The Book of Love
The Book of Avelot
by Link, KellyThe chapter opens with a mysterious explanation about two figures, Bogomil and Anabin, who guard opposite sides of a metaphysical door. This door represents a boundary between life and death, and the tragic loss of the protagonist’s sister and others is attributed to their falling through it. The narrative quickly moves into a dialogue revealing disbelief and confusion about the reality of these guardians, who paradoxically exist as both mythic and familiar figures—Anabin, the music teacher, and Bogomil, a presence from dreams. Their roles as gatekeepers set the stage for a deeper exploration of the supernatural elements governing this world.
A mythic tale unfolds about a goddess named Malo Mogge, also known as the Moon, who originated from a more magnificent realm but became trapped in the current world. She possessed dominion over the moon, tides, and death, maintaining her power through doors that connected different worlds. These doors required priests to guard them, who were granted extended life and special powers in exchange for their service. However, the priests grew resentful and rebellious, leading to the destruction of many doors and the goddess’s increasing cruelty. Eventually, only one door remained, the gateway to death, guarded by two priests, which underscores the delicate balance between life and the afterlife.
The story deepens with the revelation that Bogomil and Anabin serve as the last pair of priests guarding the final door. The goddess’s power depends on passing through this door to draw strength, but the key to moving between worlds was lost. Bogomil once possessed this key and planned to overthrow Malo Mogge by installing new priests, including two brothers, Thomas and Kristofer. However, interference with the ritual led to failure, death, and estrangement, leaving the key lost for centuries. This stasis maintained a fragile order, with Bogomil lurking in darkness and Anabin standing watch, symbolizing the tension between worlds and the ongoing struggle for power.
The chapter concludes by connecting these mythic events to the present, revealing that characters believed dead—Daniel, Laura, and Mo—are trapped in Bogomil’s realm between life and death, likely due to attempts to use the lost key. Malo Mogge’s influence extends into the mortal world through Thomas, who serves her. The narrator reflects on their own experience of being lost on the threshold and listening to Bogomil’s stories, hinting at complex relationships and conflicts among these supernatural figures. The narrative balances the mystical with the personal, weaving a tale of power, betrayal, and the thin veil separating life from death.
FAQs
1. What is the nature of the goddess Malo Mogge, and how does her relationship with her priests and people evolve throughout the chapter?
Answer:
Malo Mogge, referred to as the Moon, is a goddess who originally comes from a more beautiful and marvelous world but chooses to stay in a less wondrous one due to its novelty and the worship she receives. She holds power over the moon, the sea, and death, and maintains multiple doors connecting different worlds. Her priests guard these doors, gaining extended life and powers in exchange for their service. However, Malo Mogge is capricious and quick to wrath, leading to fear outweighing love among her followers. After two priests rebel and destroy one of her doors, she punishes their city with a devastating wave. Subsequently, she demands harsher sacrifices, which spurs further uprisings. Ultimately, only one door remains under her control—the door to Death—signifying her diminished power and the strained, fearful relationship with her priests and people.2. How do the characters Bogomil and Anabin relate to the concept of the “door,” and what roles do they play according to the chapter?
Answer:
Bogomil and Anabin are priests who stand on opposite sides of the last remaining door maintained by Malo Mogge. This door is not a physical portal but a threshold between worlds—specifically, between Life and Death. They keep this door open to allow the goddess to pass and draw strength from the other realm. Bogomil possesses a key that enables movement between worlds, which he hides to prevent Malo Mogge from regaining full power. He plans to overthrow the goddess by using this key and making two brothers, Thomas and Kristofer, into priests, but the plan fails due to the narrator’s interference. Anabin, intriguingly, is also a music teacher in the human world, blending the ordinary with the supernatural. Their roles are pivotal in controlling the boundary between life and death and maintaining the balance of power.3. Analyze the symbolic significance of the “door” in the chapter. What does it represent beyond a literal passageway?
Answer:
The door symbolizes a threshold between different states of existence—between life and death, the mortal world and other realms. It represents transitions, boundaries, and the flow of power and fate. The fact that the doors are “not made of wood or stone or cloth but were areas where one place pressed up against another” suggests they are metaphysical or spiritual boundaries rather than physical objects. The destruction of most doors by rebellious priests indicates a fracturing of connection and trust between the divine and mortal realms. The last door, guarded by Bogomil and Anabin, embodies the final barrier between life and death and serves as a source of the goddess’s power and sustenance. It also reflects themes of sacrifice, control, and the consequences of rebellion against divine authority.4. Considering the narrator’s interference in Bogomil’s ritual and the resulting consequences, what themes about free will and fate emerge in the story?
Answer:
The narrator’s interference in Bogomil’s ritual introduces themes of free will versus predestination. Bogomil’s plan to kill Malo Mogge and seize power suggests a fate seemingly set by divine machinations and ritual. However, the narrator’s choice to intervene disrupts this destiny, causing the plan’s failure and personal loss, including the death of Kristofer and the narrator’s own exile or “loss.” This act of interference highlights human agency and the unpredictable impact of individual actions on larger cosmic designs. The tension between predetermined roles (priests, gods, rituals) and the capacity to change or resist these roles underscores the complex interplay of fate and free will in the narrative.5. How might the mythological framework presented in this chapter influence the characters’ motivations and conflicts in the broader story?
Answer:
The mythological framework establishes a complex cosmology where divine beings, their priests, and mortals are intertwined through rituals, power struggles, and metaphysical boundaries like the door. Characters such as Thomas, Kristofer, and the narrator are directly affected by these divine conflicts, shaping their motivations—whether to serve, rebel, or survive. The presence of Malo Mogge, Bogomil, and Anabin as powerful yet flawed figures suggests ongoing struggles for control and survival that mirror human conflicts. The knowledge of death as a passage and the risk of becoming trapped between worlds adds urgency and depth to the characters’ actions. This framework likely drives the tension between loyalty, betrayal, and the quest for power or redemption throughout the broader story.
Quotes
1. “Once there was a goddess who was not from our world but from another place much more beautiful and marvelous. This is what she told Bogomil. She opened a door there and came through to our world and although our world was less beautiful, less marvelous, she found charm in its novelty and in the people who worshipped her for the things she could do and they could not. In our world there was something she had never seen before, which was death. And so she decided to stay for a time.”
This quote introduces the central mythic figure of the chapter—the goddess known as the Moon—and sets up the foundational cosmology of the story. It reveals the goddess’s origins, her encounter with death, and her decision to remain in the mortal realm, which is key to understanding the chapter’s exploration of power, mortality, and worship.
2. “The work of the priests required a great sacrifice on their part, and in return for this, the goddess gave them the power to extend their lives so long as they held her door. She gave them other powers, too. When they grew weary of keeping their door, they found and trained others to do their work and became mortal again.”
This passage defines the role and nature of the priests who guard the goddess’s doors, explaining their sacrifice and the exchange of power and longevity. It highlights the theme of duty and the cyclical nature of mortal and immortal states, which is vital for understanding the characters Bogomil and Anabin later discussed.
3. “Malo Mogge was enraged by the perfidy of the two priests, and she slew them both. The city where the door had been, she overwhelmed with a great wave, and when her wave receded there was not a stone of it left.”
This quote marks a critical turning point in the narrative, illustrating the goddess’s wrath and the catastrophic consequences of rebellion against her. It emphasizes the destructive power wielded by Malo Mogge (the Moon) and serves as a cautionary tale about defiance and divine punishment within the chapter’s mythos.
4. “Anabin and Bogomil kept the door open so the goddess they served could pass back and forth and draw strength through it. Her magic was great but not inexhaustible. What was beyond the door replenished her. Those who passed through it became her meat. Only now she may not restore herself because the key she must use to move between this world and that other realm was lost to her in some way, I do not know how or when.”
This passage reveals the mechanics of the goddess’s power and the pivotal role of the door and its key. It underscores the themes of dependency, limitation, and loss of control, explaining why the goddess’s power is diminished and setting up the conflict involving the key’s possession.
5. “They were like me. They must have attempted the ritual and fallen through the door. They remained in Bogomil’s realm between Life and Death. Where I have been. To attempt the ritual, they must have found the key. Perhaps they found the key by chance, but once it was found and used, Anabin and Bogomil and Malo Mogge would have felt it.”
This quote connects the mythic elements to the personal and present experiences of the narrator and other characters, bridging the cosmic story with the human drama. It highlights the perilous liminal space between life and death and the significance of the key as a catalyst for change and consequence.