Nabu Malikata,[5] the Goddess of Flowers, also known by various names such as the Lord of Joy and Happiness and the Mistress of Dreams, is a deceased god who was a close friend of Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, the previous Dendro Archon of Sumeru.[8] The two were considered among the three God-Kings of Sumeru alongside King Deshret, and were friends who each pursued their own paths towards "wisdom."[9]
She was the creator of the Jinn and Khvarena, and a survivor of the Angelic race.[10][11][12]
Profile[]
Appearance[]
According to legend, Nabu Malikata was said to have "beautiful" horns on her head. The horns of Nilou's crown in her default outfit, Neither Flower Nor Mist, were made to reflect this trait.[13] Nabu Malikata also wore an amethyst crown, which became traditional headgear for her priests.[14]
When the Traveler sees Nabu Malikata in Liloupar's memories, her appearance is described as being "ineffably beautiful," comparable to "the totality of her Jinn." However, when they meet her gaze, they are faced with "nothingness."[7]
Based on depictions of angels found in Dragonspine's Mural Room and during the World Quest Revelations from the Past, it can be surmised that like her sisters, Nabu Malikata had a winged body and long horns extending behind her head. It is also possible that she once stood several times taller than a human, though this may have simply been artistic license, as her throne is sized correctly for a human.
Story[]
Nabu Malikata was one of the Angels who participated in the Great War of Vengeance on the side of the Heavenly Principles, when Nibelung introduced forbidden knowledge to Teyvat.[14][15] Forbidden knowledge devastated the land and forced the Heavenly Principles to cast down the Celestial Nails to save it, at the expense of the human civilizations living there.[14][15] Due to the First Angel having fallen in love with the voyager and attempting a rebellion against the Heavenly Principles, the Angels were punished with a curse that would strip them of their form and minds if they were to ever love a single person instead of humankind as a collective, turning them into husks of their former selves in the form of Seelies.[16] While Nabu Malikata was able to maintain her original form, most of the others became Seelies.[14] According to legend, she wandered the barren wastes for 72 days. Springs gushed from her wounds, becoming streams that flowed into gardens. Water lilies grew in these gardens, and the Jinn were born from them. The first jinn begged her to stay with them, and she relented. Purple flowers resembling the moon bloomed wherever she stopped, and they were called Padisarahs.[11]
Sometime during the Archon War, she met Greater Lord Rukkhadevata and King Deshret, who shared his throne with the other two. The three were known as the God-Kings of Sumeru and were good friends. Nabu Malikata was the originator and namesake of the Sabzeruz Festival (Chinese: 花神诞日 "Birthday of the Goddess of Flowers"), which originally commemorated Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's birthday.[13] After Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's death, the Sabzeruz Festival became a celebration for her successor Lesser Lord Kusanali's birthday.[17]
Nabu Malikata and King Deshret built the ancient civilization of Ay-Khanoum in the desert as an earthly paradise.[3] While Nabu Malikata was aware of King Deshret's affections for her, it is unknown if the feeling was mutual or not.[18]
At some point in time, Nabu Malikata foresaw the coming of the cataclysm, so she created a shard of Khvarena, whom she referred to as her daughter. This shard would eventually transform into the divine bird Simurgh. The divine bird would be destined to sacrifice itself during the cataclysm in order to save the Amrita from its abyssal corruption. Nabu Malikata gave the shard to Rukkhadevata, as she believed that Rukkhadevata's "light" was more radiant than hers.[19]
At some point, Nabu Malikata warned King Deshret against pursuing forbidden knowledge, the Heavenly Principles, or the "mysteries of the stars and abyss," relating her past experiences and the fate of the Angels to him.[14] However, he remained undeterred and told her about his ambitions. Nabu Malikata was persuaded by the thought of rebellion and decided to assist him in seeking the hidden knowledge.[20][21] Greater Lord Rukkhadevata was heartbroken by her fellow God-Kings' plans, so she shepherded her own people away to create an oasis in a corner of the desert, leaving Nabu Malikata to wait for a return that never came.[22][23]
Death[]
According to legend, Nabu Malikata died from the "malice of the burning sun and yellow sand."[3] She did this to help fulfill King Deshret's ambition and guide him to higher knowledge.[20] It is suggested that she planned to die so that the bitterness of her death would preserve her legacy forever. King Deshret, who was enamored with her, never realized this intention.[18] With her death, the original Padisarah flower went extinct ,[3] and although Greater Lord Rukkhadevata attempted to recreate the flowers in her friend's memory, she was unable to replicate its original shade of purple.
Following her death, King Deshret deceived the Jinn into becoming his servants by telling them the Goddess of Flowers was merely in a deep slumber, and in exchange for the Jinn's power, he would help them find her.[5] He created The Orchard of Pairidaeza as a cemetery for her.[24]
Character Mentions[]
Character Voice-Overs
| Character | Voice-Overs |
|---|---|
As Goddess of Flowers:
|
Trivia[]
- Bilqis, used in the World Quest Series name The Dirge of Bilqis, could be Nabu Malikata's personal name:
- A dirge is a mourning song performed at funerals, while Nabu Malikata's resting place, The Orchard of Pairidaeza, is unlocked during The Dirge of Bilqis. This suggests that the dirge is for someone named Bilqis, who in this case would logically only be Nabu Malikata.
- In Biblical accounts, Bilqis is the name of the Queen of Sheba, who travels to King Solomon bearing him great gifts and, in many variations of the story, whom she eventually marries. King Deshret's lore draws inspiration from several parts of King Solomon's mythos, which suggests Nabu Malikata could be an analogue for Bilqis.
- The Orchard of Pairidaeza is located within the Desert of Hadramaveth, a name derived from the region of Hadhramaut. This area is often associated to be a part of the ancient kingdom of Sheba.
Etymology[]
- Nabu is an ancient Mesopotamian god of literacy, the rational arts, scribes, and wisdom. His name (Akkadian: 𒀭𒀝 Nabû) means "announcer" or "authorized person" and is a cognate with words in several other Semitic languages, such as Arabic نبي nabiyy and Hebrew נביא naví, meaning "enlightened" or "prophet."
- Paralleling the horns atop Nabu Malikata's head, Nabu is described as wearing a horned cap.
- Nabu and his father Marduk also rode the winged dragon Sirrush (more accurately rendered with modern knowledge of cuneiform as “Mušḫuššu”), a name which bears great similarity to one of Nabu Malikata's indirect descendants, Sorush.
- Malikata is one of many forms of the Arabic word مَلِكَة Malika, "queen" (modern form) or alternatively مَلَكَة Malaka, "queen" (archaic form), or from the ideogram of the Middle Persian word for queen, MLKTA (Middle Persian: 𐭬𐭫𐭪𐭲𐭠 bāmbišn).
- In the Eternal Oasis, her name is written as "NABU MLKTA" in Deshret Script, the same as the ideogram of the Middle Persian word.
- Malikat (Arabic: ملكة "Queen of") is construct state of the word Malika, while Malikata is its accusative form with the same meaning. This is similar to how 'Queen of Sheba' is written in Arabic: ملكة سبأ Malikat Saba.
- The use of ملكة in 'Queen of Sheba' allows it to be in either archaic or modern form depending on the context, with the common romanization is 'Malika'.
Notes[]
Other Languages[]
Nabu Malikata
| Language | Official Name |
|---|---|
| English | Nabu Malikata |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 娜布・玛莉卡塔 Nàbù Mǎlìkǎtǎ |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 娜布・瑪莉卡塔 Nàbù Mǎlìkǎtǎ |
| Japanese | ナブ・マリカッタ Nabu Marikatta |
| Korean | 나부・말리카타 Nabu Mallikata |
| Spanish | Nabu Malikata |
| French | Nabu Malikata |
| Russian | Набу Маликата Nabu Malikata |
| Thai | Nabu Malikata |
| Vietnamese | Nabu Malikata |
| German | Nabu Malikata |
| Indonesian | Nabu Malikata |
| Portuguese | Nabu Malikata |
| Turkish | Nabu Malikata |
| Italian | Nabu Malikata |
Goddess of Flowers
| Language | Official Name | Literal Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| English | Goddess of Flowers | — |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 花神 Huāshén | God of Flowers |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 花神 Huāshén | |
| Japanese | 花神 Kashin[25] | God of Flowers[※][※] |
| Korean | 화신화신 Hwasin | God of Flowers[※][※] |
| Spanish | Diosa de las Flores | Goddess of Flowers |
| French | Déesse des fleurs | Goddess of Flowers |
| Russian | Божество цветов Bozhestvo tsvetov | God of Flowers |
| Thai | เทพแห่งมวลบุปผา Thep haeng Muanbuppa | God of Flowers |
| Vietnamese | Hoa ThầnHoa Thần | God of Flowers[※][※] |
| German | Blumengöttin | Flower Goddess |
| Indonesian | Dewi Bunga | Flower Goddess |
| Portuguese | Deusa das Flores | Goddess of Flowers |
| Turkish | Çiçek Tanrıçası | |
| Italian | Dea dei fiori | Goddess of Flowers |
Change History[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Weapon Ascension Material: Oasis Garden's Reminiscence
- ↑ Weapon Ascension Material: Oasis Garden's Kindness
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Weapon Ascension Material: Oasis Garden's Mourning
- ↑ Book: Scroll of Streaming Song
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 World Quest, The Dirge of Bilqis, Part 2: The Temple Where Sand Flows Like Tears
- ↑ Interactable, Tanit Camps: Akademiya Emblem-Marked Contract
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 World Quest, The Dirge of Bilqis, Part 6: The Eternal Dream, Ever Lush
- ↑ Artifact Set: Deepwood Memories
- ↑ World Quest, Aranyaka: Part III - Nursery of Lost Dreams, Part 2: For the Children of the Past
Arama: There was once a survivor of that race deep within the golden desert who was friends with Queen Aranyani and the ruler of Valuka. - ↑ 11.0 11.1 Artifact Set: Flower of Paradise Lost
- ↑ Book: Scroll of Streaming Song
I am a spirit created at the beginning - ↑ 13.0 13.1 Archon Quest, Chapter III, Act I - Through Mists of Smoke and Forests Dark, Part 5: The Trail of the God of Wisdom
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Artifact, Flower of Paradise Lost: Amethyst Crown
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Story Quest, Nahida, Sapientia Oromasdis Chapter: Act II - Homecoming, Part 2: What Shape Does the Self Hold
- ↑ Artifact, Finale of the Deep Galleries: Deep Gallery's Moment of Oblivion
- ↑ NPC Dialogue: Philby
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Weapon Ascension Material: Oasis Garden's Truth
- ↑ Artifact Set: Vourukasha's Glow
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Artifact, Flower of Paradise Lost: Secret-Keeper's Magic Bottle
- ↑ Artifact, Flower of Paradise Lost: Wilting Feast
- ↑ World Quest, The Dirge of Bilqis, Part 5: Dune-Entombed Fecundity: Part III
- ↑ Weapon Ascension Material: Olden Days of Scorching Might
- ↑ Artifact, Flower of Paradise Lost: A Moment Congealed
- ↑ Archon Quest, Chapter III, Act II - The Morn a Thousand Roses Brings, Part 1: The Coming of the Sabzeruz Festival