When the Earth was young and the race of man still as children, there were fertile green pastures in the lands where all is now sand and barren wasteland. In the midst of it was a gardenland which lay against the edge of the Earth, eastward and towards the sunrising, and it was called Meruah, meaning The Place of The Garden on the Plain. It lay at the foot of a mountain which was cleft at its rising, and out of it flowed the river of Tardana which watered the plain. From the mountain, on the other side, ran the river Kal which watered the plain through the land of Kaledan. The river Nara flowed westward and then turned back to flow around the gardenland.
It was a fertile place, for out of the ground grew every kind of tree that was good for food and every tree that was pleasant to the sight. Every herb that could be eaten and every herb that flowered was there. The Tree of Life, which was called Glasir, having leaves of gold and copper, was within the Sacred Enclosure. There, too, was the Great Tree of Wisdom bearing the fruits of knowledge granting the choice and ability to know the true from the false. It is the same tree which can be read as men read a book. There also was the Tree of Trespass beneath which grew the Lotus of Rapture, and in the centre was The Place of Power where God made His presence known.
Time passed and The Children of God were grown strong and upright under the tempering hammer of God, and Earth, The Anvil of God, became more kindly. All was pleasant and food plentiful, but life palls in such places, for it is against the nature of man to flourish in these circumstances. Earth is not for pleasurable dallying, it is a place of teaching, trial and testing.
The Children of God were not yet the heirs of God nor inheritors of godhood, but there was one among them who had almost completed the Pilgrimage of Enidvadew. He had unraveled the tangled skeins of fate and traversed the tumultuous seas of life to the many ports of destiny, and having paid the debts of sowing and reaping was one triumphant over Enidvadew.
He was Fanvar, son of Auma and Atem. He was wise and knew all things, he beheld mysteries and the secret things hidden from the eyes of other men. He saw sunrise and the sunsetting in their splendour, but longed for things not realisable in the place where he lived. So because he walked with God he was culled out from his kind and brought to Meruah, The Gardenplace.
He came to it across the mountains and wastelands, arriving after many days journeying. Weary and close to death because of the privations he suffered, he could just reach the refreshing waters from which he drank deeply, and filled with exhaustion he slept. In his sleep he dreamed and this was the manner of his dreaming: he saw before him a being of indescribably glory and majesty, who said, “I am the God above all, even above the God of your people, I am that which fulfils the aspirations of men and I am that in which they are fulfilled. You, having traversed all the Circles of Enidvadew and established your worthiness, are now made my governor on Earth and you shall rule all things here, guiding them in my ways, leading them ever upwards into glory. This will be your labour and, behold, here is your reward.”.
A cloud mist seemed to gather about The Glorious Being, enfolding Him so He was no longer visible. Then the mist gradually cleared and the man saw another form emerging. It was that of a woman, but one such as Fanvar had never seen before, beautiful beyond his conception of beauty, with such perfection of form and grace that he was dumbfounded. Yet the vision was not substantial, she was a wraith, an ethereal being. The man awoke and sought food from the fruits about him and having refreshed himself wandered about the garden. Wherever he went he saw the wraith, but was unafraid because she smiled encouragingly, bringing comfort to his heart. He built himself a shelter and grew strong again, but always, wherever he went, the wraith was not far distant.
One day, near the edge of the garden, he fell asleep in the heat of the day and awoke to find himself surrounded by the Sons of Bothas, not true men but Yoslings, kinsfolk to the beasts of the forest. Before they could take his strength and wisdom he loosed himself among them, slaying some in his rage and might before the rest ran away. When it was done he sat himself down beneath a great tree, for he was wounded and blood gushed out from his side and gathered thickly beside him. He became faint, falling into a deep sleep and while he slept a wondrous thing happened. The wraith came and lay beside him, taking blood from his wound upon herself so it congealed about her. Thus the Spiritbeing became clothed with flesh, born of congealing blood, and being sundered from his side she rose a mortal woman.
In his heart Fanvar was not at rest, because of her likeness, but she was gentle, ministering to him with solicitude and, being skillful in the ways of healing, she made him whole. Therefore, when he had grown strong again he made her Queen of The Gardenland, and she was so called even by our fathers who named her Gulah, but Fanvar called her Aruah, meaning helpmate. In our tongue she is called The Lady of Lanevid. Now, God enlightened Fanvar concerning the woman, saying, “This woman was drawn from her compatible abode in a realm of beauty through the yearning aspirations of men. Her coming accomplishes something which would otherwise have taken countless generations, for Earth is more fitting for men to learn manly things than for women to learn womanly ones. This woman is not as other women, being in no way like yourself; every hair of her head is unlike that of a man, every drop of blood and every particle of flesh is that of a woman and quite unlike that of a man. Her thoughts and desires are different; she is neither coarse nor uncouth, being altogether of another, more refined realm. Her daughters will walk proudly, endowed with every womanly perfection and grace. Delicacy, modesty and charm will be the lovely jewels enhancing their womanliness. Henceforth, man will be truly man and woman will be truly woman, men being girded with manliness and women clothed with womanliness. Yet they shall walk together, hand in hand, towards the ascending glory before them, each the helpmate and inspiration of the other”. So Fanvar and Aruah lived in contentment amid bounty and fruitfulness, with freedom from afflictions and sickness. They delighted in each other and because of their differences were drawn closer together.
Aruah brought but one thing with her when she crossed the misty frontier, the treasure of Lanevid, the jewel contained in the moonchalice, the stone of inspiration fashioned by the desires of men. Never owned by any but the daughters of Aruah, this, the Lengil, Aruah gave to Fanvar as her dowry and her pledge of purity and exclusiveness. She followed the ways of the cradleland, not the ways of Earth.
Within the Gardenland was the Sacred Enclosure, the domain of Fanvar and Aruah, forbidden to those of The Children of God who had now come to this place. It contained the Chalice of Fulfilment granting any who drank from it the realization of all things to which they aspired. None might drink from this save Fanvar and Aruah. Also there was the Cauldron of Immortality containing an essence distilled from the fruits growing in the garden, and this guarded against mortal ills.
Aruah brought forth a son by Fanvar and he was called Rautoki, and a daughter who was called Armena. Each knew the mysteries of magic and the ways of the stars. In the fullness of time Rautoki married among the daughters of the Sons of God and had two sons, Enanari and Nenduka. It was Enanari who first taught the weaving of cloth from plants, and Nenduka was a mighty hunter. Armena also married among the Sons of God and brought forth a son who was called Belenki and daughters called Ananua and Mameta. Ananua knew the making of pots and things of clay and Mameta the taming of beasts and birds.