The Satorist

Poul Anderson, "Kings Who Die" IN Anderson, Seven Conquests (New York, 1970), pp. 11-40.

(Nearly finished for this evening.)

See War, Wells And Anderson. 

An unexpected word:

"[Diaz] drew a breath which was a good deal shakier than the Academy satorist would have approved of." (p. 11)

"Satorist" is to be found neither online nor in any earlier posts on this blog. Obviously it is a noun derived from the noun, "satori." The latter term is familiar especially since I practice zazen. The Japanese connection is confirmed in the immediately following sentence when Diaz imagines the satorist speaking:

"('If your nerves twitch, cadet-san, then you know yourself alive and they need not twitch. Correct?' To hell with that, except as a technique.)" (ibid.)

Since Diaz, who murmurs, "'Nombre de Dios,' (p. 12) and crosses himself but is trained by a "satorist," is at war with Unasians, this story is set in a period of cultural interaction and conflict. But  how much deeper will we dig into this evening? Only time will tell.