Burnwinter wrote:The trick with Jon's resurrection will be what he's had to give up—similar to what happened with Beric Dondarrion in the books perhaps?
Assuming it's not Azor Ahai's spirit who comes back in Jon's skin, of course.
I've always wondered about the finer details of the reincarnation thing. Is it like a fusion between two souls or would one literally be replaced by someone else? All these false Azors throughout the story have always presumed, perhaps naively, that they would maintain their own memories and personalities if they were to turn into the legendary hero. But none of them have seemingly stopped and wondered why they have no memories from Azor's time and life if they were the chosen ones. How can they be Azor if they have no recollection of it?
Rhaegar Targaryen thought he was Azor based on the circumstances of his birth. Melisandre thought the same about Stannis because he was born and bred at Castle Black. Both Rhaegar and Melisandre tried to make their own circumstances fit the legend from that point on. Rhaegar kidnapped Lyanna (and thus set in motion the events depicted in the books) because the prophecy said that Azor would have a third child but his wife was unable to bear any more kids. Melisandre held a ceremony declaring Stannis to be reborn under the stars and literally made sure that he drew a sword from the fire to defeat his foes. They basically imitated a legend rather than living it.
Jon is the first character in the story where it has been hinted several times that he has been waiting to become someone else in both a symbolic and a physical sense. His suspected inheritance as part Targaryen and part Stark makes him the embodiment of fire and ice, but his face has also been shown in the fires of R'hllor. He has dreamt about the flaming sword. I've always suspected that when he did come back to life it wouldn't be as himself. Not entirely anyway. What would be the point of the resurrection otherwise?
