Any discussions about the Promised Land as a point of intersection of faiths, hopes and aspirations of civilizations require an excursus to the depths of history. Without knowledge in history of the world that is discussed and its population, it is impossible to speak about particular situations and events, as long as any event, any reaction carries inside itself a mark of the long chain of traditions, superstitions, habits and memorable moments. Therefore a brief summary of FFVII world history seems appropriate and defensible.

So then, long ago the Planet was owned by Cetra. It was a nomadic race, they was migrating over the space, stopping at planets and moving further. The object of their travel was reaching a land of eternal happiness, the Promised Land. Their search finished on the Planet that had become a base for the events of FFVII; Cetra lived on the continent which by the time of the events of the Game had being covered with snow 2000 years already. Some of Cetra gave up wearisome travels and took a decision to settle on this planet once and for all in order to just live their lives. At the time of the catastrophe, Jenova's advent - "Calamity from the Sky" this part of Cetra found a cover in their sanctuaries, did not take a part in the fight against Jenova and was not affected by her "virus" while Cetra who remained loyal to the aspirations of their race sacrificed themselves in order to remove a phenomenon pernicious for the Planet. In that way, current civilization comes as a direct progeny of Cetra, however having lost both Cetra ideology and all available for Cetra knowledge and abilities; this civilization went to the way of technology development but not self-knowledge.

Now Cetra have become a forgotten page of history of the Planet, however Shin-Ra at some point of its evolution started to research what had remained from Cetra. Searching of the Promised Land as a source of clearly formulated happiness have become a head direction of the company activity. The whish to discover the Promised Land has become a mania: it is a source of happiness and a source of energy, a possibility to meet those who have gone to The Planet. Everyone wishes to reach the Promised Land, hoping it will give him what he need. A race-like travel to the Promised Land, a competition for the owning it, collision of purposes and wishes that is leitmotif of the story of the Game. In this article we would like to review the origin of the idea of the Promised Land itself. It can help in more complete understanding of the part of the story in order to make from an abstract phrase "to reach the Promised Land" a concrete definition, and this, in its turn, will become a part of comprehension of the concept of FFVII, a part of the knowledge that The Game presents us.

Many thousands years ago at the North pole of the Earth was a fertile land with a beneficial climate which inhabitants did not hunt, did not farm and trade but live in worship to the Earth and the Earth itself gives them everything they need. The autochthonal name of this land that is "Ultima Thule" is strongly got into the world mythology and literature, however for the indication of this land was used a lot of euphemisms and romantic names which afterward became symbols of the land of happiness and bliss: Hyperborea, Elisium, Avalon, Shambala, Shangri-La, Arkadia, Atlantis, Shvetadvipa, Belovodye and the most known name - the Promised Land. This land during thousand years was sought by travelers: from expeditions sent by Chinese Imperator to get the recipe of eternal youth until the expedition of Vitus Bering. Information about this land is present in works of Starbo, Pliny the Elder, Ovid, mentions about it can be found in "Mahabharata", "Rigveda", "Avesta", "Kalevala" and everywhere this land related both with North and the place where a harmony and eternal bliss are possible. Exist many maps where the location of Ultima Thule is specified; as the most reliable considers the map by Gerard Merkator based on the information of early epochs that been published in 1565. Studies of myth of different peoples together with nature observations (e.g. the fact of the migration of birds to the north and establishment by paleontologists that 30 thousands years ago climate of Arctic was worm and soft despite the presence of glaciers) left no doubts about the existence of unbelievable Ultima Thule and gave a rise to "the Polar Theory of Human's Origin". Our proto-ancestors are those creatures that lived on North Pole in former times when it was blooming and fertile land. Now we call these creatures hyperboreans, titans or atlases, our knowledge about them is trifling and the data that is available for us seems unbelievable and looks like myths but not reality. It is possible to say that they are for us - like Ancients for the civilization of FFVII world: we are their descendants but we do not have their knowledge and skills. Remained pictures of hyperboreans show us winged people; it gives a possibility to assume that exactly they became prototypes for angels.

Thus, what was the land that became not only a living place for proto race but also a certain ideology, certain philosophy that was being followed by many and many travelers? In it's center was Meru mountain, that in many sources was poetically called "Gaya's Edge" or "Gaya's Cliff"; This mountain was an energy center of the planet that connects it with cosmos. Inhabitants of Ultima Thule, as was mentioned before, worshiped to Earth; but it is called "worship" only approximately, because there is no any information about sacrifices or rituals connected with Earth-cult. By many sources this worship to Earth looked like a conversation with Logos that expressed its wishes or received requests. Gaya's Edge helped to coordinate changes on the planet with global cosmic cycles, in order to not cause damage to a giant space system which part Earth is. Directed stream of the space energy lighten the contact with World Mind and as if charged people intensifying their creative and constructive potential. In other words, contact with the Planet near Gaya's Cliff was easer than the conversation from somewhere from the middle belt of tropics. Probably that's why the Pole was chosen by people of Ultima Thule (just as Cetra) as a habitat. Coordination their actions at a space level and permanent taking into account of the Planet's wishes were a deposit of happiness, fortune and harmony in Ultima Thule. That does from Northern Land in the eyes of other more late peoples a Promised Land that has no sorrow and need and journeys to it become a peculiar mania. We can see this possession in The Game where if everyone does not want to reach the Promised Land then wants at least to forbid others from reaching it.

It is known that an objective of many expeditions to the north, including expeditions of 20th sanctuary was getting of some stone or crystal that able to accumulate energy inside and provide a direct contact with cosmic and planet information field that gave to owners of the stone unprecedented possibilities. Is not it a Materia? Members of expeditions in their publications mentions about large polished crystals of quarts that was found by them in the places of Extreme North abandoned long-long ago. Design of houses in Forgotten Capital correlates both with similar finds and with mentions in different eposes about shell-like buildings in Ultima Thule. Spiral structure of buildings skeletons was a conductor of space energy; it was next demonstration of task of conversation with World Mind but not a whim of the architect. According to many literary sources it is known about some "water of life from eternally welling out springs in those you can not drown or choke". "The Water" as much as "the Stone" was a subject of searches in different epochs. Could it tell about Lifestream? And now lets remember many fairy-tales and myths of peoples of the world lived after existence of Ultima Thule. Mention about travels in far away land for "water of death" and "water of life": "water of death" brings dead people back to life and gives power to warriors and "water of life" gives wisdom to the one who drinks it. It is an exact allegory of water with Jenova cells with ability of incredible regeneration and water with Mako. Unknown earlier and ominous water of death puts an idea about some disaster that struck north land of happiness and leads us to theme of disappearing of the Promised Land from the face of the earth.

Ifalna tells that the fall of Jenova leaded a cataclysm: damaged Planet concentrated its life powers on healing its crater-wound. On the surface it appeared as fast fall of temperature, snowing and then - uninhabitability of the continent. Many books and articles of our researchers state a theory about space catastrophe that struck Earth. Celestial body crashed directly into the energy center of the planet and destroyed the shank that upholds connection between Earth and Cosmos. In addition, this body caused to the planet such serious damage that leaded instant fall of temperature, flood (myths about The Flood (The Deluge) exists at every peoples) and at the end - perish of Ultima Tule, completely wiped from the face of the planet. Many sources confidently says, that people of Promised Land saved from the impact of cataclysm all left planet at the cost of their lives, producing as proofs different researches of different epochs. This is directly related with the narration of Ifalna. Something from the sky - hostile or so much alien to this world, that looks like hostile, - destroyed Cetra and their land.

So called "Snow people" are considered as degenerated descendants of creatures from the Promised Land - we remember, that in Icicle we hear a fable for tourists about "woman who hates hot springs", and then we can meet her in one of the caves of Great Glacier. Information exists that in the caves of North at the Earth there are as if conserved creatures, that are differ from humans physiologically. Unfortunately it is doubtful that sometimes in the real world data about study of this creatures will be published but we know for sure that one Shinra expedition bring form the North one such creature and then was doing its detailed researches. In that way we see that history of the Promised Land as of habitat is totally agreed with history of North Pole of Cetra and history of the origin of our civilization, according to the "pole theory" is identical with the origin of the race that we see during the Game. It is just the time to proceed to the Promised Land as concept. Obvious conformity of the real historical-anthropological facts and facts from the Game derived above serves as a reason for this statement.

FFVII in its idea of travels, searches and discovery ranges among such books as Bible, "Travel to the West", "Dome's book", "Parsifal" and "Odyssey and also with infinite number of fairy-tales that gave foundation to the world information fund. Literary fullness and philosophic depth distinguish FFVII from hundreds "just interesting games". Opened subject about reaching the Promised Land as something inside you says that every player during the game process may also find it. Believer reads holy book of his religion to find the Promised Land as his person harmony, archeologist equips as expedition to the place that attracts him by its incomprehensibility and finds the Promised Land as feeling of happiness and satisfaction from his researches. FFVII gives a chance of such discovery leading the player through all steps of the search: from blind diabolism to the deliberate path, through long travels - to the discovery that is in things that always looked obvious and simple. We give here one example of the discovery, ways of other characters you can deduce by analogy with it, they are not encoded in allegories and circumlocutions but lays on the surface of the narration. For our example we chose Cid as a man that looks the most stranger to the Promised Land and other philosophic ideas. Cid was thoroughly engrossed in idea to fly to Space. Fail rocket launch transformed enthusiasm into obsession. When a conversation turns to cosmos all other world stops its existence and may burn with blue flame. It seems that when Cid gets possibility to fly to space it will give him happiness and conciliation. However, as it turned out, that spacewalk was necessary to discover his love to his Planet. After coming back Cid makes unexpectedly touching speech where he expounds suddenly discovered to him main point of the Planet. Exactly he becomes an initiator of future way to save the Planet, although, it seemed, his businesses with party are over. The Promised Land for Cid is the Planet itself. A hint to such developments we may see in prehistory of Cid - he sacrificed his cosmos for a girl with name Sierra: Sierra translating from Spanish is "Terra". The name of new Cid's ship in AC harmoniously accomplishes the story of his search and discovery: terra always will be with Cid, even when he is in sky.

Combination of many such stories of enlightenments, approaching to the wisdom of Cetra loving the Planet is one of the most beautiful and global layers of the story. The race living now, traitors of Cetra, proceeds along the path of technology development, killing their Planet with it and leading them to inevitable death. Appearance of the "Study of Planet Life" and its adepts, fight for the rescue not so much of people as of Planet, a motive of redemption that pierces the story as a red line, overgrown with grass Midgar five hundreds years after - all these are parts of one idea: traitors paid back their dept to the Planet and their ancestors and returned to their sources. They found their Promised Land as it can be found by any inhabitant of the Universe where everything is united by vivifying lifestream. As real history of our planet shows, we, possible, also belong to the same Universe.

The true story of Ultima Tule makes close, real and possible the same search for the players: events described in the Game are adoptable to our world too. There are no any reasons not to follow this stated way of knowledge about planet that you live on excusing "its just a fairy-tale", "it is impossible in our world" and "everything we have is primitive and boring, it is interesting only in game". Charm and fascination of FFVII are in it says about very close and available things without correction for irreality. May be, someone does not understand this and he just like the Game, without any explanations. This is a result of work of deep memory: we still are descendants of our Ancients who was able to speak with the Planet.