Habor
Habor is a religion which arose in western Niru shortly after Skyfire. Like many places, the city of Wáládji was destabilized by the Year of Dark Sun, and during this chaotic period, a Wálában prince named Mbakwe was forced to flee the city. During his northward flight, it is claimed that he had a religious revelation in which he purportedly received a blessing from Hanaq, the spirit of the sun, who charged him with spreading her worship across Koru.
When he reached Hemeya Ehab, he began preaching his new faith but was driven off by priests of Erúe and fled up Yeshar Zuriath. As he began to asphyxiate high in the Ugor Uhar, he began to despair. He asked Hanaq why she had led him to such an end, and she reached down to him and touched him with her burning hand. Her fire washed over him, but instead of burning him, he drank of the flames and rose as if made anew. Around him stood seven Sun Furies, guardians sent by his goddess. Together, they swept back down to Hemeya Ehab and conquered the city. Many of the downtrodden quickly flocked to his banner, and together they traveled south conquering Wáládji and the other cities of the Orphan Sea, preaching the new faith as they went. With each city, the Haborian forces grew. The Radiant Army continued its conquest moving south to Modairo and then north west to Laistemeni which soon fell to the invaders.
Exultant in the victories of their faith, the Haborians followed their Prophet to Thovan where they drove the Makar from Nobrakh and were greeted as liberators. Next, the Radiant Army pushed up into the Crags of Narlingol to convert the demon worshiping Morghaian to Habor. Their victory was not to be, however, for at the Battle of Koryl's Landing, the Prophet was slain and his Sun Furies with him.
With the emperor slain, the Haborians had no clear leader. They quickly descended into a power struggle that shattered the young empire. Today, there are over a dozen Haborian kingdoms who exist in varying degrees of rivalry. Each Haborian kingdom prefixes its name with "Radiant" as a sign of their faith.
Structure
Most kingdoms have a hierarchy of clergy that advise the nobility on spiritual and ethical matters. There is no organized network of communication between polities, nor is there a supranational organization of clergy. Each kingdom operates its own version of the faith.
Tenets of Faith
The Seven Tenets of Habor:
Ela: Worship Hanaq at dawn, noon, and dusk.
Şikh: Strive to spread the Faith
Bos: Protect your family
Mayab: Do not hide from your failures. Face the consequences.
Harta: Do not harm unjustly
Thif: Avenge wrongs committed against you or your family
Han: Burn your dead
Worship
Worshipers prostrate themselves before the sun. If a priest is present, they administer the sacrament, a goblet of mystic flame. Each worshiper drinks from the mystic flames and is filled with vigor.
Haborians consider Koru to be a prison and desire to leave the cycle of reincarnation and spend eternity in the Golden Gardens of the Sun, a mythical location beyond the bounds of Koru. They believe that through following the tenets of the faith, their spirits may, upon death, ascend to this place. Funerals are held at dawn and begin as soon as the solar disk becomes visible on the western horizon.
Haborian temples are called Sun Spires. These tall columns of stone have a staircase winding around the outside allowing the faithful to ascend to the flat space at the top where worship service is conducted.
The symbol of the Faith is a golden sun with seven wavy rays.
Granted Divine Powers
Priests of Habor can enchant a rock to be what they call zahar. Zahar can be ignited with a prayer from the priest. The bodies of the dead are placed on a slab of Zahar for cremation. The inside of the Faith's Sacramental Chalices is lined in Zahar allowing the priests to serve their congregation the mystic flames drunk during the daily prayers.
Sects
Ihremites,
Netherines
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