I was wondering, aside from being ancient peoples, how were the Cetra different from humans? Were they a more spiritual race, or did they just have a better understanding of the planet? I didn't get much about them from the game. Also, because I can't seem to find it anywhere...if the Cetra were people who lived long ago, where the hell did Aerith come from? How did she make it into the modern world? Anyone know something I didn't get, or have any theories about the Cetra, or how Aerith survived?

This just has me confused :P

I don't think the Cetra were biologically different from Humans. Humans are basically Cetra, but without the spiritual link to the Planet. So I view Humans as having a different mindset than the Cetra, focusing on other things in their lives for so many generations, to the point that they have 'forgotten' their spiritual connection to the Planet. It's not that they are incapable of connecting to the Planet, but that it's gotten very rusty.

With this in mind, I believe Humans are able to reach the Promised Land if they are able to regain that 'lost' connection with the Planet. But I doubt that it is an easy feat, since I believe establishing a connection to the Planet requires a lot of faith and a whole different mindset compared to what most of them probably have now.

Although most of the Cetra who chose to fight Jenova died, there were probably still enough left to continue the line and the story of the Calamity of the Skies. Ifalna and Aerith were the last generation of Cetra. They are decendants of the originals who fought Jenova.

Wow thanks, that explains it. I totally missed the part about them fighting Jenova.

btw, your icon rocks :)

Do you guys think that Cloud's exposure to the Lifestream on no less than two occasions gained him the ability to be admitted to the Promised Land?

Didn't the Cetra race get extinct because of Jenova's disease? I heard she came down and the Cetra treated her (her?) friendly but she betrayed them and gave them a disease or something...So that's why Hojo mistook Jenova as a Cetra, because she was probably among them when they all died.

Thanks! I must admit it's purely because the chibi Cloud and Aerith are sinfully adorable... but still. Thanks! ^_^

Hard for me to say. In this case, I'm looking at the Promised Land as an actual section in the Lifestream, much like how the Elysian Fields is separate from the rest of the Underworld. (I'm currently waiting for Maiden Over The Star to support, debunk or leave this theory untouched. :P)

As I see it, having access to that version of the Promised Land means being a Cetra, and having that Cetra-like connection to the Planet. Since Cloud probably thought like a regular ol' human before all this, can that deep connection be established by just two intense exposures to the Lifestream?

We know that after falling in the Northen Crater, Cloud's brain was filled with immense amounts of knowledge. But is that enough for him to form that connection? I don't think so. Knowledge is useless if Cloud doesn't use it.

Not saying he can never make it into the Promised Land. I think all "regular" humans have the potential. For Cloud, the exposures to the Lifestream might mean that the battle is already half-won. But unless he puts that to use and starts thinking of the Planet in a "Cetra-esque" way, I don't think that strictly those exposures are enough to get him into the Promised Land.

...And that was unnecessarily long. :sweat:

Anybody else wonder if there's a connection to the Cetra and FF8's long extinct Centra?

I thought about that too, but there's not much information about it at all... Maybe it's leading to show how all FF games are connected? Most likely just for fun. Like X-2's Shinra! :P

Another FFX/FF7 connection. On the newsreport in AVALANCHE's secret base under Tifa's bar, you can spot SIN in big letters.