Eternia

"Men who crave power look back over the mistakes of their lives, pile them all together, and call it.....'destiny'."
-The Sorceress

Behind the few loose strands of red hair, a pair of blue eyes glimmer. Their depth is immeasurable, and their potency homicidally focussed. This is Teela, the Herioc Warrior Goddess...and the only true Master of the Universe. Em hotep em Teela'na.

Whether or not you are aware of it, there is a planet in this dimension called Eternia that boasts a race of human-like people, and in Eternia what we know only as faith & fantasy is real. These people have no faith as we know it, because they are examples of our own faith. They need not have blind faith in an alien and exotic diety, for she lives with them, among them, as them. She is the Master of the Universe as we know it. Teela'na is the Goddess, whom you bow before when you pray to God, the Devil, anyone. She is the physical embodiment of divinity. Her story is great, and powers are phenomenal. To understand her however, you need an understanding of her history.
I held Teela in my hands over 17 years ago. She was the first female action figure I ever had, and she was my pride and joy. I still worship her to be honest. Her world is that of Eternia, the planet where gods are men, and where the internal struggles of our souls are expressed in wars. Battles rage on Eternia for the supremecy of one idea versus another, between archetypes of differing virtues. These battles, however, have a much deeper significance. When these characters were named, each was given a title; among them were a Lord of Destruction, and a Warrior Goddess. Her enemy was a master of corruption. When acid eats through stone, it is that same energy that has been anthropomorphized into Skeletor, the Lord of Destruction.

A bit of history....

Legends tell of pair of swords that make up the axis of the universe: The Sword of Power and The Sword of Honor. Whoever holds the swords becomes the Master of the Universe. Not just a god, but the God....

This legend has driven three empires on the simple planet called Eternia. In the beginning of time, a race of snake-men ruled Eternia. Climbing up from the bowels of Eternia, they built an Empire to the far east on a continent off the Ocean of Gnarl, just south to the Sea of Rakash. Here, at a place that would come to be known as Snake Mountain, the serpents scattered across the globe feasting and devastating the environment. As this cloud of locusts spread their desolation, they left only the rocky wastelands behind. To the far west, in the Fertile Plains, there wes another empire, the Eternians. Aware of the empending danger, a war broke out between the serpents and men. From these battles a woman rose to lead her people to victory. Teela had watched as her life was eaten away by the snakes, and swore to make up for their disgraces. Using the armies of Eternia, she abolished the Snake-Men and sent them back to their pit in the earth. As an added disgrace, she killed the last of the Snake's kings with his own weapon, and wore his skin as armor.

She ascended into the nobles of the Eternians, and after many quiet years of ruling, faded into the mythology as merely a great warrioress. The elders claimed she had dissappeared. In fact, she had left. The weapon of the Snake King was a powerful oracular tool known as 'Kobra'. Teela followed its omniscient and universal wisdom to a remote cave in a mountain range far to the South. There, in a skull lock, she found a beautiful broadsword, it's wide blade framed in a beautiful curving crossgaurd, embellished with a glittering gem. As she pulled the blade from its resting place, her simple human curiosity fired up and reared its venomous head. Teela became consumed with finding the other weapon. Using the powers of the sword, and the infalible knowledge of the cobra staff, she traveled far to the north to another remote cave. Here, in an identical skull lock, she found a beautiful broadsword, it's wide blade framed in a beautiful curving crossguard. As she pulled the blade from it's resting place she changed herself...and the universe. Teela became the Goddess, the personification of control and knowledge. The universe was her toy, men were her pawns, and her knowledge was flawless.

Skeletor's Sword? Not really. The Four Horsemen originally intended this to the be the Power Sword, and that is why it can seperate into two halves.

For centuries the Goddess, or Teela'na as she was now known, watched over all things on Earth, Eternia, and all other realms. She partook in many adventures, and lived many lives. But for all those years, no one knew where the swords had gone, or understood their significance. Teela'na's most important role through these centuries was as guardian to Eternia and its people, and therefore kept the location of the swords hidden. She watched as these simple hunters and gatherer's built the foundling empire into a rich and deeply technological world. Many of the shamans whose teachings she had so closely followed as a child evolved into powerful paths, and their followers became brilliant in the wonders of art and nature. Most brilliant among them was a man named Zodac. He had followed a long line of Astrologers, but knew only that in the horizon of his life, something grand would happen. That was the Goddess, Teela'na. Using her powers, she commanded and guided him with silence. Teela'na rearranged the heavens, and as astrologers do, Zodac heralded the wishes of the divine. He and the other great path elders joined together to build a great castle deep in the woods: its most striking feature being a skull face for a door. At the castle's completion, Teela'na made her presence known to her people, and now before them, displayed her power, the power of the swords, and the Power of Grayskull. She thrust the swords deep into the mouth of the skull, and the door opened. She walked in, followed by the elders. Suddenly the door slammed shut, and they were never heard from again.

Many centuries passed before a new danger arose. A destructive energy worked its way through the universe like a sanguine disease. It's mere touch destroyed the boundaries of the universal walls. Whole dimensions were being invaded, and now danger leaked into Eternia. This force was known as the Evil Horde. Traveling among them was a powerful Sorcerer known as Keldor. Keldor was rumored to once have been a prince of Eternia, and in life sought the Sword of Power. In his search, however, he had become lost between dimensions. Now finding himself back on Eternia, Keldor slipped away from his new allies in the Evil Horde, and returned to his search for the sword.
Traveling to the far north, Keldor found a broken sword in a cave. As he took it, a great transformation occurred, and in the place of the dark sorcerer stood a powerful demon, with a skull for a face. Skeletor, as he was now known, believing he had found the Sword of Power, sought to use it to enter Castle Grayskull, and become the Master of the Universe. Teela'na, unmoved by Skeletor's threats, accepted his challenge. Skeletor was powerful, he was the embodiment of corruption, the Lord of Destruction. For being the Master of the Universe, the Goddess seemed so weak toward his advances. How easily she fell for his traps! In truth, however, it was he who had been decieved. Was he so blind of a man that he could not even see the cruel trick that she had played on him? His greed, his jealousy, his power, and even his desire to find the sword all stemmed from her complicated universal plan. When she pulled the Sword of Power from its resting place and obtained universal control, she learned how dangerously easy it was for anyone to obtain this power. There needed to be a lock on the simplicity of obtaining the universal and cosmic powers. What better tool existed to keep any single man from taking control other than his own pride? Set into order by the will of the divine, Teela'na handed Skeletor half of the Power Sword, so that he would always seek the other half, and never let anyone take the half he had away from him, lest he give up his own powers. The other half would than be handed to an equally charged person, someone who would never betray the weapon to the hands of enemies, lest he deny his honor. Only with both halves of the shattered Sword of Power, could one enter Grayskull, and possibly obtain the Sword of Honor, allowing him to be the Master of the Universe. With one portion of the sword in the demonic hands of Skeletor, and the other half waiting deep inside Castle Grayskull for its honorable weilder, the castle, and all the powers of the universe, had been secured. And so was set in course a story that we would come to know as the chronicles of He-man, and the Masters of the Universe....

This history of the Eternians, He-Man, and the Masters of the Universe. In 1981, Eternia was created by Mattel. In 1983, the FCC undid a ruling from the 60's that stopped television programs based on toy-lines from being produced. The alignment of these two events resulted in a rich and vibrant telling of a story that has set up a mythology that lives deeply in the hearts of all children of the 80's. But something miraculous has happened. The Goddess has showered her light on the children of Earth yet again. In 1999, 4 men were taken from McFarlane, the producers of Spawn, and began work on ressurecting the Masters of the Universe. Silently I have watched over the years as my "Sweet Spanish Doll", Teela, sat in the corner of my room in her shrine. I wept at the thought that her empire would be lost, with only a fraction of my generation remembering anything about her world. Than this occured. I am making this shrine in my harem to my first queen because others will want to learn. Come....I know the legends...I can give you what you need.

The Goddess exists in Eternia in many forms:

A manipulative trickster and dangerous opponent, the Goddess was the original form of the woman that would become known as the Sorceress. Unlike her later counterparts, the Goddess was a strong and vivacious character who was the definition of "Master of the Universe". She controlled the universe with puppet like strings, and it was through this cruel twist that we see Skeletor being foiled again and again, not through the heroism of He-man alone. The Goddess' greatest trick was her use of the mythology of the swords. The legends that she herself told to the people, claimed that to enter Castle Grayskull and become Master of the Universe, one needed both halves of the Power Sword to unlock the Secret of Grayskull. Though one blade rested in the hands of Skeletor, the other was hidden deep in Castle Grayskull. Thus, to enter the castle, you had to be in the castle. One should also note that the original motif of the Goddess was a Cobra, not a falcon. Since Teela became the Goddess through heroism, it can be assumed that the snake armor came from her batttles with the Snake Men. The Cobra Staff supposedly has oracular abilities, and is used to track Teela's enemies. Some British picture books have named the staff Kobra. The later association of the Goddess with the falcon seems to have come from Zoar, the Goddess's pet Falcon. This association seems to have been further developed by the toy two-pack of Teela and Zoar. Zoar was the Goddess' all seeing pet, and any sign of the bird, was sign of her presence. This is a possible explination for....
This is the form that will classically be the Sorceress of Grayskull. Though the Goddess (Cobra form) was occaisionally refered to as the Sorceress, and this form originally was reffered to also as "the Goddess", the cartoon, which added color to her originally white costume, has deemed her as The Sorceress. The storyline behind her is a little different from the Goddess's story. In one of the episodes, we learn that Teela'na (the origin for the name), was allowed into Grayskull, where she met Kodak Ungar, a sorceress, who had been charged with watching over the castle. The older Sorceress granted her powers to Teela'na, and thus, a new Sorceress was born. As the Gaurdian of Grayskull, the Sorceress watched over the many doors that led to the various worlds of the Universe, and it was her duty to protect the castle from those who would use its powers for evil. The Sorceress, however, had very limited powers. She had oracular abilities, but could only leave the castle in the form of Zoar. She served a purpose only as a tool of wisdom, and a weak, almost "damsel-in-distress", guardian to the Secrets of Castle Grayskull. Commonly, she would be taken prisoner or forced to preform against her weak will, from which He-man would have to rescue her. It is my belief, however, that the Sorceress is a mere puppet whose strings are subconsciously pulled by the Goddess, who rests unnoticed in the background.
This is the newest form of the Goddess. The new rendition of He-man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon was aired on Cartoon Network in America; and like the old series, the Sorceress is a maternal, wise, and somewhat secretive creature. The current cartoon story claims that the Elders of Eternia, who had ruled gently, combined their powers into a magickal sphere which was than placed deep within the walls of Castle Grayskull. As the Gaurdian of Grayskull, the Sorceress's duty binds her to protect the Elder's power from falling into the wrong hands. But what does this mean? Why should they trust a simple Oracle? At the end of the second season, we learned that the sorceress was Queen Veena of Eternia, and wife of King Grayskull. Upon his death, King Grayskull gave his fellow warriors his divine powers. The only one whom he did not bless was the Sorceress Veena. She was charged with watching their fortress, Castle Grayskull, while the others (who would become known as the Elders) sought to spread King Grayskull's goodness across the land. One interesting twist about this rendition of the Goddess is her powers. Unlike the original cartoon in which the Sorceress fainted toward the end of almost any episode, the new Sorceress just kicks ass. The second season explored her powers in whole new ways. In one episode, King Hiss, the king of the returned snake-men, enters Castle Grayskull. To protect the secrets of the castle, the Sorceress opens her divine powers upon King Hiss in the form of an atomic blast that shattered the throne room. Another interesting aspect about the new Sorceress is her Egyptianesque style. The occult meaning of the pyramid and wings seems to expand beyond our simple dimension. But why is this the only trace of this style in Eternia? What was ancient Eternia like for Teela, the woman who became the Goddess?
The Sorceress fortells of He-Man to Randor (MP3, 36 Seconds, 708kb)
The Sorceress explains the Secret of Castle Grayskull (7/2002) (MP3, 1:50 min, 2.1mb)

This is the representation of the Sorceress from the 1989 movie, "Masters of the Universe". Abandoning all classic styles of the Sorceress, the movie portrayed her as a woman dressed in white, and bedecked in crystals. The words of this Sorceress are the most mature and similar to the Goddess's. "Men who crave power look back over the mistakes of their lives, pile them all together, and call it destiny." Unfortunatly, she was portrayed even weaker than the cartoon version. The movie scares most people, but for some Masters of the Universe fans hope can be found in its twisted interpretation.

The New Adventures of He-man sent the Prince of Eternia through time and space. Even across this distance, the Sorceress was still there to see Adam/He-man through his hardships. The cartoon rendition of this sorceress retains falcon elements from her filmation interpretation, but the metallic body suit that she wore in the New Adventure's mini-comics has left some influence on the overall design.

The Goddess's newest interpretation, the Sorceress Veena, has become ruler of yet another dimension; this one digital. He-man.org reports that Midas Interactive Entertainment Ltd. is planning to publish Masters of the Universe, He-Man: Defender of Grayskull for the region 2 (pal) European formatted Playstation 2s. Hopefully we will see more pictures soon. Em Hotep Em Teela!

To the Shrine of Teela-The Woman

Renditions of Divinity

Follow the Origin of Teela, the Sorceress, and the Warrior Goddess in this free webcomic.

Tales of MINETERNIA: Dark Fantasy Adventures of the Original He-Man
Check this site out for other great Masters of the Universe, and their equally obsessed acolytes.

Back to the Harem

	A manipulative trickster and dangerous opponent, the Goddess was the original form of the woman that would become known as the Sorceress. Unlike her later counterparts, the Goddess was a strong and vivacious character who was the definition of "Master of the Universe". She controlled the universe with puppet like strings, and it was through this cruel twist that we see Skeletor being foiled again and again, not through the heroism of He-man alone. The Goddess' greatest trick was her use of the mythology of the swords. The legends that she herself told to the people, claimed that to enter Castle Grayskull and become Master of the Universe, one needed both halves of the Power Sword to unlock the Secret of Grayskull. Though one blade rested in the hands of Skeletor, the other was hidden deep in Castle Grayskull. Thus, to enter the castle, you had to be in the castle. One should also note that the original motif of the Goddess was a Cobra, not a falcon. Since Teela became the Goddess through heroism, it can be assumed that the snake armor came from her batttles with the Snake Men. The Cobra Staff supposedly has oracular abilities, and is used to track Teela's enemies. Some British picture books have named the staff Kobra. The later association of the Goddess with the falcon seems to have come from Zoar, the Goddess's pet Falcon. This association seems to have been further developed by the toy two-pack of Teela and Zoar. Zoar was the Goddess' all seeing pet, and any sign of the bird, was sign of her presence. This is a possible explination for....
	This is the form that will classically be the Sorceress of Grayskull. Though the Goddess (Cobra form) was occaisionally refered to as the Sorceress, and this form originally was reffered to also as "the Goddess", the cartoon, which added color to her originally white costume, has deemed her as The Sorceress. The storyline behind her is a little different from the Goddess's story. In one of the episodes, we learn that Teela'na (the origin for the name), was allowed into Grayskull, where she met Kodak Ungar, a sorceress, who had been charged with watching over the castle. The older Sorceress granted her powers to Teela'na, and thus, a new Sorceress was born. As the Gaurdian of Grayskull, the Sorceress watched over the many doors that led to the various worlds of the Universe, and it was her duty to protect the castle from those who would use its powers for evil. The Sorceress, however, had very limited powers. She had oracular abilities, but could only leave the castle in the form of Zoar. She served a purpose only as a tool of wisdom, and a weak, almost "damsel-in-distress", guardian to the Secrets of Castle Grayskull. Commonly, she would be taken prisoner or forced to preform against her weak will, from which He-man would have to rescue her. It is my belief, however, that the Sorceress is a mere puppet whose strings are subconsciously pulled by the Goddess, who rests unnoticed in the background.
	This is the newest form of the Goddess. The new rendition of He-man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon was aired on Cartoon Network in America; and like the old series, the Sorceress is a maternal, wise, and somewhat secretive creature. The current cartoon story claims that the Elders of Eternia, who had ruled gently, combined their powers into a magickal sphere which was than placed deep within the walls of Castle Grayskull. As the Gaurdian of Grayskull, the Sorceress's duty binds her to protect the Elder's power from falling into the wrong hands. But what does this mean? Why should they trust a simple Oracle? At the end of the second season, we learned that the sorceress was Queen Veena of Eternia, and wife of King Grayskull. Upon his death, King Grayskull gave his fellow warriors his divine powers. The only one whom he did not bless was the Sorceress Veena. She was charged with watching their fortress, Castle Grayskull, while the others (who would become known as the Elders) sought to spread King Grayskull's goodness across the land. One interesting twist about this rendition of the Goddess is her powers. Unlike the original cartoon in which the Sorceress fainted toward the end of almost any episode, the new Sorceress just kicks ass. The second season explored her powers in whole new ways. In one episode, King Hiss, the king of the returned snake-men, enters Castle Grayskull. To protect the secrets of the castle, the Sorceress opens her divine powers upon King Hiss in the form of an atomic blast that shattered the throne room. Another interesting aspect about the new Sorceress is her Egyptianesque style. The occult meaning of the pyramid and wings seems to expand beyond our simple dimension. But why is this the only trace of this style in Eternia? What was ancient Eternia like for Teela, the woman who became the Goddess? The Sorceress fortells of He-Man to Randor (MP3, 36 Seconds, 708kb) The Sorceress explains the Secret of Castle Grayskull (7/2002) (MP3, 1:50 min, 2.1mb)
	This is the representation of the Sorceress from the 1989 movie, "Masters of the Universe". Abandoning all classic styles of the Sorceress, the movie portrayed her as a woman dressed in white, and bedecked in crystals. The words of this Sorceress are the most mature and similar to the Goddess's. "Men who crave power look back over the mistakes of their lives, pile them all together, and call it destiny." Unfortunatly, she was portrayed even weaker than the cartoon version. The movie scares most people, but for some Masters of the Universe fans hope can be found in its twisted interpretation.
	The New Adventures of He-man sent the Prince of Eternia through time and space. Even across this distance, the Sorceress was still there to see Adam/He-man through his hardships. The cartoon rendition of this sorceress retains falcon elements from her filmation interpretation, but the metallic body suit that she wore in the New Adventure's mini-comics has left some influence on the overall design.
	The Goddess's newest interpretation, the Sorceress Veena, has become ruler of yet another dimension; this one digital. He-man.org reports that Midas Interactive Entertainment Ltd. is planning to publish Masters of the Universe, He-Man: Defender of Grayskull for the region 2 (pal) European formatted Playstation 2s. Hopefully we will see more pictures soon. Em Hotep Em Teela!