...and the name of it is Death

[OptimusPrime]

From Winters Heart.

 

The seals that hold back night shall weaken, and in the heart of winter shall winter's heart be born amid the wailing of lamentations and the gnashing of teeth, for winter's heart shall ride a black horse, and the name of it is Death. --from The Karaethon Cycle: The Prophecies of the Dragon

 

Is it talking about Moridin or what? Its been annoying me for ages! Does anyone have any idea what the deal is?

 

To me it looks like a metaphor for the Dark One using Moridin as a vessel of somesort, but theres been no major clues towards that. Thoughts please!

[Mr. Dragon]

It could well be a refernce to the  4 horsemen of the apocalypse, the issue wiht this is that Famine rides a black horse while death rides a pale or pale green horse. This though could be explained by this quote from wikipedia:

 

"The third horseman rides a black horse and is generally understood as Famine.The black colour of the horse could be a symbol of the dead. The horseman carries a pair of balances or weighing scales, indicating the way that bread would have been weighed during a famine.

 

Of the four horsemen, the black horse and its rider are the only ones whose appearance is accompanied by a vocal pronunciation. John hears a voice, unidentified but coming from among the four living creatures, that speaks of the prices of wheat and barley, also saying "and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine." This suggests that the black horse's famine is to drive up the price of grain but leave oil and wine supplies unaffected. One explanation for this is that grain crops would have been more naturally susceptible to famine years than olive trees and grapevines, which root more deeply; the statement might also suggest a continuing abundance of luxuries for the wealthy while staples such as as bread are scarce, though not totally depleted. Alternatively, the preservation of oil and wine could symbolize the preservation of the Christian faithful, who used oil and wine in their sacraments."

[Kadere]

I don't know. I almost imagine it being Rand. We know he's getting colder and harder and less forgiving, plus everything he does seems to lead to death. He's the Ta'veren in the center of a crumbling web. Plus it's from the Prophecies of the Dragon so it would seem to fit being Rand.

 

But at the same time it could be Moridin's action and the Shadow's actions infecting the web, or it could simply be an abstract persona like the Lord of Chaos. Or like Mr. Dragon said, a representation of the Horsemen, which is again abstract.

 

Don't know. But I think it's one of the cooler Prophecies.

[Mr. Dragon]

But I think it's one of the cooler Prophecies.

 

Agreed.

[OptimusPrime]

I cant get it out of my head. Even "black horse" fits Ishamaels new body in my head and the fact that the name Death pops up, in that context, makes me think of Moridin specifically. Winters heart screams the Dark One at me and the fact that winters heart rides this black horse, for some reason, makes me think of the time Shaidars clothes fall off and dont disappear.

 

I believe the reason it is in the Dragon prophecies is because of Ishamaels strange relationship with the Dragon in general. Even though his words couldnt be trusted, he has fought two incarnations of the Dragon, one of which he fought three times, will almost definitely fight again and has even become connected to. Even though Moridin thinks to himself that his thing against Rand is just business (IIRC ofc) there is no denying that the Nae'blis is the Dragons nemesis, even if only in title, yet events have definitely gone out of their way to make their parallelness apparent and I think Moridins fate is definitely significant to Rands, enough so to be mentioned in the Dragon prophecies.

 

Yada Yada male cow manure nads.

[mb]

Here is what linuxmafia says about this prophecy::

[WH: Header Prophecy]

 

    The seals that hold back night shall weaken

    And in the heart of winter shall winter's heart be born

    Amid the wailing of lamentations and the gnashing of teeth,

    For winter's heart shall ride a black horse,

    And the name of it is Death.

 

        (from The Karaethon Cycle: The Prophecies of the Dragon)

 

First line is self-explanatory; the rest is fairly ominous, since Rand refers to himself as having "winter's heart" more than once. For example: "He was too weak for what had to be done. He needed to drink in winter, till he made winter's heart seem Sunday noon" [WH: 25, Bonds, 483]. (Recall that "Sunday" in Randland is an annual holiday, taking place at the height of summer.)

 

If Rand, the second and third lines could point to his birth.

Fourth and fifth lines could point to almost anything.  Some possibilities:

-Rand using Moridin.

-Rand conquering the realm of death. (Becoming resurrected and/or resurrecting another/others)

-Rand going toward Rand's death.

-Rand causing death. (his own and/or another's/others')

 

[Mr Ares]

Death rides a pale horse.

Called Binky.