The Preacher's Warning to Humanity | Dune Lore

During the course of the Dune saga, a mysterious figure called the Preacher appears from the desert of Arrakis bearing several warning messages for the inhabitants of the Imperium. His sermons outline a warning to humanity that is echoed and woven throughout Frank Herbert’s legendarium. In this video I discuss the arrival of the Preacher and how his message warned of humanity’s nearly unavoidable demise. Spoiler warning if you are unfamiliar with the Dune series.
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[@NerdCookies]

Thank you for watching this video! If you enjoy my content, please consider supporting me on Patreon: www.patreon.com/nerdcookies

[@AynenMakino]

I think the preacher's message, sadly, perfectly applies to our world. And we're further along that problematic path than most seem to think.

[@dbsthumper]

true,mankind witnesses the causes of his demise yet does nothing about it... as Pink Floyd states we as a species have become comfortably numb...

[@CitizenScott]

Of course. The world of Dune is our world. We are always somewhere along that "problematic path." It's a universal, cyclical pattern. All men are doomed to live in interesting times.

[@jonbutcher5593]

Paul, as the preacher, is my favorite version / time of Paul Atreides. As sad as the ending was of the 2nd book was, it was good to know Paul had survived, that he still has a purpose and a great many messages to share. Powerful lessons, that echo in eternity in the Dune universe and in my mind. Thanks for bringing this up today.

[@austinharris9077]

Alec Newman was so damned good as the Preacher! That man deserves way more credit and recognition than he gets.

[@Ozymandias1]

He played Paul very well, even though he was too old at the beginning (as is the case with Kyle MacLachlan and Timothée Chalamet as well). But he excelled as the Preacher. It’s a shame his career didn’t go off. The only thing I saw him in after Children of Dune were in two episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise where he played a genetically engineered superhuman (like Khan), which was also a very good role.

[@darthshivvis956]

Sand will cover this place sand will cover you

[@pseudonymousbeing987]

@@Ozymandias1 No 15 year old could play Paul. But I will say I believe only Timothee Chalamet managed to play a 15 year old. Particularly because he actually passes for one on camera unlike the other two.

[@brandonhayes2363]

Alec Newman was amazing as the preacher and Maudib

[@danelamoreaux4166]

Can't get enough of Nerd Cookies

[@User_Un_Friendly]

Drink your milk between bites. Nom, nom, nom. Burp! 😋

[@Ugliduckie]

I love the character of Paul Atreides, from beginning to end. Such a magnificent arc. And father/son stories always get me in the feels

[@marknovak6498]

Seemed Paul as the Preacher was a catalyst for his son's ascension faster and easier. Even though he was afraid for his son he knew it was the best way.

[@CitizenScott]

Yeah you could almost say he sacrificed his son huh? Sounds similar to another story I know...

[@Steventrafford]

When you think to the level of detail and scope of the story, I’m humbled by the insight and genius that was Herbert.

[@michaelallen434]

As always, you give us much to think about. If more people that aren't into sci-fi would read these books they would realize that its a way of examining human nature. Corruption,greed and a search meaning in life.

[@quentincollins1825]

Such prescient writing, and applicable to contemporary society. It's hard to believe that such a deep, serious thinker as FH could write a scene about Leto II and his "beefswelling". 😂

[@quentincollins1825]

(I'm thinking Beverly probably had a headache the night FH wrote that 🤔)

[@morgumal]

Can you tell what scene are you talking about?

[@quentincollins1825]

@@morgumal It happened in Children of Dune when Leto II made it to Jacurutu 🙂

[@TheCasualSubculturist]

If I get paid for every Nerd Cookies in the jar, I would have 0 cent... because I would've always eat them as soon as I get it!

[@davidmeyer3795]

This was probably my favorite book in the series, but I always had a hard time with how quickly the entire imperium took to the new religion. To the point of going on pilgrimages to Arakis and so on. Within a generation that just seems so quick.

[@patricity9355]

I dont think they had a choice

[@AynenMakino]

If, as far as they can tell, a literal god manifested on Arakkis, wouldn't go see this actual living god?

[@Emanon...]

In our own history it only took about a generation for Islam to become a major religion from Persia to North Africa. And since Arabic customs and culture are an inspiration for the Fremen, it doesn't seem that farfetched tbh...

[@jacara1981]

@@Emanon... Same with Christianity, the Catholics weren't the only Christians, they were just the most violent. All those that refused to be Catholic where killed, and within a generation they spread like a wildfire.

[@FloydFreed]

This book and God Emperor made me think of the phrase, "some men must play as devils so that others may aspire to be angels."

[@PeloquinDavid]

The ultimate tragedy of Paul Is that he had feet of clay: unable to do his duty in taking the "Golden Path" himself, he ultimately condemned his own son to a three thousand year life in inhuman isolation and as the object of near-universal hatred. That's worthy of that "other" multigenerational Atreides family tragedy - from Greek mythology and Classical Greek theatre.

[@robertsosna3994]

Another of Herbert's warning about charismatic leaders. Paul always saw that danger and tried to lead people away from that. It's only as the Preacher that Paul was able to open the way for Leto II. Even if that transformation terrified him. Frank Herbert used the model of ancient Greek tragedies to get the message across.

[@RyanPerrella]

9:36 i like how you summarize how the tyranny inflicted upon humanity became the key to unlocking their freedom.

[@Esteban10191]

Out of any book; The Preacher AKA Paul Atreides, is my favorite character of any book. He shows what duty, honor, sacrifice in the line of duty truly mean and moreover what it can do. If not for him there would be no God Emperor or anything to save humanity. He did it without anyone asking. Reading that as a child touched me. He was the right human in the right time and place.

[@haplozetetic9519]

Consider reading The Wheel of Time if you are into fantasy. It's *huge* and has its shortcomings, but is equally complex as Dune (more so in some ways). It takes a few books to get into it, and there is a slow part in the middle, but there are always unexpected twists, and it has the most incredible last book of anything I've ever read in over 50 years of sci-fi and fantasy. It's way more than worth the time and effort. I rank it about equal with Dune as my two top series. You may be better off ignoring the tv show because it takes too big a departure from the books. Also, don't search *anything* unless you don't mind major spoilers.

[@Esteban10191]

@@haplozetetic9519 It's funny you mention that I'm rereading Wheel for the 3rd time it's been about a decade and I've forgotten a bit.

[@haplozetetic9519]

​@@Esteban10191 It's incredible that there are always more bits and pieces that we never noticed or fully understood in previous reads. I've been through it over 15 times over nearly 30 years, and I still notice things I missed before. That includes spending *many* hours online in discussions, forums, etc. In case you haven't heard, there was a recent release of information covering a number of things people had questions about that weren't in the books, and weren't allowed to be disclosed until 10 years after the last book was out. Some things didn't even happen the way they were written in the books, including an important character being alive who appeared to die. Let me know if you want the name. If you haven't seen The Dusty Wheel channel, you might want to check it out. There are other good WoT channels, but this one is the most comprehensive.

[@Esteban10191]

@@haplozetetic9519 No I haven't. Thanks for the info. I haven't been a part of the Wheel Fandom just a reader of the books. Something I intend to correct soon. Rereading Path of Daggers ATM.

[@haplozetetic9519]

@@Esteban10191 👍

[@Jared_Wignall]

I always enjoy your videos. Keep up the great work and take care!

[@tyler4418]

The Preachers warning against suppressing the individual in favor of the collective and safety, seems ever more applicable to our world.

[@tarkajedi3331]

Your work is so well written and delivered... You have a lovely voice and understanding....

[@michaelpipkin9942]

Love your live streams as well! They're fun

[@borisdorofeev5602]

You are my favorite Dune lore/news channel. I like Quinns Ideas, and he was the first Dune channel I listened to, but his Preacher and Gaius Helen Mohaim voices are scary. Really scawy.

[@Deridus]

I used to watch alot of his lore vids. Should probably check out his Three Body Problem episodes.

[@CantankerousDave]

Terry Pratchett’s Small Gods also talked about institutions diverting worship towards itself.

[@CitizenScott]

I can imagine Frank Herbert writing God Emperor of Dune thinking, "Paul to Mahdi to Preacher wasn't enough for you people to get what I'm trying to tell you? Fine, then I'll teach you a lesson your bones will remember..."

[@WickedScott]

Great video. Love your content.

[@davidmoir5478]

Hi Elaine 👋 Thanks for covering the preacher. This was one of the highlights of the series. I really enjoyed your breakdown. You see it clearly. Parallels can be identified in our own cilts of personality in recent history. Thanks for your hard work x

[@reallybig4868]

I could make a playlist of these vids and fall asleep to them. So soothing!

[@darkybear6507]

Paul is such an incredible character and the culmination of his journey ending as the preacher really was perfect, he knew it had to happen. Just hearing you talk about it makes me want to read the whole thing again! So good!

[@ericulric223]

This was a friggin brilliant synopsis. Keep bringing out stuff at this level and I'm getting tempted to Join as a supporting. Wish when Bioshock came out you had Bioshock insight. I personally disliked the Dune movie and heard the book off and on as an audiobook but Dune is 1000x under-appreciated and most people do not understand the core about embracing uncertainty and the stagnation and failure of control.

[@Davepool-hs7vr]

This is my favorite channel for all things Dune. Thank you Elaine.

[@kipclifton9403]

Yay cookies today!

[@paulclinton2326]

great episode...loved it.

[@knghtbrd]

I'm really digging this deep dive into Dune and BSG lore you've been doing. Until recently the algorithm has only ever pointed me at a few of your scripted more surface-level discussions of film ant television in the genre and I didn't know what to make of this channel at first. A week or so ago I caught one of these Dune video and the floodgates then opened for recommending your channel, some of your unscripted videos, your alt channel, etc. It's clear that you've taken the time to consider these books and what they have to say about society and its potential futures, and you're encouraging all of us to stop and think about this stuff a little more. You've more than earned sub and sub from me! I don't know what else I'd say that hasn't been said below-Paul is a great tragic character and The Preacher is him at his best. His life and death had a phenomenal impact on the society that gave birth to him, and perhaps his own sins were inevitable-he did not know at some point whether he was the dreamer or the dream, after all. Whatever responsibility he bore for the jihad in his name and the subsequent corrupt priesthood, he paid for it with his life. I really should look for a video you've probably already done about Jessica. She paid a greater price, to have lost Leto and Paul, and to have been doubly responsible for Alia, and to lose her twice. But even more than Paul, I wonder if she could have done anything different at all. Certainly if she'd done what the sisterhood wanted of her? *shudder*

[@quarantineinnorthcarolinap8814]

I'm almost certain that Herbert may have been clairvoyant

[@Mephiestopholes]

Beautiful essay

[@ninjabreadman8166]

No diet will keep me from getting my fix of Nerd Cookies 🤠

[@sgt.grinch3299]

Another fine breakdown of the story. Thank you Nerdy. I really enjoy your work.

[@NerdCookies]

Thanks! You can call me Elaine if you'd like🤙

[@Christianos_Theophile]

8 Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity. 9 ¶ And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. 10 The preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth. -Ecclesiastes 12:8-10

[@djsteadypace]

The core concepts of Earthseed include the belief that humanity's ultimate destiny is to become one with the universe, that change is inevitable and necessary for growth, and that individuals have the power to shape their own destinies. The religion also emphasizes the importance of community and cooperation, and encourages individuals to actively work towards creating a better future for themselves and for humanity as a whole. In the context of information theory, the concept of individuality refers to the degree of autonomy and self-regulation that a system or group of organisms possesses. The mathematical criteria that defines a group of organisms as an individual is the level of organization and information processing that takes place within the group. One way to measure the level of organization and information processing within a group is through the use of entropy and mutual information. Entropy is a measure of the disorder or randomness within a system, while mutual information is a measure of the amount of information shared between different parts of a system. A group of organisms that functions as an individual would have a lower entropy and higher mutual information than a group of organisms that does not function as an individual. In other words, a group that functions as an individual would be highly organized and the individual entities would share a lot of information among themselves. Does this sound like a Duncan Ghola or a Kwisatz Haderach? Their individual self being a multitude of selves. Alternatively, this could be referring to a free face dancer, that has incorporated the lives of many people. One possible interpretation is that Earthseed can be seen as a way of organizing and processing information about the world and humanity's place in it. The belief that humanity's ultimate destiny is to become one with the universe can be seen as a way of understanding the interconnectedness and interdependence of all things. The emphasis on change and growth, as well as the belief that individuals have the power to shape their own destinies, can be seen as a way of processing and making sense of the constant flux and uncertainty of the world. The importance of community and cooperation in Earthseed could be interpreted as a way of sharing and processing information among individuals and groups to create a better future for everyone.

[@DevakiKhanna]

Very similar to the Grand Inquisitor passage in Brothers Karamazov.

[@shanenolan5625]

Thanks Elaine

[@alexanderkoski-quaye7412]

We will always need the desert as a forge of survival.

[@billthevillageidiot4069]

"You fool yourselves with images you cannot possibly understand. You cripple yourselves with these toads of ritual and ceremony!"

[@LordDirus007]

There is actually a Russian czar that died under mysterious circumstances and sometime after this mysterious preacher came about and he had a lot of uncanny similarities with the czar

[@ThompPL1]

Cycles within cycles, upon cycles . . . Kingdoms can not change until human nature ("hearts of men") changes . . . Ezekiel 11:19

[@AudraT]

Fascinating.

[@jerrysstories711]

So... pretty much everything Preacher Paul tried to do was undone by Leto's Golden Path. In fact, if anyone had listened to the Preacher, Leto wouldn't have been Emperor, wouldn't have become the God Emperor, wouldn't have successfully enacted the Golden Path that was humanity's salvation.

[@grallonsphere271]

Without going through the mutation Leto went through, couldn't Paul at least prevent the transformation of Arrakis? It was predictable, especially for him, that turning Arrakis into a lush planet would endanger the worms and soften the people. Also, I've always wondered why the initial jihad was necessary, since Paul had already achieved victory over the Guild and the Great Houses *before* the Fremen were let loose.

[@samuelbishop1701]

Many of the houses disagreed with the change if leadership (although not that many). And made the Jihad happen was the Fremen refusing to stop until everyone saw Paul as they did.

[@Mephiestopholes]

Here we are, almost 3.5kyrs later. What will we be in another 10..

[@shanenolan5625]

A few preacher lines. ( message to the choam directors ) when ever has a clark gevin his life for the company ? . And I'm convinced, in-between books , alia had an abortion. Or refused to get pregnant. ( he referred to her as a murderer of her own posterity, the posterity of her loins. ) I think was dialogue. . In Messiah, alia has a vision of her child, and she learns will also be preborn. ( the spice overdose chapter, her and Duncan)

[@maxmercer1931]

Why didn't Paul tell the fremen about the Missionaria Protectiva (fuck autocorrect)?

[@aaronyates5324]

Wait does anyone know if the guide was explicitly a misdirection? I thought he had stopped using his prescience and that's why he could no longer see. This is based on my admittedly fuzzy memory of his conversation in the desert with Leto II. I guess he could have used his prescience to see without seeing into the future. I understand that the guide may have ended up serving that purpose, but I was wondering if that was ever clarified. Is it ever stated that he could still use his prescience to see? The more I think about this the more confused I am. I might need to re-read the book because the question was initially me nitpicking, but as I thought about it became more fundamental to my understanding of Paul.

[@hamishsewell5990]

The religion of Muad’Dib is not Muad’Dib! Love this!

[@alexns]

What an amazing ending for Paul.

[@Stitchman3875]

I've come to see the Preacher as an amalgam of John the Baptist and Jesus. The John the Baptist is pretty obvious, but the fact that he was basically preaching against the religious establishment correlates to Jesus when he spoke up against the Pharisees and other religious figures. I remember someone once said that if Jesus were here today, you wouldn't be able to hear him over his "followers" calling him a communist. That's pretty much what happened to the Preacher. No one knew that he was actually the person they worship and they ended up killing him. At least that's what I take from it.

[@hank3368]

Will villeneuve go all the way through children of dune so we see this depiction in film?

[@NerdCookies]

Time will tell.

[@Deridus]

God-Emperor would be... interesting. My favorite line: "Damn the Romans!"

[@twmUX]

They really should’ve just made Dune a mini series, there’s just never going to be enough character development for me personally. Although I like the rendition of the new film the characters are very one-dimensional, or at least most of them are. There’s not enough dialogue or time to really do it justice. The biggest issue I have is not hearing their thoughts, added such a layer To the books.

[@misterangel8486]

Just when I needed a tasty cookie😎👍

[@renuvatio9986]

As they say without his eye's Paul could finally see was he really the savior of the Fremen or a curse that to me is the big question I see him a someone co caught up with the future and trying to manipulate it as to miss the moment which is life the Fremen lived for the moment it was hard but they knew who they were

[@jordantucker9799]

It would be very interesting to see the preacher in a possible film adaptation of Children of Dune. More people should hear about how our fixed habits and blind pursuits can lead to self destruction from the individual to society as a whole.

[@tk423b]

The waker has asleepen

[@thedoughnutking9514]

As did the Sardaukar fall so did fall all those who opposed them fell….

[@TillionTirrion]

You’re welcome! -Paul

[@TillionTirrion]

Great topic too!

[@williammckay8516]

Sad, but true 😢

[@josephlamonica4167]

The only preacher we should listen to is Elaine. Keep on preaching the good word (videos) :P

[@raccoons_stole_my_account]

Reading Children of Dune now. I'll get back to this video once I'm done - I don't want to spoil myself the rest of the book...

[@kenaustinardenol1338]

Even the Mahdi, the Lisan-al-Gaïb, the Kwisatz Haderach was fallible and afraid, so he had to become Paul again.

[@FloydFreed]

This book and God Emperor made me think of the phrase, "some men must play as devils so that others may aspire to be angels."

[@sveintheberserk]

BLASPHEMERS AND IDOLATORS ALL

[@User_Un_Friendly]

Please bake your videos with chocolate chips! Or just sprinkle some cinnamon. Your videos are delicious! 😋🐶 Certainly, the mythos and emotional draw of a powerful man, brought down low by hubris and circumstances, becoming a messenger for the truths he’s discovered in his journey is a powerful imagery. And in case no one besides me noticed, Herbert is borrowing from that most powerful of plays, Oedipus Rex.

[@shanenolan5625]

Cookies 🍪 ( cookie monster) seasme street.

[@savagesavant4964]

Sounds like a Galactic Bhudda.

[@sgttau977]

Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. Weak men create hard times. -The cycle repeats.

[@alastairmcleod3635]

SAND WILL COVER THIS PLACE!!

[@kcvriess]

Content so fascinating. Voice intonation so annoying.

[@feroxvenom5082]

Get rid of the music

[@rolf3806]

Sounds like today’s world. Love your voice! It’s calming you are good at explaining the facts in your review of Dune lore. I have read the original 6 books twice!

[@dickhardpicard]

Basically life after zendaya dies😮‍💨