How The Bene Gesserit Manufactured A Messiah | Dune Lore

An examination of the Bene Gesserit’s efforts to produce the Kwisatz Haderach and how this manufactured messiah was designed to capture the allegiance of the known universe and subsequently dictate the fate of humanity. Spoiler warning if you are unfamiliar with Frank Herbert’s Dune

Music Credits:
Background Music: Marion - Daydreaming

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[EternalRoman]

Perfect explanation of the details concerning the Bene Gesserit Sisterhood's hubris. It was so funny that even after thousands of years after Paul Muad'Dib they still had the gall to refer to him and his son the god Emperor Leto II (III) as the "Failed Kwizats Haderachs" showing that the Sisterhood lacked the humility or even the wisdom to recognize their own folly.

Both Muad'Dib and Leto II loved acting on spite against the Sisterhood, many people miss that. They would go against everything the Sisterhood wanted them to do, and of course Maud'Dib and Leto II were always aware and do things to anger them and dissuade them from ever trying to create another "messiah". Cause it was learned that Count Fenrir was a previous attempt at a Kwizats Haderach before Paul, only for Fenrir to be born a eunuch, thus failing to develop full prescience due to lack of a strong link to the Male Genetic memory that the Kwizats Haderach is supposed to have.

By the end of the 6th novel, we still see that the Bene Gesserits still retained their stupid idea in wanting to control, but were very wary on trying to create another Kwizats Haderach, to the point of denouncing ever doing it again, unless they were sure to control him, lol.

[alexedi]

As you have surely mentioned in other videos, Dune is, among other things, about the dangers of messianism, fanaticism and political manipulation. Very nice video, as always. I always look forward to your next Dune video, as a ”dunie” myself :).

[ThompPL]

Paul did ultimately become the father of the Savior of Humanity (who indeed emerged into being 'on time' exactly one generation later) :
Leto II Atreides, The God Emperor who finally set Humanity onto The Golden Path (i.e. genetically programmed rejection of sheltered safety that leads to fatal stagnation).

[cloudbloom]

Frank Herbert set up such a brilliant mythos in the books it's very impressive

[Fafnd]

You tried to create a godlike being and you thought you could CONTROL him?!?!

[manwiththeredface]

I think the Kwisatz Haderach didn't come too early, it's just that the Bene Gesserit did not know what to do with him. To them a Kwisatz Haderach was just the end product of something akin to a dog breeding program and a tool they hoped to control, and through him the entire humankind, just like pre Butlerian Jihad AI was used for the same purpose (yes, in Dune we're witnessing how the ban on AI was but a superficial solution because the real problem is always some group of humans trying to control another group). They didn't count on the fact that the KH is still a human with his own motivations, desires and all. And with the near destruction of his family those personal motivations became top priority for him, setting him on the one way path to be an enemy of the Bene Gesserit.

[stefbeg]

I think it is implied somewhere that Shaddam IV was denied a son because the Bene Gesserit wanted the KH to become the legitimate leader of mankind, by marrying one of the five imperial heiress.

[thestanleys]

"he's not the Messiah he's a very naughty boy" 😂😂😂

[garengatorlope]

Another factor is the Bene Gesserit had the benefit of their female ancestors while the kwisatz haderach had the female AND the male lines to draw from

[rlarkinson]

It reminds me of a slippery fish that the sisterhood tried to grab hold of, and splash.. it slips through their fingers and simply swims away.

[User_Un_Friendly]

In genetics, what the Bene Geserit was proposing by having an Atredes female breed with Feyd Ruatha is called "Inbeeding", because Jessica is Baron Harkonnen's daughter. Unless Feyd is not related to Baron Harkonnen, and we have absolutely no evidence of that, this was a deliberate decision by the Sisterhood to breed close relatives together (cousins) in an effort to conserve desirable genetic traits.

It's been mentioned in the book, that had Feyd been brought up under the strict, but fair and disciplined environment like the Atredes household, he might have turned very differently.😮

[martinainscough]

“Never follow a leader without asking your own questions.”
― Frank Herbert, Chapterhouse: Dune

Cheers.

[RodneyGraves]

On behalf of my lady and myself, thank you and well done in your coverage of this and other topics.

We just completed re-reading (she for the sixth time, me for my fifth) Dune for our neighborhood SF book club. We have some quibbles with your interpretation of a few things.

The Sisterhood of the Bene Gesserit seem to us to have no great reverence nor faith, instead quite cynically using religion as a panoply and tool towards their larger agenda of political mastery. Since they exist in a long standing stable feudal system, the Sisterhood view the genetic refinement of the noble houses to be one of their most valuable tools to achieve their political ends. Towards these ends they view the creation of the Kwisatz Haderach, one with the hereditary gifts which they could refine and train (and thus control) from inception, as a key to their political ends.

Herbert holds up Count Casimir Fenring as one of the failed attempts of this breeding program; a sterile dead end. The Sisterhood do not realize his value as Paul-Muad Dib does, for he realizes that has has never seen the Count in any of his visions. He deduces that several of his own unseen deaths were at this hand, but that is more his Mentat training than his abilities as Kwisatch Haderack. Note as well that the Sisterhood did not view the Mentat skills and abilities as needful for their creation, that training of Paul was a choice by Jessica, Leto I, and Thuffir based on the abilities and potential the young Paul had demonstrated to them.

Thank you again and do please keep up the good work. We were particularly impressed by the balance and restraint you showed in your nonetheless scathing review of Amazon's (in your apt words) Bastardization of Tolkien's Legendarium.

[AudraT]

This video really connects alot of the dots. Certain things from the movie are starting to make more sense.

[marknovak]

The idea you create a myth you no longer have control of it is one of the truly powerful concepts created by Frank Herbert.

[smoore]

Great video, I love the background music on this one as well. I know Frank Herbert would probably not agree with me buy I have always loved the Benne Geserite, some of the most interesting storylines in the books, and some of my favorite characters come from them.

[Jared_Wignall]

Your Dune videos are always entertaining and interesting to watch, keep up the great work Elaine!

[erikbjelke]

An idea that's been growing stronger in my head as I'm thinking about Dune, and looking over questions and comments on TV Tropes. . .

The Messiah arrived a generation early. When Paul informs Jessica that she's Baron Harkonen's daughter, they both immediately realize that the Bene Gesserit thought they needed to double-down on some specific piece of genetics that a close Atreides-Harkonen breeding would produce (if Paul had been a woman, then mating with Feyd-Rautha would have been first cousins once removed). The Bene Gesserit just didn't expect that the necessary genetics were already in place.

But. . . were they? Given what Paul, and later Leto II bring to humanity, were they *really* kwizatz haderach in full? If that "missing" bit of genetics had been obtained, would the hypothetical son of Paulina Atreides and Feyd-Rautha Harkonen have been better equipped to use their prescience to guide humanity to a good future, eliminating all the bad that occurred as Paul and Leto II sought to avoid a bad one?

Probably not. . . Dune is, after all, far from a totally optimistic universe, and of the corrupt power structures that exist at the time we enter the narrative, the Bene Gesserit are among the worst. The rot had well and truly set in, and drastic action would probably be inevitable if it were to be removed. Still. . . it makes one wonder, if there can be a "failed" kwizatz haderach like Count Fenring, can there be a "successful enough, but not as successful as he might have been" kwizatz haderach? Is Paul just at the bottom end of what one could have been, and could another generation or two have made a difference?

[casualcomicfan]

Wonderful video, you have a gift for breaking down complex concepts for everyday people to understand.

[rumorcontrol]

I wonder if the originally planned Kwisatz would have rebelled against the mothers in the same way?