The Codex, Harsh Justice from the Goddess

The Codex

Ulna, a Harsh Mistress

What kind of culture does a twenty thousand year old civilization exhibit? The Sarrans have been in space this time for a nine thousand year uninterrupted interval. This is a very old culture. Is it stratified? How does a culture with a governing body that has retained the same form for almost ten milenium function? I had to answer these questions before I put a finger to the keyboard to write The Sarran Plague.

My first thought was that a ancient, still thriving culture would have to be seen by its citizenery as essentially fair. However success was measured in the society, every citizen must have the opportunity to obtain that success. The opportunity should be absolute, every citizen has an opportunity to succeed in whatever field they choose, no exceptions.

When I thought about what that entailed, I realized that every Sarran citizen had to have access to basic human rights, other than those outlined in the United States constitution. I would call those rights the cornerstone of a just society. I thought about what I considered to be basic human rights as opposed to liberties. I thought about survival and what we need to survive. However, humanity needs not only to survive, but also to thrive. It was at that point that the Sarran Codex came to life. This document was presented to the Sarrans as a whole cloth by their Goddess, Ulna of the White Moon through Zorna.

What measures would a Goddess take to insure the viability of her people? The answer was very simple. A Goddess does not think of liberty, or freedom, that is up to the citizenry. She does, however, think of .

Rights of Birth

• Shelter - from birth you are guaranteed shelter.
• Sustenance - from birth you will never feel hunger
  
• Education - from birth until death you will have the right to learn
  
• Medical Care - from birth you will be given the best care available. Should you sicken, all effort will be expended to make you well.
  

Even as ever part of the Tierest Tree has value, be it leaf, vine, branch, root , flower or fruit, so do all of my off and femspring. They are the planet's best resource and its best weapon against an unknowable future. First, they are, in my heart. They come before all else.

Lessons Learned at a High Price

The rock on which I chose to build the Sarran Civilization was the codex. Since I made the law Goddess given, it would be the ultimate authority.

Like all lessons learned at a high price, the Sarrans learned the value of the Codex. It's value to the civilization would be an enduring legacy for the planet to hold to when confronted with the next disaster.

The Codex listed all offenses that Sarran could commit against Sarran. Each of these in turn had a fixed and immutable penalty. In Sarran Law there are no extenuating circumstances, even if the offender was a child. The law was hard but just. All citizens were equal under Sarran Law. If you broke the law, you had a hearing. You were given every resource that the planet could provide to prove your innocence. However, if adjudged guilty, there was no appeal. Along with the Codex, Ulna gave the gift of Triad. Triad and the Codex stabilized the Sarran Culture and population for over nine thousand years.

Visit our sister blog at ackatt.blogspot.com where you can learn more about The Sarrans and other projects, or got to ackatt.com where AC will post exerpts and blurbs from pending works and answer any and all questions on the Sarrans.

The Sarran Plague will be available on April 7, 2009 from:

to be continued...
.