“Prophecy is like a half-trained mule. It looks as though it might be useful, but the moment you trust in it, it kicks you in the head.” – Tyrion Lannister to Jorah Mormont
Gorghan of Old Ghis once wrote that a prophecy is like a treacherous woman; She takes your member in her mouth, and you moan with the pleasure of it and think, how sweet, how fine, how good this is… and then her teeth snap shut and your moans turn to screams. That is the nature of prophecy, said Gorghan. Prophecy will bite your prick off every time.
Seems like in a World of Ice and Fire, everyone believes in one prophecy or another. Some of them are insane while some of them are so close to the truth that it’s freaky. In a world where there are so many religions some of these prophecies overlap. Or give us the feeling that they might be talking about the same thing from a different perspective. This post sums up some of the most talked about prophecies.
Warning: There may be spoilers. Read at your own risk.
Let’s start with this masked lady called Quaithe. She appears in Daenerys’s storyline and talks in a very cryptic way.
“To go north, you must journey south. To reach the west, you must go east. To go forward you must go back, and to touch the light you must pass beneath the shadow.”
We first meet her in Qarth. She wears a mask and talks in riddles. She is from Asshai in the far east. Although she has appeared in the books at multiple times in Daenerys’s story, she has been absent from the show post the Qarth scenes. She issues a warning to Dany,
“The glass candles are burning. Soon comes the pale mare, and after her the others. Kraken and dark flame, lion and griffin, the sun’s son and the mummer’s dragon. Trust none of them. Remember the Undying. Beware the perfumed seneschal.“
Maggy the frog is a little less cryptic. Crafty and sly, Maggy is known to speak half truths. Not a lot is known about her background, but she is some kind of a woods witch and a fortune-teller.
We meet her in Cersei’s storyline. When Cersei is a young girl, she goes to Maggy the frog to ask when she will marry Rhaegar Targaryen. She replies that she will not marry the prince but will marry the king. She does not lie but definitely is not straight forward. Cersei does marry Robert Baratheon after he is crowned.
One big change the tv show has made is to omit her prophecy about the Valonqar. Cersei will outlast her children and die by the hands of “the Valonqar“. Valonqar means little brother in High Valyrian. Does it mean Tyrion will kill her? Or will it be Jamie?
Another important prophecy in the books and the show is the visions in the House of the Undying. The tv show may have cut it to not give away too many secrets. But hey, you have been warned that this post has spoilers. Now, let’s talk about the visions.
I’m going to keep this short, here is a book reading in case you want to know in detail what the prophecies in the House of the Undying were. The House of the Undying is home to the warlocks of Qarth. Before entering, a person seeking audience with the Undying must drink shade of the evening, so that they may “hear and see the truths” that will be laid before them. Here Daenerys ends up with a bunch of visions, involving the pale mare, Rhaegar Targaryen, the destroyed throne room in King’s Landing, a cloth dragon, and a blue flower to name a few. Many of these at this point of time have already happened, like the red wedding. So we know that it’s not all hogwash. This prophecy really deserves a post of its own.
Azor Ahai was a legendary saviour who wielded a burning sword called Lightbringer, according to tales from Asshai. In some other parts of the world, this warrior is called Hyrkoon the Hero, Yin Tar, Neferion, and Eldric Shadowchaser.
And when we are discussing Azor Ahai, how can we forget good ol’ Mel. She’s been prophesying about Stannis being Azor Ahai since A Clash of Kings. Some of us hate her, some of us love her. All things said and done, she did bring Jon Snow back. Now that he is back from the dead, she seems to have decided that he is the new Azor Ahai. I would love to read a PoV Melissandre chapter in Winds of Winter which explains more of what’s going on in her head.
The show has a new red priestess called Kinvara. She claims Daenerys Targaryen is Azor Ahai. High Valyrian does not have genders. So when they say the prince that was promised, it could mean prince or princess.
Maester Aemon explains to Sam:
| “ | No one ever looked for a girl … It was a prince that was promised, not a princess. Rhaegar I thought … the smoke was from the fire that devoured Summerhall on the day of his birth, the salt from the tears shed for those who died. He shared my belief when he was young, but later he became persuaded that it was his own son who fulfilled the prophecy, for a comet had been seen above King’s Landing on the night Aegon was conceived, and Rhaegar was certain the bleeding star had to be a comet.” |
We currently don’t know much about Kinvara or about the Red God for that matter. But the scene with Varys was really amazing. She seems powerful and not afraid to use it. What do you guys think? Is Kinvara important? Is she more powerful than Mel? Is she good or evil?
These are only a few of the prophecies in the World of Ice and Fire. Which prophecy are you guys most excited to see happen? Comment below and let’s geek out together.
