Hail Sapience,

A Dark sermon was delivered a number of months ago, but several were not
able to attend, or wanted to be able to peruse it in more liesurely
environs. For the enlightenment of said individuals, and any class who
wished to see it who I have excluded, I here offer it again:

Hail, Achaea. I invite you to, through mediation of my tongue and Art,
gain a glimpse of insight into that holy realm of my Father- the Lord
Twilight Trismegistus.

from a point beyond our understanding- a point alien to our simple space
and to that ongoing effect of causality we call time, the God of
Darkness rests in a point-infinite contemplation. He seeks those higher
realms, and leads his followers thereto.

some of you may ask then, what has the symbol Darkness to do with this
philosophical being- why is he not patron of thought, learning, or some
other such domain which does not so quickly draw images of an evil and
despised tyrant ruling from the shadows? The answer is threefold, as so
many responses from the Lord may be.

The height of the Lord is untenable for the mortal. Such utter
transcendence is such a high aspiration- so beyond even the mortal
imagination- that He may accurately be thought of as both alone and
connected to every living individual.

From both of these, Darkness is an apt and important symbol. In His
solitary state, no light is needed. He exists as a pure contemplative,
and needs both no and perfect input. The lack of input then, can be
taken to be a literal Darkness of shadows, mists, and other associations
of literal translation.

The inundating all perception, though, is a little more complex. The
Darkness in this sense can be taken to explain that the senses by which
He understands are beyond the mortal senses- sight specifically, and by
association auditory, olfactory, tactile, and gustatory sensation.

Such perception is imperfect, and therefore not befitting of so
perceptive a God. Think- if a mortal is struck blind can his hearing
tell him the same? Can a tongueless man taste with his fingers? No- and
the Dark Lord does not so limit Himself either. No mutilation could harm
his perception, which sees with his inner eye, with wisdom, and with
brilliance.

This reason for Darkness is rooted in knowing. This having been
resolved, I shall move on to the Lord's second state, doing.

The second answer lies in my Lord's actions- He takes actions with
foreknowlege of his effects beyond the visceral. When Lord Twilight
lifts a finger, He has a clear picture of what effects He has on those
present. Such has been counted against Him as manipulative, but not so!
Were this true we would need condemn scientists for anticipating
reactions in their hypotheses, and condemn artists for attempting to
elicit any emotional response with their works.

It is within His nature to be Aware, and is His mission to so awaken His
children. The nobility of His course is admirable across Sapience. The
walls of Ashtan house the freedom one can find under His wings, Shallam
guards the upright spirit which His love for his children embodies.
Mhaldor enshrines the power that knowlege inherently brings, and
Cyrene's artists have the aforementioned awareness of impact.

Thus have action and knowlege been accounted for, but not yet discussed
is the Lord's essential nature, what He may call His being.

The final response to the posed question lies in the Lord's nature. His
being naturally resides in Darkness. He waits to be approached. "The
lips of wisdom", explains the Qadeshai, "Are closed, except to the ears
of understanding." Only when the individual is ready may he or she
approach and understand Darkness.

We do not force understanding on anyone, we allow individuals to go
their course and, when they hear of the Lord's greatness, when they
realize they need that attractive direction, come before Lord Twilight
to seek His great wisdom and insight.

Such is the nature of Darkness, and of the Lord Twilight Trismegistus.

In Hopes of Enlightenment,
Lord Drake Sigao Saer'rac

Penned by my hand on the 17th of Ero, in the year 387 AF.