karl
Mar 19, 2007 16:34:27 GMT -6
Post by karl on Mar 19, 2007 16:34:27 GMT -6
Yes we all know you can't bend in the spirit world. But what exactly is the relationship between bending and spirits? Badger-moles earthbend, and they are the earth's "Spirit Guides", but they aren't actually spirits. Same is true for Roku's dragon and Wind Buffalo/Flying Bison/Air Bison/Flying Buffalo. So do spirits grant these powers, or is it something like the spirits are the elements being bent? State your opinions here.
lin
Mar 19, 2007 23:34:02 GMT -6
Post by lin on Mar 19, 2007 23:34:02 GMT -6
Well, animals were commonly used by many earth-tribes as a totem creature, and I'm guessing that this concept has been pushed around and put forward once more.
I would say that the spirits guides are the animals themselves, and that they guide the person through the spirit world to reach... enlightenment? Mastery of bending? Think of spirit journeys in native american folklore, or Aboriginal folklore. Animals are almost always a part of myth and legend, and so...
Hmmm... i'll think more about it.
ronin
Apr 2, 2007 20:10:52 GMT -6
Post by ronin on Apr 2, 2007 20:10:52 GMT -6
Very interesting question....
Well, I believe that the creatures and humans are actuelyl bending fire or earth or whatever it is they are bending. Why? Cause the spirits were basically just let them have it (The water spirits and them givign people bendign I guess). So animals that corresbond with a certain creature are given a certain ability to bend.
Anway, can someone tell me why people can't bend in the spirit world? Cause I never new that till like, now. I have an idea, but I don't think its right....
sayeko
Apr 30, 2007 2:35:27 GMT -6
Post by sayeko on Apr 30, 2007 2:35:27 GMT -6
Yeah, I just noticed that The avatars in the spirit world like Avatar Roku can not bend there elememt . Maybe there bending abilitys were taken away from them when they died .
Maybe the spirits can still bend but they just dont show it on the show , I really can't think of any other explanation .
ronin
May 1, 2007 13:42:26 GMT -6
Post by ronin on May 1, 2007 13:42:26 GMT -6
Prehaps they can't bend because there is nothing to bend. I know it sounds strange and alien but hear em out. If you alive, you can interact with your surroundings, change things to a certain degree or something along those lines. I also think that the spirit world isn't exactly a world, but more of a higher plane of exsistance. So the rules on bendign might very well change completely.
Another idea I have is that the reason that bending can't be done is because you have no physical form while your in the spirit world, so you may not have the Chi to bend whatever corresponding element you have.
sawora
Jun 25, 2007 20:07:13 GMT -6
Post by sawora on Jun 25, 2007 20:07:13 GMT -6
Good question, Oni.
I'm not sure what to say concerning the lack of bending ability in the spirit world. It strikes me as odd, because I always thought of bending as a very spiritual thing - it states it often in the show. And yet one cannot bend in the spirit world.
Maybe it is spiritual, but at the same time separate from one's spirit. Bending might be linked to the body enough that one cannot bring the ability into the spirit world in the same way that one cannot bring one's body.
Just my thoughts on that subject.
As for the animals with bending ability, I like to think of them as something like spirit/animal guides. This has been said before, and I am only repeating it because it is logical and I am of the same opinion.
Take the story of the coyote, and how it was the first to teach man how to fend for itself. It did not teach them deliberately, it simply went on living as it always did and the humans learned by watching it. I see this story reflected in the whole badger mole situation.
The way that bending manifests in these animals seems more natural to me - sort of like how animals are born with certain instincts, while humans must learn how to master things.
I suppose they could be sort of totems for the separate elements.
Like many aspects of the show, these things seem to be reflected in cultures on earth today.
achiro
Jul 17, 2007 18:07:09 GMT -6
Post by achiro on Jul 17, 2007 18:07:09 GMT -6
This is a really interesting topic...and one thing I might add is that in connection with what Sawora said about humans learning to master things, couldn't that possibly mean that anyone could learn bending? If it was a matter of just watching and learning, then what decides for a person to be born as a bender? It would be like something you just start training for at a young age, but in the avatar world some people are just born benders. And being born with instincts doesn't make sense because then wouldn't everyone have those instincts too? Just a few thoughts.
sawora
Jul 17, 2007 18:57:58 GMT -6
Post by sawora on Jul 17, 2007 18:57:58 GMT -6
If you've seen the episode "the cave of two lovers," then hopefully you'll understand what I'm getting at.
The story goes that the badger moles taught earth benders how to bend. I never suggested that they gave them the ability - simply the expertise.
Supposedly, back in the times of Oma and Shu, bending didn't really exist. I imagine that many had the innate ability, but the badger mole, in a way, unlocked it. By watching the actions of the badger mole, the lovers learned how to earth bend.
This is what I was talking about when I made the allusion to the legend of the coyote. Humans are adaptive, and learn by watching and experimenting.
Those who are born benders are born that way because of a deeper sense of spirituality. Bending is spiritual. That's why the monks of the air people were all born benders.
As for being "born with instincts," animals are born with them. Humans are as well, to some degree, but because of an easier lifestyle, the need for primal instincts has lessened.
Creatures like the badger moles and flying bison, are born with the ability to bend. So are many humans in the avatar world. The difference is that the animals know how to bend already.
I was drawing a parallel between this aspect of the show, and instincts in nature. For instance: the wildebeest is born knowing how to walk. They are up and running within minutes of their birth. This is out of necessity because of their dangerous lifestyle filled with constant danger.
On the other hand, a human child must learn to walk.
In the avatar world, I imagine bending to be something like walking. Certain animals are born knowing how, while humans are not.
I hope that made sense.
