The Litany of the Bene Gesserit Quiz

Answer:

The Bene Gesserit are a mysterious but powerful organisation of women led by the Reverend Mother (in 'Dune', she is Gaius Helen Mohiam). Many of their members are the wives or concubines of powerful men, and seduce them by imprinting on them; Lady Jessica Atreides, the widow of Duke Leto and mother of Paul Atreides, is a Bene Gesserit, as is Irulan Corrino, the daughter of Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV and Paul's wife. The Fremen call them 'weirding women', while others call them 'witches'. Jessica recites the above creed multiple times during the book and 2023 film, as does Paul.

One of the objectives of the Bene Gesserit is to breed the Kwisatz Haderach, a male Bene Gesserit and messianic figure who will rule over humanity. Reverend Mother Mohiam had expected Jessica to give birth to a daughter, so that she could be married to Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen and, in turn, give birth to the Kwisatz Haderach. However, Jessica defied Bene Gesserit orders out of her love for Leto and gave birth to a son instead, and the son in question grew up to be the Kwisatz Haderach. Paul's son Leto II, the protagonist of 'God Emperor of Dune', is also a Kwisatz Haderach. The Bene Gesserit use the Missionaria Protectiva, the spreading of superstitions across the Empire, for the coming of the Kwisatz Haderach; this also gives them the ability to act as prophets and guides, having insider knowledge. Jessica exploits this on Arrakis in 'Dune' to have Paul declared the Mahdi, the chosen one of the Fremen.

One of the Bene Gesserit's initiation tests involves an initiate putting her hand in a box while a gom jabbar - a needle covered in deadly poison - is pointed at her neck. She will experience great pain while her hand is in the box and feel as though her hand is being burned; however, if she removes her hand too quickly, she will be killed with the gom jabbar. The purpose of the test is to determine whether she is a human or animal; a human should be able to suppress her instincts and resist the urge to immediately withdraw her hand from the box. Paul does this test in the first chapter of 'Dune'.

The Bene Gesserit have highly trained bodies and minds. They are able to control people by using a certain pitch and tone of voice, a talent Paul and Jessica both use in 'Dune' (the Harkonnen henchmen have to gag Jessica to stop her using it). They can also access the memories of their female ancestors (the Other Memory) by taking a poison and neutralising it; choose their children's sexes; precisely control their bodily functions and every single muscle in their bodies with the prana-bindu technique; and detect lies. This latter ability comes in handy for interrogations, and Padishah Emperors traditionally have a Bene Gesserit Truthsayer.