• Member Since 2nd May, 2012
  • offline last seen Nov 25th, 2023

TMH


A Hobo who enjoys fine pony prose with his moonshine and shotgun.

Comments ( 78 )

I liked how this didn't just make itself an exposition on how Celestia would react to being treated as a deity, but also functions as a great little glimpse into pre-show Celestia's mind.

TMH
TMH #2 · Jun 6th, 2018 · · ·

8968964
Hey thanks for the comment! Glad you enjoyed the story. :twilightsmile:

And I found that glimpse pretty interesting too, I originally hadn't planned on it, but while writing it just felt natural for her to kind of sidestep the issue while getting caught up in the relevant memories. From her point of view being treated as a god wasn't all that different from being treated as the immortal absolute ruler, and I think that makes a lot of sense. The show, especially in the early seasons, really treats her as a living god to the ponies in all but name.

TMH
TMH #3 · Jun 6th, 2018 · · ·

896918
Thanks so much for the comment! :rainbowkiss:

And I totally agree. I think a lot of people, at least where I'm from, think of god and they think of the Christian God. That is, a creator god who is all knowing and all powerful, which Celestia definitely isn't. But like you said, many other religions and mythologies don't apply that very stringent set of rules to divinity. This is why Celestia ultimately decided that she was maybe, kind of a god, but after Luna's banishment being treated that way made her feel worse and it ultimately just gave her more problems than benefits.

Plus the temples were very tacky! :trollestia:

Well, I wrote out a whole couple of paragraphs. Then I decided to read through the other comments people left, and it turns out everything I was going to say has already been said.

So in that case, I guess I'll just say: Good story, I quite liked it.

TMH
TMH #5 · Jun 6th, 2018 · · ·

8969226
Aww, thanks! :raritywink:

But I don't mind somewhat repetitive comments, a lot of times people can say the same things in different ways which can be really interesting!

“Uh, s-so, what’s the answer?”

Celestia snapped out of her tea appreciation, “Hmm? Oh, I don’t know.”

Twilight stared at her, mouth agape, and Celestia couldn’t help but laugh, Twilight was unfazed by it, or rather, she was already as fazed as she could get so it didn’t faze her any more. “You don’t know!?” Twilight yelled, incredulous. Then, she clamped her hooves over her mouth and looked terrified.

Celestia laughed again and swallowed the rest of her tea in one swig

That is the most "Celestia" response I've ever heard to that question, tea sip and all. You nailed her characterization throughout, but that in particular, that's just Princess Celestia all over. Paragraphs of history and musings on the nature of ponies searching for guidance to cling to, capped off with "lol idk" because... well, she doesn't, and it's okay to not know things sometimes.

TMH
TMH #7 · Jun 6th, 2018 · · ·

8969242
Thanks so much, that's very kind of you to say! :twilightblush:

Celestia has always struck me as a character who is both reflective and somewhat haunted, but also driven by a deep sense of love of life and love of her duty. I think she's the most interesting character in the show by a long shot, but most all of the reasons why she's so interesting are too dark and/or nuanced to really being meaningfully explored in the show.

I really enjoyed The Silver Standard by the way! I'll have to check out some of your other stories soon! :heart:

8969242
Yeah, it makes sense really.

Everyone knows all real gods get a welcome pamphlet. :trollestia:

Twilight made to look at Celestia’s face, stopped, took a deep breath, and finally brought her head up to look Celestia in the eyes, “Are you a god?”

Aaaaaaand... Cue the iconic Ghostbusters scene!

:trollestia:

“Plus, I’ve never seen another a god and I’ve certainly never been invited to any deities only events, maybe it’s because I’m not a god. Maybe it’s because there are no gods. Eventually, I came to believe the latter, and that was basically the last straw.

Discord, then and there, decides to have rather harsh words with Celestia when he breaks free in Season 2, "I'm the closest thing to a god in this show!"

King Yemma, "Hey! You stole my line! ... Mahogany..."

:trollestia:

I loved the ending of this story, how Twilight inadvertently reminds Celestia of why she loves the Sun.

TMH

8969415
Heh, yeah, Discord would probably have something to say something about that, but unfortunately at this time he's a little to busy having birds defecate on him to defend his claims to divinity! :trollestia:


8969437
Yeah, Celestia, for obvious reasons, closely identifies herself with the Sun, and sometimes she really needs to see how she helps her ponies to feel connected to them and not distant and aloof.

Thanks for the comments everypony! :pinkiehappy:

Man, this story just ticks all my boxes. I absolutely adored it! And the ending, it's just all so perfect! :twilightsmile:

TMH

8969495
You're far too kind! But I'm elated I could tick your boxes with my silly story! :twilightblush:

This story is beautiful, and I love the painting of Celestia's mental state during this conversation. It definitely felt like a response she would give.

The Question of Discord is an interesting one, as is the question of the other immortal creatures on the show, (Queen Chrysalis, the Sirens, etc). Ultimately the problem with the word "God" is its definition isn't really a thing.

Like in Greek Mythology, the Titans were more powerful then Gods, and the actual creators. And then you have demi-gods, and the like and the actual line of what is and isn't a god is kind of messy.

The best online definition I have is that a God, "a superhuman being or spirit worshipped as having power over nature or human fortunes." Its accurate and doesn't have the self recurring problems that defining a god as "A being with Divinity" has. Its not fullproof, as certain Supernatural beings that aren't considered Gods also fit this definition, and their are gods (Like Dionysus, who depending on the text is actually a demigod, but regardless is the god of partying and wine, or Baldr...god of dying to Loki I guess? Maybe God of whining to mom? Really the fact that his whole story is largely, "I had a nightmare, Mom told all of nature not to hurt me, Loki took it as a challenge" Is kinda sad.) who have little to no power over nature or human fortunes.

STILL under that definition, Celestia, Luna and Discord are Gods. The Sirens, Candance, Queen Chrysalis and Princess Twilight Sparkle are likely demi gods, as they have the power to influence people and events beyond that of a normal person in this world, but not on a global scale.

But here is where things get messy again. Starlight Glimmer is a wizard that verges on Demigod levels of power. Maybe twilight hasn't grown fully into her Alicornhood yet, but when you have a world where so many people have magic, the lines between mortals and at least lesser demigods get blurry.

I don't blame Celestia for outlawing it. Waste of time trying to define divinity.

This was a very sweet and thoughtful story, the end where Twilight just wanted warmth was so cute :twilightsmile:

8969461 Kind of telling that the only things that can defeat Discord are Deus Ex Machinas and a God-Moding Tirek.

:trollestia:

TMH

8969611
Thank you for the comment and I'm so glad you enjoyed the story!

Yeah, divinity is certainly a tricky concept to define, and in Celestia's case it didn't really offer anything she didn't already have. But it did take her 400 years. Maybe the feast days were really fun? :trollestia:


8969630
Thanks for the kind words! :twilightblush:

And the dynamic of Celestia and Twilight was important to me as a contrast and comparison to worship. Celestia is a pony too, and one thing she wants desperately is ponies she can trust and love.

I like this story. It's a heartwarming piece about the Divinity of Celestia. You don't get to see that everyday. The interactions between Twily and Celestia are just so... adorably-fluffy-cute but mature-profound-meaningful at the same time. How you wrote it is beautiful, I say.

Though my comments are usually at least a bit longer, I can't think of anything else that can describe this story. It's that deep.

Anyway, I wish you good luck, and my best wishes. :twilightsmile:

P.S. I've never referred to Twilight as Twily in a comment before, the reason being that I feel it to be... somewhat forward/overfamiliar when I haven't met Twilight personally, much less interacted with her. (I know, it's impossible, but one can dream, right?) It's a silly feeling, but I stand by it nonetheless. But this story's Twilight forced my hand, she was too charming and endearing and [insert other synonyms here] to resist. Well played, The Magic Hobo, well played.

TMH

8969917
Wow, that's really very kind of you to say! :twilightblush:

The dynamic between Celestia and Twilight (or Twily :twilightsheepish:) was really key to me when writing this story. It's the really critical comparison and contrast point. And really the story is about Celestia and Twilight more than it is just about Celestia and some nebulous concept of divinity.

And it's always a plus to be able to write cute horses!

8969971
Thanks for the reply and the compliment!

While I have to admit that the talk about Divinity might have overshadowed the interactions a tiny bit in some parts for me, it's nothing to worry about. I think my discourse on the two's relationship is proof enough of that. I think you did really well on the interactions; the part where Twilight enters the scene and the ensuing hijinks is one of the highlights for me, left quite an impression on me. Apologetic Hero-Worshipping Cute Horse is Best Horse. :pinkiehappy:

There's also the ending scene, which was more on the heartwarming side of the emotional spectrum than the aforementioned scene, which itself was like a fluffy comedy with tints of emotion. It's the other highlight for me – the lines with Celestia's thoughts served to make it the best it could be. :twilightsmile:

All I can do now is repeat what I said earlier – this is a great one-shot. I'll leave it at that.

Anyway, look at what you made do, I went and made the long comment which I mentioned. I'm prone to winding comments like these (though this is still on the medium-ish side), and you provided me with the subject matter! :derpytongue2:

That being said, I have made sure to follow you. Can't wait to see what else you've written, and what else you'll write. Until next time then, my best wishes to you. :pinkiesmile:

P.S. If I may ask, who's your favorite pony? Mine are Twilight and Fluttershy, can't make myself decide on just one. :twilightsheepish:

P.S.S. Emojis are so useful for adding (emotional) tones to the written word. Helps prevent misunderstandings as a bonus.

I liked this. Celestia doesn't really have anything to compare herself to... how would a god know they were a god without some sort of society of deities inducting them upon their ascension/apotheosis/realization?

She could destroy the world if she felt like it - just get a bit lazy with the sun for a couple days - but spends each day ensuring it continues, nurturing possibly millions or more people - giving them a nation where they can worry about living their lives rather than fearing for their lives.

I like the concept that, given a setting lacking some sort of 'divine spark' soul concept, worship makes a god. You're a god because people believe you've earned their devotion, and the chief place in their hearts. It's less "I am the great and terrible god-king." and more... recognition, and a special kind of love reserved just for you, because of how positively you've affected them and how much they recognize what you've done for them and adore you for it. A permanence of affection, not a title given to whoever's more popular or shines brightest from moment to moment, but a lasting dedication through the ages.

Whether she has a godly soul or not, by that definition, Celestia is definitely a god.

8969830

Yeah, divinity is certainly a tricky concept to define, and in Celestia's case it didn't really offer anything she didn't already have. But it did take her 400 years. Maybe the feast days were really fun?:trollestia:

The sacred celebrations of the Winter Solstice, with sacrifices of cake, pudding and gingerbread, as well as generous libations of eggnog and tea, were rolled into the Hearth's Warming, which was moved from its original occasion in the late spring to fill the gap in the Equestrian holidays.

8969830
You're welcome.

TMH

8970108
Thanks for the engagement and I hope you like my other stories. A couple of them are quite old and I'm a little embarrassed of them, but I don't feel like taking them down is the right thing to do, but hopefully you like the main story I'm working on now Twi-Light.

As far as favorite ponies go, it's really hard. I love all the Mane 6, I love the Princesses, I love Starlight Glimmer, the CMC, even Spike! But if I was absolutely forced I guess I'd have to go with Pinkie Pie, but really I'd like to say the Mane 6 as a collective! And emojis are definitely useful! :moustache:


8970130
Thanks for the comment and the kind words! :rainbowkiss:

A lack of a comparison point for Celestia was definitely a major point I thought about whilst writing this. And you put it very well, Celestia definitely has a lot of attributes we might describe as godly, but ultimately she's something unique and has her own special form of worship from her ponies. :trollestia:


8970201
I really like that idea! The origins and evolution of a holiday are always fascinating and it makes a lot of sense to me that Celestia would try to save her favorite parts of being worshiped. I could totally see a Celestia feast day being rolled into the Equestrian national holiday of Hearth's Warming! Something the bakers of Equestria were surely thankful for! :pinkiehappy:

I can answer the question rather easy: https://doublewbrothers.deviantart.com/art/Diplomacy-543551833
annnd... https://didj.deviantart.com/art/MLP-Comic-Party-Pooped-alternate-ending-544841157

Long story short: keep your mouth shut or turn to ashes :|

TMH

8970385
Hahaha, yeah those are pretty convincing arguments. You do need a certain level of power to even be in the argument, and, despite some annoying scenes in the show I try to rationalize away, Celestia is clearly a being at least approaching godlike power!

Thanks for the comment! :raritywink:

8970405
If its any solace to you: THE COMICS... did tackle why Celestia didn't do jack during most of Twilight's problems (and confirmed that on the CrystalEmpire thing)...
Basically (Celestia to Spike) : if i solved her problems, how would she ever learn herself?

Yet i think i prefer the (two) Galloping Gala approaches: Celestia is a troll! (Trollestia! yay)
After a few hundred years any sane person would become crazy of pure boredom! So... why not watch 'things unfold' rather then solve them in minutes!? Role a dice and see where it lands! So watching all this insane 'horsedung' going on must been a blast the likes you only see in a Millenia. Might even the very reason to keep Twilight around (aka Wings!)

When it comes to her powers i like to think of Celestia pretty much like the god emperor (wh40k).
One of the best descriptions i read to far was :

“Oh come on, Chrysalis. Think!” Celestia scoffed. “I raise the sun every day. If I wanted to, I could have called down a solar flare on your entire kingdom and come out singing.”

https://www.fimfiction.net/story/160483/1/this-date-is-going-to-be-perfect/the-kind-of-date-of-which-ive-dreamed-since-i-was-small

Hits the nail so hard with its "'pfff ~ don't care, almighty!" attitude XD
While still being bad flank and outright awful ! (btw if you laugh at any of it, you are going to pony hell :p)

ps. i also think there is another approach:
She is not mighty at all. I saw an old movie in which the 'most powerful' of magicians... couldn't do actual magic. Just used smokes and mirrors to keep harm from himself while others just assumed/thought he was powerful. A bit like the howl 'Oz' story. So, as long nopony asks questions (like Twilight!) ... nopony has to ever know o_o

[take your pick]^^

One can argue definitions, but Season 1 Celestia and Luna, before the new producer replaced Faust, are very obviously a solar/lunar deity pair. There are a lot of clues. Some more obvious than others. Here are some standard wikipedia links that have nothing to do with MLP:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna_(goddess)

"Luna is the divine embodiment of the Moon. She is often presented as the female complement of the Sun (Sol) conceived of as a god."

Luna is the name of the Roman moon goddess, who is the divine embodiment of the moon. Not exactly subtle. And her partner is "Sol" the divine embodiment of the sun. Who does that remind of us? Sol-estia, perhaps?

Speaking of Celestia, let's look up the root of her name:

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/celestial

Adj.
1. Heavenly, divine, in either a religious or figurative sense.

Again, not exactly subtle. Celestia's name literally means divine/heavenly and it's a play on word of "Sol" as the roman sun god who's the counterpart of the roman moon goddess, Luna.

The names aside, there are a huge pile of clues early on the show that they're gods. Remember that Luna was the mare in the moon Why exactly was the word "in" chosen? Because like that wikipedia article up there mentioned, Luna is the "divine embodiment of the moon." She wasn't "banished" to the moon is the sense of walking around on its surface. Remember how the moon visibly adopted her appearance? She literally...is the moon. Her "banishment" was simply the process of cutting her off from manifesting a physical avatar of herself in the world.

And Celestia is shown to be a non-physical being merely using an avatar too: think of the end of the season 1 premier. After Nightmare Moon is cleansed, watch that sequence very carefully. Celestia isn't in the room. Applejack comments about the elements. Celestia agrees with her. Celestia is not in the room, but she nevertheless verbally agrees with Applejack, and then they show her rising like the sun, crossing from beyond the horizon as a sphere of light...then flying into the room, and only after she arrives does she bother to materialize a body, and everypony except Twilight bows, while an angelic choir sings in the background.

What's going on here? She is the sun, and she's shown rising like the sun. She's not merely flesh and blood mortal, and she's shown as a ball of light. The alicorn body is merely an avatar, and she's clearly watching what's going on and talking without a body being required at all.

And speaking of "watching" what's going on...what about about the times ponies give that line about "as Celestia is my witness?" That's actually a biblical reference to the quality of omniscience traditionally attributed to God. The idea is that God is omniscient and omnipresent...reasonably demonstrated by Celestia watching and interacting with ponies when she's not even using a physical body at all.

* Fluttershy: As Celestia is my witness, I'm never going to be a pushover again."

* Rarity: As Celestia is my witness, I shall never be sisterless again."

* Scarlett O'hara from Gone with the Wind: As God is my witness...I'll never go hungry again."

The idea here is that God is an omniscient observer, present in all things and watching all of creation. The lines delivered by Rarity and Fluttershy above are Gone with the Wind references, substituting the name Celestia in place of God.

Again...this is not exactly a subtle thing that they're doing. That "God is my witness" line is straight out of the bible:

Romans 1:9

"For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers;"

Phillippians 1:8

"For God is my witness, how deeply I miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus."


So we have a pair of solar/lunar ponies who are immortal embodiments of the sun and moon, one of them is named after a moon goddess and the other's name means "heavenly" and is a play on words of the name of the corresponding sun god. They're clearly not physical creatures, as evidenced by Luna and her interaction "in" the moon and Celesia's not even bothering to manifest a body when she's watching and talking to ponies. And you have characters in-universe making biblical references that substitute their name in the place of god. And this isn't even a complete list of the clues we're given.

What else could we possibly conclude from all this?

TMH

8970463
Yeah I really need tp read more of the comics, from the little I have read they certainly seem to give the Princesses a lot of growth and explanation.


8970530
Obviously the show treats as a divine figure in many ways, especially in the early seasons. Celestia isn't a creator god like the Abrahamic God, but she is a powerful being who controls a fundamental force of nature which fits many other definitions of gods.

But I think what's most interesting from inside the universe is the relationship the ponies have to Celestia and the way Celestia views herself. I didn't get into much in the story, and perhaps that's my failing, but I think what really matters from a perspective inside the universe is the comparisons between Celestia and other gods. From that perspective I decided Celestia wasn't sure if she fit the definitions most ponies had of divinity.

Ultimately, though, the point isn't a semantic one, whether Celestia fits any given definition of divinity, but a personal one, that despite her power and immortality she still has to find a way to forge meaningful relationships and come to grips with her own regrets.

Simply put, it doesn't matter to Celestia whether Celestia is a god. She'll still be who and what she is regardless of whether she fits the definition precisely.

Thanks for the comment and the input! :twilightsmile:

In my own fics I’ve mostly just had Celestia gloss over this question with a “nope, not me” when it’s brought up, and then change the subject. That said, I do think I like this approach to her a lot, it does a really good job of fleshing her out.

8970463
I like the idea of Celestia being a Superman expy in Equestria. She could solve every problem with her power, but she also risks breaking the planet in the process.

8970530
Nice catch on the talking before physically materializing bit in the pilot. I had thought she just teleported in from far away, but overlooked that she actually spoke first.

It also add a bit more context to Magical Mystery Cure, and Twilight being apparently vaporized before meeting with Celestia in some kind of astral plane. She wasn't just teleported to some pocket dimension of something, her physical body was actually destroyed (leaving that nasty scorch mark where she was standing), and a new body was created for her out of pure magic when she ascended.

Nice! I mean, this was a good take on Celestia's thoughts on the subject.

A nice reflective piece.
Though, I had a (irreverent) thought when I read this:

“Are you a god?”

Why is this tagged comedy? It isn’t really funny. For that matter, it’s not sad either. If anything, it’s more of a drama.

Anyway, the story isn’t great. Or bad. It’s kind of meh. The prose isn’t very interesting—there’s a lot of repeated sentence structure, especially near the beginning. It spends the entire word count building up tension to the answer to Twilight’s question, but the tension isn’t built very well, and Princess Celestia’s question evasion feels kind of pointless. The history lesson feels like it has no punchline or reason to even be in the story, and when Celestia finally answers the question, her answer feels like it was trying to be poignant, but didn’t really succeed.

Like I said, the story isn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, but I would hesitate to call it great or even good.

What I think is most interesting about all this is how many people badly WANT Celestia and Luna to be divine. We're using them to fill a god-shaped space in our cultural mythology, whether or not they're actually intended to fit it by the story anymore. Sun and Moon paired deities are something that we're demanding, i'ts one of the oldest ideas in our culture.

Very, very well done. I doubt the show proper will ever address this issue directly, but if it did, this is pretty much what I'd expect from it. Typical Celestia, leaving it ambiguous and teaching a lesson at the same time. Congrats on the feature!

An excellent philosophical fic.
Deus tecum.

TMH

8970926
Thank you for your comment and I'm glad you enjoyed it! :twilightsmile:


8970941
Lol! Well I can't really argue with that. I guess we're reviving the Celestial religion! :trollestia:

Thanks for your comment and I'm really pleased you enjoyed the story! :pinkiehappy:


8970987
Well it's tagged "Comedy" and "Sad" because I thought there were moments in it that were comedic and sad, but perhaps just going with only "Slice-of-Life" would have been better. I definitely could have improved the quality of the writing in some places. As far as the tension not being built very well, I agree to an extent. It's definitely a bit of a meandering piece. I disagree on the evasion part. That she evades answering the question is meant to indicate that she has a long history with the question and never found a satisfactory way to deal with it. As far as the history lesson goes, it doesn't really have a punchline, none of the story does, and maybe that's a fatal flaw, but it's suppose to be an attempt to evade and a natural progression of a conversation. On the supposed poignancy of Celestia's ultimate answer I'm afraid I gave you totally the wrong impression and I apologize for that. Celestia's answer was supposed to be pretty much the opposite of poignant, simple and matter-of-fact.

I appreciate the criticism, especially important to keep me grounded amidst the praise of others, and I'm sorry my mediocre story failed to live up to your expectations. I hope you were able to get something entertaining out of it. :fluttershysad:


8971035
People tend to be fairly passionate about their opinions on divinity, regardless of the exact circumstances. Personally, as I hope I managed to get across in the story, I think Celestia and Luna occupy a position in Equestrian society that we have no exact parallel to, and trying to force them into any given definition is probably not a productive endeavor.

Thank you for the comment and I hope you enjoyed the story! :raritywink:


8971111
Yeah, it's probably not an issue they'll ever get into, for several reasons I imagine, but I think it's a really interesting question nonetheless. The nature, history, and personality of Celestia are probably some of the most interesting things in the universe of FiM in my opinion.

It has been really a heckuva lot more successful than I ever imagined, and I"m kind of embarrassed I didn't spend more time editing it consider the popularity it has achieved. Being right under the number one spot, especially considering Cold in Gardez holds it currently, is really amazing! Thank you for the comment and I'm so glad you liked the story! :twilightsheepish:


8971143
That's very kind of you to say and I'm glad you enjoyed it! :twilightsmile:

Deus tecum!

8970717

It also add a bit more context to Magical Mystery Cure, and Twilight being apparently vaporized before meeting with Celestia in some kind of astral plane. She wasn't just teleported to some pocket dimension of something, her physical body was actually destroyed (leaving that nasty scorch mark where she was standing), and a new body was created for her out of pure magic when she ascended.

There are a bunch of ways to interpret that sequence...but personally I favor viewing it as a symbolic representation of a four-dimensional time/space event. Kind of like the ending sequence from 2001 or the wormhole aliens from Deep Space 9.

Notice that while Celestia is singing, they're walking past scenes showing a bunch of different times in Twilight's life. And that Celestia is singing about having watched her since the beginning. I don't think she had video cameras stashed everywhere, and those aren't TV screens they're walking past. Remember that it was Starswirl's spell she was completing, and that Starswirl was known for time magic.

They're experiencing non-linear time, able to view the entirety of a timeline all at once. That's Twilight's whole life all at once that they're looking at.

That wasn't a "turn me into an alicorn" spell. It was a spell to extend the caster into an extra spatial dimension, allowing them to perceive four dimensions of timespace rather than being limited to experiencing three dimensions of space plus observing time only linearly.

8970405
Demi God at least... Hercules ;)
Besides. The definition might falls flat because we see it from OUR perspective... Equestria is a howl other world.

Closest we got would be fiction like Superman.

Also... Just to stay grounded in reality (kinda)...
Celestia does more actual stuff then 'our god' ...
Never seen him fill out new tax systems!

8970707
I see Celestia as kind of like a parent to the whole of Equestria, and while she works to keep them safe and secure, just like a parent she won't do everything for them. Ponies must grow up, individually and as a nation, face their problems, work to solve them, and take responsibility.

Ah, but what is a god exactly?

8972698
Me in CoD: WWII.
└[⨶益⨶]┘

ECCCCXXXXXXSSDDDDEEEEEEEEEEE

8972698
Ahh. The age old question. I love questions like this. A very tough one when many people have different definitions for divinity. When you think of it simply though the answer is this: A god is any being of sufficient power to influence the natural world that is worshiped by an organized religion. Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Scandinavians, Christians, Buddhists. All have organized religions with specific rituals for worship focusing on central figures of importance that could influence the natural world. By this basic definition Celestia is a god if she has worshipers. :trollestia: How powerful she is is another matter altogether because power level is not really in a definition for divinity besides the "Gods are POWERFUL!" aspect. Which is partially true. They only need to be strong enough for others to worship them as beings far more powerful than their worshipers.

Omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent. Often used as definitions for the divine but inaccurate in describing the gods.
All powerful, all knowing, everywhere. Few even come close. These are powerful words used often to describe God in Christianity (and a few others) that are used for intimidation and to discredit all other religions. Basically "If your god isn't all three then its fake so worship God." (no offense) However anyone from a religious sect that says something from another religion is not a true god cannot be held as a viable source in an argument because then it is a religious debate that is basically a debate of faith/opinion. False gods are still gods to their believers and the Greek pantheon regularly failed to live up to the Omni-set and no one can really say they weren't gods. I also just realized I went off on a tangent and could have stopped at the first paragraph. No need to start a religious argument by accident right. :twilightblush:

Man do i love me nice "simple" Twilight and Celestia stories.

Though Celestia seems to be more agnostic rather then an atheist.

This is adorable and yet strangely nostalgic. I remember wrestling with similarly overwhelming concepts several years ago. In the end I concluded that if there is a god, he/she either doesn't care to much about humanity or is far from perfect and perhaps used or uses us to learn more about him/her self. The world we live in reaks of pessimistic themes and dissatisfaction , much of which is at the hands of people, but oddly enough, the best hope for making it better seems to be us. When you look out at the wild, life seems to only stave off death by being particularly vicious or particularly numerous. Billions and more are killed and birthed each day in a constant struggle and few races have had much time where there was not food to be found or dangers to overcome.

And in come the humans. We domesticate, we build safe spaces, we give uses to animals and ensure their population is stable (though our culling and containment techniques leave much to be desired). We are concerned with the fate of the planet and creatures far beyond our realm of interaction, we seek out contentment and joy for ourselves instead of mere survival and reproduction. If there is a god out there, perhaps they might be peering at us curiously and learning just how crazy and varied we can be. Hell, maybe they are just sitting back and binge watching all the strange stuff we've made for entertainment.

Celly may not consider herself a true deity, but controlling a primal force of the cosmos like the sun as she does, she is definitely deity-like.

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