Jump to content

Drink from the Cold Cup


TallTyrion724

Recommended Posts

I was rereading A Feast for Crows yesterday and I came upon a line in chapter 22 Arya's 2nd or 3rd chapter where the kindly man tells Arya "Before you drink from the cold cup, you must offer up all you are to Him of Many Faces..." I was wondering if there is a thread where I can find more information about this.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know if there's a thread about it, but my own theory is that "the cold cup" is the numbing potion Varys drank before they castrated him, since the Kindly Man tells Arya that Him of Many Faces will take all of her, even her private parts. He also says that women are seldom chosen to be Faceless Men because they bring life into the world, so it stands to reason that FM have their reproductive functions taken from them

Also, a cold cup of sorts is mentioned in the House of the Undying, when they tell Dany to "drink from the cup of ice, drink from the cup of fire"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I assumed it had something to do with the actual magic they perform. It wouldn't make any sense to castrate faceless men. Sleeping with someone can be a way to get information, and if the person you are impersonating has a wife/girlfriend/paramor/ whatever and you all of a sudden don't have a penis then obviously your cover is blown.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

I assumed it had something to do with the actual magic they perform. It wouldn't make any sense to castrate faceless men. Sleeping with someone can be a way to get information, and if the person you are impersonating has a wife/girlfriend/paramor/ whatever and you all of a sudden don't have a penis then obviously your cover is blown.

It's possible the the contents of the cup could make the drinker infertile w/o castration of any sort, but I still think its a symbolic gesture...like the oath of the Night's Watch. They have to give up all their worldly possessions and also swear to father no children.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's possible the the contents of the cup could make the drinker infertile w/o castration of any sort, but I still think its a symbolic gesture...like the oath of the Night's Watch. They have to give up all their worldly possessions and also swear to father no children.

I agree, I don't think they mutilate the FM to make sure they never breed.

If the Night's Watch castrated all their recruits, the Wall would have fallen a long time ago for want of men.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...