Fanon:Pathik (Past, Present, and Future)

By Dudewaldo4

See other fanon and fan fiction works from Dudewaldo4.

Pathik
Biographical information
Age	37-145 in Pathik's Story, 150 in "Appa's Lost Days" and "The Guru"
Physical description
Eye color	Gray
Hair color	White (formerly black)
Personal information
Gender	Male
Allies	Aang, Appa, Gyatso, Mori, Tamaki, Kuwabara, Roku, Dao, Ping, Usami
Enemies	Afiko, Fire Nation military
Political information
Profession	Chakra teacher
Position	Guru
Chronological information
First appearance	Act 1: Gyatso

Guru Pathik is a nomadic old man who seems to have great knowledge of the Spirit World and its effects on normal humans. He knows very much about the nature of the Avatar and the Avatar State. He does not consider himself affiliated to any of the four nations, despite the fact that he lived at the Southern Air Temple for the first thirty-seven years of his life, and thus will teach anyone willing to learn from him.

History

Background

Born in 50 BG, Pathik was found wandering in the Patola Mountains by the monks of the Southern Air Temple. No one, not even himself, knows where he came from. He was a close friend of Monk Gyatso, as he told Aang many years later.

Southern Air Temple

At the Temple, Gyatso and Pathik spent much time together, usually playing Pai Sho. The two of them together came up with the idea of flinging fruit pies at the other High Monks.

After Aang is born, and his identity as the Avatar becomes known to the Council (and Pathik), Tashi and Afiko try to get Pathik to leave the Air Temple, saying he will distract Gyatso while he is trying to train the Avatar. In truth, neither of them like having outsiders in the Air Temples. Eventually, they succeed in convincing Pasang of this. Thus, Pathik is forced out of the Temple.

Taku

Pathik flees to a major trading center in the Earth Kingdom. There, he becomes the apprentice of the Herbalist at that time, a woman named Kuwabara. Pathik is told rumors of Aang by two boys that live in the city, named Tamaki and Mori. After Kuwabara's death, and Pathik becomes the Herbalist, Pathik takes on an uninterested apprentice, Hebi.

Sozin's Comet

Pathik learns of the fall of the Air Temples to the Fire Nation. A few days later, Taku is attacked by the Fire Nation. The attack is led by Afiko, who betrayed the Air Nomads and is part of the Fire Nation army. All citizens of the city are killed, Hebi, Mori, and Tamaki being killed by Afiko himself, who was leading the attack. Guided by the presence of an unknown spirit, Pathik was able to escape using with quick thinking, luck, and the element of surprise. Afterwards, he regretted leaving, thinking it was his selfishness that made him decide to leave. After the battle, Pathik wanders aimlessly across the Earth Kingdom, making his way unintentionally toward its northern mountains. He lives on a mountain next to the Northern Air Temple, depressed and dejected. After many years, he witnesses people move into the temple, running from the Fire Nation. This seems to wake him up, and he leaves the mountain for Ba Sing Se, led by the mysterious spirit.

The Dragon of the West

After living in the Middle Ring of the city for one year, working as a waiter in Ping's Place, Pathik is present when the Dragon of the West attacks Ba Sing Se. While the rest of the citizens are hurrying to the Earth Kingdom Royal Palace, the unknown spirit tells Pathik to follow the Dai Li to the battle. He is stopped by his friend Usami, but he easily gets away in the large crowd. On the way, he is held captive for a short time by a man from the Fire Nation who had made his way past the Dai Li without them noticing. The man asks him the way to the palace, and Pathik gives him the information. Pathik is released and the man hurries back to his general to relay the information. Pathik quickly alerts the Dai Li, expecting them to only capture the man, but instead, they kill him. Soon afterword, they learn that he is Lu Ten, General Iroh's son. Pathik feels incredibly guilty, because he feels as if he hadn't alerted the agents, Lu Ten wouldn't have been killed. He falls into unconsciousness soon after realizing this.

Vision

In a dream, Avatar Roku speaks to Pathik. He tells him to travel to the Eastern Air Temple to wait for Aang. He also tells the Guru that it was not that had been his guide. Pathik awakens and hurries out of Ba Sing Se. He disguised himself as a Dai Li Agent in order to get past the guards at the gate. With the help of the spirit, he makes his way through the battle going on in the Agrarian Zone. He pretends to attack the Fire Nation camp with other Earth Kingdom forces. Instead, he makes his way to the docks where the Earth Kingdom ferries are kept. He leaves the city toward the Air Temple. When he gets there, he realizes that his chakras are blocked. He unblocks them quickly, so that he can lead Aang through the experience later.

The Eastern Air Temple

Meeting Appa

Guru Pathik

In the Air Temple, he met Appa and understood that he was not the person Appa expected, and he simply lies back, looking at Appa every so often, and receiving a growl in return. Eventually, night settles in, and Appa falls asleep. The Guru reads Appa's Spiritual energy, remarking on how Appa is so full of love and trust, but at the same time fear is moving in where trust should be. He also tells of how he had a vision of Aang and Appa years ago, and decided to come to the Eastern Air Temple and wait for the two. He then leaves Appa to rest, saying how Appa must let the clouds in his mind part and be at peace.

Come morning, Appa follows a trail of fruit made by the Guru, which eventually leads Appa to find the Guru meditating with a group of animals surrounding him. Appa decides to leave the man alone, and after flying around a bit, he comes to rest next to the guru at the top of the Temple. The Guru gives Appa a note, which he ties to his horn, and then proceeds to tell Appa about how much his energy and Aang's is intertwined. As he tells Appa this, he puts his hand to Appa's forehead, and tells Appa where to find Aang. Appa flies off, heading off to Ba Sing Se. However, the Guru's note was intercepted by Long Feng, but was later returned to Aang.

Training Aang

Aang eventually arrived at the Eastern Air Temple and found Guru Pathik meditating atop the same pillar he was on before Appa's departure. Pathik introduces himself as a spiritual brother to the Air Monks, and a close friend of Monk Gyatso. Aang asks Pathik how he plans on teaching him how to gain control of the Avatar State, to which Guru replies that he must first bring balance to himself before he can bring balance to the world. The Guru first asks Aang to simply drink a liquid, which Aang does before spitting it out, as it is a strange combination of onion and banana juice.

Guru Pathik and Aang

At the Eastern Air Temple, Guru Pathik is beginning Aang's instruction of the chakras. In order to master the Avatar State, Pathik says that Aang must first open the seven chakras of the body. After determining that Aang has absolutely no knowledge of the nature of chakras, Pathik proceeds a visual representation. Using a pond clogged with algae he successfully explains to Aang the concept of chakras, stating that by removing the clogs between pools, the water is allowed to flow, just as energy is allowed to flow through the body when the seven chakras are open. There are seven chakras within the body, each with a purpose and each with a different blockage: An intense sensation results from the opening of them all. Pathik warns that the process of opening the chakras cannot be halted once it has begun - it must be completed in order to succeed. Aang accepts this risk and they begin the process.

Guru Pathik successfully guides Aang through the opening of the first six chakras. However, when Aang learns that to open the seventh and final chakra he will have to let go of his feelings of love for Katara, he refuses. Guru Pathik attempts to convince him otherwise, but when Aang has a vision of Katara in trouble, he leaves the Eastern Air Temple to rescue her. Pathik's final words before Aang's departure are a warning that Aang risks locking the final chakra, and he will not be able to enter the Avatar State at all. Aang ignores him and leaves anyway.

After this, it is unknown what happens to Pathik.

Abilities

Pathik was a master of Yoga and meditation, and these skills allowed him to live for a hundred and fifty years. He had the ability to read a person's emotions and feelings by reading their chi, as he demonstrated when he read Appa. He could also sense the connections between people's energies and could enable them to find each other over great distances, as when he showed Appa that Aang was in Ba Sing Se (this appears to be a more powerful version of an ability Aang used while in the Foggy Swamp, in order to find Appa and Momo).

Pathik had knowledge of Chakras, and presumably of other spiritual matters as well.

Non-canon Appearances

Pathik appears in the non-canon crossover, Avatar: Clash of Worlds 3.

Trivia

• A guru is a spiritual expert. The word pathik means "the traveler" in Hindi and was a last name that Mahatma Gandhi personally gave to the family of Magan Kumar, a child born to his ashram in 1938. The Sanskrit version of the name is Pathika, which has a wider range of meanings, such as 'knowing the way' or path; as a noun, it can refer to a traveler or a guide.
• Oddly, Guru Pathik resembles a Hindu holyman, due to his bare clothes, long, scruffy beard, and practice of "chakras".
• Guru Pathik is the oldest living character in the World of Avatar, and yet seems to have no health problems. This might either be a reference to his healthy life style or a note that characters in the Avatar universe (not counting the Avatar) can live incredibly long life-spans. Interestingly, when Guru Pathik introduces himself as a friend of Monk Gyatso, Aang didn't seem surprised that he remains alive to this day.
• The identity of the spirit which guided Pathik and told him to leave Taku is unknown.
• When Pathik reads Appa's emotions, he can probably relate to some of them, as he was betrayed several times and moving from place to place.
• "Guru" in Sanskrit means teacher.
• Guru is similar to the Filipino word "guro" which means teacher.

Preceded by Presumably Kuwabara

Herbalist Apprentice 3-2 BG

Succeeded by Hebi

Preceded by Kuwabara

Herbalist of Taku 1 BG

Succeeded by Shaocia

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