Minbari
From The Babylon Project
| |||||||||
| |||||||||
- "The Minbari never tell anyone the whole truth."
- – Common saying among the other races.
The Minbari are the oldest of the younger races and originate from the planet Minbar in Sector 120.
Contents |
[edit] Physiology & Appearance
Minbari are bald humanoids with pale skin, easily identified by the bone crest around their heads. The female's bone crest tends to be round and does not change, while the males usually have a three tiered bone structure that grows throughout their adulthood. Their ears are small and at the base of the neck and they lack eye brows. Nevertheless, some Minbari men are able to grow beards.
Minbari do not perspire the way humans do. At night, their skin secretes a kind of fluid which they strip away with a chemical. Minbari women do not menstruate.
Minbari apparently do not require as high levels of oxygen as humans do, and they can fast for as long as two weeks.
[edit] Languages
The Minbari have three basic languages one for each caste:
- Adronato: The language of the religious caste.
- Feek:
- Lenn'a:
Every Minbari understands the languages of the other castes, at least in their pure official forms, if not some of the regional dialects, however it is considered a taboo if the warriors or the religious castes speak the language of the workers.[1]
[edit] Telepathy
The Minbari produce highly trained, highly disciplined, high powered telepaths and, unlike Earth telepaths, do not have their movements tracked or their freedom curtailed in any way. The Minbari think of psi ability as a gift and a calling. They are trained, fed, and clothed while openly offering their services to those in need.[2] They have also been show working well as groups of telepaths linked together.[3]
[edit] Government
[edit] Technology
Minbari technology is some of finest and most advanced of the younger races, though not as advanced as the Vorlons, the Shadows and the other First Ones. Their ships are powered by gravimetric engines and are equipped with artificial gravity. The Minbari are suspected to have other devices based on gravitic science, such as gravity rings which Delenn was shown using on G'Kar.[4] Minbari also make use of crystals in their devices, mostly likely due to the high concentration of crystals present on their homeworld. The Minbari use Base-11, or Undecimal math. [5]
[edit] Homeworld
The Minbari homeworld is Minbar. It is the seventh planet in their solar system. Despite its oxygen/nitrogen atmosphere, Minbar is a colder world than most others. It is covered by vast polar ice caps; the northern one being the largest, and is very rich in crystalline deposits, which many of their cities are made from.[6] Apparently, there are also vast wastelands between cites and populated areas.[7]
[edit] Culture
The Minbari are a deeply spiritual, highly ritualistic and highly disciplined people. They seek conformity and enlightenment above all. Honor is everything and they generally do not lie, except to save another or to help another save face. From birth to adulthood, they are taught to be selfless and learn the importance of service to all aspects of life. Working for generations, they create a legacy for themselves and are ready to sacrifice their lives, their blood, or their honor for others.[8] Since spirituality and discipline are their way, Minbari are less likely to act on their passions. They have a ritual for everything and usually listen very carefully to words of wisdom. This is unlike Earth culture which is much more free-spirited and impassioned, where people default on their passions and sometimes forget the lessons of the past.
[edit] Caste system
Minbari society is segregated into a caste system. The three castes are the Worker Caste, Warrior Caste and Religious Caste. Membership within these castes is not necessarily determined by birth but by one's calling in life. From there, the castes are divided into clans which have their own leaders and family houses, or "Fanes".[9] Since the time of Valen, the three castes lived in peace with one another, though at times there has been friction, particularly between the religious and warrior castes. The workers, although given equal representation in the government, were often caught in between these rivalries and forgotten until Delenn reorganized the Grey Council in favor of them.[10]
[edit] Religion
The Minbari believe that the universe is both alive and conscious and that it manifests in all forms of sentient life giving all individuals a piece of itself. [11] They also believe in a collective soul and collective reincarnation. Thus each generation of Minbari are reborn into the next.[12] While the Minbari do not worship individual gods, they do have a Minbari representation of a higher being known as Valeria. This is probably another example of Vorlon influence. Valen founded the Grey Council and is also thought of as divine by the Minbari.
[edit] True Seekers
[edit] Customs
- When a Minbari introduces him or herself, they bow with their hands in the shape of a triangle. One hand is curled inside the other, while the thumbs point to each other forming the apex of the triangle.
- Minbari fashion is usually an external expression of one's own caste. A warrior would be seen wearing an elaborate black uniform with many buttons or badges, while the religious and worker caste outfits are much plainer but varying in color depending on their purposes.
- Minbari do not sleep in a horizontal position but instead at an angle which requires proper mediation. To sleep in a horizontal position is thought to be tempting death.[13]
- Among Minbari, the number three is considered sacred. [14]
[edit] Food and Drink
- Flarn: is a soft green food served in small portions. [15]
- Sha'neyat: (loosely translated as death destroyer) is a kind of potent tea distilled from a combination of flowers, fruits, and grains. It is only used in certain religious ceremonies where it is considered an essential element, including the ceremony to install a new Entil'Zha. Though harmless to Minbari, Sha'neyat is a deadly poison to Humans. [16]
- Se n'kai: are a kind of fruit. In the thousand years since Valen's time, Se n'kai trees had become far less prevalent than they once were. It is traditionally used in the ceremony to install a new Entil'Zha, though it is not essential. [16]
- As a part of the Rebirth Ceremony, participants are required to eat a tiny red fruit. [17]
[edit] History
[edit] Early Times
Being the oldest of the younger races, the Minbari civilization has existed for many thousands of years and like many other races, they were contacted and influenced by the Vorlons. In ancient times, Minbar was wracked with numerous civil wars stemming from caste rivalries and factional violence where Minbari killed Minbari. Despite this institutional violence, their society was stable and disciplined enough to survive and thrive. They achieved space flight well over one thousand human years ago, measured from the events in Babylon 5. As is the case with the other younger races, the Minbari did not invent Jumpgate technology themselves; they found the already existing gates as their civilization expanded out into space. [18] The Minbari quickly established themselves on an interstellar scale. Presumably, they came into contact with other species at this time, but little is generally known about their relations with other races at this relatively early period in their development.
[edit] Shadow Uprising (13th Century A.D.)
When the Shadows arose in 1260, the Minbari joined with the Vorlons and others in a war against them. When the war took a turn for the worse with the destruction of the main base for the alliance, at the last moment a replacement arrived seemingly out of nowhere. When Minbari warriors came aboard, they found a mysterious Minbari there named Valen. Surrounded by Vorlons in angelic form, seemingly blessing the event, the Minbari listened to Valen and took his leadership. Hope was restored and Shadows were defeated and driven off.[19]
[edit] Minbari Society Under Valen
The arrival of Valen was not just a miracle for the sake of the war effort but a blessing for all Minbari. He soon began a series of reforms to unite the Minbari and put an end to the civil wars. He created the Grey Council and gave all three castes equal representation and power, and laid down the foundation for rule by wisdom rather than by war and violence. It was by this that the supreme law was made that no Minbari shall ever kill another Minbari. The Warrior Caste was mandated to defend their world against alien threats rather than their own people, and the Rangers were created to watch out for the Shadows.
[edit] Events Leading up to the Earth-Minbari War
For the next 900 years or so after Valen, the Minbari developed into one of most peaceful and progressive civilizations in the galaxy. They made great strides in technology which far exceeded other races, then and in the far future.[4] The Religious Caste even enacted mercy missions and alliances with lesser advanced races bordering Minbari space like the Norsai, in which they offered them the protection of the Minbari fleet and guaranteed them their sovereignty.[7] During these space ventures, the Minbari probably encountered other powerful civilizations like the Centauri, who were at the height of their expansion into space. It is not known what their relationship was like but apparently the Centauri did negotiate with them, instead of trying to conquer them. The Centauri would later advise the humans to keep a respectful distance from the Minbari, advice which was ignored.[20]
Culture at this time had reached the peak of advancement and society became highly refined and ritualistic, with everyone dedicated to the service of one another. However, aside from some dealings with outsiders (ie: Vorlons and Centauri), the Minbari kept mostly to themselves and seemingly avoided any new first contacts with aliens. Their latest leader Dukhat presided over a council that seemed to be more isolationist than ever before.[21] Many, especially the Warrior Caste, even began to doubt that the prophesied return of the ancient enemy would ever happen, and the concerns of the Rangers were set aside for the time being.
[edit] Earth-Minbari War
In 2245, Dukhat, hearing about the humans through the Centauri and aware - or at least half-aware - of a past connection with them, urges the council to make first contact. However much to his disagreement, the council votes to avoid direct contact with the humans. But on their way to investigate the Shadows, their ships came into contact with humans never the less. Not understanding them, and following their tradition of open respect, the Minbari ships approached with their gunports open. This was perceived as a threat and the humans panicked and opened fire damaging their fleet and killing Dukhat. In a fit of rage council member Delenn, seeking revenge, cast the deciding vote with the council and began the 'holy' war with Earth.[21][20]
Though the war dragged on for three years, the earth ships were no match for the Minbari's advanced technology. Eventually the Minbari reached Earth fully prepared for an orbital bombardment. It was there they were met by earth's last remaining forces at what would be know as the Battle of the Line.[22] It was there that the Minbari learned of a special connection with the humans, through an examination of one human in particular.[23] With this discovery, the Religious Caste ordered their forces to stop fighting and surrender.[22][20] This enraged many in the Warrior Caste and shocked the humans, who both remained suspicious of the reasons behind it, not knowing what was discovered.
[edit] Postwar and the Babylon Project
After the war, a rift began to develop between the Warrior Caste and Religious Caste.[2] It also seemed, at least in some peoples eyes, that Minbari society was becoming more self-involved, thinking less of the needs of others.[24] The Minbari took special interest in the Babylon Project, particularly in its 5th incarnation, greatly contributing to it and influencing Earth Alliance to get Sinclair assigned to its command. Their true motive for wanting him was to keep an eye on him, and insure that he never found out the truth of what had happened to him. They assigned Satai Delenn as ambassador to the station with orders to watch over him.
Back on Minbar, the divisions and rivalries between the warrior and priest castes began to grow steadily worse. As the warriors grew more suspicious of the religious caste's loyalty and commitment to their world, Delenn's disobedience of the council on the subject of prophecy by changing herself[25], Sinclair's subsequent appointment as ambassador to their world, and especially the assignment of Sheridan the 'Starkiller' to command Babylon 5 only increased these suspicions. Later, the warriors usurped the religious caste's position on the Grey Council by having a warrior appointed to replace the seat originally intended for a religious caste member.[26]
By the middle of 2260, during the crisis of Babylon 5's secession from Earth Alliance, the Warrior Caste-dominated Grey Council, unsympathetic and more concerned with their own affairs, refused to act in defense of the station. Disgusted by this, Delenn disbanded the council. With both castes acting like their own separate nations just as they did before Valen, the Minbari were now a completely divided people. Later that year, tensions increased still further when Delenn officially took command of the Rangers at the head of the Army of Light.[27]
[edit] Civil War
By 2261 the peace between the Religious and Warrior castes finally broke. In some major cities and communities, the warriors no longer wished to lend aid and support to their Religious Caste neighbors. The warriors had apparently stolen from them and destroyed a great number of resources belonging to the Religious Caste, leaving whole populations of priests to fend for themselves. Some of those displaced were forced to journey to an adjoining population center to find food and supplies, and to meet with others of their brethren. Many of these refugees died of exposure before reaching such places.[7]
The situation on Minbar soon turned to outright violence and war. It was because of this that Delenn decided to return home to organize her caste and possibly mediate the conflict. She meets with Neroon, much to the chagrin of others in her caste, to resolve the situation peacefully for he has the ear of a prominent leader in the Warrior Caste. But the peace offering was false as Neroon had only wished to gauge the mettle of the Religious Caste. The Warrior Caste then begun its final assault on the strongholds of the Religious Caste. Betrayed and defeated, they huddled together as they were bombed into complete submission. The Religious Caste had no choice but to surrender.
The two sides then met at the Temple of Varenni for the formal surrender. But after war leader Shakiri declared his intentions to strip the Religious Caste of its sovereign rights, Delenn invoked the ancient tradition of sacrificial rites to prove the worthiness of leaders. She challenged Shakiri to step into the Starfire Wheel and die for his Caste. At first he refused but then choose to join her in the circle. He would not die for his caste and was proven unworthy, but Delenn chose to stay in to prove herself and set an example for all her people. But Neroon not wanting to see her die and finally understanding the wrongness of the war, replaced her in the circle and died for his caste. The warriors were redeemed and the war was over. Delenn formed a new council and reorganized it, placing seats from both the Warrior and Religious Castes to the Worker Caste.
[edit] Interstellar Alliance and Beyond
With the civil war over and their world reunited, the Minbari were among the new alliance’s first supporters and members. Although Babylon 5 was its capital, it was decided early on that would not remain so forever, and the Minbari homeworld was selected to be its permanent capital. Construction on the new alliance facilities began in the early part 2262 and was scheduled for completion by the end of the year.
[edit] Perceptions by Other Races
- " Minbari... Look into their eyes and see nothing but mirrors-infinities of reflection. "
- – A Soul Hunter
The Minbari have beliefs opposed to that of the Soul Hunters. The Soul Hunters believe that because of the Minbari's hesitance to let their souls be preserved they are letting their souls die needlessly. [12]
Because of the repercussions of the Earth-Minbari War, some Humans hold some hostility toward the Minbari.
Other races sometimes perceive the Minbari as humorless and unpassionate, but this is not true.
There is a common saying that while Minbari do not lie, they do not tell the whole truth either.
[edit] People
Notable Minbari include:
- Bramner
- Calir
- Coplann
- Deeron
- Delenn
- Dukhat
- Durhan
- Hedronn
- Jenimer
- Kalain
- Lennier
- Lenonn
- Mayan
- Neroon
- Rathenn
- Ruell
- Sineval
- Turval
- Valen
[edit] Notes
- The Spellings of the Minbari languages are taken from the subtitles in the episode And Now For a Word, during Delenn's interview with the earth reporter.
[edit] Behind The Scenes
According to JMS, he took the word 'Minbar' from the name for a pulpit in a Mosque.[28]
[edit] References
- ↑ To Dream in the City of Sorrows
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Legacies
- ↑ Dust to Dust
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Gathering
- ↑ The Quality of Mercy
- ↑ And Now For a Word
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Lines of Communication
- ↑ There All the Honor Lies
- ↑ JMS post on rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated - 5/1/1996
- ↑ Moments of Transition
- ↑ Passing Through Gethsemane
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Soul Hunter (episode)
- ↑ Messages from Earth
- ↑ The Very Long Night of Londo Mollari
- ↑ Confessions and Lamentations
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 To Dream in the City of Sorrows
- ↑ The Parliament of Dreams
- ↑ Lurker's Guide
- ↑ War Without End, Part II
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 In the Beginning
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Atonement
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Points of Departure
- ↑ And the Sky Full of Stars
- ↑ A Voice in the Wilderness, Part I
- ↑ Chrysalis
- ↑ All Alone in the Night
- ↑ Grey 17 Is Missing
- ↑ JMS post on rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated - 5/15/2000 8:40:00 AM
| Major Races | ||
| Ancient Races: | First Ones • First Born • Vorlon • Shadow • Walkers of Sigma-957 • Thirdspace Aliens • The Hand | |
| Major Races: | Minbari • Centauri • Human • Narn • Dilgar • Drakh | |
| League/Alliance Races: | Drazi • Brakiri • Gaim • pak'ma'ra • Abbai • Yolu • Hyach/Hyach-do • Markab • Llort • Grome • Hurr • Cascor • Balosian • Onteen • Iksha • Vree | |
