Xaltri Faith

A faith found almost exclusively amongst the Xaltri people, the Xaltri faith (or Xaltriism) holds that good and evil are real, cognizant presences in the world, which engage in constant struggle for supremacy. They believe that most parts of the world, the weather or inanimate objects or even animals, have no control over their part in this struggle, and that mortals alone are capable of making choices. Therefore, the final victory of good or evil will rest on mortals and their decisions.

Creation

Xaltriists hold that the world is a great lump of clay, shaped by the Exalted and given life by their breath. This god has no further interaction with the world, and indeed some sects of the faith hold that the Exalted has passed away into another realm of being. There is no set word on how good and evil first came into being. Some say the Exalted placed them here, that the entire purpose of the world was to test which of these elements was most powerful. Others say both were created by mortals in ancientry, and this is why mortals alone are doomed to choose and champion them. A scant few will even claim that both elements are eternal and unchanging, that it is impossible to overcome evil.

Death, Rebirth, and Eternal Life

The oldest forms of the Xaltri Faith claim that the struggle of good against evil is eternal, so much so that mortal souls continue this fight after death, for all eternity. Which side they champion will depend on their actions in life, as only mortals have the power to choose. Some smaller sects claim that mortal souls are reborn after death to continue the fight. Recently, some individuals have emerged claiming that nothing follows death, and that the struggle of good against evil serves only the living.

Xaltriism in the World

The Xaltri people, and thus the Xaltri Faith, can be found principally in southern Vaina, though there are significant presences in Far East Orckid, Gemosia, the Great Terminallian Jungles, Nuvusma, and of course the rest of the Brevessarian Riverlands. As such, there has been a great amount of interaction with Azarad, the chief faith of Vaina, and many have noted the similarities between these two beliefs. Xaltriism has frequently been compared with Azaradi Fatalism, so much so that it is often called Fatalism, much to the detriment of its reputation and its adherents. Despite their long history in Vaina, the Xaltri are a people with no true nation or home, and in many ways it is their faith that unites this disparate people.