Need Help With Questions Concerning Dune? Ask Here!

[Scrinlord]

I dont remember how he talks about them, but the zensunni is a religious group that was forced into slavery in the Old Empire, and they spent years and years wandering from planet to planet trying to escape oppression. Some of them eventually wound up on Arrakis, and they were the first of the fremen.

[TMA_1]

The zensunni originated in earth if I am not mistaken. They arose from the "3rd mohammed", a prophet that is not talked much about. They incorperated sufism with their islamic beliefs, and because they were sunni in origin, they were much more liberal than the shi'i. This is why they could encorperate the philosophy of zen with their faith. It really is hard to see but you can pick it out if you know the fundimentals of zen buddhism. still hard though.

they moved from planet to planet, forced to because they wre looked upon as squatters, who really had no right to be where they were. Groups of zensunni were seperated, went to different planets, but almost by an act of divine influence they came together on the planet arrakis. Even though it was harsh, it was a kind of promise land to them, because they felt they were finally free, that nobody would bother them because arrakis was a shmit hole.lol well they were wrong, spice was found and well, it ruined their chances of peaceful and independant subsistance. Through the harsh climate and such importance on the wildlife of arrakis (i.e. shui hulud), their religion changed bit by bit. Soon because shui hulud was both a indiscriminant killer, but also a giver of teh spice and a protecter of their people, there grew a duel identity diety. Shui hulud became a satan/savior of their people. He literally gave with one hand and took away with another. This and the harshness of the land turned them into hard and cold people, and to defend themselves and defend their position in a sietch because of such harshness and violence, they had to learn how too fight. All of this and other factors altered them from Zensunni, to a sort of different faithsystem. still keeping almost all of their zensunni tennants though, except maybe for the problem with violence and some of the new superstitions involved, but with time, anything can be altered and reconciled.

sorry for the bad writing, it was done in haste and isnt the best of english.lol Hope it helps though, if not tell me and maybe I or somebody else can better explain it. :)

[Muad dib]

Ok thanks a lot but who invented the stilsuites, was it the zensunni or of world people, and if it was the zensunni then they must of been really smart.

[TMA_1]

the fremen, who are offshoots of the zensunni came up with the stillsuit. yeah totally man! it seems that they are prejudged too darn much. they came up with things like the distrans message sender reciever thing, stillsuits, various water catching and survival devices. its pretty amazing.

[Vanguard3000]

It's not so much the suit itself that impresses me (although it is quite amazing); it's the fact that with such limited supplies, the Fremen are able to develop a spice-based plastic which not even a single molecule of water can stick to it.

[Lord J]

Not really a question about Dune, but just commenting on the whole inventiveness of the Fremen in the desert of Arrakis, contrasted with the sociological culture of the U.S. desert area.

When I visited New Mexico, southern Nevada and a bit of California earlier this year, I had expected to see something of the Fremen lifestyle in the way everything was constructed. At least rationing of some sort, especially water rationing.

Instead, as I commented to my mother, most of the desert area, and especially the populated desert area is in the midst of what I called "desperate excess". Everything is a tourist attraction. From the lights, to the American Indian sights, to the gambling, and even the legalized prostitution in parts of Nevada, is based on the need for tourism. I swear, I've never stayed at so many hotels with outdoor pools.

I'm not exactly sure what I expected to see, but I know I didn't see it.

[Vanguard3000]

There's an interesting short story/editorial I saw once. I believe it was called "Blue Gold", and it talks about that. i think they went into the statistics of how many people could live off of the water used to water golf courses and stuff. It was pretty interesting.

[Scrinlord]

I remember seeing that too, it was freaky. How many hundreds of people could survive off the water for ONE golf course? And then everyone has an outdoor pool, and if you go to Las Vegas, almsot every other casino has a huge pond or pool outside its front door. It is insane!

[TMA_1]

It's not so much the suit itself that impresses me (although it is quite amazing); it's the fact that with such limited supplies, the Fremen are able to develop a spice-based plastic which not even a single molecule of water can stick to it.

totally man.

that is really interesting lordj, and I see it as kinda sad. I like to think I know my good share of native american history throughout the americas. Especially the southwest and southeast tribes.

It is really sad how peoples like the navajo are losing their entire culture. They cannot do the things they once did and it has turned from a subsistance culture to a modern world of more than enough. The gentle balance they once had was totally knocked out of the loop. It reminds me of teh museum fremen, and how they kept parts of their tradition, but they were not in the least fremen.

[Muad dib]

Hears a good question for you TMA, what are all of the houses in the dune universe? I know the main ones of Atreides, Harkonnen, Cereano(Sards house), Ix, Tilaxu, Fremen, and Guild but what are the others and could you explain their house. Thanks.

[Duncan_ghola]

thats impossible because they arent listed, there are 1 million planets in the imperium?

[TMA_1]

duncan ghola, there are many many many houses listed.

Nobody, I know a lot of them but couldnt list them at the top of my head. This is what I want you to do. IM vanguard, and ask him for his website on the listing of all houses. It also has a very short and unfinished encyclopedia. It has every house listed though, from franks books, from the prequels, and even from the DE!

vanny kicks ass with this stuff, so remember to IM him and ask him for his website. it has everything listed in black and white.

[Duncan_ghola]

Hears a good question for you TMA, what are all of the houses in the dune universe? I know the main ones of Atreides, Harkonnen, Cereano(Sards house), Ix, Tilaxu, Fremen, and Guild but what are the others and could you explain their house. Thanks.

notice how he asks for all of the houses in the imperium, sure there are many listen but not all of them are listed

[Vanguard3000]

http://community.the-underdogs.org/smiley/deo/houses.htm

This is a list of all of the Great Houses mentioned in the original Dune books, prequels, and the DEO. Of course, there's no list of EVERY House in the Imperium, since it's a fictional universe. Anyway, it also has whatever information I could gether on these Houses. Enjoy.

[edit] Oh, and Nobody, the Guild, Tleilaxu, and other factions are not Great Houses.

[Dunenewt]

Hagal is not on your site

[Vanguard3000]

I had always debated listing Hagal. Of course, the planet is mentioned, but I'm not sure about the House. Hagal seems to be little more than a planet under Harkonnen governorship. If you find a quote or anything mentioning a House hagal, I'll be happy to update it the next time I'm on my own computer.

Oh, and I was thinking of adding the League of Nobles to it sometime. Any thoughts on this?

[Inoculator9]

The DE list is all the GREAT houses. I don't believe it included the minor houses. Minor houses had planetary fiefdoms, just not the same representation.

[TMA_1]

yeah the DE seems to indicate that there arent thousands upon thousands of great houses. you can tell by the list obviously that there are only close or a little over a hundred. Most of the political factions in the Duniverse are minor houses.

[Dunenewt]

I had always debated listing Hagal. Of course, the planet is mentioned, but I'm not sure about the House. Hagal seems to be little more than a planet under Harkonnen governorship. If you find a quote or anything mentioning a House hagal, I'll be happy to update it the next time I'm on my own computer.

It mentions House Hagal in the book 'House Atreides'

[Vanguard3000]

Okay, I'll update it on the weekend, when I'm at my own computer. In the meantime, could you find the page number, or a quote, that mentions this. Not that I don't trust you or anything. ;)

[drahgoon]

ya, why should you trust him anyways ??? oh and btw, i read that book and it did mention the house hagal.

[Dunenewt]

I loaned it from a library. It was about the blue obsidian being sold as from Hagal when in fact it was from Harkonnen and Gurney was working in an obsidian mine.

EDIT-Also one of Elrood's wifes was from House Hagal.

[drahgoon]

ya now i remember.

[Muad dib]

What is the Zabulon conquest? And what was the Golden Age of Earth?

[Andrew]

I think the Golden age of earth was right about now or so, quite possible into the near and late future, before the rise of the machines against humainity.

Check out:

http://www.usul.net/books/timeline.htm

and look for golden, it describes different ones. but that is according to DE I think.