Thinking Through Dreamwidth

I'm trying to plot out how I want to use Dreamwidth in concert with my tumblr, and I think the answer is that I'm going to put my more concrete fan-work and meta both here and on tumblr, but I'll keep this place a little less cluttered from my daily thinking and myriad musings. I'm going to figure out how I want my tag system to work (I imagine a lot of it will be similar to my tumblr tags) but I'll keep folks posted on that too.

Nanda Parbat in 30 Seconds

Nanda Parbat gets used as a League of Assassins base a lot in DC Comics fan media, likely because that was how it was depicted in the Arrow TV show. But I wanted to take a moment and try to impress upon you how cool Nanda Parbat is without having anything to do with Ra’s al Ghul or his League (because usually it usually doesn’t)

What is Nanda Parbat?

Nanda Parbat is a fictional city sequestered up somewhere in the Himalayas. It’s hard to tell exactly where, because the whole premise of Nanda Parbat is that it’s magically hidden.

You can’t just walk there; individuals must embark on a pilgrimage to actually get there. Nanda Parbat is as much an idea as it is a real location– when you seek Nanda Parbat, you are looking for spiritual development and revelation.

It’s suggested that only those with good intentions can find the city on their own. However, there are maps to the city which can allow those with evil intent into Nanda Parbat. The map isn’t your typical piece of paper, though. It’s split into abstract components such as a birthmark, or a poem.

Once you’re in Nanda Parbat, time stands still. The city is eternally at peace. Disease does not progress and people do not die. You are the only thing that changes, transformed by your time in the unchanging city.

Who’s Who in Nanda Parbat?

The big name in Nanda Parbat is Rama Kushna, the goddess who inhabits the temple.

When people go to Nanda Parbat on their quest for enlightenment, sometimes they find it on their own, and sometimes they have some help from Rama Kushna. She does your typical goddess stuff, such as guiding the hand of virtuous fighters and offering wisdom.

Rama Kushna is also the goddess who made Boston Brand into the hero Deadman after he was murdered. The two have a whole history, but that’s its own thing.

The rest of Nanda Parbat’s population are the monks who reside around the temple. They meditate and reflect on the meaning of everything and guard the Fountain of Youth.

Wait, the Fountain of Youth?

Yes, the Fountain of Youth is a thing in DC Comics. It played a big part in the crossover event The Resurrection of Ra’s al Ghul. Long story short, Ra’s al Ghul died and couldn’t be revived in a Lazarus Pit, so his consciousness spent some time body jumping. The problem was, his spirit would burn out the host bodies, so he hoped to use the Fountain to stabilize himself. The problem is, a rival faction of assassins had come to power when Ra’s was dead, and they want to stop him from getting revived to full strength. They assemble the aforementioned map to get to Nanda Parbat and seek to destroy the Fountain before Ra’s can get to it.

The Resurrection of Ra’s al Ghul is not a kind story to Nanda Parbat. It pretty much gets razed to the ground by the conflict between Ra’s, the rival faction, and Batman.

Consequently, the monks explicitly tell Ra’s off for bringing violence and death to the city. The monks channel the power of Rama Kushna and cause an earthquake, forcing everyone to leave the city.

If you’re interested in reading more about Nanda Parbat, I really recommend reading the series 52! There are several appearances of the city in that series, with lots of different characters passing through on their own journeys. I've heard that the Deadman series also has a good bit of the Shifting City in it , but I haven’t read it yet, so I can only recommend it as such.

Now go forth and find enlightenment!