Honestly, out of all the elements and their ideals (except for Cryo ofc), Eternity sounded like it really was the closest to the Heavenly Principles in terms that we humans do not understand something the gods are privy to unlike Freedom or Contracts. And for something to be often depicted to be random and chaotic and never the same, it is ironic Ei's goal was for Inazuma to never change.
There might be some symbolism behind it being so close as well. Wind/Anemo might fill the sky or the heavens, but it flows amongst the plains, the mountains, and the caverns all the same. Lightning/Electro, meanwhile, strikes the land from the Heavens alone, and remains up there.
@@forestnynja43real while it is theorized and even matches up to what the Cryo characters mean, it isn't confirmed. But it isssss likely Cryo is love or 2 sides of one person being in conflict something like that
I feel like genshin chooses to interpret electro as analogous to thunder, something that's fleeting in itself but permanent in its form and function. Maybe that's why they named the electro country Inazuma, literally 'thunder' in Japanese.
Huh. I always thought the lightning and thunder are more connected to transience, which fits with Makoto being original Electro archon. But no matter what lightning comes before the thunder, and it always comes from above (ties in with it being the closest ideal to the heavenly principles) so I guess that’s a form of eternity.
it is very interesting the two character that fully 'mastered' Electro at its essence is Ei & Razor which both had the same ability to sense danger. Much like Venti & Kazuha able to hear the voice of the past and Zhongli & Albedo able to analyze their surrounding.
Electro being eternal makes so much sense Unlike all the other elements, electro, or better yet, energy, has existed since the dawn of time and was most likely the first thing to ever exist. And will be the thing to end existence As energy cannot be created nor destroyed. It is eternity in it's simplest form But is also ironically the most fluid of the elements It's the reason all the elements exist, change and grow. I honestly love this interpretation of electricity, it makes sense yet is such refreshingly unique take on it! The characters portraying different versions of eternity is literally soooooo perfect Great video demonstrating this!
With this, it’s really ironic that the character that embodies unchange is the one that has changed the most through the story so far. I really hope that we get characters with actual character arcs more. It certainly made Raiden Ei Shogun my favorite out of the three archons so far.
Oh that's so right like from Yae from being a kitsune that could easily be manipulated through fried tofu turned into the smart menace she is now. Lisa from being from the top of the world then to be hidden within shelves in the library. Beidou from being the poor homeless girl into a rich pirate owning a big ass ship, and the rest goes on.
Part of me thought things staying the same under the electro archon was a static electricity joke. Lovely video and very well thought out. Thank you for your insights
I had initially thought that Electro's trait was transience, living in the present moment, because some of the electro characters sort of fit that descriptions, such as Lisa. But your concept is pretty eye opening and expands it a bit more. Perhaps Electro Visions embody both Transience and Eternity. Or perhaps the concept of getting an Electro Vision changed after Makoto died. Who knows, Visions are still an ambiguous wildcard in this whole story.
Yeah, during the first chapter of Inazuma, I went so far as theorizing that "eternity" was a newer Inazuman concept while the "true" philosophy was lost to time, and that the Raiden Shogun recently changed it due to some unknown traumatic incident (which is amusing how part of that ended up being kind of true). At the time, I had a theory that the lost philosophy was ambition due to how enforcing eternity via the vision hunt decree was antithetical. In any case, I ended up being really satisfied with how the story went with "the only true constant is change" as to what Makoto meant by "eternity."
If you know Fate Grand Order or specifically the Cosmos in the Lostbelt there was an alternate universe that perfectly resembles Raiden Shogun's ideal eternity. In an alternate history the Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang manage to unite the whole world and brought peace but at a terrible cost. Mankind had suffered a technological stagnation causing them to be trapped in an Medieval Era like state for 2000 years and to make matters worse Qin Shi Huang turned Humanity into mindless illiterates because he saw knowledge and progress as a threat to his eternal peace.
Actually Qin kept all knowledge and technological advances to himself and his floating empire, everyone below lives and dies as a farmer and reading and writing are considered forbidden arts there is no marriage as people only breed to keep the population count to the decided number of people according to the decision of the emperor(upkeep the number of population).
The description for Eternity that resonated with me most comes from the Rite of Descension: Cyclicality. "The design of this kite displays a firm grasp on the **cyclicality** and eternity so dear to the Electro Archon. -Zhongli" I believe Makoto's perspective on Eternity can be described as a "perpetuity born through repetition". Beautiful, fleeting, and transient moments strung together. Strangely enough, I think Yoimiya and the Naganohara Fireworks Show story did a good job of conveying this concept. Fireworks are explosions; momentary bursts of light and color. But by hosting a festival every year, something momentary becomes something enduring. Before her revelation during Imperatrix Umbrosa, I think Stasis is definitely a good way of describing Ei's perception of Eternity. It was that of a "stretched out now". However, nothing can remain the same and change is the very nature of the world. So in a strange way, Ei's Eternity is a transient dream while Makoto's Transience is a concept that can endure the test of time. In my assessment, each of the Electro characters are trying to "preserve' something and I think you did a great job is illustrating what each of those things are. Great video!
Out of all the 7 elements, I feel like Electro and Eternity is closest to the Heavenly Principles as well as Celestia. The main reason being it being a concept that mortals and even immortals sometimes cannot grasp full of it. It is an alienating concept.
I always thought that Beidou getting her vision through slaying the sea monster was a manifestation of eternity via leaving something behind once you're gone. The memory of her challenging Haishan will outlive her thus making Beidou somewhat eternal.
I do think it’s interesting how makoto and Ei embody eternity through stillness and transcience. Like a bolt of lightning they hum with power and are pure in form and identity and in the next second they’re gone leaving afterimages in a darkened sky. But it’s the nature of the world to have more thunderstorms so they’re never really gone, transient but eternal. I think you got the rest of their ideals down correctly too I just wanted to ramble about the twins bc I think about them everytime and how they go together.
After reading up about Transcience and Eternity and the terminology of Thunder/Lightning only happening in a flash before it disappears. That is what Makato was talking about things never last forever so enjoy while you still can. Her philosophy reminds me of Carpe Diem, or the modern term YOLO. Like how Fireworks only last for a short time but it's heavily related to how lightning flashes for a short while too. In my opinion, the eternity that Makoto was chasing in the "Now" is never the past or future. Just enjoy the eternity of the moment that is ever-changing.
I think electro is gifted to dreamers who are unwilling to give up their dreams and thus they could achieve everlasting bliss if they can become a god, but they are in for a rough awakening in celestia
I think for someone to receive Electro Vision is not to embrace some form of eternity, but have will to protect something. Afterall, Ei wanted to protect Inazuma forever and ever by putting it in stasis, even from herself by putting eternal Shogun as a ruler Lisa wanted to protect herself and her somewhat lazy lifestyle after she discovered how dangerous "uninhibited erudition" can be + that book that damaged her lifespan Razor wants to protect his wolf "family" Beidou wanted to defeat Haishan to keep sailors safe Fischl wanted to protect her prinzessin fantasy I'm not sure about Keqing, but I think she wants humans to forge their own path and she's adamant about it, even when facing a god Kujou Sara wants to serve the Shogun and as a general protect the Inazuma, even if it means carrying out not the most comfortable orders Yae... I think she just wants her friend back as well protect herself from perils of long lifespan, thus all the interest in humans, their stories as well toying with them.
Your points about Fischl are interesting. Out of all the characters in Genshin, I find Fischl the most relatable. Her experiences with lonliness remind me of my own experiences growing up with undiagnosed Asperger's Syndrome and being unable to make and keep friends. From experience, I know that failing over and over again to make friends and constantly being rejected by your peers really ruins your self esteem and your ability to trust people. Her connection to and reliance on fantasy as a constant in her life, even when others reject her for it, reminds me of how I used to immerse myself into fantasy novels and video games because I know that human friendships were confusing, unpredictable, and nearly impossible to obtain. I was lonely and depressed, but it was my unique, solitary, special interests that served as a constant in my life that helped me, not relying on other people or something as unpredictable as friendship. And its great that she has Oz to confide in, because who wouldn't want a magical raven best friend who can emotionally support and protect you? Yae may be my main character to use in battle, but Fischl will always be Best Girl and a relatable comfort character to me.
Great video again Aster! Some philosophical thoughts: While contemplating ideas outside human experience like eternity we try to project our analytical mind outside subjective human experience. Often considering it as a symbolic idea unattainable. But is it so? Humans are a re-arrangement of stardust, a state of being we will return to. Our consciousness is but a spark in an eternity like a flickering thought of the universe churning in it's endless sleep. When we refer to ourselves as humans it is to refer to ourselves as separate from all other things for the sake of language and communication. However we are not independent of the universe. Whether it's the air we breathe, the gravity we feel, the pressure on our bodies, the food we eat etc. We as human are therefore limited by the definition of the word. Yet when we sleep we return to our truest state in eternity. I got to thinking about this when writing characters asking myself just how much is each character themselves governed by their choices and how much are they simply reacting to their emotions? They don't choose to be happy or sad but rather react to situations and environments. That would suggest an unconscious response. Yes they may choose how to deal with their emotions but they don't simply choose when to have them. Some could call it Fate I suppose, that uncontrollable chaotic unconscious part of our existence but isn't this just the natural world reminding us how much we live in our heads rather then perceiving our experience for what it is? Just my take: careful using the word human and taking it too seriously when contemplating that which isn't meant to be defined by the word.
Electro is my favourite element. Way before starting to play Genshin, the first tattoo I got was a lightning, because I LOVE storms and all the cultural meanings they have.
This is a great video; as always for an Aster video. I also wanted to share that I think all electro vision holders have this eternal strive for a perfect life where everything works out for everyone. It can range from personal (Lisa, Fischl), a small group (Razor, maybe Kuki?), or large population (Sara, Keqing, Beidou). I might disagree with Lisa's case of stagnation but rather she also wanted to leave something big behind: her research of elements themselves. I think that's her form of eternity based on how she got her vision, her knowledge of everything and, this is just an implied observation, but her promising persuance of getting her life back. I belive she thinks that if she can't get her time back, at least she can impart a knowledge so important that her name will be immortalized. Miss girl said being the best in Sumeru since the last 200 years is not enough. Lol.
I think the vision holders have the same characteristics as their current archon. Electro people, are not understood well. As Yae said, Ei’s goal was never to become understood by her people but to guide them towards the true path of eternity. She didn’t care much if she is villainized. When you look at characters like Lisa, Fischl, Razor, Kujou and Keqing, they literally are something entirely else than what they seemed earlier on. Same with Ei. As for Cryo, they all are deprived of companionship, or they choose to be so. They are kinda lonesome, stripped away from love from their outside world, like their archon. Geo characters are very dutiful towards their profession. For them, their profession is their word, and they must remain true to it. Be it Gorou, Ningguang, Noelle, Albedo, or Yunjin. Idk about Itto, that dude is out of this world lmao. Similarly Pyro guys are overly passionate about their hobbies, or similar. I mean the difference can be sometimes tough to guess between pyro and Geo characters, but it’s definitely there(you’ll see Yunjin as dutiful about her maid job and Yanfei as passionate about her law work). Be it Bennett, Thoma, Amber, HuTao, Xinyan etc. They all are overly passionate. I think Murata will be too like them. Hydro characters are the most interesting ones. They’ve a very strong moral compass and are true to their principles. They believe in the existence of things in right or wrong. They are in general, wise and just. Be it Xingqui, Kokomi, Barbara, Ayato, Mona and even Childe (yea, he did say that doing something like awakening Osial was largely against his principles but he had to coz of his loyalty to the Tsaritsa). Dendro people are just sick from a deadly disease and have snakes around them😂😂😂😂 Anemo, they all are tied by something that denies them freedom. Be it Xiao(bound by his contract) Sucrose (bound by the promise she made herself to make a paradise) Sayu (bound from her sleep) Jean (bound by her duties) Kazuha (bound by his nomadic behaviour, and the stain on his clan). In short, all of them have that one thing that prevents them from achieving freedom. Venti is a shady archon. Though not revealed yet, he too is bound by something(could be his dead friend whose form he has taken, or maybe something else)
Great video as always! I was wrapping my head around how eternity could be correlated to characters like Beidou and Keqing, so your insight really helps. Wish you would add timestamps for each character analysis for these videos tho
Honestly, I’ve thought of this myself and I couldn’t exactly pinpoint where Razor’s depiction of Eternity was but putting it simply as Loyalty… I’d be willing to take this as the answer! It makes the most sense!
I like the idea of Fischl becoming a "warrior-princess" for the Lightning Shogun. What if Fischl was wound up tight in her own "delusion" while serving to maintain Inazuma's eternity? Hmmm... 🤔
Another amazing video, this series is one of my favorite and i am very excited to see your take on Geo, Cryo and in the future Dendro. I also like that take on Ei, Makoto and the Shogun and how they don't have a version of Eternity, THEY are Eternity
Fischl/Amy is really sad, all she wanted was to be accepted, so she just made a friend, I'm really happy that Aether/Lumine, Paimon and Bennett all became friends with her I headcannon that Fischl, Bennett and Razor all became friends due them all wanted to be accepted in some way and Fischl and Razor gotten used to Bennett's bad luck
I find Lisa's form as the most interesting one while Yae's form of eternity as something I totally agrees on. I love electro characters no matter how much metaslaves sht on them, they are all so interesting both in design and writing.
If I had to give my own interpretation, I think electro users represent eccentricity rather than eternity. Based on the chapter preview trailer, eternity was Ei's personal goal, not something that was to represent the element. Each of the individuals holding an electro vision are different than the peers around them. Miko is a grand priestess yet focuses on her own amusement rather than her followers needs like kokomi. Sara is a very stern individual that can't quite seem to personally connect with her fellow soldiers describing herself as hard to talk to unlike gorou. Lisa is seemingly a lazy genius, every character from Mondstand has a high opinion of her and what duties she does have she takes seriously like going so far just for a missing book. Doing Beidou's hangouts and listening to Ganyu's voiceline about her, some people in Liyue have a negative opinion of her based the way she lives her life as a captain. Beidou would be described as eccentric among the people of Liyue. The same for Keqing. The people of Liyue would dedicate an entire year's economic road map based on the words of Rex Lapis, yet someone of Keqing's station speaks against it. She comments herself her views are unshared by all her peers. Razor is a human among wolves, quite straightforward. Fischl's entire character can be described as eccentric as well. She is a highly regarded scout for the adventurer's guild, but others find it hard to relate to her or even understanding her without Oz. At times Amy does pop out, followed by a burst of embarrassment, just to be covered up by more Fischl's persona. Then there is Ei, an archon they deemed it acceptable to strip vision bearers of their ambition's. The very reason the vision manifested in the first place. Ei's idea of eternity is much less flexible than Venti's idea of freedom or Zhongli's dedication to keeping contracts. Eccentric is defined as unconventional or slightly strange, it is broad but fits the electro characters well.
I agree with all of them except beidou. I believe her eternity aligns more towards protecting her bonds she have created in the present time. Her hangout quest has shown that she was pretty much ostracized by the village for a reason which was not her fault to begin with and she received her vision after she and her crew defeated haishan. I agree that beidou is a woman of principles but I disagree that she received her vision because of her principles.
I have as of late been having thoughts regarding the elements and have come to a conclusion about Electro: it's actually two elements forced into one slot. Electro is both Eternity and an Instant [or Transience as another commenter mentioned] and this can relate to the various vision wielders for electro. eternity in the unchanging, the steadfast, and the consistent vs transience in the turning point that sparked that vision, that point where a character's previous stasis was thrown out and had to be adapted and a new baseline had to be put forth. this also works with how Electro is lightning in my mind. on the one hand lightning is essentially pure energy [it's plasma but electro is used as an energy stand-in so it's fiiiiiiiine] but lightning strikes are things that are only there for a moment. (there was supposed to be a bunch of "Enter" keys here but then the first paragraph ended up being too long and making a read-more all on its own...) I... also have developed an idea of how visions are "sparked" in the first place and if i could see/hear/etc your thoughts on it that'd be great? I'll just.... include that mini-theory in short-form here: the idea is that a vision is sparked when one both actualizes and seeks the appropriate element. so in the case of electro/eternity[+transience] it could be realizing who oneself truly is and wanting to live by that code or ideal even when it might be difficult, potentially in addition to realizing who oneself truly wishes they could be.
This was such a good watch, very cool concepts, I wouldnt have been able to put half of this together, you are seriously well spoken :O I mainly play Genshin for the story, I love huge overarching narratives with a lot of mystery, playing the long game with setup and payoff and this is what makes it worth it, analysees and theories, ideas that may or may not come true but are great to experience regardless. Anyways, thanks for the video, great work.
Hello Aster, love your content!!! I was wondering if you could continue with this series, maybe in shorts form, I enjoy it so much, your understanding of each ideal and how it connects to each character! Thanks!
Ok, this sounds like an awesome video to play in the background while grinding or doing something else. Thanks to this video, I am reminded of why the electrio element is probably my favorite. Yeah when it comes to meta, it is all either not good or broken like pyro and blah blah blah, I at least like the cast within that element and Ei has some soild people who have that power. This video was an awesome look into how each characters version of eternity is to them and overall, this was an in depth and amazing video! Oh and electric has all the top tier women lol but seriously, great job!
I can't help but think the music playing at the beginning of the video sounds like "The Capital City of Flowers in the Sky". Nice analysis. I think listening to these things while drawing is great background noise!
I’d also like to add that it’s unknown whether Yae got her vision before or after Makoto passed, so she could have received her vision while transience was still the Electro Archon’s ideal. She can fit under both, but she does seem to agree a lot more with the ideal of transience
I loved this series can’t wait for more!! Also have you thought of cryo’s love ideal being twisted into obsession. I feel a lot of creo characters better fit this than love
Maybe that's how the people with visions were selected for which element, if a person is for example really ambitious and that person's ambition is for example War against rules they might get a pyro vision? i am aware this is weird since archon could die or possibly change ideals but when transience died transience was her definition of eternity, eternity in Transience so it technically is still eternity but there is still a hole which is why would gods care about an archons ideal? maybe because these ideals ARE part of the heavenly priniciples or heavenly rules? Idk this all is very fasinating and genshin has such a good magic system. This type of videos are so good i hope you can make some more of this for the other 2 nations and maybe for sneznaya when it actually comes out
damn its been so long since i last watched a video of yours, i went off genshin impact for like 6 months, cuz i was burnt out of it (i've been playing since launch) and i've watched your channel since your first video that took off, i've even left afew theories of mine, you inspired me to make a genshin impact theory vid, obviously it didnt take off and i did get a few things wrong but hey, it was just a theory, still, i like your content, you're literally the only genshin youtuber that im subbed to
It's funny how some individuals are wrapped up in their own Eternal suffering, world concept, their eternal world-building, and their eternal view of the world makes them indifferent to others. The Electro element stands out the most in my opinion in the opposite to other elements. Fascnating!✨
Man, I remember really wanting to write an essay about this too (but wasn't sure if anyone would care, lol). Before watching the video, my own conclusions to comes down to comparing how Ei's philosophy differs from her sister Makoto on what "eternity" means. While Ei looked at eternity as trying to keep things constant so no change would occur (via isolationism and the Sakoku decree taking away people's visions and ambition), she later realizes in later quests that Makoto's philosophy of "eternity" is much more encompassing and true. While not explicitly said in the game, her philosophy aligns with that well known phrase "change is the only constant in life." After this, I'll admit to feeling much more at ease with that explanation since "eternity" at first seemed like such a weird theme to represent something so ephemeral and transient like bolts of lightning. Rather, "eternity" was probably referring to something like an electric field that influences the electric currents.
The idea that Electro’s concept of Eternity manifests in different forms makes understanding the elements significance to each character easier to understand. “Oh Xinyan has a Pyro Vision? Well Pyro’s concept is war. So she must be at war with Liyue Harbor and intend to raze the entire city! Get her!” -Rock and Roll hating Liyue citizen probably
I feel like there is something makes Inazuma different from Monstadt and Liyue, i thought it was inazumans God still existing + they knowing who she is but no,its something deeper
Kinda thought Kequins was gonna be defiance but yeah yours make more sense 😂 So I guess so far with the ones you’ve done, geo is gonna be the easiest one to do after right ? I mean… they all have something to do with upholding a contract. Itto and the red and blue oni for example.
When you think about it, eternity is transient. Energy in this universe has always been the same, but constantly changes form. Within the many forms it takes, the total amount of energy is maintained Still, you’re reading the comment of some guy who doesn’t know much about physics, and I might have spoken nonsense there.
I don’t know about the idea of eternity as the bases of the electro visions in my opinion. For me I always saw it as the desire/ambition to protect something. Fischl and her fantasies. Lisa and knowledge Razor and his lupicas Kujou Sara and her strength or something like that. Ya know, things like that. I interpret the idea of electro as a way to protect one’s self or others.
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Honestly, out of all the elements and their ideals (except for Cryo ofc), Eternity sounded like it really was the closest to the Heavenly Principles in terms that we humans do not understand something the gods are privy to unlike Freedom or Contracts. And for something to be often depicted to be random and chaotic and never the same, it is ironic Ei's goal was for Inazuma to never change.
There might be some symbolism behind it being so close as well. Wind/Anemo might fill the sky or the heavens, but it flows amongst the plains, the mountains, and the caverns all the same.
Lightning/Electro, meanwhile, strikes the land from the Heavens alone, and remains up there.
@@forestnynja43real while it is theorized and even matches up to what the Cryo characters mean, it isn't confirmed. But it isssss likely Cryo is love or 2 sides of one person being in conflict something like that
@@kloop223 Fitting for the Cryo Archon Who Childe says is a softer person underneath who had to harden herself to the world.
I feel like genshin chooses to interpret electro as analogous to thunder, something that's fleeting in itself but permanent in its form and function.
Maybe that's why they named the electro country Inazuma, literally 'thunder' in Japanese.
I mean, the devs themselves pretty much confirmed electro to be the design choice bc of that interpretation in their livestreams
Huh. I always thought the lightning and thunder are more connected to transience, which fits with Makoto being original Electro archon. But no matter what lightning comes before the thunder, and it always comes from above (ties in with it being the closest ideal to the heavenly principles) so I guess that’s a form of eternity.
Meanwhile Snezhnaya that literally translates as "Snowy" from Russian
it is very interesting the two character that fully 'mastered' Electro at its essence is Ei & Razor which both had the same ability to sense danger. Much like Venti & Kazuha able to hear the voice of the past and Zhongli & Albedo able to analyze their surrounding.
Electro being eternal makes so much sense
Unlike all the other elements, electro, or better yet, energy, has existed since the dawn of time and was most likely the first thing to ever exist.
And will be the thing to end existence
As energy cannot be created nor destroyed.
It is eternity in it's simplest form
But is also ironically the most fluid of the elements
It's the reason all the elements exist, change and grow.
I honestly love this interpretation of electricity, it makes sense yet is such refreshingly unique take on it!
The characters portraying different versions of eternity is literally soooooo perfect
Great video demonstrating this!
With this, it’s really ironic that the character that embodies unchange is the one that has changed the most through the story so far.
I really hope that we get characters with actual character arcs more. It certainly made Raiden Ei Shogun my favorite out of the three archons so far.
Oh that's so right like from Yae from being a kitsune that could easily be manipulated through fried tofu turned into the smart menace she is now. Lisa from being from the top of the world then to be hidden within shelves in the library. Beidou from being the poor homeless girl into a rich pirate owning a big ass ship, and the rest goes on.
@@yeshasantos6511 what you list are backstories.
What I talked about was a proper in main story character arc.
Part of me thought things staying the same under the electro archon was a static electricity joke. Lovely video and very well thought out. Thank you for your insights
Lol, same
I had initially thought that Electro's trait was transience, living in the present moment, because some of the electro characters sort of fit that descriptions, such as Lisa. But your concept is pretty eye opening and expands it a bit more. Perhaps Electro Visions embody both Transience and Eternity. Or perhaps the concept of getting an Electro Vision changed after Makoto died. Who knows, Visions are still an ambiguous wildcard in this whole story.
Ofc after all, their previous electro archon was Makoto, who was also the god of transience
You could also say that Transience is the Eternity of the Present, while true Eternity would be Change.
Yeah, during the first chapter of Inazuma, I went so far as theorizing that "eternity" was a newer Inazuman concept while the "true" philosophy was lost to time, and that the Raiden Shogun recently changed it due to some unknown traumatic incident (which is amusing how part of that ended up being kind of true). At the time, I had a theory that the lost philosophy was ambition due to how enforcing eternity via the vision hunt decree was antithetical. In any case, I ended up being really satisfied with how the story went with "the only true constant is change" as to what Makoto meant by "eternity."
i thought about that too but most of the vision characters we know are mortal. they weren’t alive before the archon war.
It would make sense to enbody both transience and eterrnity since nothing but change is eternal
If you know Fate Grand Order or specifically the Cosmos in the Lostbelt there was an alternate universe that perfectly resembles Raiden Shogun's ideal eternity.
In an alternate history the Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang manage to unite the whole world and brought peace but at a terrible cost. Mankind had suffered a technological stagnation causing them to be trapped in an Medieval Era like state for 2000 years and to make matters worse Qin Shi Huang turned Humanity into mindless illiterates because he saw knowledge and progress as a threat to his eternal peace.
Actually Qin kept all knowledge and technological advances to himself and his floating empire, everyone below lives and dies as a farmer and reading and writing are considered forbidden arts there is no marriage as people only breed to keep the population count to the decided number of people according to the decision of the emperor(upkeep the number of population).
Woah
The description for Eternity that resonated with me most comes from the Rite of Descension: Cyclicality. "The design of this kite displays a firm grasp on the **cyclicality** and eternity so dear to the Electro Archon. -Zhongli"
I believe Makoto's perspective on Eternity can be described as a "perpetuity born through repetition". Beautiful, fleeting, and transient moments strung together. Strangely enough, I think Yoimiya and the Naganohara Fireworks Show story did a good job of conveying this concept. Fireworks are explosions; momentary bursts of light and color. But by hosting a festival every year, something momentary becomes something enduring.
Before her revelation during Imperatrix Umbrosa, I think Stasis is definitely a good way of describing Ei's perception of Eternity. It was that of a "stretched out now". However, nothing can remain the same and change is the very nature of the world. So in a strange way, Ei's Eternity is a transient dream while Makoto's Transience is a concept that can endure the test of time.
In my assessment, each of the Electro characters are trying to "preserve' something and I think you did a great job is illustrating what each of those things are. Great video!
Out of all the 7 elements, I feel like Electro and Eternity is closest to the Heavenly Principles as well as Celestia. The main reason being it being a concept that mortals and even immortals sometimes cannot grasp full of it. It is an alienating concept.
I always thought that Beidou getting her vision through slaying the sea monster was a manifestation of eternity via leaving something behind once you're gone. The memory of her challenging Haishan will outlive her thus making Beidou somewhat eternal.
I do think it’s interesting how makoto and Ei embody eternity through stillness and transcience. Like a bolt of lightning they hum with power and are pure in form and identity and in the next second they’re gone leaving afterimages in a darkened sky. But it’s the nature of the world to have more thunderstorms so they’re never really gone, transient but eternal.
I think you got the rest of their ideals down correctly too I just wanted to ramble about the twins bc I think about them everytime and how they go together.
After reading up about Transcience and Eternity and the terminology of Thunder/Lightning only happening in a flash before it disappears. That is what Makato was talking about things never last forever so enjoy while you still can. Her philosophy reminds me of Carpe Diem, or the modern term YOLO. Like how Fireworks only last for a short time but it's heavily related to how lightning flashes for a short while too.
In my opinion, the eternity that Makoto was chasing in the "Now" is never the past or future. Just enjoy the eternity of the moment that is ever-changing.
I think electro is gifted to dreamers who are unwilling to give up their dreams and thus they could achieve everlasting bliss if they can become a god, but they are in for a rough awakening in celestia
I think for someone to receive Electro Vision is not to embrace some form of eternity, but have will to protect something. Afterall, Ei wanted to protect Inazuma forever and ever by putting it in stasis, even from herself by putting eternal Shogun as a ruler
Lisa wanted to protect herself and her somewhat lazy lifestyle after she discovered how dangerous "uninhibited erudition" can be + that book that damaged her lifespan
Razor wants to protect his wolf "family"
Beidou wanted to defeat Haishan to keep sailors safe
Fischl wanted to protect her prinzessin fantasy
I'm not sure about Keqing, but I think she wants humans to forge their own path and she's adamant about it, even when facing a god
Kujou Sara wants to serve the Shogun and as a general protect the Inazuma, even if it means carrying out not the most comfortable orders
Yae... I think she just wants her friend back as well protect herself from perils of long lifespan, thus all the interest in humans, their stories as well toying with them.
The Raiden Shogun was so well written!
Your points about Fischl are interesting. Out of all the characters in Genshin, I find Fischl the most relatable. Her experiences with lonliness remind me of my own experiences growing up with undiagnosed Asperger's Syndrome and being unable to make and keep friends. From experience, I know that failing over and over again to make friends and constantly being rejected by your peers really ruins your self esteem and your ability to trust people.
Her connection to and reliance on fantasy as a constant in her life, even when others reject her for it, reminds me of how I used to immerse myself into fantasy novels and video games because I know that human friendships were confusing, unpredictable, and nearly impossible to obtain. I was lonely and depressed, but it was my unique, solitary, special interests that served as a constant in my life that helped me, not relying on other people or something as unpredictable as friendship. And its great that she has Oz to confide in, because who wouldn't want a magical raven best friend who can emotionally support and protect you?
Yae may be my main character to use in battle, but Fischl will always be Best Girl and a relatable comfort character to me.
Great video again Aster!
Some philosophical thoughts:
While contemplating ideas outside human experience like eternity we try to project our analytical mind outside subjective human experience. Often considering it as a symbolic idea unattainable. But is it so?
Humans are a re-arrangement of stardust, a state of being we will return to. Our consciousness is but a spark in an eternity like a flickering thought of the universe churning in it's endless sleep. When we refer to ourselves as humans it is to refer to ourselves as separate from all other things for the sake of language and communication. However we are not independent of the universe. Whether it's the air we breathe, the gravity we feel, the pressure on our bodies, the food we eat etc. We as human are therefore limited by the definition of the word. Yet when we sleep we return to our truest state in eternity.
I got to thinking about this when writing characters asking myself just how much is each character themselves governed by their choices and how much are they simply reacting to their emotions? They don't choose to be happy or sad but rather react to situations and environments. That would suggest an unconscious response. Yes they may choose how to deal with their emotions but they don't simply choose when to have them. Some could call it Fate I suppose, that uncontrollable chaotic unconscious part of our existence but isn't this just the natural world reminding us how much we live in our heads rather then perceiving our experience for what it is?
Just my take: careful using the word human and taking it too seriously when contemplating that which isn't meant to be defined by the word.
Electro is my favourite element. Way before starting to play Genshin, the first tattoo I got was a lightning, because I LOVE storms and all the cultural meanings they have.
I've been waiting for this since the concept of Freedom from the Anemo characters. So worth it.
This is a great video; as always for an Aster video.
I also wanted to share that I think all electro vision holders have this eternal strive for a perfect life where everything works out for everyone. It can range from personal (Lisa, Fischl), a small group (Razor, maybe Kuki?), or large population (Sara, Keqing, Beidou).
I might disagree with Lisa's case of stagnation but rather she also wanted to leave something big behind: her research of elements themselves. I think that's her form of eternity based on how she got her vision, her knowledge of everything and, this is just an implied observation, but her promising persuance of getting her life back. I belive she thinks that if she can't get her time back, at least she can impart a knowledge so important that her name will be immortalized. Miss girl said being the best in Sumeru since the last 200 years is not enough. Lol.
🌸🌹It is so that I rather fancy the lore and analysis uploads most of all and am but powerless to leave a like and comment each time.🌹🌸
I absolutely love this series btw... One of my favourite things in all of genshin lore content creator universe
“He who lives in the present lives in eternity.”
-Ludwig Wittgenstein
I think the vision holders have the same characteristics as their current archon.
Electro people, are not understood well. As Yae said, Ei’s goal was never to become understood by her people but to guide them towards the true path of eternity. She didn’t care much if she is villainized. When you look at characters like Lisa, Fischl, Razor, Kujou and Keqing, they literally are something entirely else than what they seemed earlier on. Same with Ei.
As for Cryo, they all are deprived of companionship, or they choose to be so. They are kinda lonesome, stripped away from love from their outside world, like their archon.
Geo characters are very dutiful towards their profession. For them, their profession is their word, and they must remain true to it. Be it Gorou, Ningguang, Noelle, Albedo, or Yunjin. Idk about Itto, that dude is out of this world lmao.
Similarly Pyro guys are overly passionate about their hobbies, or similar. I mean the difference can be sometimes tough to guess between pyro and Geo characters, but it’s definitely there(you’ll see Yunjin as dutiful about her maid job and Yanfei as passionate about her law work). Be it Bennett, Thoma, Amber, HuTao, Xinyan etc. They all are overly passionate. I think Murata will be too like them.
Hydro characters are the most interesting ones. They’ve a very strong moral compass and are true to their principles. They believe in the existence of things in right or wrong. They are in general, wise and just. Be it Xingqui, Kokomi, Barbara, Ayato, Mona and even Childe (yea, he did say that doing something like awakening Osial was largely against his principles but he had to coz of his loyalty to the Tsaritsa).
Dendro people are just sick from a deadly disease and have snakes around them😂😂😂😂
Anemo, they all are tied by something that denies them freedom. Be it
Xiao(bound by his contract)
Sucrose (bound by the promise she made herself to make a paradise)
Sayu (bound from her sleep)
Jean (bound by her duties)
Kazuha (bound by his nomadic behaviour, and the stain on his clan).
In short, all of them have that one thing that prevents them from achieving freedom. Venti is a shady archon. Though not revealed yet, he too is bound by something(could be his dead friend whose form he has taken, or maybe something else)
Ittou remains true to his arataki gang principles...
I guess?
since Sara is a tengu, is it possible that she lives for centuries as well? (if not truly immortal)
I'm not sure myself, but I can see it
I think so
Imagine if Itto as an Oni lives for centuries as well.
Those two... really deserve each other.
To be honest, I think she’s part tengu, but not fully. So she might live a little bit longer than humans
LMAO I ALMOST CRYED WHEN YOU TALKED ABOUT RAZOR
I love the senbonzakura in the background lol. So fitting for inazuma
Glad someone else noticed! Truly is a nice touch
Let’s go! New elemental concept video! Thanks as always for the great content Aster!
Great video as always! I was wrapping my head around how eternity could be correlated to characters like Beidou and Keqing, so your insight really helps. Wish you would add timestamps for each character analysis for these videos tho
Honestly, I’ve thought of this myself and I couldn’t exactly pinpoint where Razor’s depiction of Eternity was but putting it simply as Loyalty… I’d be willing to take this as the answer! It makes the most sense!
I like the idea of Fischl becoming a "warrior-princess" for the Lightning Shogun. What if Fischl was wound up tight in her own "delusion" while serving to maintain Inazuma's eternity? Hmmm... 🤔
Another amazing video, this series is one of my favorite and i am very excited to see your take on Geo, Cryo and in the future Dendro.
I also like that take on Ei, Makoto and the Shogun and how they don't have a version of Eternity, THEY are Eternity
Fischl/Amy is really sad, all she wanted was to be accepted, so she just made a friend, I'm really happy that Aether/Lumine, Paimon and Bennett all became friends with her
I headcannon that Fischl, Bennett and Razor all became friends due them all wanted to be accepted in some way and Fischl and Razor gotten used to Bennett's bad luck
I find Lisa's form as the most interesting one while Yae's form of eternity as something I totally agrees on. I love electro characters no matter how much metaslaves sht on them, they are all so interesting both in design and writing.
You forgot to mention that you covered pyro and the concept of war
It doesn’t seem to be in the play list at the moment, but yeah she did
@@majesticmundanity I was scared that she deleted it or it never existed.
If I had to give my own interpretation, I think electro users represent eccentricity rather than eternity. Based on the chapter preview trailer, eternity was Ei's personal goal, not something that was to represent the element. Each of the individuals holding an electro vision are different than the peers around them. Miko is a grand priestess yet focuses on her own amusement rather than her followers needs like kokomi. Sara is a very stern individual that can't quite seem to personally connect with her fellow soldiers describing herself as hard to talk to unlike gorou. Lisa is seemingly a lazy genius, every character from Mondstand has a high opinion of her and what duties she does have she takes seriously like going so far just for a missing book. Doing Beidou's hangouts and listening to Ganyu's voiceline about her, some people in Liyue have a negative opinion of her based the way she lives her life as a captain. Beidou would be described as eccentric among the people of Liyue. The same for Keqing. The people of Liyue would dedicate an entire year's economic road map based on the words of Rex Lapis, yet someone of Keqing's station speaks against it. She comments herself her views are unshared by all her peers. Razor is a human among wolves, quite straightforward. Fischl's entire character can be described as eccentric as well. She is a highly regarded scout for the adventurer's guild, but others find it hard to relate to her or even understanding her without Oz. At times Amy does pop out, followed by a burst of embarrassment, just to be covered up by more Fischl's persona. Then there is Ei, an archon they deemed it acceptable to strip vision bearers of their ambition's. The very reason the vision manifested in the first place. Ei's idea of eternity is much less flexible than Venti's idea of freedom or Zhongli's dedication to keeping contracts. Eccentric is defined as unconventional or slightly strange, it is broad but fits the electro characters well.
This reminds me in that Tagalog's word for forever or eternity is *hambambuhay* which literally means "as long as it's alive"
That violet room bgm is really good for these kinds of videoss nice workk
I Hope geo is next, i love this kind of vídeo
I agree with all of them except beidou. I believe her eternity aligns more towards protecting her bonds she have created in the present time. Her hangout quest has shown that she was pretty much ostracized by the village for a reason which was not her fault to begin with and she received her vision after she and her crew defeated haishan. I agree that beidou is a woman of principles but I disagree that she received her vision because of her principles.
Yes yes yes yes I've been looking forward to another one of these for MONTHS I'm so happy you're still doing the element videos
ASTERRR U ALSO DID PRYO AND THE CONCEPT OF JUSTICEEE THIS IS PART 4 i just wanted to tell uuu great videoooo love ur workkk
I have as of late been having thoughts regarding the elements and have come to a conclusion about Electro: it's actually two elements forced into one slot. Electro is both Eternity and an Instant [or Transience as another commenter mentioned] and this can relate to the various vision wielders for electro. eternity in the unchanging, the steadfast, and the consistent vs transience in the turning point that sparked that vision, that point where a character's previous stasis was thrown out and had to be adapted and a new baseline had to be put forth. this also works with how Electro is lightning in my mind. on the one hand lightning is essentially pure energy [it's plasma but electro is used as an energy stand-in so it's fiiiiiiiine] but lightning strikes are things that are only there for a moment.
(there was supposed to be a bunch of "Enter" keys here but then the first paragraph ended up being too long and making a read-more all on its own...)
I... also have developed an idea of how visions are "sparked" in the first place and if i could see/hear/etc your thoughts on it that'd be great? I'll just.... include that mini-theory in short-form here: the idea is that a vision is sparked when one both actualizes and seeks the appropriate element. so in the case of electro/eternity[+transience] it could be realizing who oneself truly is and wanting to live by that code or ideal even when it might be difficult, potentially in addition to realizing who oneself truly wishes they could be.
Sweet. I've been waiting for a long, long time for a 'Concept' video.
This was such a good watch, very cool concepts, I wouldnt have been able to put half of this together, you are seriously well spoken :O
I mainly play Genshin for the story, I love huge overarching narratives with a lot of mystery, playing the long game with setup and payoff and this is what makes it worth it, analysees and theories, ideas that may or may not come true but are great to experience regardless.
Anyways, thanks for the video, great work.
Hello Aster, love your content!!! I was wondering if you could continue with this series, maybe in shorts form, I enjoy it so much, your understanding of each ideal and how it connects to each character! Thanks!
If only Lisa's teacher was Merlin or Solomon.. wait Solomon could be the dendro archon
these are the best think pieces to listen to, you have a great way of narrating!!
Can't wait for more of this series if you ever plan on it.
Ok, this sounds like an awesome video to play in the background while grinding or doing something else. Thanks to this video, I am reminded of why the electrio element is probably my favorite. Yeah when it comes to meta, it is all either not good or broken like pyro and blah blah blah, I at least like the cast within that element and Ei has some soild people who have that power. This video was an awesome look into how each characters version of eternity is to them and overall, this was an in depth and amazing video! Oh and electric has all the top tier women lol but seriously, great job!
I can't help but think the music playing at the beginning of the video sounds like "The Capital City of Flowers in the Sky". Nice analysis. I think listening to these things while drawing is great background noise!
omg u are so good with this oneee
I’d also like to add that it’s unknown whether Yae got her vision before or after Makoto passed, so she could have received her vision while transience was still the Electro Archon’s ideal. She can fit under both, but she does seem to agree a lot more with the ideal of transience
I NEED THIS TYPE OF VIDEO FOR EVERY ELEMENT please
Yaaaazzzzz electricity! the funky element!
I loved this series can’t wait for more!! Also have you thought of cryo’s love ideal being twisted into obsession. I feel a lot of creo characters better fit this than love
Maybe that's how the people with visions were selected for which element, if a person is for example really ambitious and that person's ambition is for example War against rules they might get a pyro vision? i am aware this is weird since archon could die or possibly change ideals but when transience died transience was her definition of eternity, eternity in Transience so it technically is still eternity but there is still a hole which is why would gods care about an archons ideal? maybe because these ideals ARE part of the heavenly priniciples or heavenly rules? Idk this all is very fasinating and genshin has such a good magic system. This type of videos are so good i hope you can make some more of this for the other 2 nations and maybe for sneznaya when it actually comes out
I'm curious what Ei & Raiden Shogun would think of Qiqi, who's also stuck in a state of eternity.
I wanna be like Aster when I grow up!
Why wait?
@@creeperzpotato cause she’s a queen
So you want to be a youtuber or are you talking about her personality?
damn its been so long since i last watched a video of yours, i went off genshin impact for like 6 months, cuz i was burnt out of it (i've been playing since launch) and i've watched your channel since your first video that took off, i've even left afew theories of mine, you inspired me to make a genshin impact theory vid, obviously it didnt take off and i did get a few things wrong but hey, it was just a theory, still, i like your content, you're literally the only genshin youtuber that im subbed to
The more I watch your videos the deeper I understand the story. This makes me want to make a new account and do the stories in a new light.
Are you gonna do one of these about the concept of wisdom and its link to Dendro?
It's funny how some individuals are wrapped up in their own Eternal suffering, world concept, their eternal world-building, and their eternal view of the world makes them indifferent to others. The Electro element stands out the most in my opinion in the opposite to other elements. Fascnating!✨
me: oh yay another aster video!!
me: *sees it was posted 3 hours ago*
me: i really have no life huh
I wonder something how cyno fits in eternity with him being based around justice more
Man, I remember really wanting to write an essay about this too (but wasn't sure if anyone would care, lol). Before watching the video, my own conclusions to comes down to comparing how Ei's philosophy differs from her sister Makoto on what "eternity" means. While Ei looked at eternity as trying to keep things constant so no change would occur (via isolationism and the Sakoku decree taking away people's visions and ambition), she later realizes in later quests that Makoto's philosophy of "eternity" is much more encompassing and true. While not explicitly said in the game, her philosophy aligns with that well known phrase "change is the only constant in life." After this, I'll admit to feeling much more at ease with that explanation since "eternity" at first seemed like such a weird theme to represent something so ephemeral and transient like bolts of lightning. Rather, "eternity" was probably referring to something like an electric field that influences the electric currents.
what is the song that plays in the background when you talk about lisa?
Keqing also came to admire and appreciate Rex Lapis and his contribution to Liyue in the end.
WOOO YEAHHH I LOVE THIS SERIES
Now this is information about vision holders and its element that I looking for...
I'm excited for Geo
so... they are all stubborn, point taken:)))
Out of all the variants of eternity, I relate to loyalty the most
The idea that Electro’s concept of Eternity manifests in different forms makes understanding the elements significance to each character easier to understand.
“Oh Xinyan has a Pyro Vision? Well Pyro’s concept is war. So she must be at war with Liyue Harbor and intend to raze the entire city! Get her!” -Rock and Roll hating Liyue citizen probably
I feel like there is something makes Inazuma different from Monstadt and Liyue, i thought it was inazumans God still existing + they knowing who she is but no,its something deeper
WE NEED MORE LIKE THESE FOR EVERY ELEMENT
I would say that Eternity in the sense of several electro users is close linked to Stoic philosophy.
Is that senbonzakura playing in the background
To me Cryo seems to represent defiance
Did you not do one for Pyro a couple of months ago or am I tripping
Kinda thought Kequins was gonna be defiance but yeah yours make more sense 😂
So I guess so far with the ones you’ve done, geo is gonna be the easiest one to do after right ?
I mean… they all have something to do with upholding a contract.
Itto and the red and blue oni for example.
Ahmmm aster I think you forgot that you did a video of Pyro and the concept of war so that would make this part 4 in the series about the elements
ur videos are awsome
Can u do Geo or Cryo Next
Great video!
When you think about it, eternity is transient. Energy in this universe has always been the same, but constantly changes form. Within the many forms it takes, the total amount of energy is maintained
Still, you’re reading the comment of some guy who doesn’t know much about physics, and I might have spoken nonsense there.
Bennett is eternal...eternally picked in spiral abyss
I don’t know about the idea of eternity as the bases of the electro visions in my opinion.
For me I always saw it as the desire/ambition to protect something.
Fischl and her fantasies.
Lisa and knowledge
Razor and his lupicas
Kujou Sara and her strength or something like that.
Ya know, things like that. I interpret the idea of electro as a way to protect one’s self or others.
My mind goes to think of Yae Miko’s elemental burst voice line that I always get 6:56 into the video lmao
Isn't that part 4 tho? You did Anemo, Hydro and Pyro.
I never thought i would relate to Fischl's loneliness
am i imagining it or did there used to be a pyro video?
Damn Fischl's story hit too close to home.
Lodicakes
Wasn't there also a pyro video, not just hydro and anemo?
Aster completely forgot her "pyro and the concept of war" video
why did you abandon the video you made about pyro and the concept of war?
can ik the soundtrack at 6:49? its very familiar just forgot the name
Senbonzakura I think
@@miraii5773 thx it is that song omg so nostalgic lmgao
Hii 🥺🥺🥺
I love your videos