Path of a Thousand Whispers
The Path of A Thousand Whispers is a Dharmic path in in the Vampire: The Masquerade campaign supplement Kindred of the East. Adherents of this Dharma, known either as Hollow Reeds, Rootless Trees, or Wise Centipedes, believe that the path to Enlightenment requires seeing the world from different viewpoints brought by living different lives. As such they go through many, many lives, symbolically "dying" once they've felt that they've learned enough in one, before moving on to the next. Their chosen Virtue is Balance.
The Dharma is probably the rarest among the five recognized by the Quincunx due to the difficulty of keeping in Balance. Adherents of the Path are also among the least trusted among Kuei-jin, as a Hollow Reed can be your staunchest ally in one decade, your fiercest enemy the next, and not even claim to remember you in the decade after that.
Because of their self-appointed duty to help maintain Balance, many Thousand Reeds become diplomats and negotiators, while others become messengers because of their implied impartiality. Not surprisingly, many become expert manipulators as well, either of other Kuei-jin, or of the mortals under their purview.
Make no mistake however -- a Hollow Reed might be impartial, but they're not uncaring or apathetic. Many Hollow Reeds are quite passionate about their duties, it's just that such expressions are usually hidden under many layers and masks.
