Ka & Ka-Tet

KA

Like many words in High Speech, ka has multiple meanings and so is difficult to define precisely. It signifies life force, consciousness, duty, and destiny. In the vulgate, or LOW SPEECH, it also means a place to which an individual must go. The closest terms in our language are probably fate and destiny, although ka also implies karma, or the accumulated destiny (and accumulated debt) of many existences. We are the servants of ka, but we are also its prisoners. Ka’s one purpose is to turn, and we turn with it, albeit sometimes under different names and in different bodies. In The Dark Tower (Book VII of the Dark Tower series) ka is compared to a train hurtling forward, one which may not be sane.

KA-TET

Ka-tet means "one made from many." Ka refers to destiny; tet refers to a group of people with the same interests or goals. Ka-tet is the place where men’s lives are joined by fate. Ka-tet cannot be changed or bent to any individual’s will, but it can be seen, known, and understood. The philosophers of GILEAD stated that the bonds of ka-tet could be broken only by death or treachery. However, Roland’s teacher Cort maintained that neither death nor treachery were strong enough to break the bonds of ka-tet, since these events are also tied to KA, or fate. Each member of a ka-tet is a piece of a puzzle. Each individual piece is a mystery, but when put together, the collective pieces form a greater picture. It takes many interwoven ka-tets to weave a historical tapestry. Ka-tets overlap, often sharing members. A ka-tet is not always bound by love, affection, or friendship. Enemies are also ka-tet. Although usually referred to as positive or at least inevitable, the forces of KA and ka-tet can sometimes cast a sinister shadow over our lives.