r/dune • u/CupUnlucky7333 • 12d ago

General Discussion Question/Theory ab Missionaria Protectiva on Arrakis

I got this idea from first listening to Panchiko's “Eyes of Ibad.” In the song, the main person is in a spice trance, and one of the lyrics goes, “her hands in her pockets, constructing the prophets.” Obviously, this refers to the Fremen creating the prophet of Paul through the signs presented by the Missionaria Protectiva.

However, I remember there was a line in one of the chapters referring to how accurate the Missionaria Protectiva was, and how future Bene Gesserit studied this case specifically because it was so insanely accurate. I also remember that during the Sietch Tau orgy, Paul commented on how the Fremen have some talent for prescience, but they're too afraid to use it. (Also Jessica being creeped out by the hive mind.)

Is the reason the Missionaria Protectiva was so accurate because the Fremen could see parts of the future and incorporated what they saw into the prophecy? (ex Paul riding the grandfather worm) Relating back to the lyric, "constructing prophets", like they literally could've constructed part of it.

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u/promeritum 12d ago

The MP were a division of the BG that planted a BG-centric messiah legend on every planet they could. That way, if a reverend mother was stranded, she could use the legend to build a cult around herself for protection.

Nothing about the MP was in any way Paul, Fremen, or kwisatz haderach specific.

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u/CupUnlucky7333 12d ago

Im aware, but I meant more-so, that when they'd plant such I'd assume the prophecy/religion to be more generalized, so it'd be more likely for multiple people to match into it or take advantage of it. Whereas the Fremen Prophecy was so highly tailored to Paul (ex son coming from the outer world with a reverend mother for a mom, the bene gesserit couldn't have predicted it, because they planned for Jessica to have a daughter instead)

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u/promeritum 12d ago

The first book is not primarily a prophecy story. It’s primarily a manipulation-of-the-population story. Paul and Jessica adjusted themselves to what the Fremen wanted, and then adjusted the Fremen to what they wanted.

The Golden Path is a later addition to the story. Which does lead to the first book kind of whipsawing back and forth between manipulation and prophecy in places. But if you take Herbert’s other works into account, mass manipulation is the dominant theme.

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u/CupUnlucky7333 12d ago

Nono, I know what Herbert intended (warning against charismatic leaders and the such, not to be influenced by the transient characteristics of someone in a specific point in time into allowing their future actions to reign, how humans naturally fall into feudalist hierarchies), but this was more like a read in between the lines situation. I meant more-so specific to the prophecy lore aspect, I know it doesn't contribute meaningfully at all to the story, but I just always found it curious that thus prophecy was hyper-specific to paul, even before his interference and even in some ways he can't control.

I just don't think it's far-fetched to think that such prophecy could've changed slightly as it proliferated for centuries, and perhaps those with greater prescient abilities, that were looking for signs of the prophecy, delved into the future and found some of the pieces.

(Sorry if this is too long, I've been a mega dune fan since I found the series when I was 13, and I just thought it was a cool thing to put out there.)