The Hierophant

In the tradition of Siddhartha, The Prophet and The Celestine Prophecy, The Hierophant is a story about discovering the truth in the self. Based loosely on sayings from The Old and New "Testaments," "The Bhagavad Gita," and "The Upanishads," "The Hierophant" is the story of two brothers, one a philosopher and the other a revolutionary. Set during a nondescript time and place in the past, an Empire occupies the land of a theocratic tribal people. As the story begins, a friend of the protagonist, Douglas Trigger, dies mysteriously while in the Great Chief's jail after he is arrested for espousing a new philosophy. With some hesitation, Douglas reluctantly picks up the fallen sword of his friend and begins teaching about truth. His message alarms the elders of the Temple of the Tribes because it espouses a philosophy that makes the Temple obsolete. The priests already fear their influence is slipping away as their people are corrupted by the decadence of the Empire. Tommy Trigger, a revolutionary and Douglas's twin, sees in his brother a charismatic leader for his struggle against the Empire and a possible Messiah to fulfill tribal prophecy. Douglas is uninterested in his brother's plan for him and while Tommy plots his revolution, Douglas gets a following and attracts the interest of Zacharus, the High Priest from the Temple, the same priest Douglas believes was responsible for his friend's death.