Holy geese

The holy geese are kept in the The Tower of Sunset in Çarimbal (New Tower) to produce the finest quills for the priests and scribes of the temple complex of the Sun God.

Divination

The geese are not only kept for their feathers like simple farm animals, but are also believed to be the messengers of the gods. A myth tells that the skill of writing was first discovered, when the gods sent a swan to the ancestors of the Farens, who gifted them it's quill. The skill of writing made the Ancestors able to record their history, making them immortal in the memory of their descendants.
The will of the gods is divined by augurs by observing the behaviour of the geese. Usually the geese are kept in their own housing within the temple complex, but sometimes the Emperor takes some with him while he travels around his kingdom.

Because the geese are important ritual animals, they are strictly protected from any harm. Killing or seriously harming any of them is punishable by death.

Harvest

The quills of the geese are plucked once a year in the spring. This day is an important religous festival, an is considered to be the anniversary of the invention of writing. On this day (how the day is observed). This day is a holiday. The commoners are expected to puck their geese only after this day.

History

Lately the Emperor has given less importance to the revelation from the augurs, since he claims to be in direct contact with the gods as the Son of the Sun. However, many of the commoners of the Capital eagerly follow the latest news of the geese, in order to know when it's the best time to conduct business, travel abroad or arrange a wedding. The current auguries are regularly announced in the Temple Gardens.

by Unknown (1876–1899)

An augur observing the behaviour of a chicken