Stephen King's the Dark Tower: The Complete Concordance Revised and Updated (119 page)

The true meaning of the White relates back to the philosophy embedded in the Old Tongue, or High Speech, a philosophy of wholeness which seems to bear some resemblance to the Neoplatonic vision of the One. Just before Jake sees the Rose in the deserted Lot at Forty-sixth Street and Second Avenue, he hears the voice of the White, which he finds indescribably beautiful:

The humming grew. Now it was not a thousand voices but a million, an open funnel of voices rising from the deepest well of the universe. He caught names in that group voice, but could not have said what they were. One might have been Marten. One might have been Cuthbert. Another might have been Roland—Roland of Gilead.

There were other names; there was a babble of conversation that might have been ten thousand entwined stories; but above all that gorgeous, swelling hum, a vibration that wanted to fill his head with bright white light. It was, Jake realized with a joy so overwhelming that it threatened to burst him to pieces, the voice of
Yes;
the voice of
White;
the voice of
Always.
It was a great chorus of affirmation, and it sang in the empty lot. It sang for him. (III:124)

The White is wholeness and unity. It is the tapestry woven from many interlocking KA-TETS. It contains both good and evil, yet seen in the greater context of the White there is no gray or black, only whiteness. Like white light, the White contains all colors within its balance. Maerlyn’s Rainbow is a breaking-up of this whiteness into a spectrum, many colors of which are troublesome. For example, the hungry, semisexual energy of Maerlyn’s Grapefruit (the Pink One)
proves disastrous for any who stare into its depths. V:101, V:104, V:115, VI:270, VII:4

WHITE BLIND:
The poor salt miners of Debaria get drunk on White Blind. W:62

WHITE TEA:
A refreshing, non-alcoholic drink. We have white tea in our world too. It is made from the young leaves of the tea plant. IV:184

WHY DON’T YOU STOP BEATING YOUR BREAST AND GET STARTED:
Stop pulling your hair out and begin. V:559

WHY IS A CROOKED LETTER AND CAN’T BE MADE STRAIGHT . . . NEVER MIND WHY:
This is one of Cort’s sayings. In other words, don’t bother asking. I:135

WHY LOOK FOR STORMS THAT ARE STILL OVER THE HORIZON?
Why look for problems that haven’t arisen yet. W:155

WICKETS:
See
POINTS
,
above

WIDE EARTH:
One of Gilead’s Fair-Days. It takes place in late winter/early spring. Wide Earth was famous for its riddling contests.
See
GILEAD FAIR-DAYS
,
at the beginning of this
Concordance.
See also
MID-WORLD HOLIDAYS
, in APPENDIX IV. V:687, VII:64

WIDOWER’S HUMP:
An older man’s curved spine. VII:427

WIDOWMAKER:
A gun. VII:49

WILL IT PLEASE YA:
Used like “please” at the end of a sentence. For example, “Send word to my mother, will it please ya.” W:185

WILL YOU DRINK TO THE EARTH, AND TO THE DAYS WHICH HAVE PASSED UPON IT? WILL YOU DRINK TO THE FULLNESS WHICH WAS, AND TO FRIENDS WHO HAVE PASSED ON? WILL YOU DRINK TO GOOD COMPANY, WELL MET?:
This toast is made by Roland in River Crossing. III:234

WILL YOU NOT SEND ME ON WITH A WORD:
Won’t you speak to me? VII:760

WILL YOU OPEN TO US IF WE OPEN TO YOU?:
If you ask a gunslinger to defend you in the name of the WHITE, he will ask you three questions. This is the first of them. The next questions is “Do you see us for what we are and accept what we do?” The final question is “Do you seek aid and succor?” V:109, V:230, V:397, VI:275, W:65

WILL YOU STAND WITH ME:
Will you stand with me and fight? W:58

WISH YOU JOY OF IT:
I hope it makes you happy, or
go for it.
W:227

WINE-BIBBER:
A boozer. III:61

WINTER:
One of Gilead’s Fair-Days.
See
MID-WORLD HOLIDAYS
, in APPENDIX IV.

WINTER’S SNOW IS FULL OF WOE, WINTER’S CHILD IS STRONG AND WILD:
A Mid-World saying. V:138

WIT GREEN WIT:
A canned drink, which Eddie tastes in the Fedic Dogan. He finds it utterly foul. VII:155

WITCHGRASS:
Grass that grows in the foothills of the Cyclopean Mountains. I:118

WITCHLIGHT:
In the tunnels beneath Castle Discordia, the puddles glow with what might be either radiation or witchlight. VII:562

WOODS TEA:
Tea Roland brews from forest plants. V:107

WOODSMAN’S LUNCH:
The filling lunch that a woodsman carries into the forest to sustain him while he works. W:209

WORDSLINGER:
A writer. Roland calls Stephen King a wordslinger. VI:300

WORK-STOOP:
A Gilead term for a porch located behind the main house and which faces both barn and fields. V:318

WORLD NEXT DOOR (THE WORLD NEXT DOOR):
Those worlds which are similar to ours but which are not exactly the same. Eddie must come from one of the worlds next door, since in his version of New York, Co-Op City is in Brooklyn, not the Bronx. V:106

WOT (I WOT):
I believe. W:5, W:10

WOULD’EE HAVE THE PEACE OF THE CLEARING?:
Would you like to pass on to the next world? VII:50

WRISTBANDS:
Handcuffs. II:356

WRIT OF TRADE:
A legal document conveying ownership. VII:37

**YAR:
Yes. VI:179, VII:83

YE CHARY GUNSTRUCK MAN:
See
CHARY
,
in
HIGH SPEECH

YEAR END GATHERING:
Year End Gathering is one of Mid-World’s Fair-Days. Although REAP is the year’s true end and marks the beginning of winter, Year End marks the end of the calendar year. V:21

YEAR’S END:
One of Gilead’s Fair-Days.
See
GILEAD FAIR-DAYS
,
at the beginning of this
Concordance.
See also
MID-WORLD HOLIDAYS
, in APPENDIX IV.

YE’RE A FIERCE TRIM:
This is a Lud term for “you’re a tough guy.” III:297

YESTEREVE:
Yesterday evening. V:410

YONDER:
Over there. W:43

YOU HAVE DONE ME FINE:
You have done well by me. W:251

YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN THE FACE OF YOUR FATHER:
Gunslinger culture was patriarchal, and a man was expected to uphold the honor of his father, and his father’s fathers, at all costs. V:661, VI:144

YOU MIGHT AS WELL TRY TO DRINK THE OCEAN WITH A SPOON AS ARGUE WITH A LOVER:
There’s no dissuading someone who is in love. II:304

YOU MUST NEVER DRAW UNTIL YOU KNOW HOW MANY ARE AGAINST YOU, OR YOU’VE SATISFIED YOURSELF THAT YOU CAN NEVER KNOW, OR YOU’VE DECIDED THAT IT’S YOUR DAY TO DIE:
This rather bleak statement comes from Roland. VII:55

YOU NEEDN’T DIE HAPPY WHEN YOUR DAY COMES, BUT YOU MUST DIE SATISFIED, FOR YOU HAVE LIVED YOUR LIFE FROM BEGINNING TO END AND KA IS ALWAYS SERVED:
This is another of Roland’s sayings. VII:5

YOU RUN WITHOUT CONSIDERATION AND FALL IN A HOLE:
One of Cort’s sayings. IV:286

YOU SAY TRUE, I SAY THANKYA:
See entry in
CALLA BRYN STURGIS DIALECT

YOU WIN THE FAIR-DAY GOOSE:
See
FAIR-DAY GOOSE
,
above

YOUNG EYES SEE FAR:
IV:174

YOUR FILL:
Your territory. Debaria was Sheriff Peavy’s fill. W:57

YOUR HEART SURELY SAID TRUE:
Your heart guided you well. V:316

ZN:
See entry in
HIGH SPEECH

ANYROA’ (ANY RO’):
See entry in
MID-WORLD ARGOT

BAYDERRIES:
Batteries. V:415

BEFORE THE SUN GOES ROOFTOP:
Before the sun is high. VI:7

BOOK OF THE MANNI:
The Manni’s sacred book. It seems to be a version of the Bible. V:16

BRANNI BOB AND BRANNI COFF:
The Branni Bob is the most powerful of the magical plumb bobs used by the Manni of Calla Redpath. As the Branni Bob swings, it gains weight and the space it passes through becomes DIM. The Branni Bob is carried in the Branni Coff.
See
MANNI
: BRANNI BOB,
in
CHARACTERS

COFFS:
Coffs are the boxes in which Manni carry their plumb bobs and magnets. They are large wooden boxes covered in stars, moons, and odd geometric shapes. The undersides of the coffs are fitted with long metal sleeves, which house long wooden rods. The rods can then be placed on the shoulders so that the coffs and their contents can be carried like coffins. VI:26

DIM:
See entry in
MID-WORLD ARGOT

FIN-GAN:
The first word. According to the Manni, the first word, or fin-Gan, was
hile.
According to their beliefs, Hile was the first word, the one that set the world spinning. W:201

FORCE, THE:
See
OVER, THE
,
below

FORGETFUL, THE (THE FORGETFUL FOLK):
Those who have left the Manni tribe to marry heathens. They will spend the rest of eternity in NA’AR, or the Manni Hell. V:407, VI:6, VI:28

GLAMMER:
Although
glammer
is a term found throughout Mid-World, it has particular importance for the Manni, whose religion makes use of magic to travel between worlds. As the Manni say, “Magic and
glammer,
both are one, and they do unroll from the back. From the past, do’ee ken.” VI:5

IN TIME OF LOSS, MAKE GOD YOUR BOSS:
A Manni song. V:6

KAMMEN:
See entry in
HIGH SPEECH

KAVEN:
The persistence of magic. The greater the magic, the longer it persists. Magic unrolls from the back, which means from the past. Hence, even when an object or a place seems to have lost its magic, a seed of that magic remains and can be awakened by those (like the Manni) who know how. VI:4, VI:26

KRA:
A Manni cabin. Manni men live in a kra with all of their wives and offspring. When a Manni speaks of the “men of his kra,” he means the men of his village, who are probably all kinsfolk. V:466, VI:34

KRA KAMMEN:
This is the Manni term for the Doorway Cave. Jake thinks it means “house of bells,” but it actually means “house of ghosts.” To the Manni, the KAMMEN (TODASH chimes) are ghost bells. VI:34

MAGS AND BOBS:
The magical tools which the Manni use to travel between worlds.
For more information, see
BRANNI BOB
,
above, and
MANNI,
in
CHARACTERS. VI:7

MANNI KRA REDPATH-A-STURGIS:
The Manni clan that lives in a village near Calla Bryn Sturgis. It is also the name of that village. VI:38

MANNI MANNERISMS:
The Manni have many mannerisms which are as unique to their sect as are their blue cloaks, thick beards, and long fingernails. When a Manni covers his face with his hands, it is a gesture of deep religious dread (V:413). When Manni men have lost face, they tug their beards (VI:21). When Manni folk say “The Eld,” they raise their fists in the air with the first and fourth fingers pointed (V:31). Finally, when Manni folk shake their heads, they do so in long, sweeping arcs (V:414).

MANNI REDPATH:
Another name for Manni Calla, the Manni village located two hours north of Calla Bryn Sturgis. V:399

NA’AR:
The Manni term for Hell. V:408

NAY:
No. V:411

OVER, THE:
Manni term for the divine force. According to Mia, the Over is identical to the PRIM, or the primordial soup of creation.
For page references, see
MANNI
: OVER, THE,
in
CHARACTERS

OVER-SAM KAMMEN! CAN-TAH KAMMEN! CAN-KAVAR KAMMEN! OVER-CAN-TAH!:
This is the praise-prayer Henchick gives when the Unfound Door opens. We are not given a translation. VI:42

OVER-SAM, OVER-KRA, OVER-CAN-TAH:
A Manni prayer. We are not given a translation. VI:26

PASS OVER (TO PASS OVER):
To time-travel or to travel between worlds. V:115

REDPATH KRA-TEN:
Another term for Manni Calla, or the Manni village. VI:6, VI:7

SEEKING FOLK:
Another descriptive term for the Manni. They are called seeking folk, far-seers, and far travelers because they travel between worlds. V:399

SENDERS:
The senders are the most powerful of the Manni psychics and travelers. When Henchick and his followers reactivate the magic of the Unfound Door, they use the psychic strength of their strongest senders. VI:7, VI:39

SNIVELMENT (YOUNG SNIVELMENT):
This is a Manni insult. Henchick calls Eddie Dean a young snivelment when he questions the power of the BRANNI BOB.
See entry in
MID-WORLD ARGOT
. VI:29

TEMPA:
The Tempa is the Manni Meeting Hall. VI:6

’TIS A GOOD NAME, AND A FAIR:
Henchick says this to Roland. It is a way of saying that his name is good and honorable. V:416

TODASH:
See entry in
HIGH SPEECH

TODASH TAHKEN:
See entry in
HIGH SPEECH

WE ARE FAR-SEERS AND FAR TRAVELERS. WE ARE SAILORS ON KA’S WIND:
This is how Henchick, the DINH of the Manni, describes his people. VI:38

A HARD PULL THAT’D BE (THAT’D BE QUITE A PULL):
That will be a tough one to pull off. V:224