Ushaadfaay, the Raron zodiac (/uçɐːdfɐːj/)
the raron zodiac The Raron year is divided into six months each with 60 days. Every month corresponds to a specific animal and two elements, one primary and one secondary. When Raron children are born, their zodiac sign is considered part of their general identity. Many feel a deep kinship with their zodiac animal. For believers in Id, the Raron dream cult, many will seek out their animals as dream spirits to accompany them in their sleeping and waking life.
Summary
There are three elements in the Id system and everything is made up of combinations of these three elements: salt, water, and air. Salt corresponds to body, mass, to the physical nature of things, and the reality of how things are. Water is associated with change and growth, the development and movement of things. Air represents the environment and the external forces that change a person.
There are six animals in the zodiac.
Unyozeo
plural: unyozeoaa
Unyozeoaa are pink shelled slimy creatures that are ubiquitous in the modern Lake Raro and in its past before the dark ages. Their primary element is salt and water is its secondary element. An unyozeo will fight against being eaten to the very end, and this tenacity and strength is well-regarded. Because unyozeoaa are exclusive to Lake Raro and because of their unique role in Raron society as both food and medicine, unyozeoaa are recognized as contributing to the body of a person, making the unyozeo a powerful zodiac symbol and the first animal.Day
plural: dayaa
Dayaa are dog-like creatures with flat faces and hardened scales on their backs that live in the deserts and shrublands around the sea. They have been domesticated twice over, once by the Rarites peoples near Lake Raro and another by the Ildoar to the south. The dayaa domesticated by the Rarites are noticeable for being small, lean, and more friendly than intelligent. The primary element of the day is salt and the secondary element is air. Their happy-go-lucky nature and their loyalty to their owners make them key players in the lives of Raron citizens, so the day is the second animal in the zodiac.Dfesa
plural: dfesaa
Dfesaa are tall, six-legged horse-like creatures that are used as working animals across the world. While not necessarily specific to Raron life, as their habitat stretches all the way south based the Kugma mountains, dfesaa are notable for being important methods of transporting goods and people across long distances. Because of their dependable and steady nature, they are recognized as being stable and sincere, and children born under the dfesa tend to be the same (at least, to the believers of the ushaadaay). The primary element of the dfesa is air and the secondary is water. As the third animal in the zodiac, it shares the middle of the year with the koov.Koov
plural: kovaa
Koovaa are flying mammiles with large wings made up of long fingers and membranes that connect them and the body. They also have hardened beaks like Rarites do. While their primary element is air, the secondary element is salt. Some believe that the kovaa are distant relations of the Rarites and thus are afforded a special place in the zodiac. The last day of the dfesa month and the first day of the koov month are the two middle days of the year, and celebrations are usually held on those dates. Children born on those dates are also considered lucky. Because koovaa are exceptional fliers, but scatter at even the slightest movement, people born under the koov tend to be flighty and feisty, but capable in what they do.Tyii
plural: tyiiaa
Tyiiaa are long slender animals similar to snakes, but they have hundreds of tiny legs similiar to a millipede. They live in the waters of Lake Raro and feed on unyozeo, if they can get them out of their shells, and fish. They travel in small groups, and when they are in a feeding frenzy the waters roll and boil with their bodies. When the unyozeoaa disappeared from Lake Raro, these animals adapted to living in the waters closer to the ocean near the Paban mountains. Vicious and venomous animals, they are associated with ambition and bold action, earning it a place in the zodiac as the fifth animal. The primary element of the tyii is water and the secondary is salt.Muut
plural: mutaa
Muutaa are small, 10-legged creatures with small articulated joints that make them very adaptable at ambulating and climbing. Because there are small holes in their exoskeleton, they are able to secret a soft goo that encapsulates their whole body. This helps them maintain their amphibious status. The primary element of the muut is water and the secondary is air. While not particularly flashy creatures, the muut is well-known for its adaptability and the cunning it demonstrates to capture their prey, and children born under the final animal in the zodiac are known to be quick to learn and dependable in times of trouble.Historical Basis
When Kyitum, the Id prophet, foretold the beginning of the Dry Age and sought to help save the entire kingdom, xe did not expect having to go back and beg for more visions to help. Instead, the six animals of the zodiac came to Kyitum and explained the futility of the ask. Despite xer disappointments and the fear xe had about letting others down, xe taught people about the animals that gave xem wisdom.
Spread
The Raron zodiac is well-known in Raron culture. Almost everyone is aware of the animal associated with the day of their birth, and it is taught in schools in basic studies. Originally it started only in Raro itself, but it soon spread around the entire Lake and even up north, where the Paban people started to acknowledge the spiritual animals.
Cultural Reception
One of Kyitum's first followers, Snakhnya , listened to xem describe the experiences of their second set of visions, even as unrest started to occur among people affected by the great drought. She wrote down Kyitum's words and wrote the first treatise on the zodiac animals as well as a list of dates that corresponded to major events in the history of Raro. The Zeemug Nyai, or Book of the Animals, was recopied by other believers and more files were added to document the births and deaths of famous Rarons. The reception initially was mixed, as the time was seeing many upheavals and changes, and Kyitum's role in fueling panic was not forgotten.
In Literature
The central part of the Zeemug Nyai, the one that describes the animals and their elements, became a well-known song, and the records of the many births and deaths also became musical, with different musicians showing off their memories by reciting the dates correctly.
In Art
The ushaadfaay is a very common subject of art. The walls around the city of Raro are painted with murals and writings from famous texts, and along the innermost walls that house the majority of the Raron citizens is inscribed a full calendar with the different animals in their places. The art displays a wheel divided into six segments of various colors, with an animal beside in a matching color. Like in typical Raron art, the eyes of the animals are not depicted.
While many works depicting the zodiac have the first animal, the unyozeo, at the top of the wheel, it is sometimes placed on the bottom, signifying the structural foundation of the world.
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