The Stormlight Archive, Books 1-3: The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance, Oathbringer

by Brandon Sanderson

She began to step around him in the air, spinning occasionally, dancing to some unheard beat.

It ain't metalurgy, or hemalurgy, feruchemy, The Dor, or biochromaticbreath... it's music, or a rhythm.

And then, briefly, Shallan heard a sound. A low thrumming, like a distant group of voices, humming together a single, pure note.

Music!! Again. How did I not see this the first time through?

“This,” he said, “is called cymatics. The study of the patterns that sounds make when interacting with a physical medium.” As he drew the bow again, the plate made a sound, almost a pure note. It was actually enough to draw a single musicspren, which spun for a moment in the air above him, then vanished. Kabsal finished, then gestured to the plate with a flourish. “So … ?” Shallan asked. “Kholinar,” he said, holding up his book for comparison. Shallan cocked her head. The pattern in the sand looked exactly like Kholinar. He dropped more sand on the plate and then drew the bow across it at another point and the sand rearranged itself. “Vedenar,” he said. She compared again. It was an exact match. “Thaylen City,” he said, repeating the process at another spot. He carefully chose another point on the plate’s edge and bowed it one final time. “Akinah. Shallan, proof of the

Yet again, more music. Or rhythm. Next page...

Almighty’s existence is in the very cities we live in. Look at the perfect symmetry!” She had to admit, there was something compelling about the patterns. “It could be a false correlation. Both caused by the same thing.” “Yes. The Almighty,” he said, sitting. “Our very language is symmetrical. Look at the glyphs—each one can be folded in half perfectly. And the alphabet too. Fold any line of text down across itself, and you’ll find symmetry. Surely you know the story, that both glyphs and letters came from the Dawnsingers?”

Of course this is a reread. After Rhythm of War. I mean after all the the true Almighty of the Cosmere, Mr. Brandon Sanderson, may His name always be uttered with reverence and awe, practically slapped us in the face with the "Music" fact in the title of book 4. But I have a cousin that I have discussed this theory with to some length. He keeps stumping me with the "Light" question that is obviously always involved with the surges on Roshar. As I write this at 0325 in the morning it occurs to me that while the various forms of light are required for this magic system the light alone alone doesn't DO anything. Stormlight, Voidlight, and the third light, Warlight I think it is called. Are all only the catalyst for surges. They are the actual Investiture born of the Shards represented in the Rosharian system. Stormlight is the Investiture of Honor. Voidlight is the Investiture of Odium. What Shard is Warlight the Investiture of? Could it be the illusive Shard we hear of from Khriss? The Shard that remains Unnamed up until this point? The one she says "wishes to remain hidden" in the Cosmere? Is there a Shard of Rhythm? Perhaps a Shard Of War? If so then wouldn't there have to be a Shard of Peace then to maintain the symmetry that the Cosmere seems to always demand? And what of Cultivation? How does Her Investiture present? Lift's surgebinding is certainly the product of Cultivation. And like i said, it's now 0352 in the morning. So excuse this rabbit hole. But I can't recall if Lift "draws" in Stormlight or only metaballizes it? I think she only creates her own Investiture from food. And we can be fairly crtain that she saw Cultivation when she visted the Nightwatcher. Just like Dalinar. So is she NOT an actual Edgedancer? Smh... But in any eventuality. I stand behind my hypothisis that the various lights are the raw fuel for the Surges. The presentation of Rhythm releases the energy represented by the Investiture. Is anybody else this confused at this point.

However, she’d found a book the day before that had offered what seemed like a useful tip. It claimed that humming, of all things, could make a Soulcasting more effective.

And yet again...

“I began life as a thought, a concept, words on a page. That was another thing I stole. Myself. Another time, I was named for a rock.” “A pretty one, I hope.” “A beautiful one,” the man said. “And one that became completely worthless for my wearing it.” “Well, what do men call you now?” “Many a thing, and only some of them polite. Almost all are true, unfortunately. You, however, you may call me Hoid.” “Your name?” “No. The name of someone I should have loved. Once again, this is a thing I stole. It is something we thieves do.” He glanced eastward, over the rapidly darkening Plains. The little fire burning beside Hoid’s boulder shed a fugitive light, red from glimmering coals.

What is in a name? I wish I could decipher this riddle. Well the pretty rock is The First Gem. Whatever that is.

If the emperor is dead, and has been all these years, then the murders we committed are not his responsibility. They are our own.’ ”

Acceptance of your responsibility. Kaladin has to cease looking for outside reasons for his self-perceived failures. He has to recognize the only ones who never fail are the people who never try.

“Then learn,” Hoid said, pressing the flute into Kaladin’s hand. “When you can make the music sing back at you, then you’ve mastered it.” He began to walk away. “And take good care of that blasted apprentice of mine. He really should have let me know he was still alive. Perhaps he feared I’d come to rescue him again.” “Apprentice?” “Tell him I graduate him,” Hoid said, still walking. “He’s a full Worldsinger now. Don’t let him get killed. I spent far too long trying to force some sense into that brain of his.” Sigzil, Kaladin thought. “I’ll give him the flute,” he called after Hoid. “No you won’t,” Hoid said, turning, walking backward as he left. “It’s a gift to you, Kaladin Stormblessed. I expect you to be able to play it when next we meet!”

I don't recall Kal ever playing the flute. Rand did. I wish i could remember the description of the flute that Thom Merrill gave to Rand. Is this possible perhaps?? A tip of the hat to another world building master? Robert Jordan? Like Slow Swift was a shout out to Tolkien. I think it was anyway.

‘And so, does the destination matter? Or is it the path we take? I declare that no accomplishment has substance nearly as great as the road used to achieve it. We are not creatures of destinations. It is the journey that shapes us. Our callused feet, our backs strong from carrying the weight of our travels, our eyes open with the fresh delight of experiences lived. “ ‘In the end, I must proclaim that no good can be achieved of false means. For the substance of our existence is not in the achievement, but in the method.

This is the greatest line of many great lines in this book. Possibly in all of any Cosmere texts.

Protecting ten innocents is not worth killing one. In the end, all men die. How you lived will be far more important to the Almighty than what you accomplished.”

There is no lesser evil. There is only evil.

March. Dalinar had always found the death song the most beautiful of all he had heard from the Parshendi. It seemed to cut through the grunts, clangs, and screams of the nearby battle. As always, each Parshendi’s song was in perfect time with that of his fellows. It was as if they could all hear the same melody somewhere far away, and sang along through sputtering, bloodied lips, with rasping breath.

What is it they hear? Is it the hum of Roshar itself? Or is it something else? We know that the island of Patgee is a Shard. We have that from WOB. Can a planet be a Shard perhaps? Odium has not always been in the Rosharian system. I honestly no longer think that the different Rhythms are indicative of the different Shards that seem to accompany the different kinds of light. Maybe the surges, or the magic the people accssess in this system are a combination of Investiture. Maybe Roshar itself is like a pestle. Thrumming with Rhythms. The Singers hear many different ones. They attune certain Rhythms to use the different Forms. The humans cannot hear as many Rhythms as the Parsendi do. So it is according to which Rythms the budding Radient can hear that determines which Spren they attract. Certain Personality types hear or "attune" to certain Rhythms. That is why Moash and Renarin later bond different types of Spren. Lift also is different. Not certain what exactly is up with her. Can turn a crust of bread into Investiture. That is some of Conservation's doing. We also cannot forget Venli. The Singer\Listener who has a Nahel Bond with Timbre. Timbre is a Light Spren. These Spren do not represent a bond with Odium. Venli has a Nahel Bond AND is bonded with a Form of Power Spren. She seems to have the ability to access two different types of Investiture. Both Voidlight and Stormlight. So if this line of thought is accurate then the different types of light are the direct Investiture that are granted by living Shards. Maybe Roshar itself is like the Dor on Sel. The Elantrians access it by using the AonDor. But on the same planet we see it tapped with ChayShan, and the Dakhor. Shai uses Forgery and is kept imprisoned by a Blood Mage. Who uses Bloodsealing. On Scadrial the different ways of using Investiture is more obvious. Allomantic, which has at least 16 subsets. Feruchemy same 16, at least. And Hemalurgy. Which we now know can use Trellium as well as all 16 other Metallic forms of Investiture. (I assume Harmonium can be used in this manner as well.) We have yet to see another full Mistborn in Era two and nobody has clearly used Allomancy to burn Trellium or Harmonium but I fail to see how it isn't a very likely possibility. Although Harmonium goes Boom so... Using those systems as an example then is it so far out there to see how Rhythm or Music is how the different facets of the different Shards in the Rosharien galaxy are used? By the way. I know Odium and The Stormfather say Honor is dead. But I ain't convinced that the Shard is shattered. But that is a different rabbit hole.