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Munroe: Welcome back to Alien Visitation. We’re continuing to bring you previously-unreleased footage of our visitors from the Moya.
John Crichton was traveling on the living ship for over three years. And while many of the extraterrestrial beings he first met are the same ones who came to Earth—lifeforms such as General D’Argo, Dominar Rygel, and Officer Sun—the Moya has also seen other passengers come and go. Today, we’ll learn about an alien who didn’t visit Earth herself, but whose influence on her fellow passengers is clear: Pa’u Zotoh Zhaan.
[Footage from Bobby’s video camera]
Pilot: Zhaan was a remarkable woman. When she first boarded Moya, she was suffering deeply as a result of the violence she had inflicted. But over the cycles, she grew to be not just more devoted to her own faith, but with a sacred charge to protect the ship—and all its crew.
D’Argo: When I first met Zhaan, I found her to be an insufferable moralist, and she thought I was a raging berserker. Which I was. Sometimes it takes being on the run with your freedom, and lives, constantly at risk, to appreciate each other.
Rygel: The Delvians are bipedal creatures like you, but don’t let the resemblance fool you. Evolutionarily, they’re more closely related to plants, which means she really got lots of energy out of photosynthesis...heh.
[In the studio]
Munroe: Here to help us piece it together is the one and only Bobby Coleman. Bobby, you’ve spoken to all of the Moya’s crew—what impression did you get of Zotoh Zhaan?
Bobby: It’s hard to say. It sounds like she was a priestess, but also a warrior. Very mature, but sometimes...silly. Able to walk and talk and act like the other aliens, but also, somehow, a plant? I don’t really know how they figure that out.
Munroe: Do you think the crew were being honest with you?
Bobby: Oh, of course!
Munroe: Not trying to confuse you on purpose?
Bobby: No. I mean...Uncle John is a scientist. He works for NASA. Very smart guy. I’m sure that when he met all these people he gave them a good first impression of what Earth was like. I mean, humans have our own problems, but we come in peace, you know? I get the sense that some of the aliens...None of them are our enemies. They all liked Earth, they all wished us well. But they’ve survived some pretty scary things. Or in some cases, didn’t survive. So I think maybe they tried to to...focus on the good stuff, and not say as much about the bad parts, so they wouldn’t scare us too much. I mean, from their perspective, I’m just a kid.
Munroe: A kid who’s now the planet’s number-one source on alien life!
Bobby: Yeah. I mean, I would love to know more, and I’m sure everybody else would as well. But I didn’t really realize how much everyone would want to see these videos, so...I didn’t spend as much time asking questions about the dead people, I mean, that’s kind of dark. And some of it was kind of boring.
[Video footage]
Noranti: The Delvian Seek is a spiritual practice that focuses on telepathic bonds. Its practicioners are often great healers and peacemakers—and very adept at experiencing the sensual pleasures of the galaxy, individually or in tandem.
Bobby (offscreen): I thought you said you’d never met Zhaan.
Noranti: I haven’t! But I’ve lived a long life, and Delvians have been prominent on planets throughout the galaxy.
Aeryn: One of the planets we visited was full of priestesses and priests like Zhaan. Their leader wanted to learn from her, and she sent...misleading visions to trick Moya into thinking there was another...another spaceship like her, who needed assistance. It made me appreciate how honest Zhaan always was. Even when she was being frustrating, you knew where you stood with her.
Rygel: They wanted to talk to Zhaan because, even among Delvians, she had tremendous mental powers. She could assassinate someone in flagrante delicto and still be compartmentalized enough not to break under the stress. At least, no more so than usual.
John: That’s not entirely—I mean, it did hurt her to compromise her principles. She couldn’t just bounce back from it. Sometimes it took her days or weeks, or, before I met her, many years.
Bobby: What happened on that Delvian planet?
Chiana: I wasn’t there. Apparently the leader sent everyone dreams from the last time they’d been, you know, sexually active. Some people were annoyed that their memories had been toyed with like that, but I wouldn’t have been upset. They’re good memories! There are a lot of worse dreams to have!
John: Zhaan was badly shaken. They’d taken information from her mind, but it hurt her to have someone—go through her head like that, plus bringing back the memories of some of the things she had done before. So I took a little bit of a risk and decided to share Unity with her.
Bobby: What’s that?
Rygel: You’ll understand when you’re older, heh-heh.
John: No. Um, that is—it can be. It’s a form of intimacy and vulnerability, but it’s very different from...Put it this way, I kept my clothes on the entire time. I knew there was some potential for it to blow up in my face; you need a strong presence of mind, to stay rooted in yourself while also being open to another soul. But Zhaan was so selfless, not only to these Delvians she’d just met, but to all of us, that I didn’t think twice about it. It was the least I could do, to help her come back to herself.
Bobby: So you’re saying you weren’t into her, that way.
John: She was a brilliant scholar and a wise friend. She was also a plant. My type is more...um...I think Zhaan would have said the same, she respected my intelligence and approach to problem-solving, in a strictly platonic way.
D’Argo: By the time we took off again, she’d somehow become a “Level Ten” Pa’u, or somesuch mumbo-jumbo. I guess you can learn a lot from having other people rummage around in your mind, even if they are unscrupulous tyrants.
[In the studio]
Munroe: Level Ten Pa’us, the Delvian Seek, goddesses, Unity. It’s a lot to take in. Fortunately, humans are no strangers to trying to make sense of unfamiliar religions. I’m joined by two scholars from different traditions—Ivan Chanderpaul, from the Federation of American Buddhists, and Mervyn Vosko, a Roman Catholic bishop. Welcome back, gentlemen.
Chanderpaul: Good to be here.
Vosko: Thanks for having me.
Munroe: I know we have very little to go on so far, but from first impressions, what has been most striking about these secondhand reports of Zotoh Zhaan and her faith?
Vosko: We’ve seen these aliens mention “Delvian” in two different contexts—both the name of a species, and the “Delvian Seek.” So that already says something about the kind of tradition it is—not necessarily trying to preach a truth to all peoples, but limited to this one particular group, where we see religious practices overlap with ethnocultural identity.
Chanderpaul: We don’t know that.
Vosko: Do we have any indication that beings from other worlds—like the Luxan, or the Hynerian—worshiped this “goddess”?
Chanderpaul: We don’t know that they don’t. Maybe that was not something they thought to mention.
Munroe: Mr. Chanderpaul, is there anything else that you noticed?
Chanderpaul: Well, I think it’s clear that the Delvian clergy can include both women and men, single and partnered people. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to many of us, of course, but it’s a worthwhile reminder that every tradition is different.
Vosko: Do we know if we’re translating that correctly? Why should plant-people from across the galaxy map onto human concepts of men and women?
Chanderpaul: That’s a fair question.
Munroe: We heard a couple mentions of “levels” of the Seek. With the understanding that this is very extrapolative, can you give us your best guess as to what that might mean?
Vosko: Well, I would guess it has something to do with church hierarchy. In my church, roles like parish priests and monastic initiates are relatively numerous, but something like the Mother Superior of a convent, or a bishop like myself, is a leadership role that not everyone will be promoted to. Then there are cardinals, and a pope. So although we don’t assign numerical values to these different ranks, I could imagine a situation where individuals who are promoted through the ranks of an entire solar system, or a galaxy, would have different labels to indicate their scope of authority.
Chanderpaul: I disagree. From what we know of Zhaan, she was imprisoned for many years, and then a fugitive—that doesn’t sound like someone who was highly ranked by her institution.
Vosko: Why not? Some of our holy scriptures were written by people imprisoned by secular authorities.
Chanderpaul: I think it’s more likely that the levels represent her progression towards gaining abilities or powers that ordinary Delvians might consider “supernatural” or “miraculous” but that could be attained through prolonged meditation and prayer. Perhaps analogous to abhijñā.
Vosko: So you’re thinking a “level one” priestess could read minds, or something, while someone at “level five” could, I don’t know, levitate?
Chanderpaul: Yes, something like that.
Vosko: That’s ridiculous!
Chanderpaul: Well, I mean, if all Delvians can photosynthesize, that wouldn’t be much of a miracle. I’m just brainstorming.
Vosko: Miracles don’t follow a predictable trajectory. If they did, there would be no place for faith.
Munroe: Let’s zoom out a little. What else about the recent Moya videos have you found noteworthy?
Vosko: The government has, to its credit, declassified the reports made in 1985 by a Florida sheriff, which—as implausible as they seemed at the time—have been vindicated by the reappearance of the Moya and her aliens. It shouldn’t be a surprise that entities that can come and go in space are also unconstrained by the limits of time, but it’s a reminder for all of us to practice humility. What might at first seem scandalous or foolish can sometimes point to deep and unexpected truths.
Chanderpaul: Well said. What struck me is that many of these individuals were not moral exemplars; General D’Argo and Officer Sun have admitted to their militaristic tendencies, Pa’u Zhaan to an assassination, Dominar Rygel sees himself as an absolute monarch. And they were quick to warn us that other peoples in the galaxy might also be unfriendly. Yet Commander Crichton has emphasized that they welcomed him when he needed asylum, and in their time on Earth, they seemed truly well-intentioned towards Earth and its residents. It goes to show that we shouldn’t judge anyone by their worst moments.
Vosko: To be fair, they were also essentially captives of the United States government.
Chanderpaul: And in the Crichton home? In Bobby Coleman’s videos?
Vosko: Well, maybe…
Munroe: I’m going to assume you both are deeply rooted in your respective faiths and not interested in converting at this time. But let’s turn it around. If another ship like the Moya came to Earth, and an alien expressed interest in practicing your religion, what would you say?
Chanderpaul: I think the visitors from the Moya would all agree that life is full of suffering. What my tradition teaches is that suffering can be overcome by cultivating wisdom and compassion, and ultimately, extending that to all sentient beings. I hope that I could welcome an alien student as a brother or sister.
Vosko: I’ll be honest, I’m not entirely sure right now. It’s an important doctrine of my faith that Jesus is the only Son of God—God didn’t need to become incarnate as a Luxan, or a Delvian, or a Hynerian. Does that mean that all of these peoples were created without sin? Does that mean that a human from Earth can redeem them, just like we believe a Jewish subject of the Roman Empire could redeem humans throughout space and time? I don’t have the answers to those questions, and I’m in no position to speak for Catholics worldwide. We’d have to see.
Munroe: Thank you both for your candor. That’s about all we have time for this week, but please tune back in—there’s much, much more we have to learn about extraterrestrials, both those who have visited Earth and those who haven’t. And we have a great panel of experts waiting to provide their insights. From Alien Visitation, I’m R. Wilson Munroe, goodnight.
Vosko: Whew, that was a doozy.
Chanderpaul: Hey, so. Your religion has all those icons of the Madonna, right?
Vosko: What’s it to you?
Chanderpaul: I’m not criticizing, I think it’s sweet that one of the most powerful images of the divine is a young mother with her baby. Very tender.
Vosko: Yes, it’s an image that translates to pretty much every culture. Christian artists from around the world have depicted Mary in the manner of women from their own society.
Chanderpaul: So what happens to the iconography now that we know spaceships can get pregnant and give birth?
Vosko: ...Are you making fun of me?
Chanderpaul: I mean, that Talyn sacrificed himself to save others, that’s kind of messianic…
Vosko: ...Is the camera still rolling?
Chanderpaul: Maybe.
Vosko: I can’t believe you guys.
Munroe: Think of it this way, if those aliens can learn to tolerate each other’s cultures—however grudgingly—we humans had better be able to.
Vosko: Unfortunately, we don’t have a great track record of doing that.
Chanderpaul: We’re both here, aren’t we? Trying to make sense of these aliens. And you haven’t even declared a holy war over my sense of humor.
Vosko: Well, it’s my job to resist temptation.
Munroe: We’ll keep managing. I have faith.