Ishar

Ishar
por Dan dos Santos
Capacidades	Sombra cognitiva, Portador de esquirlada (formerly)
Títulos	Heraldo del Todopoderoso, Herald of Luck, Binder of Gods, Patron of the Bondsmiths, Tezim the Great, Herald of Heralds
Apodos	Ishi, Tashi, Tezim, Ishu-son-God
Mundo natal	Roshar
Universo	Cosmere

“ I… have seen Ishar. He curses me at night, even as he names himself a god. He seeks death. His own. Perhaps that of every man. ”

— Stormfather

Ishar, also known as Ishi'Elin, Tashi, and Tezim, is one of the ten Heralds of the Almighty on Roshar. He's known as the Herald of Luck, and serves as the patron of the Order of Bondsmiths. In the present times, he rules over the country of Tukar under the guise of its god-priest.

Appearance and Personality

by Isaac Stewart Ishar's chapter capstone

“ The judgment of the final storm has come to destroy all men, and only his path will lead to deliverance. He deigns to send you this single mandate, and will not speak it again. Even this is far above what your carnal natures deserve. ”

— Ishar, writing as Tezim

Ishar's current-day appearance is unknown, though Rosharan artwork typically presents him as looking much older than other Heralds, with a full beard and grey hair. He is known to be incredibly charismatic, capable of swaying the entire nations to follow him, as well as to convince the other Heralds of his opinions and his sanity. He also seems to be scholarly, and deeply interested in the inner working of the Oathpact and the mechanics surrounding it.

In the present day Ishar is, like other Heralds, by and large insane. His particular brand of madness seems to reflect his nature as a spiritual leader. He alternately believes himself to be above all other men, and hates who he is and wishes to die. The latter does not stop him from presenting himself as the ultimate authority and demanding utter respect as the god-priest of Tukar.

This megalomania and charisma together make for a highly dangerous combination, as even now the other Heralds hold Ishar in particularly high esteem. Nale claims that Ishar has always been the wisest of them all, and Shalash believes that he would know how to cure Taln's madness.

History

Herald of the Almighty

Ishar's history prior to becoming a Herald is unknown. After mankind began to lose its fight against Odium and his immortal Fused, Ishar and nine companions asked Honor for the ability to seal the Voidbringers on Braize. Honor agreed, the Oathpact was founded, and Ishar and his nine companions became Heralds of the Almighty and were given their Honorblades. Ishar was tortured with the rest of the Heralds between every Desolation until one of them broke. When that happened, Ishar and the other Heralds returned to Roshar to guide humanity in the fight against the Voidbringers. As spren began to bond with humans and grant them surgebinding, Ishar founded the Knights Radiant and became the patron of the Bondsmiths, believing that laws and organization were necessary for humans to control surges, lest they cause untold damage and destroy Roshar, just as they had destroyed their previous world. As leader of the Bondsmiths and founder of the Oathpact, he became known as the Binder of Gods.

Ishar fought in multiple Desolations, defending humankind from the Voidbringers and returning to Damnation between Desolations to be tortured. At Aharietiam, he and the other Heralds save for Talenel, who was the only one who had returned to Damnation, decided that they could no longer withstand the cycle. Realising that only Talenel had never broken yet, Ishar theorized that Talenel's presence in Damnation would be enough for the Oathpact to hold, and they agreed to permanently abandon their pledge, leaving Taln to suffer alone for four and a half millennia.

Post-Aharietiam

“ Tashi doesn't care much for what you do here. In fact, I’d pray that he doesn’t reach your city, as I doubt you’d like the consequences. ”

— Nale

Ishar's activities after Aharietiam are largely unknown. In the present day, however, he calls himself Tezim, and leads the Tukari people as their god-priest. He is currently waging war against Emul for unknown reasons. When Dalinar reached out to the Tukari after the Everstorm, he received an angry letter from Ishar proclaiming himself "Tezim the Great, Herald of Heralds and bearer of the Oathpact," and demanding fealty from the newly refounded Knights Radiant.

Nale has been in regular communication with Ishar in regards to current events. It was at Ishar's behest that Nale began seeking out and murdering Surgebinders, believing this to be the only way to prevent a new Desolation. Once the Everstorm arrived, Nale again sought out Ishar, after which he decided to abandon Honor and fight for the Parsh instead.

Although Nale and Ash both believe that Ishar is the only Herald to have survived the Desolations with his mind intact, the Stormfather has said that Ishar is also insane, and seeks his own death and that of every man.

Attributes and Abilities

by Isaac Stewart Ishar's glyph

Herald of the Almighty

Para a general description of Heraldic powers, ver Herald#Abilities.

As a Herald, Ishar is functionally immortal. So long as he remains on Roshar, he does not appear to age; and when he dies, he travels to Braize and can return, though at the cost of triggering a Desolation. He once wielded an Honorblade, which granted him Surgebinding and the powers of the Bondsmiths, namely the Surges of Adhesion and Tension. However, he left it behind at Aharietiam, and it's currently in care of the Shin. As such, it's uncertain how many of his Heraldic powers, other than immortality, he retains in the present.

Binder of Gods

Unlike other Heralds, Ishar is sometimes described as having powers even before he became known as a Herald, although whether this means he had them before becoming a Herald is uncertain. His particular powerset was seemingly tied to the cosmere-wide phenomenon of Connection. He is often described as the founder of the Oathpact, and is believed to have been the founder of the Knights Radiant, forcing them to organize and adopt precepts to live by, likely to prevent another Ashyn-like catastrophe. Even among the other Heralds, the Radiant's were sometimes known as "Ishar's Knights".

Perhaps due to his abilities, he appears to have been the Heralds' expert on Connection and bonds. He studied Oathpact, and was the one who realized that one Herald was enough to keep it working. He also sought a way to preserve information between the Desolations, and in the present day, convinced Nale to hunt down buddying Surgebinders, claiming it is to prevent a new invasion.

God-Priest Tezim

In the current era, Ishar acts as the leader of Tukar, calling himself the god-priest Tezim. The Tukari are zealously religious, and indeed seem to believe him to be a god. For over a decade, they went to war with the neighboring Emul over the port city of Sesemalex Dar, in the conflict known as Eighty's War. Ishar's reasons for leading the Tukari to war are unclear, though the two countries have been always been embroiled in conflict. It's also uncertain for long Ishar's been influencing Tukari politics.

As Tezim, Ishar refuses to participate in Dalinar's alliance and demands that the Alethi turn Urithiru over to him. Whether he has the power to back up his claim remains to be seen.

Culture

As one of the Heralds, Ishar is venerated throughout Roshar. In the Vorin tradition, he is known as Ishi'Elin, and associated with number 10 (Ishi), the Essence of Sinew, and the divine attributes of Pious and Guiding. He is often listed alongside Jezrien and Kelek as one of the most important Heralds.

"Ishi be praised" is a common phrase. However, unlike with most Heralds, Ishar's true name remained in use among the Vorins, with places like Ishar's field, and the curse of "Ishar's soul".

Unlike in the East, where Jezrien is placed as the most important, in the West Ishar is often considered the leader of the Heralds. In Makabaki nations, he's called Tashi, and is titled the God of Gods and the Binder of the World. The people of Tashikk in particular place him as equal, though opposed to Odium, or Nun Raylisi, and believe that as long as they stay in their homeland, Tashi protects them from evil. In Yeddaw, the tenth of the traditional ten pancakes of the Weeping is dedicated to Tashi, and is imagined rather than actually made.

Tashi's Light Orphanage is named after him, and "Tashi above" is a commonly-used phrase. Tashikk may be named after him. Further west, in Shinovar, Ishar is known as Ishu-son-God.

Trivia

• Ishar is featured as one of the Oathbringer endpapers.
• The phrase "Ishar's soul" has so far only been used by Adolin Kholin.

Notes

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