The Symbolism Behind the Seating Arrangement between the Union Leaders
Over a year ago, I stumbled on a post by @thetwilightroadtonightfall from 2018 about whether there was any significance to where each Union Leader sat in correspondence to the Foretellers.
Here’s the original post:
I’ve seen other people question this as well, and I started to wonder what the significance could be. Admittedly, for a very long time, I was stumped. However, three months ago, I think I might have just figured out the significance of the seating arrangement. Furthermore, I’d like to share my guess with you.
Originally, I thought the Union leaders were supposed to be one-to-one parallels to the Foretellers. Especially since Skuld was constantly compared to Ava, and Lauriam had some parallels to Gula, while Brain paralleled Invi in some ways. What stumped me was Ephemer and Ventus because I never understood why Ephemer sits where Aced would be, and Ventus sits where Ira would be. In my head, it made more sense for the two to be swapped because Ephemer was the group leader, like Ira, and Ventus was always in support of Ephemer, which was similar to the role Aced had.
My next thought was that maybe this was supposed to represent the fact that they actually represented the Seven Heavenly Virtues that opposed the Seven Deadly Sins, which aligned with each Foreteller they paralleled, but that didn’t add up. Also, I found an analysis by yuei2 in the comments under a post on the Kingdom Hearts Subreddit about how it's actually the Foretellers who represent the Seven Heavenly Virtues that oppose the Seven Deadly Sins they are named after. Link here for anyone interested: https://www.reddit.com/r/KingdomHearts/comments/1jge9hv/how_do_the_foretellers_characterization_are_based/
So in the dead of night, at 2 am, I was thinking that, well, Unicorns aren’t actually animals and are more so a myth…and then it hit me. It’s not the sins or the virtues or the Foretellers that the Union Leaders align with…it’s the animal symbolism.
Ephemer - Bears often symbolize strength, courage, introspection, and protection. They can also represent leadership, personal power, and the ability to find balance between nurturing and assertiveness. In various cultures, bears are seen as powerful and wise, sometimes even as healers or protectors.
Brain - In some cultures, snakes represent wisdom and knowledge, possibly due to their association with the earth and their ability to understand hidden things.
Skuld - In some traditions, foxes are associated with protection and nobility. They also embody the ability to adapt to changing circumstances with grace and to be resourceful in facing challenges.
Lauriam - Leopards symbolize strength, agility, stealth, and independence. They are often seen as symbols of power, adaptability, and even healing, particularly in spiritual contexts. Leopards are also associated with mystery, intuition, and the balance between strength and femininity.
Streliztia - In certain contexts, the goat's image can represent strong leadership and resilience. However, in the Bible, goats are sometimes depicted as sacrifices for atonement, carrying away sins, or representing wicked men and oppressors.
Ventus - The unicorn is traditionally associated with purity, innocence, and divine power. Some spiritual perspectives connect unicorns with angels, viewing them as beings within the angelic realm or as entities that work alongside angels to help humanity. Unicorns are often seen as representing pure energy, healing, and enlightenment, while also being associated with the angelic realm.
If you follow me or have stumbled upon my blog in the past, you’ll know that I have several posts dedicated to Ventus being some sort of divine being/entity. Now with this connection to unicorns, it only furthers those connections even more. Anyway, I’ve been putting this off for months and am finally happy to get this posted.