First Mother is the founder of the First Tribe, and it is she who sows the seeds that allowed the Song of Seven and the Free Path to spread. She is mythical of course. There was no single person upon whom First Mother is based. She is an archetype, and one that we can all emulate and embody as the story demands. And among the values she personifies is the value of autarky.
What is Autarky? Autarky is economic independence or self-sufficiency. The idea behind autarky is that working with others is good, but that having to rely upon others is dangerous. Why would that be dangerous? Because anyone upon which you must rely, holds power over you. In such a situation, you must hope that the person upon which you are forced to rely treats you well. You must hope, because they hold the power. Two people who can provide for themselves can enter into an agreement to help each other for mutual benefit. But if one person cannot provide for themselves, then they lack the ability to exit any agreement once enacted.
Without autarky, no agreement can be entered as a equal. Without autarky, every relationship contains a power imbalance that is the seed of abuse. Without autarky, the world is a cage.
We see the lesson of autarky in chapter of First Mother’s life where she walks the Witch Road. This chapter begins as the Crown Prince and Last Princess escape the Castle with the sacrifice of their mother. The children flee and are aided by the Dreamwalker, a pair of storytellers who also realize that they are trapped. They seek aid from the rebellious witches who, having more power than the children, aid the children and then betray them for their own benefit. Despite this, the children connect to the witch road, to the path of the sacred story. They flee along the story and are chased by the hound. But the children begin to find their power, and the Prince makes peace with the hound. The Witches, now seeing an equal, open the way and sacrifice themselves to aid the greater story. And as a result, they enable the Princess meets the Weaver. We see in this tale the imbalance in power when one lacks autarky and the power that results when one obtains it.
And so, take responsibility for one’s own actions. Do nothing to others you would object to having done to you. Judge yourself and do not allow yourself to be enslaved by the judgments of others.
Professor Harbinger's School for Villains 