Osterian Villagerism

Osterian Villagerism is a different interpretation of Villager Lore, made by the osterian people as they learned and adapted things from Villager Lore that they learn from the original population of Osteri, villagers. This religion not only includes many conceps from it's original version, but adds many elements exclusive to the way to view the world of the Osterian and how they interpretated the things teached to them by the villagers.

History
The Osteri found their way through the wave into a villager town, where they were later accepted. As they lived with the villagers they adopted many of their costums and amoung them they learned about their religion. Although many things that the villagers told them sounded wrong to the osterian they started to appreciate many of the things that their host teach them. As much of the sailors had been kicked out of their original homes by war and fammine their belifes on their previous gods were weak and villagerism, at least what they could understand about it through the language barrier,  gave more logic to their struggles.

Pre-Vanishment Era
As Lonely Light started to develop and the osterian population settled they began to adopt villagers. This adoption was not well recorded but is understood that the villagers were doing the best they could do to teach the lore and maintain it's values. During this era it saw little changes from it's original form and, despite being practicated by the osterian, largely dependant on the villagers to carry on any type of ceremony and to keep sacred books. As the language barrier could never be truly broken many of these books are lost to translation and are used today as relics.

Vanishment Era
As the villagers started to die of strange circusatnces the religious teachings stopped, starting a crisis of Villager Lore on the island. The osterian did their best to help the villagers, and to take religious responsibilities. Due to this the Vanishment is concider to be the birth of Osterian Villagerism, and it's golden age. It is also remembered as one of it's most tragic moment.

During this time many of the characteristics, traditions and rituals that separate Osterian Villagerism from Villager Lore developed. The main difference being the belife that souls stay on earth after they die, with a few exceptions.

Post-Vanishment/Osterianism
During this era many of the original traditons of Villager Lore, as well as some of the adopted during the previous era. This is also the time when the Osterian’s began to expand. It is consider to start since the moment of the founding of Harktlady (the osterian buildings on it), and ended somewhere after the colonisation of Hollenkreis.

Funerary Rituals
When an osterian dies their body is taken to Flower Island, where it is prepared and buried. The osterian’s that have the time to come to this even always make it, many abandoning important tasks to be at the funeral.

Once the body arrives at the island  it is prepared by the island keeper, often with the help of friends and family of the decese. It is cleaned and perfumed, to conceal the odor, and balsams are applied to maintain the body. Once the body is clean, they are dressed with their best attire or are gifted one by a friend or relative. As soon as it is prepared it is put on a metal sarcophagus and stored in a special underground room to be preserved by the cold.

Osterian sail to the Flower Island to get to the funeral. After it’s deemed by the Island Keeper, he will start the celebrations from the morning to around 8 am, until the sunsets. There are competitions, food and alcohol. On the banquet the sarcophagus is brought out from the underground and opened. At the end the banquet, everyone that so desires takes a moment to talk about the dead.

Burial
On the sunset the will is read by the Island Keeper, and is considered bad luck to protest, as a sign of disrespectful to the dead, that is considered to be there in spirit. After this a spot is selected and a hole of 3 meters deep is dug, stakes are put on the four corners, with rings to pass the ropes. At the same time, lamps are scattered across the island and the ships on the shore ignited all their lights.

At midnight the burial begans. The dead is taken out of the sarcophagus, usually by pulling a leather stretcher underneath. This is then tied by the ropes and slowly descended down into the tomb. Once it reaches ground the rope is cut, dropped down into the hole, and the stakes are removed. Then everyone gets to say some last words to the dead, usually only the family and friends, before it is covered by dirt. No markings are put to signal the burial site.

Transport Difficulties
As the osterian land grew it became more complicated to transport the bodies to the island that came from colonial lands. As it was more likely that the body would decompose on the way. To solve this the people from Hollenkreis and GrayStar had to make use of different techniques to preserve the body until it reached the island, yet complete embalming was seen as an unnatural option, as the body is expected to fuse with the earth on the island and not to be preserved. When someone dies away from the island they must be covered on balsams and wrapped on linen to help the preservation. Immediately after it is taken aboard the fastest ship available to bring it to Flower Island. On some occasions this resulted in a funeral without anyone assisting or with a leather bag to avoid the sight of the decomposed body.

Religion
The original villagers believed in 2 gods and 2 pairs of dualities. The sky, one of the dualities, is a central part of Osterian Villagerism, as it was for Villager Lore. as on it live the two main gods. There is two gods of the sky, who struggle over total control of the sky force of Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam. The Earth force, on the other hand, is totally untamed and remains wild, as no one can control it.

Gods:
the Sun god Hmra

the Moon god Henu

Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam (The Sky Force)
Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam is one of the most central aspects of Osterian Villagerism. On it live both gods and they fight for it. The sky is the only wall between Rathnir and the higher layers of existence, so it is seen as a place to ascend to, an space of order and peace. The exception for this being storms, that are interpreted as results of the battle between Hmra and Henu.

Hmar (The Earth Force )
Hmar is the untamed and wild part of Rathnir, untouched by the gods. As such is home to the work of the player, and the villagers before them. This doesn't mean that the gods won't pay any attention to what happen underneath them.

Similar to the Sky Force it is considered a wall separating Rathnir from layers below us, but not as effective on this separation, because of the wild nature of Hmar.