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Expanded Dune
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"One of the greatest problems in our universe is how to control procreation, and the energy hidden in it. You can drag humans around by this energy, making them do things they would never imagine themselves capable of. The energy— call it love, lust, or any number of terms— must have an outlet. Bottle it up and it gets very dangerous."
―Iblis Ginjo in Options for Total Liberation[src]

Iblis Ginjo (234 BG - 164 BG) was a political and religious leader of the League of Nobles during the Butlerian Jihad who essentially led the League in his role as the first Grand Patriarch of the Holy Jihad from 195 BG until his death in 164 BG. Originally a thinking machine trustee on Earth, Ginjo led a rebellion on the planet which was one of the key factors in the Jihad's beginning, before fleeing to the League and in the following decades consolidating his power. In this period, he founded both the Jihad Police (Jipol) and the ruling Jihad Council. After being killed by Xavier Harkonnen in response to revelations about his role in Tlulaxa organ harvesting, Ginjo was made the third of the Three Martyrs.

Biography[]

Early life (234-201 BG)[]

Background[]

"As one of the most successful trustee humans on Earth, Iblis Ginjo took his job very seriously. He scrutinized the throng of slaves scurrying about below. He had convinced them to be enthusiastic, drumming up their attentiveness through well-chosen phrases and rewards."
―Ginjo's life as a trustee[src]

Ginjo was a member of a long lineage that in ancient times ultimately originated from Rossak. Although little else is known of his family and youth, Ginjo eventually became a slave of the machines, rising to become a human trustee of the Omnius computer evermind, and was the head of a legion of slaves on Earth that worked on the Titans monument near the Forum of the Golden Age Square. Ginjo was quite popular among the slaves, and having risen through the ranks, wished to become a cymek.

Planning rebellion[]

"Whether we are rich, poor, strong, weak, intelligent, or stupid, the thinking machines treat us as nothing more than meat. They do not understand what humans really are."
―Iblis Ginjo, early planning for the Jihad[src]

When the independent robot Erasmus claimed that even a wealthy trustee like Iblis Ginjo could turn against the Evermind, Omnius made a bet with Erasmus that the robot would not succeed. Erasmus then started sending to various crew bosses, including Ginjo, anonymous letters, tricking him into believing that there was a secret underground rebellion against Omnius. At first Ginjo thought about reporting the letters to the Evermind, but decided that he would wait.

Over time, Ginjo began to see the evil of the machines and cymeks, and realised that he could actually create a rebellion on his own. With advice from the ancient philosopher and Cogitor Eklo, Iblis learned that the most effective way of succeeding would be to use religion as a weapon. He then used his charisma and manipulative ability to spread seeds of rebellion to his underlings, albeit so discreetly that the signs of the unrest could not be detected by the Evermind, nor the cymeks.

Butlerian Jihad (201-164 BG)[]

Beginning of war[]

"All of Earth is in revolt! Humans have broken free of their machine masters. Rebels slew Titans and neo-cymeks, smashed robots, destroyed entire facilities. But we need League help-"
―Iblis Ginjo to Zufa Cenva[src]

When Ginjo saw Erasmus kill Manion Butler the Innocent, the infant of the captive Serena Butler, the unrest of the witnesses, already boiled by his manipulation, finally exploded. He witnessed the slaves assault a robot and then he ordered the start of the massive revolt on Earth, beginning the Butlerian Jihad. Ginjo managed to escape Earth with Vorian Atreides who rescued Serena Butler, aboard the starship Dream Voyager.

After arriving on Salusa Secundus, the capital of the League of Nobles, he was interrogated along with Vorian Atreides by the Sorceress Zufa Cenva. He, Vorian and Serena then encouraged the deployment of atomics during the Battle of Earth, the first battle of the jihad.

Grand Patriarch[]

"I have watched the Grand Patriarch - a former slave master on Earth - use his charismatic oratory skills to transform Serena’s tragedy into a weapon. Is everyone blind to how he builds his own political power? Why else would he have married Camie Boro, who traces her bloodline back a thousand years to the last, weak ruler of the Old Empire? A man does not wed the only living descendant of the last emperor merely for love! To ferret out human traitors and clandestine saboteurs, Iblis Ginjo has established his Jihad Police, the Jipol, Think of those thousands who have been arrested in recent years— can they all be traitors working for the machines, as Jipol claims? Is it not convenient that so many of them are the Grand Patriarch’s political enemies?"
Rendik Tolu-Far's suspicion at Ginjo's actions[src]

Despite initially being of little importance in the League, Ginjo managed to manipulate his way into nobility, and claimed the title of Grand Patriarch of the Holy Jihad by the year 195 BG, as the spiritual head of the League.

Following the fateful Honru Massacre, in which thousands of humans perished, Ginjo began to suspect that that traitorous human spies purposely transmitted the disinformation about the machine strengths on Honru. He established an investigation team to look into the matter, led by the ambitious young detective Yorek Thurr. Thurr's report, which suggested the prevalence of other machine spies among the League Worlds, deceitful humans who swore allegiance to the evermind, scared the Grand Patriarch, who decided to establish Jipol in 193 BG to root out these traitors.

Later that year, in a political marriage to increase his power base, Ginjo married Camie Boro, the last descendant of the last fallen Emperor of the Old Empirewho ruled before the Time of Titans. He went on to father three children with her.

After debacles on Ellram, Peridot Colony, and Corrin, Grand Patriarch Ginjo addressed the League Parliament in 187 BG. As the Jihad had now been under way for thirteen years, Ginjo proposed that in time of war there should be a different governing body, the Jihad Council, which would actually run the overall war in a unified and visionary way. He suggested that all matters related to the Jihad— both domestic (the Jipol) and abroad (the Army of the Jihad)— be consolidated and administered by this Council. Other commercial, social, and domestic matters could be discussed and debated in the normal League Parliament, for those kinds of decisions could take as long as they require, but matters of the Jihad required swift and decisive leadership that was not possible among the thousand voices of Parliament. This proposal passed and a Council was established.

In 175 BG, Ginjo, Yorek Thurr, now head of Jipol, and young recruit Floriscia Xico went to Poritrin while the Battle of Ix proceeded. On their journey, the three encountered an asteroid which engulfed their ship. It was revealed that it was the Titan Hecate who returned to the stage, wishing to help the League of Nobles. After the introduction, Yorek Thurr killed Xico in cold blood, explaining to the Grand Patriarch that only the two of them would know about this 'secret weapon', which could help them turn the tides on Ix, and did.

By this time, the the Sorceresses of Rossak began to notice that Iblis exhibited the unusual genetic and psychological traits of a rare male telepath. Wanting to add these abilities to their own nebulous breeding program, he was seduced by Supreme Sorceress Zufa Cenva and unknowingly bore her a daughter, Ticia Cenva.

As the Jihad went on, Ginjo became more and more corrupted, and started to think more about his own power and legacy. The Jipol (Jihad Police) was set up under Yorek Thurr to eradicate Ginjo's political enemies, and in order to fulfill the demand of replacement human organs for injured soldiers and victims of the Jihad, he organised organ raids on other League Worlds, claiming it to be the work of evil thinking machines.

In 164 BG, Ginjo was present at the meeting in the Jihad Council chambers which resulted in the Venport agreement, accompanying Yorek Thurr once again. In the meeting, Iblis pointed out that every other technology would become obsolete if VenKee Enterprises and its successors were to be granted irrevocable patents on the technology specific to folding space, but ultimately agreed with Serena Butler to give them this, but only after the Jihad was over for the sake of the war.

Xavier Harkonnnen: "Serena understood the need for sacrifice and motivation— but when the time came, she did it herself. She asked no one else to become victims for her. You are a selfish, power-hungry man, Iblis."
Iblis Ginjo: "I don’t know what you-"
Xavier Harkonnnen: "Instead of performing dangerous deeds yourself, you selected unsuspecting victims. You made the people of Chusuk, Rhisso, and Balut pay for your ambition."
Iblis Ginjo: "If you try to expose my so-called crimes, you will never be able to make your accusations stick. No one will listen, old man. My power base is too secure."
Xavier Harkonnnen: "I know. That is why I can’t allow politicians to deal with this matter. You and your lackey Yorek Thurr would only manipulate evidence and worm your way out of any punishment. Too bad he isn’t here with us. Instead, I now act as a military officer for the good of the Jihad - as I always have. It is my decision to remove an enemy from the battlefield. At this moment, Iblis Ginjo, you are the greatest enemy to mankind."
— Iblis Ginjo and Xavier Harkonnen before his death[src]

When the military commander Primero Xavier Harkonnen found out about Ginjo's plans with the organ farms, and his intention to raid the planet Caladan for organs, he decided that he could not let Iblis continue. While leaving Tlulax, the planet of the Tlulaxa, after a state visit in 164 BG, Xavier took the control of the spaceship he and Iblis were aboard, and flew directly into the sun of Thalim, carrying himself and Iblis Ginjo to their deaths.

Legacy[]

Xavier's intentions were that Ginjo should not continue his plans and had to sacrifice himself to rid humanity from it. However the true circumstances of that event were never told. Xavier was then considered a traitor of humanity and assassin of the beloved Grand Patriarch; and the Harkonnen name was tarnished. Iblis Ginjo conversely became a revered figure, and emerged as the third of the Three Martyrs. Boro-Ginjo line eventually married into the Butler family, who eventually produced House Corrino.

Name[]

Iblis means "Demon" or "Devil" in Arabic.

Appearances[]


Preceded by
None
Grand Patriarch of the Holy Jihad
c. 195 BG - 164 BG
Succeeded by
Camie Boro
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