In Dungeons & Dragons the Bard is a fascinating character class. Bards use song and story to encourage their friends, and can also cast spells and fight. In Kazakh and Kyrgyz culture, akyns (or aqyns) are "... poets and singers ... [who] improvise in the form of a song-like recitative ... expressing people's thoughts and feelings, exposing social vices, and glorifying heroes." In an interview a few years ago, an akyn said that they should act "... almost like a journalist, creating a political dialogue for the public and keeping lawmakers in check. If one akyn is promoting the government or some leader, the second akyn should take the opposite point of view ...".

Aqyns sound quite bardic — maybe we should all write more poems about daily events? Or at least speak more allusively and metaphorically, shining light into the shadows where evil lurks ...

(cf. Nine Layers of Sky (2008-04-10), ...) - ^z - 2018-02-11