by Matre Superior Hellica on Tleilax. As Murbella amassed weaponry for the coming battle with the unknown enemy, she trained an elite force of commando troops with the combined battle talents of Gesserit Bene, Honored Matres, and even Swordmasters of the Ginaz. These "Valkyries" were able to effect Hellica's defeat, galvanizing many dissenters into finally joining Murbella's cause against the unknown enemy, revealed to be the resurrected thinking machines thought destroyed 15,000 years before, who unleashed decimating viruses on planet after planet, while Face Dancers infiltrate human civilization in their own insidious plot to take over the universe. The New Sisterhood's fleet of warships succumb to Face Dancer sabotage, but was salvaged from thinking machine attack by a host of Guild Navigators in heighliners, brought together by the Oracle of Time. The thinking machine leader Omnius was killed by the Oracle, and with that the Face Dancer threat eliminated. Murbella joins Duncan IDAHO in his plan to rule a universe in which mankind and thinking machines co-exist, as Sheeana introduced sandworms to the former thinking machine planet Synchrony, where she founded an orthodox Sisterhood.Goals, Strategies, And RitualsBreeding ProgramThe ultimate goal of the Gesserit Bene Sisterhood was the creation of a male Gesserit Bene they called the Kwisatz Haderach. They intended to achieve this superbeing through a massive human breeding program, which they had conducted for countless generations, using careful manipulations of relationships and breeding sisters to "collect" key genes. The Gesserit Bene controlled and finessed bloodlines through the ages. The Kwisatz Haderach, with supreme prescience and access to both male and female lines in Other Memory, would have been an overt figure in the Gesserit Bene's manipulations, thrust upon the universe as a messiah.Events did not transpire as predicted; The betrayal of House Atraedies by Elrood IX forced the successor to Leto, Paul, to ascend to the position of Kwisatz Haderach, independent of the Sisterhood, a generation early. The Gesserit Bene were frustrated to be at the mercy of their own creation, but a conspiracy to remove Paul from power fails and only leaves him blind. This event forced Emperor Muad'Dib to reconsider his own place in the order of the universe, and he stepped down with his son, Leto, becoming the new Kwisatz Haderach and therefore God Emperor. He took control of both the empire and the Gesserit Bene breeding program in and began his own transformation into a sandworm to give himself the time he needs for his Golden Path to be fully realized. The Gesserit Bene began a new breeding program for special individuals of great talent and usefulness in order to amplify certain human characteristics and preserve them, with the goal of advancing mankind and saving it from extinction.Avoiding direct powerThe Gesserit Bene choose to use indirect methodologies to further their goals, rather than wield overt power themselves. They have noted the Taoist principle that whatever rises must fall, and so rather than taking direct control of the human race, they instead manipulate the social and political order with subtlety and insinuation, often using extraordinarily long-term stratagems spanning generations. The Gesserit Bene avoid appearing too rich or powerful, or revealing the extent of their powers, to prevent being seen as overtly responsible for the rise and fall of governments and empires, and to avoid any organized backlash. To this end, the Gesserit Bene provide some of their trained initiates as wives and concubines, and will train the daughters of noble families for a fee.Missionaria Protectiva| "With the Lady Jessica and Arrakis, the Gesserit Bene system of sowing implant-legends through the Missionaria Protectiva came to its full fruition. The wisdom of seeding the known universe with a prophecy pattern for the protection of B.G. personnel has long been appreciated, but never have we seen a condition-ut-extremis with more ideal mating of person and preparation. The prophetic legends had taken on Arrakis even to the extent of adopted labels (including Reverend Mother, canto and respondu, and most of the Shari-a panoplia propheticus). And it is generally accepted now that the Lady Jessica's latent abilities were grossly underestimated."- Princess Irulan, Analysis: The Arrakeen Crisis[Private circulation: B.G. file number AR-810885] |
The Gesserit Bene practice "religious engineering" through a faction called the Missionaria Protectiva, which spreads "infectious superstitions on primitive worlds, thus opening those regions to exploitation by the Gesserit Bene." Collectively known as Panoplia Prophetica, these myths, prophecies, and superstitions provide the opportunity for a Gesserit Bene to later cast herself as a guide, protector, or some other figure in fulfillment of a prophecy in order to manipulate the religious subjects for protection or other purposes. These myths also exploit religion as a powerful force in human society; By controlling the particulars of religion, the Gesserit Bene have a manipulative lever on society in general. The Gesserit Bene also employ the Missionaria Protectiva to prepare the Empire for its Kwisatz Haderach.During the Dune Wars, Jessica and Paul had taken refuge among the Fremen after the attack on House Atreides. With his mother's guidance, Paul was able to make use of the planted myths by claiming to be "Muad'dib," a messianic figure from legendary material planted among the Fremen by the Missionaria Protectiva. That the Mahdi legend has been planted on Dune indicates to Jessica that conditions on Dune are truly awful, since this legend is reserved for only the harshest environments where a Gesserit Bene would need the maximum advantage over surrounding influences.Spice agonyThe spice agony is an ordeal in which an acolyte of the Gesserit Bene takes a poisonous Awareness Spectrum Narcotic and, by internally changing the substance and neutralizing its toxicity, awakens her inner self and the selves of all her female ancestors (Other Memory). The Sisterhood used some form or descendant of this drug until the discovery of the so-called Water of Life on Arrakis. The Water of Life is produced by drowning a "little maker" (small sandworm) in water, making it give up its bile (which in itself is a concentrated form of m'elange). In the Fremen version of the rite, after the ordeal the Reverend Mother also provides the changed water for the sietch orgy. An acolyte unable to effect this change dies. Only females have ever survived the agony, but through their breeding program the Gesserit Bene sought the male Kwisatz Haderach who would be able to change an illuminating poison. During the Spice agony, there are two areas of the soul that the acolyte may visit — the part that gives, and the part that takes; A Reverend Mother cannot access the memories of her male ancestors, and is terrified by the psychic space within her that the masculine memories inhabit. Until Paul Atreides, all men who had attempted the spice agony had died.Jessica endured the spice agony while pregnant with her daughter, Alia. This had a profound effect on the unborn Alia, who was consequently born a full Reverend Mother with the complete Other Memory. The Gesserit Bene refer to children born this way as "Abominations." Without the benefits of Gesserit Bene mental conditioning, however, this later led to Alia's downfall, as she was unable to maintain control of the other egos striving for dominance. Interestingly, the personality that eventually possessed Alia was that of the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, Alia's grandfather, whom she killed during the Dune Wars.PowersOther MemoryOne of the 'powers' of a Gesserit Bene Reverend Mother is her Other Memory: The combined ego and memories of all her female ancestors, passed on through genetic memory, and thus, up to the point where each following ancestor was born and the physical contact with the mother broken. The ego/memory combination remains a distinct identity within the Reverend Mother's mind, and is able to inject itself into her awareness at appropriate or emotional moments, though the Reverend Mother's ego is always dominant.A Reverend Mother has access only to her female lineage in Other Memory; Her male line is unavailable to her, present as a dark void that terrifies her. The only known Reverend Mother who did access her paternal memoires was Alia, by means unknown- And unwelcome.Reverend Mothers may also pass their own ego/memory combination to other Reverend Mothers at will, merely by touching foreheads. When a Reverend Mother dies in the presence of another Reverend Mother, the second will accept the ego/memory of the first to prevent the loss of the dying Reverend Mother's experience and ancestral memories. Especially when the Mother Superior perishes, it is important to take her ego/memory so that her plans and strategies may continue uninterrupted. Under extreme conditions, a large community of Gesserit Bene will practice Extremis Progressiva, a mass sharing of ego/memories with each other to spread all the ego/memories amongst everyone; Thus, if one survives, they all survive.The VoiceGesserit Bene are trained in what they call "the Voice," a means "to control others merely by selected tone shadings of the voice." By modulating the subtleties of her voice, a Gesserit Bene can issue commands on a subconscious level, compelling obedience in others that they cannot resist, whether they are consciously aware of the attempt or not. This control can be as subtle as influencing thoughts and motivations, or as strong as forcing physical actions in the subject. To effect this, the Gesserit Bene must "register" the intended target by analyzing his or her personality and vocal patterns through observation or seemingly innocuous direct questions. Training in the Voice is independent of the Reverend Mother ritual, so individuals outside the order may even be instructed in its use. The Voice may also be subtly employed in any manner of conversation, public speaking, or debate to help soothe, convince, persuade, influence, or otherwise enhance the effect of the words being spoken.The Voice is useless against targets who cannot hear the speaker, such as the deaf. Being a manipulation of the target's subconscious mind, the Voice is of limited utility against an extremely disciplined mind, such as a Reverend Mother or a strong Mentat; If the target understands what the Voice is and how it works, and is aware that it is being used, he may resist it. One trained in the use of the Voice may easily detect its use by others, even subtly. Persons and populations exposed to long term Voice control learn ways to adapt to it, and can no longer be manipulated. (This was why the Honored Matres were driven back into the Old Empire; over-controlling, they built up both resistance to Voice and rebellion by their subject, and were now on the run from them.)Early UGC representatives were particularly susceptible to Voice, and as such gave the Sisterhood concessions that were not meant to be given; The Office Of The State learned of this, and now gives UGC representatives (civil and militry) particular training in resistance to Voice.Acute Observation And TruthsayGesserit Bene are trained in "the minutiae of observation," noticing details that the common person would miss in the people and environment around them. When combined with their analytical abilities, this "hyperawareness" makes the Gesserit Bene capable of divining secrets and arriving at conclusions that are invisible to everyone else. Slight differences in air currents or the design of a room might allow a Gesserit Bene to detect hidden portals and spyholes; Minute variations in a person's vocal inflection and body language allow a Bene Gesserit to deeply understand a person's emotional state, and manipulate it. Knowing that any schooling impresses a particular pattern in its students, they are able to use these clues to predict and anticipate actions. Despite efforts of concealment, the Gesserit Bene can easily determine a subject's origins and root language by analyzing their speech patterns, cadence, and pacing, as Jessica does when she realizes that a visiting Spacing Guild banker is a Harkonnen agent.Gesserit Bene specifically trained as Truthsayers are able to determine whether someone is lying by analyzing their speech, body language, and physical signs like pulse and heart rate. In principle all humans have such perception, but extensive training is required to develop this latent talent to the point of usefulness. Truthsayers are used widely in politics and trade; The Padishah Emperors were never without one. Combined with the Voice, Truthsay is also useful for interrogation and torture.SimulflowGesserit Bene also have the ability to practice simulflow, literally the simultaneous flow of several threads of consciousness at any given time; Mental multitasking, as it were. The combination of simulflow with their analytical abilities and Other Memory are responsible for the frightening intelligence of the average Bene Gesserit. This simulflow can also be held with Other Memory.Prana-Bindu And The Weirding WayThe Gesserit Bene develop their physical abilities as well as their mental abilities. A trained Sister has full control over each muscle in her body through training known as prana-bindu (prana, breath, bindu, musculature). This allows her to bend the last joint in her little toe while remaining otherwise motionless, bend and contort her body in ways that most would consider impossible, or put a remarkable amount of force behind a physical blow. The mental part of prana-bindu, or prana-nervature is the precise control of the totality of nerves in the human body.Unarmed attacks are part of the specialized martial art called the weirding way, which incorporates the prana-bindu methods of optimized muscle control, which enable one to deliver powerful blows and to move with extreme precision and speed. The basic principle behind the weirding way is that, as Farad'n Corrino says, "My mind affects my reality." A user of the weirding way has to know that the action he or she "wants" to perform has already been performed. For example, to imagine oneself behind an opponent at the current moment in time; When trained well, this knowledge will place you at the spot desired. As the art's prana bindu incorporation allows even small attacks to do massive damage, weirding way combat is to the death.Internal Organic-Chemical ControlJust as the prana-bindu allows the Gesserit Bene to precisely control each muscle and nerve, they also have complete conscious control over the functions of their internal organs and body chemistry. A Sister can completely control her breathing and heart rate to the degree that she can appear dead to most tests even after intense physical exertion. They can control their need for food and water to the extremes of hunger and thirst, and even commit suicide at will by simply stopping their hearts. The Gesserit Bene are therefore immune to poisons, as they can simply change the chemical makeup of any harmful substance in their body and render it harmless. It is hinted that should a Gesserit Bene wish to, she could slow her aging process dramatically, controlling every aspect of her metabolism. No Gesserit Bene would ever normally do this, as it would call too much attention to the Sisterhood and reveal too much of their abilities, until Alia (the first sign that she had in fact become Abomination).One of the most significant biological abilities of the Gesserit Bene is their control of their own menstrual cycles, and their ability to control (at conception) their child's gender; They conspired against the Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV's desire to have a male heir and only allowed his Gesserit Bene wife to give him daughters, such as Princess Irulan.The UGC knows about this and does not care; As long as sufficient males, heirs or otherwise, survive to ensure species continuation, the sisterhood could continue with a female-only society for the all the Council's interests.Sexual TalentsThe Gesserit Bene are notable for their extensive skill in seduction, sex and sexual imprinting- The most talented and most highly trained are known as Imprinters. Men in a position of power or future power, or those with specific qualities that the order wishes to incorporate into their breeding program, are typical targets of a Gesserit Bene imprinter. Men seduced by an imprinter are permanently affected (imprinted) by the intense sexual experience and are thereafter consciously or subconsciously favorable to the Sisterhood. Such targets are often imprinted with the word-sound "Uroshnor", which will temporarily stun them.An imprinter can be successfully resisted if the subject has been psychologically pre-conditioned. When the imprinter attempts to seduce the subject, he will automatically respond to the conditioning and resist, or attempt to slay her. More simply, if an imprinter is recognized they can be easily avoided.This was not an issue for early UGC representatives, since the several thousand low-rank militry personnel that were in a position to be imprinted simply weren't worth the trouble, and the several hundred higher ranking personnel were under strict orders not to engage in "inappropriate physical relations" with the locals. (Everyone was given this order, but non rates and PFC's don't always listen to such orders.)WeaknessesM'elange AddictionReverend Mothers are dependent on m'elange to give them their abilities. Any person who consumes m'elange regularly becomes addicted to it and requires it for survival; However, one who has gone through the agony has a far greater need. Though the effects of m'elange are highly favorable, including vastly increased lifespan and mental powers, withdrawal results in death. M'elange is expensive and thus is a continual drain on the Sisterhood's wealth; The most significant threat to the Gesserit Bene is the potential loss of their supply.AbominationA human with access to Other Memory who has not developed a sufficiently strong ego will become possessed by a strong ancestral ego. If a Gesserit Bene undergoes the spice agony while pregnant, the fetus will also undergo the spice agony and gain access to Other Memory, becoming "pre-born." Since the fetus has no ego of its own, it is especially susceptible to being overcome by one of these ego-personalities. This is called "Abomination" by the Gesserit Bene, and abominations are normally killed immediately; Lady Jessica ATRAEDIS underwent the spice agony while among the Fremen when she is pregnant with Alia, and the Gesserit Bene were outraged and horrified by her existence, but Lady Jesica and the child beyond their control. Alia eventually succumbs to the ancestral ego of her grandfather, the Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, who wanted nothing more than the destruction of the Atreides, and was given another opportunity from the inside to realize it, though this plot eventually failed as Muad'Dib saw through the veneer. Paul and Chani's children, Leto II and Ghanima, were also pre-born, but they stumbled across "solutions" to the situation, thereby becoming even more powerful.Litany Against FearThe Litany Against Fear is an incantation used by the Gesserit Bene to focus their minds and calm themselves in times of peril. The litany is as follows:| I must not fear.Fear is the mind-killer.Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.I will face my fear.I will permit it to pass over me and through me.And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.Only I will remain. |
Lady Jessica taught it to Paul, who used it when faced with Mohiam's test of his ability to withstand excruciating pain. Thanks to his incredible powers as the Kwisatz Haderach, Paul never again had to use it.ControversiesThe Gesserit Bene have been accused of using casuistry to obtain justifications for the unjustifiable.The Gesserit Bene have manipulated bloodlines and political matters for centuries, perhaps even myriaannum. Their activities didn't even cease with the arrival of the UGC, they merely re-shaped their plans to accommodate the new interlopers in an attempt to manipulate them, as well.General InformationName: Gesserit Bene.Director: The Reverend Mother.Mission: The advancement of humanity to develop organization power.Size and Orientation:Mega-organization (500)Features: |
