Empires do not suffer emptiness of purpose at the time of their creation. It is when they have become established that aims are lost and replaced by vague ritual.
Book 1969
Dune Messiah quotes
About the book
Twelve years after becoming emperor, Paul Atreides finds himself trapped by his own visions of the future as a holy war waged in his name sweeps across the galaxy. Conspirators plot to bring him down from inside his court.