Examinations of the Worldly Religions

Examinations of the Worldly Religions is a compendium on the religions of Eldham and Rathnir written by Melon Tetsujin.

= Examinations of the Worldly Religions =

Preface
Throughout my travels to the peoples of the lands in Rathnir and Eldham, may it be said that I shall compile a comprehensive list of what the various tribes, peoples and nations of the World believe in. May it also be hoped that these writings shall guide whoever can read my script to gain a worldly knowledge of what the peoples in this current moment in time were and what their beliefs were.

- Melon Tetsujin, High Bishop of Cofelia, Head Scribe of Noah Tanaka-Olsen

Definitions
Firstly, we need to define the ways these beliefs take shape and transform. Within such categories I shall arrange said beliefs based on the order of my people's characters.

- Animism : any beliefs that ascribe life and soul to objects around the devotee's surrounding, as in trees, forests, hill, etc.

- Theistic : any beliefs which include a deity/god of some kind. Within such beliefs there are:

+ Monotheistic: any beliefs that assert that one deity/god is supreme and almighty. Within these faith they also practice:

* Pantheist: any beliefs that assert that one deity/god is identical to the cosmos.

* Immanentist: any beliefs that assert that one deity/god is in the cosmos, but the cosmos is not wholly divine.

+ Polytheistic: any beliefs that include multiple deities/gods organized in some shape or form. Within these faith they also practice:

* Monolatry: less of a belief and more of a practice of worshipping one deity/god while acknowledging others exist.

* Henotheist: any beliefs that predominantly worship one deity/god, but allows for other Gods from other faiths in their framework.

- Non-theistic : any beliefs that do not worship a god of any kind, and instead is mostly a set of rules and principals for its adherents.

- Totemistic : any beliefs that worship a certain symbol related to a close kinship group amongst its devotees. This includes cults of all kinds.

These beliefs shall also be described in a certain manner, and if possible, will have a book title that the reader can look up at whatever library they might find this book at. They will also be organized into trees if one is derived from another.

With those terms defined, let us continue to the list itself.

Animistic Beliefs
The belief in the environment surrounding one's living space is common along a lot of the peoples of the World. As such, there are as varied the number of beliefs as there are the hills and mountains of the world.

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Monotheistic Beliefs
I was pleasantly surprised to see that a lot of the peoples and nations of the World have belief in one deity, such as my own. Display Entries

The Stone Path
This is a monothiestic faith worshipping Ishizukuri Ryu, an apparent "slayer of death" according to those who follow it. Followers of it believe in the acquisition of wealth as a means of ascension to a higher plane of existence, and they follow a religious text known as The Rules of Gain (which bears a striking resemblance to a financial self-help book!). Believers are spread throughout Zamotz and its surrounding regions, likely following the migration patterns of the Suunturns of Central Zamotz who first followed this religion.

It was a little difficult to get ahold of their Rules of Gains text, but an astute librarian managed to help me at the last moment. I should make them a warm cup of tea some time.

Polytheistic Beliefs
The vast majority of believers I encounter worship not one, but many gods. Such diversity is an incredibly beautiful thing in of itself, although some kings and queens may use those gods' images to their own advantage... Display Entries

Hukar Sharud Faith
From what I could gather, this religion is polytheistic, yet also practices monolatry: It believes that other gods are merely incarnations/subsets of its one true god, Aradusu Aderrid. Its followers seek to "reduce the strife placed upon the corporeal world", and they reflect this by worshipping a number of different smaller deities within the religion. This seems to be the state religion of Yimmu-Audal, possibly the oldest nation to exist in Rathnir.

Since it seems to be the religion that give legitimacy to the Audalad Dynasty's rule on Yimmu-Audal, which was one of the most powerful nations of Rathnir at its zenith, religious texts pertaining to the religion can be acquired at respectable libraries across the world.

Non-theistic Beliefs
It is quite surprising that a decent subset of people choose to become religious, yet do not follow a god at all. I suppose that's the easiest form of worship.

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The Chaos Authority
A group of people who dedicate themselves to the "peace between mortals and immortals". Highly secretive about how they practice their belief although there seems to be a lot of research and militaristic activities involved. I have not been able to acquire a book of what these people believe in, and I have dug through the oldest libraries that I know of in the darkest corners. Some secrets must be so well hidden, they might as well not exist...

Totemistic Beliefs
Quite a few devotees choose to worship a symbol. While not common among the faithful of the World, and certainly carries a certain level of oddity in itself, they nonetheless deserve a mention for their uniqueness.

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