Brotherhood of Shinsei

The Brotherhood of Shinsei is a religious organization that governs and oversees the thousands of temples, shrines and monasteries of Rokugan. It was named after Shinsei, the monk who led the Seven Thunders to victory over Fu Leng at the dawn of the Empire. Devoted to the study of the Tao of Shinsei, the worship of the kami no michi and the pursuit of enlightenment, the Brotherhood was the pre-eminent spiritual body in the Empire.

Structure

By the end of Hantei Genji's reign, the Brotherhood of Shinsei had attained its basic organizational form, a network of temples, shrines, and monasteries scattered across the Empire, all staffed by monks pursuing lives of ascetic self-denial, intense spiritual focus, and scholarly study. The Brotherhood of Shinsei remained vigilant against any False Paths, and when a sect fell, was held a Great Convocation declaring the doctrine heretical and expelling those who would not give it up.

Public Agenda

The monks of the Brotherhood sought understanding and harmony, and through that path, some among their number discovered enlightenment.

History

Those who had personally met Shinsei were moved by his words and continued his work. Shrines, libraries, and temples that had already been independently erected in honour of Shinsei, were put to use by Shinsei's successors in hopes of helping each person to achieve enlightenment. Over time, these successors became known as his brothers and sisters and the appellation "Brotherhood of Shinsei" was adopted and widely accepted. 
Fudoism The Brotherhood chased the followers of the heretical prophet Fudo whose teachings were recorded in the Writings of Fudo. In the 4th century the Fudoists secretly found refuge under the wing of the pacifist Asahina family.
Gozoku In 428 during the first Gozoku the Emperor Hantei Kusada requested the Brotherhood of Shinsei to became the Agents of the Hantei, spying on the Gozoku consortium. The leader of the Anshin sect, Bunrakuken, agreed to assist the Hantei, putting aside their beliefs. Seven months later, four Anshin monks were apprehended while spying on the Crane Clan Champion and executed. Bunrakuken felt betrayed when the Emperor did nothing to save them, and his entire sect fell into heresy. The martyrdom pious monks and the subsequent burning of three monasteries caused the common people to turn against the conspiracy, helping to the fall of the Gozoku time later. The Brotherhood saw this era as a dark spot in its history due to its involvement in the sordid world of politics.
Heresy of the Five Rings In the 6th century the religious beliefs of the famous monk Gorinno were the foundations of a religious movement which would be known as the Heresy of the Five Rings. Ultimately, only by a narrow margin was the Empire able to avert a plunge into full-fledged civil war.
Great Famine In the 7th century, during the Great Famine, a retired Lion Clan Champion, actually the monk Rojin, led a large peasant uprising. When the People's Legion was defeated, the vindictive Emperor Hantei XX imposed harsh new restrictions on the peasants of the Empire, extending some of these to the Brotherhood. These laws were later rescinded by Hantei XXII, who was nursed by a monk who saved his life.

Founding Date

42

Type

Religious, Monastic Order

Controlled Territories

• Morning Dew Temple
• Shrine to Jikoju (STH)

Notable Members

• Ojo