Is Makuta Mata Nui's Brother?

Not in any family sense. The Matoran's Legend of Mata NuiThe Legend of Mata NuiThe oral creation account recited by the Turaga of Mata Nui to every new Matoran and to each Toa Mata on arrival, recounting the descent of the Great Spirit, the Time of Shadow brought by his fallen brother, and the prophesied return of the heroes from the sea. calls MakutaTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. the Great Spirit's brother, and Makuta talks about him the same way, but the later story reveals that Makuta, real name Teridax, was one of a whole species of MakutaMakuta: species, title, and TeridaxMakuta means three things in the Matoran Universe: the Antidermis species Mata Nui created, the Brotherhood rank, and most often Teridax himself. that Mata NuiMata NuiBuilt by the Great Beings to restore Spherus Magna, Mata Nui sustained an entire civilisation inside his body, was deposed by Teridax, and reclaimed his purpose as a mortal on Bara Magna. himself brought into being. "Brother" describes the role they were meant to share, not how they were made. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light; BIONICLE: Makuta's Guide to the Universe)

What the legend says#

BIONICLE: Mask of Light opens with Turaga Vakama telling the old story. The Great Spirit brought the Matoran to their island and gave them the three virtues, unity, duty and destiny, and they named the island after him. Then, the narration goes, Mata Nui's brother, the Makuta, grew jealous of those honours and betrayed him, casting a spell that put him into a deep slumber. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

Makuta uses the word too. When the seventh Toa begins to appear, he sends the Rahkshi out to "keep my brother asleep", and when the Matoran set out to wake the Great Spirit, he says his brother shall not be awakened. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

At the end of the film, when Takanuva and Makuta fall into a pool of energised protodermis and merge into TakutanuvaTakutanuvaThe temporary fusion of Takanuva and Makuta Teridax, born in Energized Protodermis, wielded light and shadow as one during the climax of Mask of Light., the combined being says light has revealed the will of Mata Nui: "Our brother must be awakened." (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

What the later story reveals#

The legend was a simplified story told to Matoran who had lost their memories. The books that followed filled in what the Turaga left out. In BIONICLE: Makuta's Guide to the Universe, Greg Farshtey's in-universe guide told in Teridax's voice, the Makuta are a species brought into being by Mata Nui from a substance called antidermis, to be members of the Brotherhood of MakutaThe Brotherhood of MakutaAn organization of Makuta created by Mata Nui to police his universe and build Rahi, later seized by Teridax and turned into the instrument of the Plan that overthrew the Great Spirit. and carry out the Great Spirit's will. Teridax was one of them, later the Makuta of Metru Nui and leader of the Brotherhood. (BIONICLE: Makuta's Guide to the Universe)

So Teridax wasn't a sibling in the sense of sharing parents. If anything, Mata Nui was the one who made him. (BIONICLE: Makuta's Guide to the Universe)

Brothers in purpose#

The final chapter puts the relationship in its own terms. In Journey's End, Teridax brings the Great Spirit Robot to Bara Magna to kill Mata Nui, who is now in a smaller prototype robot. Mata Nui tells him they were meant to work together to repair their broken world, not fight each other. Teridax wants none of it. (BIONICLE Glatorian 6: All That Glitters)

Mata Nui kills him in the end, pushing him into the path of a fragment of the moon Aqua Magna, and pauses over the body of the being who was meant to stand beside him before turning to heal the planet. (BIONICLE Glatorian 7: Rebirth)

Interpretation: the word "brother" fits the way Toa talk. In Mask of Light, the Toa Nuva call each other brother and sister all the way through, and nobody thinks Tahu and Gali share parents. The legend's "brother" works the same way: two beings bound to the same purpose, one of whom turned on the other. (BIONICLE: Mask of Light)

A different Makuta in 2015#

The 2015 reboot started over with a new world, Okoto, and no Great Spirit robot at all. Its Makuta is a Mask Maker, and his brother is the other great Mask Maker, Ekimu. Out of jealousy he forges the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power, and Ekimu has to strike it from his face. That brotherhood is literal, and it has nothing to do with Mata Nui. (LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One, "Prologue: The Legend Begins")

Read more#

TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. covers the Makuta of the original story in full, MakutaMakuta: species, title, and TeridaxMakuta means three things in the Matoran Universe: the Antidermis species Mata Nui created, the Brotherhood rank, and most often Teridax himself. explains the species and the title, and Legend of Mata NuiThe Legend of Mata NuiThe oral creation account recited by the Turaga of Mata Nui to every new Matoran and to each Toa Mata on arrival, recounting the descent of the Great Spirit, the Time of Shadow brought by his fallen brother, and the prophesied return of the heroes from the sea. the legend itself. For the 2015 versions, see Makuta (2015)Makuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City. and EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu is the Mask Maker of Okoto in the 2015 BIONICLE reboot, brother of Makuta, who knocked the Mask of Ultimate Power from his brother's face and slept for thousands of years before the Toa woke him.. Related questions: what happened to Mata NuiWhat Happened to Mata Nui?Mata Nui was struck down by Teridax, kept alive by the Mask of Life, robbed of his body and thrown into space, then rebuilt himself on Bara Magna and killed Teridax. At the end of the original story his spirit rests inside the Mask of Life. Here is the whole chain of events, with where each part is told. and is Mata Nui a godIs Mata Nui a God?To the Matoran he was, but the story reveals Mata Nui is a giant robot with a mind, built by the Great Beings to repair their world. He can be poisoned, put to sleep, killed and robbed of his body. Here is how the legend and the truth compare..