Gum, as conceived by Naknuk, is an actual deity, although he often forgets to make that clear. Naknuk imagines Gum as a Mayan male figure with long flowing robes, a headdress even more gaudy than that of Emperor Kuzco out of The Emperor's New Groove, and a perfectly straight staff made entirely out of hard rubber. Gum walks the earth, but never tells anyone what he does when that happens.
Rubber sap is sacred, as it allows Gum to stick to men and badgers. Certain forms of sap produced in the staff and launched by the proper gestures and incantations can form web-like stickiness, while others manipulate body chemistry to produce lethargy or weakness. The sap in which the staff is coated has healing properties, including the ability to restore lost limbs. A
weaker form of this sap can be launched, but that form lacks the ability to restore limbs.
Gum is a pantheistic religion, believing that all other deities exist, but were created when Gum launched parts of himself out into the cosmos. By extension, that means that all of the creations of these deities (men, dinosaurs, etc.) are also Gum at their root. The goal of Gum's worshippers is to remind them of their connection to Gum and give them acceptable means to pay homage to Gum for his benevolence. In the end, Gum will collect the world to him.
Naknuk is focused on Gum, and has developed a few "creeds" to summarize his beliefs:
- Gum is all, and all is Gum.
- If we stick to Gum now, Gum will stick to us later.
- Visit any feast you like; all will be Gum in the end.
- Everyone and everything will eventually be stuck to Gum, why wait?
No comments:
Post a Comment