Other Memory
the inherited lives of the Reverend Mothers
Other Memory was the Bene Gesserit term for the well of genetic memory that a Reverend Mother possessed after the Spice Agony, an inheritance of the lived experience of her ancestors that could be passed from Sister to Sister and carried across thousands of years.
Other Memory was the term the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood used for the well of genetic memory their Reverend Mothers possessed. It was an inheritance of the lived experience of a Sister's ancestors, opened to her only after she survived the ordeal that made her a Reverend Mother. Those who carried it outside the Sisterhood included Paul Atreides, Alia Atreides, Ghanima Atreides, Leto Atreides II, and the final ghola of Duncan Idaho, who unlocked the memories of all his past lives. (Dune; Children of Dune; Heretics of Dune; Chapterhouse: Dune)
Nature and acquisition#
Other Memory was the well of genetic memory a Reverend Mother carried within her, the accumulated experience of her ancestral line. It served mainly as a source of knowledge, and was especially valued in an age when much written history had been lost to time. The inheritance was made available to an individual only after she successfully converted an Awareness spectrum narcotic during the Water of Life ordeal. Those who could not make the conversion died. (Dune; Heretics of Dune)
A Bene Gesserit underwent a lifetime of mental training before she faced the Spice Agony that unlocked her genetic memories. Without that preparation, the strain of suddenly gaining thousands of lifetimes of memory could result in death or insanity. (Dune; Children of Dune)
Transfer between holders#
Reverend Mothers could reach their own genetic memories and hand them on to others. The wild Fremen Reverend Mother Ramallo passed all of her collected Other Memories to Lady Jessica while Jessica was passing through the Water of Life ceremony, an act that also awakened Jessica's own genetic memories. In a later age Mother Superior Alma Mavis Taraza transferred her Other Memories to Reverend Mother Darwi Odrade. The Sisterhood likened the process to a sausage chain of memory, handed off and added to by each new generation of Reverend Mothers across thousands of years. (Dune; Heretics of Dune; Chapterhouse: Dune)
This capacity made Other Memory something that could be rescued from destruction. When Lampadas came under attack from the Honored Matres, an assault that would have killed hundreds of Reverend Mothers and the Other Memories they carried, all of those memories, said to amount to several million lifetimes of collective experience, were shared into the Reverend Mother Lucilla. Lucilla in turn passed them on to Rebecca, preserving the store the attack would otherwise have erased. (Chapterhouse: Dune)
Abomination#
The danger in Other Memory lay not only in the moment of acquisition but in the multitude of lives a Reverend Mother carried thereafter. In the worst cases the inheritance led to what the Bene Gesserit called Abomination, in which the ego-memory of a single strong-willed ancestor hijacked the body of its descendant to achieve a warped form of immortality. The lifetime of discipline demanded before the Spice Agony was in part a guard against this outcome, training a Sister to hold the multitude of inherited lives without being overwhelmed or possessed by any one of them. (Dune; Children of Dune)
Frequently asked questions
- What is Other Memory in Dune?
- Other Memory was the Bene Gesserit term for the well of genetic memory their Reverend Mothers possessed, an inheritance of the lived experience of a Sister's ancestors. It served mainly as a source of knowledge, especially valued in an age when much written history had been lost.
- How did a Reverend Mother gain Other Memory?
- The inheritance was made available only after a Sister successfully converted an Awareness spectrum narcotic during the Water of Life ordeal, also called the Spice Agony. Those who could not make the conversion died.
- Can Other Memory be transferred between people?
- Yes. Reverend Mothers could transfer their genetic memories to others. The wild Fremen Reverend Mother Ramallo passed all of her Other Memories to Lady Jessica during the Water of Life ceremony, and Mother Superior Alma Mavis Taraza later transferred hers to Darwi Odrade.
- Why did Bene Gesserit train for a lifetime before the Spice Agony?
- A Sister underwent a lifetime of mental training because suddenly gaining thousands of lifetimes of memory unprepared could result in death or insanity. The discipline also guarded against Abomination.
- What is an Abomination in relation to Other Memory?
- Abomination was the worst-case failure, in which the ego-memory of a single strong-willed ancestor hijacked the body of its descendant to achieve a warped form of immortality. The lifetime of discipline before the Spice Agony was in part a guard against this outcome.
Sources
- BookDune, Frank Herbert, Chilton Books, 1965
- BookChildren of Dune, Frank Herbert, G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1976
- BookHeretics of Dune, Frank Herbert, G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1984
- BookChapterhouse: Dune, Frank Herbert, G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1985
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry
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