this is really random but I thought about it and wanted to ask. comparative to the evanuris, do you have any thoughts on how the maker falls into things? I've always vaguely suspected that the maker might have been solas and andraste as mythal, but I'm not sure if that tracks anywhere else
unprompted and i love you for it
Quill i could kiss you for this question because oh yes i do. Allow me to get theological in here.
There have been so many correlations between Andraste and Mythal that honestly it warrants a longer post that I'll make one day; if it isn't taken as canon, it's pretty damn close considering they're indisputably identical in their idols, not to mention both Flemeth and Andraste are linked to early alamarri tribes. It's not a big leap to think that if Mythal could be held by Flemeth, she could be held by Andraste. We also know that the Evanuris, namely Elgar'nan, were reaching out to anyone willing to listen through the Fade to try and be set free. And we know Andraste heard voices early on and could have been a dreamer ( like Solas ) ... food for thought.
So, belief in the Maker certainly could have originated from Andraste misinterpreting Elgar'nan's whispers. That's one theory among hundreds, and I do think that's pretty likely since Andraste is pretty 1:1 with Joan of Arc. But with Solas, I think it's a little more complicated. Mostly because of this:
Cassandra: You believe in the Maker? Solas: I am always open to new ideas.
Cassandra: Solas, if you do not mind me asking, what do you believe in? Solas: Cause and effect. Wisdom as its own reward, and the inherent right of all free willed people to exist. Cassandra: That is not what I meant. Solas: I know. I believe the elven gods existed, as did the old gods of Tevinter. But I do not think any of them were gods, unless you expand the definition of the word to the point of absurdity. I appreciate the idea of your Maker, a god that does not need to prove his power. I wish more such gods felt the same.
To me, this says: the Maker isn't real. Or if he is, he's not what people think. We know for a fact that elven gods existed; we know the old gods of Tevinter existed, because they are one and the same. But Solas is very careful about what he says - if the Maker were real to him, I think he would have said something like what he said about the Evanuris. Though a lot of theories align Solas with the Maker because of the correlation between "making the fade," which is completely fair and valid.
What I personally think ( and again this is just my opinion! ) is that the Maker is the Fade. The waking world and the Fade were once inseparable. Solas goofed that up, oopsies. But it was all one Thing before, and before people ever populated the earth, it was populated with things Of The Fade like spirits, ( and to my belief ) dragons, titans, etc. Kind of like how the ether is this amorphous, life-giving substance beyond comprehension, or how the life stream in final fantasy connects all things and flows throughout, the "beyond" ( the Fade ) gave life and connected everything together. everything was magic before. everything was one whole before. Solas and the ancient elves have no reason to believe in it because they came from it - it just is.
Honestly, the Maker is more alike to Eru in tolkien works to me. He just is the nature of the universe that created it all, but isn't necessarily a corporeal being for worship. I think that, as with the later religions created in DA, the "Maker" as he's known in Andrastian faith is more or less an analog to make sense of what happened to the world post the veil going up. The Veil exists, so it must be there for a reason, kind of thing.
tldr; I think there's a TON of valid connections in the Chant that directly correlate with the Evanuris, especially Mythal, but i think the "Maker" is just the Fade itself, which is why Solas thinks it's all a bit much.
