The first tribe which had learned about fire reserved the secret for their priests, who remained in affluence and power while the people froze. (Tales of the Dervishes, p.39)
Completely sidestepping for a moment the religious implications of the word ‘priests,’ the dynamics of discrimination and class warfare are packed into this one sentence. People with power prosper. People without it suffer.
We have no information on how people became priests in this tribe. Were you born a priest? If not, at what age did you become a priest? Could you choose to become a priest or where you selected? Does gender matter? What other criteria might disqualify you from becoming a priest? What rites of passage or trials did you have to overcome in order to become one of the elite?
To live in affluence while the people froze implies separation and segregation within the society. Fire represents the power that enabled this segregation to persist. If too many people learned about fire in this tribe, the priests would lose their affluence and power. Fear drives the priests to hold onto their skills, but fear also must be present in those without fire. Otherwise, I have to presume that those without the fire would rise up and grab the power from the priests.
As unhealthy a system as this tribe seems to us today, for it to persist, it has to be a balanced system. What fascinates me most are the beliefs and views of the people in this tribe. What are the benefits for those without fire? What fears keep them from upsetting the balance of power? What keeps those with power from looking compassionately on those without fire? What beliefs do the priests hold that prevent them from sharing?
Fire may be the symbol of power in this story, but the power dynamic between those who have and those who have not still exists today. What powers do you hold that you are unwilling to share?