Astralism

The Sun Star of Astralism

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Astralism is an Amulndian Polytheistic religion. It is articulated by the Scroll of Emeulmeb, and supplemental teachings of its Great Prophets. Its holy city is Lyniela, the religious capital and major city of the nation of Amulna. Astralism is the world's largest religion, with over five hundred million adherents across the world, encompassing 30.9% of the global population. A follower of Astralism is called an "Astralist".

Beliefs

Pantheon

As a polytheistic religion, the Astralist pantheon encompasses a plethora of deities drawn from the old pantheon of Amulndian Polytheism, most of which express themselves as the embodiment of the forces of nature and creation, of flora and fauna, of the lands themselves, as well as embodying the human experience, with all its fortunes, plights, hopes, instincts and ideas. The roster of deities are additionally organised into a layered - although not static - hierarchy, with the gods themselves characterised and written about much like the characters of legends and modern literature.

Generally single deities are thought to reign over one specific concept, or several closely related concepts, and indeed in Orthodox Astralism, this is largely the case. However the Astralist pantheon is as diversely cultured as it is inconsistent, with the aspects of several gods and goddesses, depending on the sect and/or cultural practice in question, often overlapping, fusing together, shuffling around from god to god, or even being left out entirely.

Higher Powers

The Higher Powers are presented as the objective, unchallenged forces of creation and fate. Whilst their tides can be resisted, channelled or even manipulated by gods and mortals, their will to action can never be truly be denied. As an Astralist saying goes, "It has been willed. So it shall be done". They are typically presented as the first and greatest determiner of destiny; however in the more liberal and scientific sects of Astralism, the Higher Powers are presented more as the raw material circumstances of reality rather than a magical immaterial force. Whilst circumstances are sometimes moulded by lesser powers, the circumstances ultimately and utterly mould the lesser powers as well.

• The Great Mover - The self-perpetuating entity that of its own accord birthed the two driving forces, and gives each periodic and constantly varying shares of power so that they can enact their will. It is unknown whether or not the Great Mover is even consciously allowing the universe to exist in the way it does, though scripture is unclear on its true nature, most assume it may simply be unconscious, and thus, ultimately random and unpredictable. The Great Mover represents all that is unknowable. It is known as Asulakan (שვჺოს) in Amulni, Asolakon (שïვĭჺïოĭს) in Iqualni, Alupitos (Αλυπιτως) in Etruarac, and Wekdosgni (ꏑ) in Flaigalish.
• The Constructive Agent - The great "setter of laws", the force behind creation and order, and the progenitor of the Constructive Gods. It is the reason as to the existence of "creation" itself: why the lands and planets even exist as they do, why the elements are distinct and orderly, why the forces of nature such as gravity or electromagnetism or time function in their particular and specific ways (or even function at all), why life grows and develops (or even grows at all, etc.), and so fourth. All that is known, expected and controllable is believed to be that of the constructive agent. The Constructive Agent respectively goes by the names of Odoradus (שიჷივ), Odorados (שĭიĭჷȉიĭვ), Orkorodos (Ορκωρωδως), and Hukan.
• The Destructive Agent - The great breaker of laws. The force behind disorder and decay that seeks to disobey and bend the laws set by the Constructive Agent. Due to the observably orderly nature of the universe, it is seen that the Destructive Agent is considerably weaker than that of the Constructive Agent, however it is thought that were this imbalance not maintained by the Great Mover, its powers of destruction would rein in equal proportions. All that is unknown, unpredictable and uncontrollable is believed to be that of the destructive agent. The Destructive Agent respectively goes by the names of Otala, Otoro, Ototla, and Ivoldi.

Constructive Gods

The Gods that represent the many manifestations of the Constructive Agent's will. This branch of the Astralist pantheon is typically presented as the holiest and most revered of the gods, all of whom are expected to worshipped without question by the Astralist Church. The constructive gods are ordered into a family, much like that of mortals, with the mother and father at its head.

• The Sky-Father. The only child of the Constructive Agent, creator of the waters and soils of creation and father of all the constructive gods. Fathered the gods so that he could rule as king of the heavens and father of the holy family, and exists to lead them. God of just authority and rule and the family, and patron of fathers and kings. Known as Efitar, Eifitar, Keitas and Hasosken.
• The Sky-Mother. Mother of all the constructive gods, creator of the sun and the stars. The Sky-Father in his great wisdom saw that he needed a wife to wed and to have his children. From his left index finger he created his wife, who would then be known as the Sky-Mother. Though the Sky-Father was wise, he was not omniscient, and did not foresee that the finger he created his wife from was his dominant hand, of which he mistakenly assumed was his right, resulting in his wife to be as equally powerful as himself. Mothered the gods knowing that while their father would rule them, without the mother's care they would be forever lost and unruly. Goddess of fair rule and the family, and patron of mothers and queens. Known as Eymator, Aymatore, Keimos, and Sulinasi.
• The Builder God. Declaring the soils as his domain, he created the mountains and valleys, freeing it from the waters and leaving it to fill only the deepest and darkest parts of the lands. He then filled the soil with all the different types of stones and metals so that they could be wrought into more powerful and useful creations. Taught man pottery, sculpture and the ability to build stone buildings. Portrayed as immovably calm and methodical. A patron of artisans and inventors.
• The Sea Goddess. Rival of the Builder God. Consolidated the seas separated by the Builder God into one body of water, tearing the lands into three and creating the corridor seas. She filled the seas with salt stolen from the Builder God's lands so that the soil-created man would never drink from them, leaving them to survive off the limited scraps of freshwater that remained as lakes. She then created the rain, so that the land would forever know the wrath of the seas, however the rivers it created unwittingly gave man a constant source of water. Portrayed as forever bitter and vengeful, who is only occasionally calmed when offered great amounts of worship, respect and gifts. Patron to sailors.
• The Forest God
• The Sun Goddess
• The Moon God
• The Truth God
• The Victory Goddess
• The Health God

Destructive Gods

The Gods that represent the many manifestations of the Destructive Agent's will. Though often interpreted and presented as evil, the gods of destruction vary in the undesirability of their aspects, with many gods often being actively worshipped by the faithful and even some Astralist temples. The destructive gods do not adhere to a family structure, with each god being an individual creation of the destructive agent.

• The Hunger God the first creation of the Destructive Agent, who was smashed into a hundred pieces as he was born. From these pieces other destructive gods took form, while the Hunger God attempted to reconstitute himself from what remained, spending eternity to find more fragments, some of which fell in the cracks between the heavens and the earth, and in his desperation, sought to consume other gods. Patron to the greedy and the hungry.
• The Insect God one piece of the Hunger God landed in a dark corner of the Earth, and from it spawned a million ravenous insects, spiders and worms, and in the centre of the crater it made, came fourth the god that represented them.

Saints

There are multiple figures of varying historicity that have been canonised as Saints, both by the Orthodox Church of Astralism and its denominations. Cities and other locations are often named in honour of the Astralist saints, and thirteen saints are honoured in the thirteen months of the Amulndian Calendar. To be qualified as a saint, one has to spend their entire life dedicated to the religion and to have committed at least one witnessed miracle in their service to the church and gods. After a miracle has been verified by the saint-to-be's Ducassor, whose decision is then verified by one of the nice Grand Ducassors of Amulna, they are then (living or dead) declared a saint.

Orthodox saints

Stained glass depiction of St. Aralasta, in a typical medieval Astralist style

• St. Aralasta (שვსо჻öჷჺვყ) the founder of Astralism and first Great Prophet. His name is rendered as "Aralaster" in Atraelish.
• St. Pollindre (שვსо჻მơჺჺსიჷ) according to oral tradition, St. Pollindre was responsible for personally spreading Astralism across the south of Amlei. The city of St. Pollindre in Iqualna is named in her honour.
• St. Marisao (שვსо჻თöჷვ) the lifelong house servant of the prophet Aralaster, who is depicted in classic oral tales as having tended to his sickness faithfully in the final years of his life as Aralaster dictated the writing the Scroll of Emeulmeb, keeping him alive to finish the final decree of the Astralist gods and their wishes for humanity.
• St. Sinana (שვსо჻ვốსს) a lesser saint who spent much of his life preaching frugality, self-sacrifice, generosity, charity, and strict adherence to the tenants of Astralism.
• St. Losaño (שვსо჻ჺöქს) second Great Prophet.
• St. Absá'we (שვსо჻öგვჵ) third Great Prophet.
• St. Lahryğa (שვსо჻ჺȱჷნ) fourth Great Prophet.
• St. Poshmá (שვსо჻მơჭ) fifth Great Prophet.
• St. Rithweyn (שვსо჻ჷṍჟჵს) sixth Great Prophet.
• St. L'saga (שვსо჻დვöწ) seventh Great Prophet.
• St. Púms (שვსо჻მỡფ) eighth Great Prophet.
• St. Qamyns (שვსо჻ღöთუ) ninth Great Prophet.
• St. Jañinoua (שვსо჻ცöას) tenth Great Prophet.
• St. Fadlan (שვსо჻ზöიჺს) the eleventh final prophet of Astralism.

Janisserist saints

• St. Janisser (שვსо჻ცსვვჷ) lived 1121 - 1169 CE. The twelfth Great Prophet according to Janisserist Astralist teachings. Opposed throughout his life to the decadence and corruption of the Orthodox church of Astralism, at the age of 28 he received a vision from the Truth God telling him to reform the church in a new land far from the reach of the corrupt Astralist church. Led the first holy expedition to Urcinne in 1168 and founded the nation of Sine Weythern as a Janisserist haven, however died in the following year of disease, possibly of a tropical disease contracted while helping his fellow congregation clear the Urcinnan jungles and marshes for settlement.

Morality

For Orthodox Astralism, there's been a long history of executions for incest and buggery, as well as castrations and mutilations, because anything remotely sexual is a sin. Purity is the only way to maintain holiness. Deviancy caused the Amulndian Empire to collapse after all.

Sinana Astralism is way more chilled out.

Practices

Clergy

The Church of Astralism is organised into a layered hierarchy of religious and dually religious-political roles. The key clerical ranks across all sects are:

• Acolste: Low-level rank for initiates of the Church. Acolstes generally perform menial tasks such as cleaning, gardening and housework in between religious training and study. From there, an Acoleste may either devote themselves to a life of asceticism and worship, or train to become a Preste.
• Preste: With the permission of his Ussor, a Acolste becomes a Preste. A Preste oversees a Quarter, which typically entails a region's - e.g. a town's - major Church, in addition to any satellite shrines.
• Ussor: The highest non-political rank. An Ussor leads a Domain with the aid of his local Prestes, which is typically four to twelve Quarters, and runs an Archurch, the Domain's central, and normally largest and most prestigious, place of worship. For a settlement to classify as a city under Astralist theocratic law, one criteria assumes that it will feature an Archurch.
• Acollager: Having proven himself a master of religious study, in addition to intellectual astuteness and dedication to the Church, a Cassor may select a willing Ussor as fit for political education, where they then attend university to learn, where they will major in an Acollager of Astralist Law, a degree that amongst other subjects, centralises on politics, economics and anthropology. An Acollager can also minor in various other elective fields of their choosing. Once selected, an Acollager will chose a Preste to succeed him as Ussor, where he will then leave his Archurch permanently.
• Cassor: A graduate of his university and fully-fledged politician. Cassors become the rank and file of the theocratic state, becoming bureaucrats and administrators within the government of their particular nation.
• Mocassor: Mocassors govern Mocassies, and act as advisors to the Ducassor, and sit at the Banquet of Upper Clergy.
• Ducassor: The head of the Banquet of Upper Clergy and monarch of their theocratic state. In Orthodox Astralism, they are chosen directly by the Table of Nice Grand Ducassors in Amulna; in other sects, they are instead popularly elected by Mocassors.
• Grand Ducassor: One of the nine sovereign leaders of Amulna, leaders of the Orthodox Church of Astralism, and spiritual leaders to the millions of adherent Orthodox Astralists the world over. To sit at the Table of Nine as a Grand Ducassor, a Ducassor must be specially selected by a Grand Ducassor and voted in by all current attendants of the Table of Nine.

Being political roles, territories, nations and other domains ruled by the priest-monarchs of the Church are styled specifically to their ruler, much like a King whose domain is a Kingdom. These are:

• A Mocassy, a region administered by a Mocassor. Mocassies are typically states and territories and so fourth within larger nations.
• A Ducassy, a nation or region ruled by a Ducassor. Ducassies are normally always federations of Mocassies, with the sole exception of the modern Ducassy of Cordurou.
• A Grand Ducassy, a nation ruled by a Grand Ducassor. The Grand Ducassy of Amulna is the only nation of the world that has historically and continually bears the title of Grand Ducassy.

Political realm

The terms used for the various aspects of the political realm of the churches of Astralism are as so:

• Emsthe Aralasta (Amulni: שფჟ჻ჷჺვყ lit. "Empire of Aralaster") the realm of the Orthodox Church of Astralism headed by the nine Grand Ducassors in Lyniela. A political body as much as it is a religious body, the component nations of the Emsthe Aralasta are required to swear absolute fealty to the nine Ducassors. Though once a binding relationship similar to vassalage before the enlightenment, the subsequent rise of secularism and decline of Amulna as a great power has significantly lessened the power of the Church over the Emsthe Aralasta's constituent nations.
  • Kingdom of the Gods: Colloquial title of the Emsthe Aralasta used occasionally in western texts.
  • Table of Nine: The legislative body of the Emsthe Aralasta, comprised of nine Grand Ducassors.
  • Amulna: capital nation of the Emsthe Aralasta, ruled directly by the Table of Nine.
  • Grand Ducassy of Gnincae: the nucleus state of Amulna and capital state of the Emsthe Aralasta. Created by Ducassor Jeneai III in 919 CE.
  • Church Territories: The term used to refer to Amulna in comparison to the more independent nations of the Emsthe Aralasta, which are ruled by their own respective Ducassors.
• Crown of Mordras: The office held by the nine Grand Ducassors, representing their right to rule the Emsthe Aralasta. Historically, the term "Crown of Mordras" originally referred to the colonial Amulndian Nation founded after an exodus into the Great Wildlands began following the collapse of the Amulndian Empire. As the kingdom splintered into various Ducassies, the term shifted to reflect the office held by the rulers of the territories, with the collective territories later adopting the name "Emsthe Aralasta" in response to the foundation of the Emsthe Sinana.
• Emsthe Sinana: (Amulni: שფჟ჻ვốსს lit. "Empire of Sinana") the realm of the Sinana Church of Astralism, headed by the Grand Ducassor of Disesnea in Baroula. A strictly religious term, with the Church historically having only medial political power over the Sinana nations.

History

Map of Astralism's followers by country, c. 1900

Anti-Necrist Crusades

Since the East-West schism, Astralism's history in Amlei has been defined by its ceaseless conflict with Necrism, with Amlei's history bloodied with over a hundred Astralist crusades into Necrist tribes and kingdoms, some between two nations, others engulfing the entire continent.

Colonial Conflict

With the first Astralist colonists in Cylmun and Urcinne, came the centuries old Astralist crusading traditions. Though the height of the crusading era had long passed by the time of the true colonial era, during the late middle ages and early enlightenment, the church's desire to subjugate the populations of the world to the one true faith remained in its full form.

Major Denominations

Major forms of Astralism, ordered by date of founding:

• Orthodox Astralism: Formed in the wake of the Disesnea-Lyniela Schism of 495 over differing attitudes between the Ducassors Salwon and Charñon of northern Amlei and the Ducassors Johan, Hanry, Nicilas and Rasilel of western and southern Amlei regarding Amulndian succession and cultural identification with the Amulndian empire, resulting in the formation of the Sinana sect in the north and the Orthodox sect in the west and south of the continent.
• Sinana Astralism: The other branch of the Disesnea-Lyniela Schism. Named in honour of St. Sinana. Is the most unchanged branch of the religion and the closest to Old Astralism.
• Janisserist Astralism: Follows the beliefs of self-sanctified prophet Janisser Palisce. Opposed throughout his life to the decadence and corruption of the Orthodox church of Astralism, in 1149 Janisser claimed to have received a vision from the Truth God telling him to reform the church in a new land far from the reach of the corrupt Astralist church. Almost nineteen years later in 1168 CE, Janisser led the first holy expedition to Urcinne and founded the nation of Sine Weythern as a Janisserist haven.
• Juchchta Astralism: Form of Astralism practiced by the Yumeran Astralists of northern Urcinne, and combines elements of traditional Yumeran animism. Founded in 1297 by the then reigning Jaaq Kashita Trehaskina the Yieshyiuds in an event that would become known as the "Yumeran Refusal", with Trehaskina, - recognising the wide adoption of Astralism throughout his country - declaring that all Yumeran peoples were henceforth unwilling to bow to the political authority of the church.
• Lahryğa Astralism: Astralist sect founded in 1405 by Cambrinian reformer Arus Juhan Chalswan, with a significant movement following him throughout Cambrinia. Declared as a heresy by the Orthodox church, it was ruthlessly persecuted, and was officially extinguished by 1480 with the hanging of the last publicly known believers. Known as Juhanism to its opponents.
• Marisao Astralism: Founded in 1562 by reformer and radical Preste Sand Joveth Qanadewan, who saw the opulence of the Orthodox Astralist Church as something that was morally unacceptable, and claimed it had now long began to mirror the decadence of the late Amulndian Empire that the church so often claimed to have fled from. In the following decades, an immense movement rose in his wake, which took up name of the Saint and servant of St. Aralaster, St. Marisao. The movement is generally as regarded as the precursor to the rise of secularism, with many of the revolutionaries in First Etruarac Revolution of 1683 being practising Marisao Astralists or Astralists influenced by the movement.