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How Complex of Mind Could a Rahi Theoretically Be?


Tahu92

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In general, in G1, Rahi were seen as little more than biomechanical animal life.

 

They had instinctual, maybe emotion-based, reasoning at best when it comes to their minds.

 

The bionicle wiki says the following:

 

"The Rahi were the diverse, wide-spread fauna of the Matoran Universe, and biomechanical creatures composed of organic and inorganic protodermis. The word "Rahi" literally translated to "not us" in the Matoran language, although it was more commonly translated to mean, quite simply, "wildlife". Rahi were generally considered to be possessed of a lower intellectual level than that of the sapient species, acting primarily on instinct and out of a desire for basic biological needs such as shelter and sustenance."

 

But then as we got into Metru Nui's storyline we hear of Nuju learning the language of the flying Rahi of the Matoran Universe during his time as a Toa Hordika, and being half rahi at the time himself he was in a position to do so.

 

In the second movie we also see Nokama, during her time as a Toa Metru, use her mask of translation to have a telepathic conversation with a herd of Kikanalo, who reveal themselves to be somewhat simple-minded (describing Toa as merely "tall Matoran", and expressing little other desire than to see their territory left unharmed, or rather "the beauty of the herdlands" left intact) but still understanding enough of the world around them and of the people of that world to have concepts of both, and a concepts of beauty, aesthetics, and intelligence, and due to their memory of others passing through their territory in the past, perhaps a rudimentary concept of time as well.

 

There was at least three instances of Rahi that could full-out speak and understand (either through spoken word or telepathy) the Matoran language, this being the Tahtorak, Keetongu, and Krahka. Others may also exist.

 

 

That said, if some have a "language" of their own and others could full-out talk, could some types of Rahi (as in all members of a specific species of Rahi, not just specific individuals), within the context of G1 canon, actually be sentient/sapient creatures?

Edited by Tahu92
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The definition of Rahi got needlessly fuzzy from 2004 onwards with all that Krahka/Tahtorak/Keetongu stuff. I kinda see how the Tahtorak can be considered a Rahi (kind of like how some myths and fantasy works feature sentient and intelligent dragons who are still generally referred to as animals) but when you have humanoid beings with obvious sentience and intelligence, categorizing them as Rahi seemed... silly. 

 

But based on this, to answer your question, theoretically the mind of a Rahi could possess any magnitude of complexity, as seemingly that does not factor into classification.

 

:kakama:

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:kakama: Stone rocks :kakama:

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The definition of Rahi got needlessly fuzzy from 2004 onwards with all that Krahka/Tahtorak/Keetongu stuff. I kinda see how the Tahtorak can be considered a Rahi (kind of like how some myths and fantasy works feature sentient and intelligent dragons who are still generally referred to as animals) but when you have humanoid beings with obvious sentience and intelligence, categorizing them as Rahi seemed... silly. 

 

But based on this, to answer your question, theoretically the mind of a Rahi could possess any magnitude of complexity, as seemingly that does not factor into classification.

 

:kakama:

 

How actually did the whole story of the Toa Hordika possibly learning Rahi language go over with the fan base? I remember it as being interesting, the whole Hordika arc. I don't remember what everyone else thought though.

 

My thoughts is that Rahi is not defined by intelligence but by origin - Viruses being put into Liquid protodermis and these forming the Rahi. Also I imagine certain mask have the ability to affect intelligent rahi, like the Faxon and the Zatth.

 

Origin might be a part of it considering how, officially, "Rahi" means "not us" in the Matoran language.

 

 

The big reason I ask is because I had a thought of a character for a fanfic who voluntarily becomes a Hordika to have a better connection with the wildlife of the world (and by "voluntarily", I mean "effectively pokes a Visorak with a stick"). I was going to have them be able to learn and speak to various Rahi (especially the Gukko bird, which I was going to make somewhat humorous, as apparently, as Kualus said to Nuju, the word "Gukko" is a misnomer in the tongue of flying Rahi; it's not the bird's species' name, it's an insult directed at them).

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Krahka can be explained easily. She started out as just a clever creature (like a cat or raccoon), defending her territory by mimicking the forms and abilities of other creatures she'd encountered. However, every once in a while, a Matoran might wander down into her home. She was able to learn from each new form she experienced. That's why when the Toa Metru arrived, and she started copying their forms, she could only repeat words she'd heard them say before. It took her about three or four Toa to learn how to speak in complete sentences. By then, she was learning how to strategize and deceive. If she'd never encountered Matoran or Toa, she probably would have stayed as she was: a creature with little to think about besides "stay safe" and "find food." 

 

The Tahtorak wasn't as intelligent as it seems. Remember, in both the books and comics, it was only capable of speaking in broken sentences, using a few basic words to get its point across. It was probably less intelligent than Krekka, which is saying something. Same goes for Keetongu--he was able to understand various concepts, but still relied mostly on instinct and could only speak in broken sentences. Of the three, Krahka was the only one that truly surpassed her bestial nature and became more of a sapient being, in my opinion.

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I feel that we need to give Keetongu a bit more intellectual credit. Both his species and the Tahtorak come from the same island (named after the former) which the Keetongu species used the Tahtorak species as mounts, a feat not usually featured by mere beasts.

 

Also according to Greg in a chat (cited in Biosector01) both Keetongu and Krahka are immune to the effects of the mask of rahi control. 

 

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