Dagiel.
Brady Zaworski's guardian.
daeva.
Former grails (see G-Section); inhabitant of Jahannam.
danava.
A race of beings formerly a part of Zion before the Conflict of Hosts. They defied the will of dharma and harmed souls in the process through violence (rape, murder, etc.).
From The Blue Honor Blog Article:
The danava are the antithesis of . In every story, the heroes must have something of which they come up against. Whether this villain is a person or thing or whatnot, that's where differences in genre often happen. The Trailokya Trilogy is an epic dark fantasy, so the forces that the heroes of the books come up against are monsters and quests. To keep the tradition fresh, I made those monsters much more than familiar figures from cultural lore. I encourage all readers to delve deeper than the surface on my writing. There you'll find a rich treasure, layers of meaning and interesting points to theorize upon. After all, I studied writing for that purpose.
In the first several pages of the inaugural book, the reader is introduced to how this universe was created and the upheaval it underwent to develop into the story in which they advance. Based on creation myths already in existence, the reader should see something familiar. At the same time, they will encounter differences that make it all worthwhile, such as the tapestry woven from the multitude of beliefs, creating a very real feeling world unlike anything in existence yet.
If you've been following the blog, and the Friday series that discusses these books, then you probably have learned that much of what I wrote came from years of dreams and nightmares. The darkness in the dreams should seep through every page, along with the tasty surrealism for which dreams are known. Although I have seen the strange and stunning corners that were created inside my mind, the characters are also drawn from universal types to maintain understanding. This is how communication is successful, and writing is all about communicating. That's what I mean by refreshing the familiar.
The darkest figures in the books could easily be the humans, or even another soul race bent on the destruction of humanity. Most stories written take a homo-sapiens-centric attitude, as they are human made art. It makes sense and will be more easily communicated. Yet, we are sliding toward a time where animal sentience is becoming increasingly accepted and alien contact is a matter of time (yes, scientists do believe that there is life on other planets). So, this redefines our roles in the universe. We're no longer the center. Thus, to extend empathy beyond our species, it's important to write stories that of which we can relate to these other figures through.
In human mythology, this rift is dubbed the Conflict of Hosts. It is the story that describes angels falling from heaven and becoming demons. If you read the Judaic texts, you'll learn that demons already existed at this time as well. They were not quite as severe, but still troublesome. This makes sense when you think of things in terms of resonance, as per the Hindu or Buddhist traditions. All beings came into existence at virtually the same time, yet they did not resonate the same. Their differences determined on what levels, or planes, they existed. Sometimes, you'll even see this hinted at in modern horror with some evil more ancient than any darkness brought up. It is unlikely the fallen destroyed the ancient demons, but rather made use of them. With their resonance so low, they were likely controllable by those new arrivals. Pets? Something like that.
Danava hierarchy is constructed similarly to duta legion hierarchy. This is because those who fell relied on order to protect themselves from being destroyed in the aftermath. Legion hierarchy provided that order, as the soldiers rose to the top. If you flip to the back of the book you'll see something like this:
Prince – rulers of Jahannam who were once Seraphim. The reigning princes are Lucifer, Asmodeus, Amon, Belphegor, Azazel, Belial, Astaroth, Beelzebub, Samael, Gediel, Mammon, Azrael, Leviathan, and Kharon.Duke – Former Cherubim cast into Jahannam.Count – Former Thrones cast into Jahannam.Earl – Former Powers cast into Jahannam.Baron – Former Virtues cast into Jahannam.Lord – Former Dominions cast into Jahannam.Knight – Former Principalities cast into Jahannam.Chief – Former Svargaduta or duta cast into Jahannam.Soldier – Danava younglingsMarditavya – Wayward souls, hell-masses
As you can see, the danava rank themselves by race according to a feudalistic stratification model. It echoes the legion ranks, as the duta rank corresponds to their evolutionary levels in almost all cases. Because souls hold positions in the legions, there are exceptions.
Yes, the baron Morgentus came from my dreams and he was every ounce a nightmare in every one that I saw him (off and on from girlhood forward). He did eventually become weak, as things changed in my favor. Perhaps, in the end, they are just metaphors for the darkness within that harbors all the little monsters we can be out of ignorance. The embodiment of narcissism in the extreme. As Jung called it, the shadow aspect. "In , the shadow or "shadow aspect" may refer to (1) an of the which the conscious does not identify in itself. Because one tends to reject or remain ignorant of the least desirable aspects of one's personality, the shadow is largely negative, or (2) the entirety of the unconscious, i.e., everything of which a person is not fully conscious. There are, however, positive aspects which may also remain hidden in one's shadow (especially in people with low ). Contrary to a definition of shadow, therefore, the Jungian shadow can include everything outside the light of consciousness, and may be positive or negative. "Everyone carries a shadow," Jung wrote, "and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is." It may be (in part) one's link to more primitive animal instincts,which are superseded during early childhood by the conscious mind." (Read the rest of the wiki summary ).
Thus, it makes sense that danava are additionally referred to as shadowalkers and shadowborn.
Daniella.
Caleb's girlfriend when he meets Holly Greer for the first time.
Dao-Ming, Draco.
Order of Gyuto. Astral Master, daughter of Shen, Praefect Order of Gyuto.
Denius, High Councilor.
Cherubim. Member of the governing High Council.
dharma.
The life contract, or plan for incarnation.
dhatri.
The shadowalker term for mother.
dhatros.
The shadowalker term for grandmother.
dolls.
Former Aghartians; inhabitants of Jahannam.
Domdaniel.
The waters and sub-ocean caverns ruled by Prince Leviathan.
dominions.
A four-winged and statuesque race of duta with olive skin and white hair. Their gaze is pure light, making them excellent alder leaders.
Donnie.
Friend of Holly Greer; incarnated human.
drago.
Soul race of reptilian humanoids. This race does not cooperate with the UWOS, as they are neutral pacifists.
duta.
Single-set winged race of duta and human-like race of beings descended from the Jñanasattva creation of Zion. Their height sets them apart from other souls at over seven feet for the shortest of their kind. They're known for their certitude and focus. They have vast knowledge and great strength and often assist souls in reaching their level of incarnation. They are guides and record keepers of all souls. This is the largest race of lightwalkers in Zion. Also, general term for the original race of Zion.
From The Blue Honor Blog article:
Captain Maiel, the main character of the series is a duta (doo-tah), and that is the first of the races, or the closest to humans and the other races. A bipedal race, they are at least 7 feet in height, lithely built and winged. They do not require a bio suit to be in the Samsaran dimension, unless they are cut off from the collective—which is described as fallen. In Judeo-Christian-Islamic tradition, these are the messengers from God that many of the prophets speak of in scripture. However, the dutas are not your romanticized cherub, and they have no love of the religions of man. The books used by religion are made up of amnesiatic memories and outright lies. For instance, they are capable of procreation, when they are ready and the energies align. Children are born between matched pairs containing at least one female. Because they are from the home dimension of Zion, sperm and egg are unnecessary in the same sense as it is needed in Samsaran procreation, which is for the duplication of a bio-vessel from physical materials contained in the egg and sperm, to house the atman. For duta, the atman fuses with the female and draws from her atman, as well her partner's atman, all the material it will need to create it's new incarnation. The process of drawing from the atman of the partner occurs in simple to complex intimate interactions between the partners. In other words, a touch or a kiss can link the three atman for the download of information. It then incorporates this information and maps a new form. The consciousness is completely suppressed in this transition, and returns after many years of applying the new programming, but it does completely return. This can be a difficult time for all involved, especially spouses and family left behind.
The initial duta are actually the simplest incarnation of the group, with only one pair of wings. Substantially stronger than humans in both a physical sense and mental sense, they serve as protectors. The lore of their guardianship has been written about extensively in religious texts.
At the completion of these three incarnations, an atman then moves onto a choice. Depending upon how their terms as duta, svarg or principality, they will be ushered into one of the following ranks: Virtue, Dominion or Power. Virtues are interesting beings who are the most separated from the physical plane. They occupy a form, which appears like a starlit sky, but maintain a duta silhouette. As their ranking implies, they now have two sets of wings, in the case of the virtue, they appear as energy trails. The most interesting aspect of Virtues is that they can appear in the form of anything they wish, because they have transcended the barriers of a traditional physiology. They occupy the Blue Passages of Zion and work inside Otzar (The Well of Souls).
The Powers have retained the most physical nature, evolving to maintain themselves as guardians in both Zion and worlds beyond. Thus, they remain much like the incarnations they came from, but with an additional set of wings. Powers are almost always guardians of the legions and among the most powerful. For them to leave Zion to be someone's guardian is of great note, meaning the individual is important to several outcomes and other atman. The powers occupy a section of the White City called the cloisters, where they continue their introspection necessary for rising to the next incarnations.
Seraphim, Thrones and Cherubim are the final stages of the duta life cycle. These beings make up the leaders of the legions, administration and arts. The three work as a team utilizing their constituents to fulfill the plans of the lower resonance beings in rising to their highest possible levels. Not all beings reach this point, and almost all will not.
These nine races make up the accepted races of duta. In Trailokya a tenth race is becoming more common: the ardhodita. The ardhodita are created from matches between duta and the higher soul races, such as humans or Cetians. They're characterized by their stunted wings and average human statures. Captain Maiel's children are ardhodita. If they were to have children of their own, they would also be ardhodita. The term is disparaging, used by prideful dutas and even souls to mean half-breed.
Once a duta rises beyond the final stages, they will cease to exist in the lower planes, and return to Nirvana from whence everything comes. This is the realm of Jñanasattva.