Sharindlar
Goddess of healing and fertility (a.k.a. Lady of Life and Mercy, the Shining Dancer)
Lady of Life and Mercy, is the goddess of healing, romantic love, and fertility, often associated with the moon.
Sharindlar (pronounced: /ʃɑːˈrɪndlɑːr/ sha-RIHN-dlar) was the dwarven deity primarily known as the goddess of healing and mercy. Although dwarves did not hide their worship of her, they called her the Lady of Mercy among non-dwarves to hide another aspect of her identity. Much more important to modern dwarves than her healing role was the status of the Lady of Life as their patron of romantic love, courtship, and most of all, fertility.
Divine Domains
Life, Charity, Chastity, Lust, Moon, Charm
Divine Symbols & Sigils
Flame ring rising from a steel needle
Tenets of Faith
Sharindlar was an invariably warm and caring goddess; she was naturally humble and unassuming, and always had a kind word for everyone, whether mortal or divine. She was known to look favorable upon both dwarves and non-dwarves, including pack animals and even monsters. The Shining Dancer was also spontaneously exuberant, given to shouts of joy, bursts of wild laughter, and impromptu dancing.
Although she played a diplomatic peacekeeping role, she generally found politics dull and stuffy, preferring instead to speculate on the future love lives of both mortals and gods.The Lady of Life was a true romantic and habitual matchmaker who did her best to bring together star-crossed lovers no matter how astronomically low the odds.
Relationships
Sharindlar was one of the older dwarven gods, and had always been in good standing within the Morndinsamman. She had established excellent relations with her peers over the millenia, as she had little tolerance for disputes or rivalries that interfered with her bringing of healing to the wounded and mercy to the distressed.
Sharindlar had various other allies outside of her own pantheon. From the Seldarine, she was close with Hanali Celanil, elven goddess of love, and the triune goddess Angharradh, the combined aspects of Hanali, Aerdrie, and Sehanine. From the halfling pantheon, she had good relations with its matriarch Yondalla, as well as Sheela Peryroyl, goddess of dance, romance and agriculture, and Cyrrollalee, goddess of friendship and hospitality. Other allies included the Faerunian gods Chauntea (goddess of life and bounty), Eldath (goddess of peace and calm waters), Hathor, (Mulhorandian goddess of love and dance) and Ilmater (god of martyrdom and perseverance). Aside from gods, she had good relations with some of the animal lords of the Beastlands.
There was only one being that could be truly called Sharindlar's enemy: Urdlen, the gnome god of greed and hate. The Crawler Below was an enemy of all dwarven gods, and harbored a deep hatred for everyone and everything.
Worshipers
Sharindlar held a position of universal goodwill among dwarves and high esteem amongst other races that shared her beliefs, her benevolence and devotion to the downtrodden managing to impress even the most deeply prejudiced among hubristic humans and xenophobic elves. Her followers came from all walks of life, and dwarves of any alignment, especially those that were courting or who were tasked with sentencing others in the name of justice, paid homage to the Lady of Mercy. The sick and wounded in combat often uttered prayers to her, as did the dwarven priests of all faiths that cared for the sick and were seeking or using healing magic. Physicians, midwives, and lovers alike gave prayer to the Lady of Life, and those that gave their lives for those they loved were known to hear the soft crackling of flames before death.
Dwarves were normally loathed to admit, even to their companions, the very personal and private aspect of dwarven life Sharindlar represented. When dwarves left aside their normally stern demeanors to dance for an evening, they prayed to the Shining Dancer, said to be the best the dwarves had ever known, to guide their feet. Likewise, when a hardened dwarven warrior softened to accept his childhood sweetheart's vows of marriage, it was the Lady of Life that was invoked.
Sharindlar's clerics, especially her specialty priests, were known as thalornor, a dwarvish word loosely translated to mean "those who are merciful". The clergy was originally entirely female, and even after the Time of Troubles they were still almost completely so (being 99% female). Novice members were known as the Chaste, while full members were known as Merciful Maidens/Youths. In ascending order of rank, priests were known by the titles of Dancing Tresses, Golden Allure, Healing Touch, Merciful Smile, Loving Heart, and Fruitful Mother/Father, with High Old Ones of the church having individual titles and being collectively known as the Sons/Daughters (or Dauls) of Sharindlar.
Rituals
Sharindlar's clerics normally prayed for their spells in the morning. Conversely, Sharindlar was often associated with the moon, and her holy days (aside from being on Greengrass and Midsummer Night) took place the night after the new moon and the night of the full moon. It was at this time when most of the more secret rituals of Sharindlar were enacted, commonly involving secret congregations performing them in hidden caverns with natural pools of water.
During these rituals, the faithful cast golden items into a sanctified cauldron, which was heated until the gold was molten. This was mixed together with blood let by the worshipers from their forearms. Throughout the ritual, Sharindlar's name was chanted and the followers prayed for her mercy and guidance, dancing in a frenzy while keeping armor and weapons near at hand but not worn or carried. The contents of the cauldron were then poured into the pool of water, which In the Deep Kingdom of the gold dwarves was the Lake of Gold, the rocky bottom of which was streaked with gleaming gold veins and covered with sparkling gold dust from the ages of worship.
Such rituals were mostly attempts to raise the low fertility rate of the dwarves, and the faithful were forbidden from removing gold from the lake. Couples (married or not) were also known to ask for Sharindlar's blessing in a similar way, entwining their arms and letting their blood flow together over melting, golden braziers. All rituals of Sharindlar's fertility aspect celebrated in the Deep Realm always ended in great feasts and underway courting chases.
Rituals invoking the healing power of Sharindlar performed by two or more of her priests or priestesses had them gathering over the sick or injured. They would sprinkle the ill with a drop of their own freshly-let blood, usually drops from their palms, and a vial of water from the Lake of Gold while whispering secret names and descriptions of the goddess. Even Sharindlar's name, when whispered or silently repeated in the minds of those who had faith in her (even if they were members of a different faith) had a calming effect on upset dwarves and allowed those wracked with pain to sleep.
The healing ritual succeeded 20% of the time per each priest taking part, another 20% if the injured was favored, and 10% if Lake of Gold water was used. It amplified the healing process by making restorative spells take the maximal possible effect, doubling the rate at which rest helped the body, stopped the progress of poisons, diseases, and parasites (including rot grubs) for 2-5 days, and could have other beneficial effects depending on the circumstances.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Sharindlar's avatar appeared as a slim and spirited dwarven maiden, either 6 feet (1.8 meters) or 13 feet (4 meters) tall. She was flame-haired and normally full-bearded, but to observers of races whose females did not normally grow beards (such as humans) her own might seem to vanish, or appear and disappear like a flickering flame. The eyes of the Lady of Life were striking, and seemed to change color to the point that observers from across the centuries had reported them as being of differing hues.
Sharindlar was usually clothed in diaphanous gowns, and never wore armor. Normally she was barefoot, but during her occasional appearances at parties, she appeared wildly garbed in boots and high-heeled shoes, as well as rich gowns and fancy accoutrements. If attacked, flames would rise around her body, which always caused her clothes to vanish before coming back undamaged by the dying flames.
Favored weapon
Fleetbite (whip)
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