Ori
Summary
The Ori (pronounced or-eye; alternate spelling "Orii") were a collective of Ascended Beings who manifested themselves in a wall of fire in the City of the Gods on the Plains of Celestis in a far galaxy thought to be original home of the Ancients who were called the Altera those many millions of years ago.
Stargate References
Introduction
Several million years ago in an unidentified galaxy, the human race known as the Ancients were called the Altera. The Altera lived in a society with other humans, known as the Ori. Both groups were advanced humans on the path toward ascension, the shedding of the physical form to become a form of intelligent energy (called Ascended Beings). While on this path, a philosophical difference concerning ascension caused the two groups to become enemies. The Altera looked upon ascension as a scientific process, while the Ori attached a religious aspect to it because ascension gave one more knowledge, power, and understanding of the universe. Because of this great understanding, the Ori called ascension the Path to Enlightenment. The Ori became extremists and eventually tried to kill the Altera. Instead of engaging in a war, the Altera fled. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3", 9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1")
The Altera traveled for thousands of years and then found the Milky Way Galaxy. They called their new home "Avalon" and built a Stargate network. Five to ten million years ago, these Ancients' existence was threatened by a plague that swept through the galaxy. Some of the Ancients left the Milky Way Galaxy in the city-ship "Atlantis" where they found a new home in the Pegasus Galaxy. Some of them learned to ascend. Those who remained and could not ascend died of the plague. After this galactic devastation, there was a group of Ancients who used the advanced weapon on Dakara to reseed the galaxy with life, thus creating the second evolution of humanity. (6.22 "Full Circle", 8.18 "Threads", 9.02 "Avalon Part 2"; Stargate Atlantis: 1.01 "Rising Part 1")
The Ori eventually ascended as well, and they, too, created another evolution of humanity in their home galaxy. The Altera who ascended joined a collective called The Others, while the Ori joined in a collective in opposition to them. Whereas The Others established rules of non-interference concerning the "lowers", those in the corporeal plane of existence, the Ori promised to show their humanity the Path to Enlightenment toward ascension as long as they worshipped them as their gods and creators through their religion, called "Origin", which was laid out in The Book of Origin. The reason for these polar positions is that an Ascended Being is actually able to gain more power in the ascended planes of existence through the surrender of a human's free will. The more worshippers the Ori obtained, the more powerful they became. Any humans who refused the Ori were destroyed. Those who surrendered their free will to the Ori did not obtain ascension that was promised in Origin because the Ori did not intend to share their power. Not wanting to be corrupted in the same manner, The Others established their non-interference policy with strict rules that were meant to prevent any of their own from attempting to gain power through such destructive means. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3", 9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1")
The Others knew of the Ori and their ways and thus decided to hide the existence of the second evolution of humans in the Milky Way Galaxy. For millions of years, the Ori did not know that the Alteran Ancients had created life in their new home galaxy. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3")
Upon discovering what was left of Avalon on Earth and that it was linked to the Alteran Ancients, Daniel Jackson hypothesized the possibly of there being an advanced civilization of Ancients living as humans in their home galaxy. He thought that some of the Ancients who left the Pegasus Galaxy 10,000 years ago might have returned home to that galaxy far, far away. After determining that a piece of Ancient technology found among the treasures of Avalon in the Glastonbury Tor was an intergalactic communications device, Daniel asked that he attempt contact to see if there might still exist an Ancient civilization that would share their knowledge and technology. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2")
Unfortunately, Daniel's use of the communications device brought the existence of humanity in the Milky Way Galaxy to the Ori's attention. In order to gain more power, the Ori decided to spread their doctrine to the "unbelievers" in this "far off place". It was the dawn of a new age for the Ori. They dispatched their missionaries, called Priors, through the Stargates and built spaceships with highly-trained militia to lead a crusade in the Milky Way Galaxy. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3")
It became one of the SGC's highest priorities to inform the rest of humanity throughout the galaxy of the Ori and their doctrine — the doctrine that dictated that those who rejected them would be destroyed. (9.03 "Origin Part 3")
Origin
"Origin" is the religious doctrine established by the Ori and set forth in The Book of Origin. Within the book's pages are stories of people with whom a human can relate that show the advantages and disadvantages of accepting the Ori as gods. The icon of this religion is fire, something that gives off light, warmth, and energy. The fact that on Earth this icon has evil or demonic associations in many religions prompted Daniel to wonder if the Ancients had influenced this negative connotation in order to identify the threat the Ori posed if they were ever discovered by Earth's humanity. (9.03 "Origin Part 3")
Because the Ori were Ascended Beings, they had great powers. The Ori used these powers by advancing devout human followers in their evolution toward ascension. These advanced humans, called Priors, used these powers to obtain human worshippers, calling them miracles of the Ori. The Priors used these powers to both kill and resurrect on behalf of the Ori, but they were not aware that the promise of ascension was a lie. (9.03 "Origin Part 3", 9.05 "The Powers That Be", 9.06 "Beachhead", 9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1")
The Ori and Origin had levels of authority:
| The Ori themselves occupied their religion's highest placement, claiming to be gods and the creators of humanity. They possessed tremendous powers and a greater understanding of the universe as Ascended Beings. Individual entities of the Ori spoke of themselves in the plural, which might be considered acknowledgement that no single Ori entity was of higher authority than another. As a collective, they manifested themselves in a wall of fire, seen from the balcony of a temple in the City of the Gods, and attended to by the Doci, the one who spoke the word of the Ori. (9.03 "Origin Part 3") | |
| When Daniel wished to talk with the Ori, he asked that he speak with the Doci, the "one who speaks the word of the Ori." Daniel studied The Book of Origin and used the story of Egidius of Vil Dare to form his request — his "need to speak of things that can only be spoken in the light of the fire." Individual Ori entities took temporary possession of the Doci and used his voice to communicate. The Doci, however, seemed to remain self-aware during this possession. Daniel conversed with an Ori directly through the Doci and learned of the parting of ways between the Ori and the Alterans. The Doci was an advanced human who had been given powers by the Ori, including the ability to read minds. The Doci knew Daniel's name and homeworld without Daniel's ever having spoken them. The Doci also knew of the Stargate address of a planet, P3X-421, which had an SGC presence there and sent a Prior to rendezvous with them. (9.03 "Origin Part 3") | |
| Priors of the Ori were advanced humans who were also given great powers by the Ori. They were revered by the worshippers and the people bowed to them when in their presence. Priors carried wooden staffs decorated with the symbol of the Ori and topped with a blue orb. This orb glowed when the Prior put forth his mental powers, perhaps amplifying them. Priors, along with their staffs, had the ability to heal and resurrect people, as well as cause their deaths by controlling the victim's breathing, resulting in suffocation. They had telekinetic abilities, command of fire, and the ability to interact with Ancient technology. They also sacrificed themselves by setting themselves on fire, leaving no trace of their existence afterwards. The Ori promised ascension to the Priors upon their deaths, but this was a lie. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3", 9.06 "Beachhead", 9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1") | |
| The Administrator was a human who was a religious leader and supervised the worship of the Ori within his village. He acted as judge, jury, and executioner if a person was thought to be "overcome" or a heretic. The Administrator met by Daniel Jackson and Vala Mal Doran in the village of Ver Ager was promoted to become a Prior. This promotion was given to him directly by the Ori and advanced him in his evolution, giving him the powers of the Priors. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3") | |
| Humans in the Ori's home galaxy are apparently the second evolution of their kind, just as humanity is in the Milky Way Galaxy. These people were worshippers of the Ori and were not technologically advanced. Their level of development was similar to the Middle Ages of Europe. They were forbidden to explore the old burial grounds and investigate their own history because those acts would bring to light the fact that the Ori were keeping the truth of their creation and existence from them. Heretics of Ver Ager uncovered Ancient technology, including the intergalactic communications terminal and communications stones, and hid them in various places in the village, hoping to build their numbers before challenging the Ori. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3") |
New Age of the Ori
The new age of the Ori was started when the Ori became aware of the existence of humanity in the Milky Way Galaxy. They were eager to share Origin with these humans and offer the Path to Enlightenment, with the condition that they be worshipped as gods and humanity's creators. However, if they were rejected, the Ori were prepared to destroy the very lives that they claimed they wished to advance. (9.03 "Origin Part 3")
Since the members of the SGC knew that The Others (Altera, Ascended Ancients) had a strict non-interference policy, they realized that they couldn't count on any kind of help from them. The Others, however, saw the threat that the Ori posed and the possibility that the Ori could tip the balance of power in the ascended planes if they continued to gain more worlds in the Milky Way Galaxy. Because they were not certain what the outcome would have been to engage in a direct confrontation with the Ori, The Others decided to not interfere when one of their own decided to break the rules of non-interference and retake human form in order to help humanity in the fight. This rogue member, however, knew that he was no longer a member of the collective and would most likely not be permitted to ascend again. (9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1", 9.11 "The Fourth Horseman Part 2")
The Ori's first wave of the invasion into the Milky Way included sending their missionaries, the Priors, to various planets through the Stargates. After obtaining information on the physical characteristics of advanced humans, the SGC developed a device that was designed to emit a frequency that interfered with the Prior's ability to utilize certain regions of his brain that facilitated the use of his powers. These powers included telekinesis and telepathy, as well as great healing capabilities. The device was tested and, although the effects were temporary, they were long enough that the Prior could be killed. (9.09 "Prototype", 9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1", 9.11 "The Fourth Horseman Part 2")
The Priors left behind overwhelming devastation: earthquakes, planets collapsed into micro-singularities, and entire populations wiped out by plague or pestilence. All of these were just the start, however. Soon, the Ori completed their first working intergalactic Supergate and sent their massive and powerful warships into the galaxy. (9.20 "Camelot Part 2")
The War in the Milky Way Galaxy
Although the Doci was the one who commissioned the building of warships and the training of the warriors, he remained the highest form of human worshipper in the Ori's home galaxy. In order to lead their armies in the Milky Way Galaxy, and to avoid the wrath of The Others by traveling to the galaxy themselves, the Ori created a hybrid, the human embodiment of one of their own. The Ori impregnated Vala Mal Doran after she inadvertantly arrived in their home galaxy through a ring transporter matter stream, directed over the great distance with the gravitational forces of two micro-singularities. Vala made it back to the Milky Way in one of the warships and gave birth to the hybrid whom she named Adria. Adria was engineered for rapid growth and soon, she reached adulthood. The Ori worshippers recognized her as the Orici, the one from whom "all will learn," and she was appointed as the leader of the Ori's crusade in the Milky Way. (10.01 "Flesh And Blood Part 3")
The Ori's crusade in the Milky Way was organized thusly:
| As the Orici, Adria was given the knowledge of the Ori as much as her human form allowed, as well as the powers of advanced humans just like the Priors. She was completely endoctrinated with Origin and was devoted to the Ori's mission to convert humanity to Origin or to destroy those who refused. She appeared to have affection for her mother, Vala Mal Doran, and wished to see her converted. Adria, however, coldly ordered the deaths of humans without any sign of remorse. | |
| The Priors of the Ori led in the training and education of the human followers. As advanced humans, they had great mental powers and they used these powers to strike fear, cause death, or heal en masse if a planet turned to Origin. According to the Ascended Ancients, however, the Priors were not aware that the Ori's promise of ascension was a lie. The Priors still had free will, and some were so endoctrinated in Origin and corrupted by their powers that they were not easily, if at all, convinced of the truth. | |
| The Ori's army consisted of men from the Ori's home galaxy who arrived in the Milky Way in the Ori's massive warships and was built up through the conversion of whole planets to Origin in the Milky Way. The soldiers had protective armor and weapons that could either stun or kill their targets. These men were devoted followers and did't question the Ori's orders to kill other humans in their name. Vala's husband from the Ori's home galaxy, Tomin, was one of thousands of Ori Warriors carrying out his duty against humanity in the Milky Way. |
Although at first the SGC, Free Jaffa, Asgard, and Lucian Alliance were no match in battle with the Ori's extraordinarily advanced technology, they used various creative methods to thwart some of the Ori's invasion plans, including the diversion of a wormhole to the Supergate to prevent the Ori from sending more ships through it and the destruction of one of the warships with the unstable vortex of the Supergate when the wormhole was formed. (9.20 "Camelot Part 2", 10.01 "Flesh And Blood Part 3", 10.03 "The Pegasus Project")
The key to defeating the Ori was to eliminate them entirely, thus leaving no gods for the worshippers to follow and rendering their crusade in the Milky Way impotent. To this end, over a thousand years ago Merlin, a formerly-ascended Ancient, developed a device that could cancel out the energy of Ascended Beings. SG-1 started to search for Merlin's device, the Sangreal, as soon as they learned of the weapon's existence. Merlin himself was discovered in stasis, and he gave the knowledge of how to build the device to Daniel, along with his advanced human powers, by transferring his consciousness into Daniel's mind. The two of them, along with SG-1's help, completed the weapon and sent it through the Supergate to the Ori's home galaxy, but didn't know the results of their efforts. Sometime later, the Orici told Vala that they had failed, but when the Goa'uld Ba'al took the Orici as a host, he claimed that the weapon worked and that the Ori were gone. When the Orici died after the attempt to remove the Ba'al symbiote failed, she ascended and either rejoined the Ori or took their place. (9.18 "Arthur's Mantle", 9.20 "Camelot Part 2", 10.11 "The Quest Part 2", 10.14 "The Shroud", 10.19 "Dominion", 10.20 "Unending")
The Ori army and the Priors remained in the Milky Way even after the Orici was no longer directly leading them, and they still posed a serious and deadly problem. The Supergate was made available to them once more when Merlin's weapon was sent through it, and more warships came through as a result. In order to combat these powerful warships more effectively, the Asgard developed energy weapons that could penetrate the warships' shields and destroy them. The Asgard upgraded the Earth starship Odyssey with these weapons, and the formerly-ascended Ancient Merlin gave the starship a cloak that made it undetectable. Unfortunately, these technological advantages were greatly limited because there were several Ori warships scattered throughout the galaxy and only this one starship to combat them. (10.14 "The Shroud", 10.20 "Unending")
Ori-Related Articles
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- Introduction :: Origin :: New Age of the Ori :: The War in the Milky Way Begins :: The Ori's Crusade Ends :: Notable Characters :: Alliances :: Enemies
Notable Characters
- Doci – There appeared to be only one Doci. He was an advanced human with many powers given to him by the Ori. He met with Daniel Jackson and told him of the Ori's plan to enlighten humanity in the Milky Way Galaxy. Any individuals who defied or rejected the Ori would be destroyed. The Doci commanded the Priors and dispatched them to their destinations. He also was the leader of the militia being assembled that used spacecraft to invade the Milky Way. (9.03 "Origin Part 3")
- Priors of the Ori – These advanced humans, given their powers by the Ori, did not identify themselves by name, but simply as a "Prior of the Ori". They wore hooded tunics or robes and carried staffs decorated with the symbol of the Ori. These staffs were topped with blue orbs that glowed when activated. It was possible that some of their powers come from the orb or are amplified by it. Priors had no qualms about self-sacrifice and those sent to the Milky Way at the start of their crusade through the Stargate knew that their trips were most likely one way. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3")
- Adria - The Orici was the human embodiment of the Ori, the closest thing to being an Ori in flesh and blood. She was the leader of the armies that have invaded the Milky Way Galaxy and was the daughter of Vala Mal Doran. She ascended when her body was poisoned by the toxin of a Goa'uld symbiote. At the time of her ascension, it wasn't known if the other Ori were eliminated by the use of Merlin's Anti-Ascended Weapon, the Sangreal. If they were indeed gone, then it is possible that the Orici took their place and gained all of the Ori's power.
Alliances
- None known
Enemies
- Ascended Ancients – The Alteran Ancients who learned to ascend kept the existence of human life in the Milky Way Galaxy a secret from the Ori. The Ori considered the Ascended Ancients (The Others) as "evil" because they withheld the power and secrets of the universe from "lowers". The Ori called them "selfish in their powerful advantage" for keeping their existence and power a secret from humanity. (9.03 "Origin Part 3")
- Stargate Command (SGC) - Knowing the threat that the Ori posed to the free will and existence of all humanity in the Milky Way Galaxy, and possibly other galaxies, the members of Earth's Stargate Command realized that part of their mission would be to educate the many former Goa'uld slaves on the message of Origin and the false gods it promoted. They knew that they couldn't rely upon the help of The Others (also called the Ancients) because of their rules of non-intererence in matters pertaining to the corporeal plane. (9.03 "Origin Part 3")
- Villagers of Ver Ager - Heretics among the human population in the Ori's home galaxy were gathering Ancient artifacts in secret. The investigation into their planet's history revealed that there was a race of humans who predated their own supposed creation by the Ori. The existence of this older race of humans shed doubt on the word and intention of the Ori who claimed to be the creators of humanity. (9.02 "Avalon Part 2", 9.03 "Origin Part 3")
- Free Jaffa Nation - Even though at one point the Free Jaffa were close to becoming a nation of Ori worshippers under the leadership of Gerak, the Jaffa became Earth's closest ally because of the relationship Teal'c and Bra'tac held with the Tau'ri. The Free Jaffa had a large number of Goa'uld ships that were spread all over the galaxy and had an active role in finding operational Supergates and fighting space battles. There were some factions of Free Jaffa, such as the Illac Renin, who worshipped the Ori, but for the most part, the Free Jaffa opposed the Ori's convert-or-die doctrine. (9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1", 9.11 "The Fourth Horseman Part 2", 9.19 "Crusade Part 1", 9.20 "Camelot Part 2", 10.17 "Talion")
- Asgard - The Asgard assisted in the fight against the Ori and eventually gifted all of their knowledge and technology to the humans of Earth before they all perished when their homeworld was destroyed. (9.20 "Camelot Part 2", 10.20 "Unending")
- Tok'ra - Still keeping a watch on the condition of the galaxy after the fall of the System Lords, the Tok'ra used their ships and network of operatives to locate any possible locations of Ori activity, namely the building of Supergates. (9.09 "Prototype", 9.19 "Crusade Part 1", 9.20 "Camelot Part 2")
- Lucian Alliance - The Alliance was a group of former smugglers and mercenaries who acquired many of the System Lords' holdings, including planets and ships. Their massive fleets of Goa'uld ships were a plus in the fight against the Ori, but the individuals themselves are very greedy and selfish and had a tendency to end alliances once they deemed them disadvantageous. (9.20 "Camelot Part 2", 10.01 "Flesh and Blood Part 3")
Episodes
- 9.02 "Avalon Part 2"
- 9.03 "Origin Part 3"
- 9.05 "The Powers That Be"
- 9.06 "Beachhead"
- 9.09 "Prototype"
- 9.10 "The Fourth Horseman Part 1"
- 9.11 "The Fourth Horseman Part 2"
- 9.18 "Arthur's Mantle"
- 9.19 "Crusade Part 1"
- 9.20 "Camelot Part 2"
- 10.01 "Flesh And Blood Part 3"
- 10.03 "The Pegasus Project"
- 10.14 "The Shroud"
- 10.17 "Talion"
- 10.20 "Unending"
Gallery
Related Articles
Related Characters
- Dr. Daniel Jackson
- Vala Mal Doran
- Adria
- Ba'al
- Doci
- Merlin
- Orici
- The Others
- Priors of the Ori
- Tomin of Ver Isca
Keywords
- Altera
- Ancient Communications Stones
- Ancient Communications Terminal
- Ancients
- Ascended Beings
- Asgard
- Atlantis
- Avalon
- Celestis
- Free Jaffa Nation
- Goa'uld
- Illac Renin
- Lucian Alliance
- Odyssey
- Sangreal
- SG-1
- Stargate
- Stargate Command (SGC)
- Supergate
- Symbiote
- Tok'ra
- Weapon on Dakara
Other
Related Links
--DeeKayP 18:47, 1 Aug 2005 (PDT)