Mystagogue

Mystagogue is defined in The Dictionary across successive forms of Orth, reflecting a notable shift in meaning over time.

First appearance and context

The term is attested as a headword excerpt in the 4th edition (A.R. 3000) of The Dictionary. In use within the mathic world, it is invoked by an avout in conversation, first in a library exchange with an artisan and later while discussing precautions around Apert, contrasting a "Throwback-turned-Mystagogue" with a "Bottle Shaker." In this context, "Mystagogue" functions as a negative label for someone claiming mathic authority while discouraging genuine theoric practice. The phrase also implies that a Throwback adopting such a stance might be dangerous.

Definition and rationale

Historical senses recorded in Orth include: - Early Middle Orth: a theorician or mentor focused on unsolved problems, sometimes one who introduced fids to such studies. - Late Middle Orth: a member of a restrictive suvin that dominated the maths for a time, discouraging theoric work, locking libraries, and making a fetish of mysteries and conundrums. - Later Orth (including Praxic and onward): a pejorative for anyone perceived to resemble the Late Middle Orth sense above.

Relationships and references

The meaning shift is documented explicitly in The Dictionary across forms of Orth. Some avout allude to the "rise of the Mystagogues" in the Old Mathic Age and connect it to trends in translation influenced by an "ur-Procian" mentality; this frames the later sense as part of a broader historical reaction within the maths.

Current status

Contemporary usage emphasizes the pejorative sense. Within the maths, calling someone a "Mystagogue" typically signals suspicion toward obscurantism and institutional pressure against open theoric inquiry.