Zohar (XG)
The Zohar, also known as the Zohar Modifier, is an important plot element in Xenogears. It is an infinite energy source due to the Wave Existence being trapped inside it.
Appearance[edit]
The Zohar is a large golden monolith with an eye with a turquoise pupil about a quarter of the way from the top. Jagged etchings radiate outward from this eye.
Function[edit]
The Zohar's primary function is "Phenomenon Phase Shift", which allows the Zohar to analyze all possible outcomes to a situation and make the most beneficial one a reality by manipulating matter and energy. Some people able to interfere with the Zohar can use the Phenomenon Phase Shift subconsciously, allowing them to create outcomes in their favor. Because of this, certain people can use ether abilities.
The Zohar is an infinite power source due to the Wave Existence, an entity from a higher dimension, being trapped inside it. As such, the Zohar is used to power the slave generators required for Gears to function, and it is also the primary power source for Deus.
Story[edit]
In 2001 A.D., humans excavated an unknown object from a stratum, and they date the artifact back to 15 billion years ago. Due to the artifact's artificial appearance, mysterious properties, and age dating back to before the world's creation, the discovery of this object leads to many questions and theories regarding its true nature. Due to the artifact's strong magnetic field, it became known as "Magnetic Abnormal Matter" (MAM). An international-scale analysis of MAM began, but shortly after, research on it was frozen. A group of researchers received MAM, and gave it the new name of "Zohar".
Approximately 5000 years later, the Zohar is found inside the storeroom of an abandoned ship belonging to a religious faction known as the Immigrant Fleet. Analysis of the Zohar begins yet again and leads to the discovery of the "Phenomenon Phase Shift" theory. Following this, "Project Zohar" begins, however, due to unknown reasons, this project led to the destruction of a planet, and the Zohar is found floating near the planet and recovered. Project Zohar continues and a biological component known as Kadomony is installed onto the Zohar.
At this point, a large-scale interplanetary war had begun intensifying, and a biological weapon known as Deus was constructed using the Zohar as its power source. On a space station built in orbit of the planet Miktam04β, Deus goes rogue and begins attacking the planet, leading to uncounted casualties. During the attack, a young boy named Abel made contact with the Zohar and the Wave Existence; a being from a higher dimension that was pulled into this dimension by the Zohar through the Path of Sephirot and got trapped inside the Zohar. The Wave Existence detects Abel's wish for his mother and uses the "Persona" protocol in Kadomony to create the first Antitype, the Mother of Humanity, a girl who has the mother's will to protect Abel. The Wave Existence also turns Abel into the Contact, the person destined to help free the Wave Existence from the Zohar. Both the Antitype and the Contact are destined to reincarnate repeatedly until the Wave Existence is successfully freed from the Zohar. After the attack, Deus is stopped, placed in suspended animation, and dismantled into various cores.
A gigantic spacecraft known as the Eldridge is requisitioned to investigate why Deus attacked Miktam04β and also takes in the survivors of the attack. However, Deus awakens and begins to hijack Razael, the supercomputer governing the Eldridge, and sets its course for Earth, which is now a forbidden planet known as Lost Jerusalem. All evacuation efforts fail, and in an attempt to stop Deus, the captain of the Eldridge, Shigeyoshi Inoue, self-destructs the ship. The remains of the ship land on an uninhabited planet, and as the Zohar falls onto the planet, Kadomony separates itself from the Zohar and lands on a coastline, while the Zohar itself lands in Bethlehem. The self-destruction of the ship also resulted in the Anima Relics, core components of Kadomony, being scattered across the world.
At this point, Kadomony activates the program known as "System Hawwa" which takes over the mother of humanity and turns her into a purple-haired woman. Using Kadomony, she created the first humans on the planet; Cain and the Gazel Ministry, intending for the new humans to assist in the process of reconstructing Deus. Because of the original mother's will, two copies of herself were created; Elhaym, who would serve under the Wave Existence's will as the "Antitype", and Miang, who would serve under Deus' will as the "Complement".
Thousands of years later, a reincarnation of Abel named Lacan is manipulated by Miang to seek out the Zohar to attain power. Lacan and Miang head to Bethlehem, the location of the Zohar, and Lacan makes contact with it, though due to his weakened mental state and Sophia, that era's incarnation of the Antitype, having died, it was an incomplete contact. This resulted in Lacan becoming a new personality known as Grahf.
Hundreds of years later, the latest incarnation of Abel, Fei, goes to Bethlehem in the form of his split personality Id in search of the Zohar. Id's Gear, Weltall-Id, is transformed due to its contact with the Zohar and the party battles against it. However, due to Fei successfully reconciling with his personalities, Fei makes contact with the Wave Existence trapped inside the Zohar and it upgrades Fei's Gear to the Xenogears. Grahf appears and battles against Fei, however, Fei defeats him. The Zohar proceeds to restrict Fei's movement as it wishes to unify with him, but Grahf sacrifices himself by absorbing himself into the Zohar as a way to give Fei time to escape.
Later, Fei and the party manage to destroy Deus, and the Zohar is destroyed as well. This causes the Wave Existence to be freed and sent back to its higher dimension, and this also causes the Path of Sephirot to be closed.
Gallery[edit]