The throne room of the great temple in the center of Nacitas is decorated with hundreds of tapestries and paintings from before Terra was made. These depict the Star Empresses that rule over all creation with an exquisite series of paintings showing the creation of the disk world of Terra out of hundreds of other disk worlds by the Star Empresses. The first showing the ten Star Empresses gathered together by the matriarch Star Empress, Empress Gwenna Duianna herself. A detailed series of tapestries show Empress Duianna forming a small disk of land and seas from the shards of broken worlds. Empress Duianna then gives the beginning world that would be Terra to Empress Liath Brenull who holds it in both arms protecting it with bulging muscles and adding to it with her breath. Other Empresses shield the new world with their cloaks from the fires of the void that is shown consuming all the other disk worlds. Empress Duianna collected the peoples of the broken and doomed worlds delivering them by golden bridges to the new world still being nurtured by Empress Brenull. The lost unnamed Empresses are shown one by one being consumed by the void as they defended Terra allowing Empress Duianna and Brenull to finish their work of growing Terra and saving the peoples and creatures of the original worlds. The remaining six Empresses set Terra at their feet and Empress Duianna and Brenull stretched out their arms giving the last of themselves in the creation of the sky kingdoms. Their cloaks gathering together to encircle the sky kingdoms and to hold the edges of Terra. The four remaining Empresses taking their places ruling over the cardinal kingdoms of north, south, east, and west.— Description of the Great Temple of Stlocus
Model
- The system is poly-pantheistic.
- The divine is considered matriarchal and follows a familial model.
Origins
The world was conceived of by Star Empress Gwenna Duianna to protect all the peoples from the coming cataclysm caused by the Void, sometimes called the Great Chaos in very old documents. Gwenna called the lesser Star Empresses to her side and they came. They bonded together bringing all their might into one effort to save the people. The Star Empresses are the last surviving deities who are believed to have been born from the stars of the original worlds. The Star Empresses then created their own worlds and peoples all based on Empress Gwenna Duianna's first and acknowledge best people. Thus the original homeworlds live in unity and trade until the Void broke into their realms and threatened to destroy all. Together the Star Empresses created the world of Terra and saved some of their peoples.
Afterlife
Life after death is a brief pause between lives, although minor sects say the afterlife is different for each person. Some smaller groups believe that your destiny in the afterlife is rooted in a cycle of births, lives, and deaths. All religions agree that the Void must be fought and avoided at all costs. The afterlife is where the Star Empresses hold ultimate domain and their golden cities clear in the day and night skies can be reached by people who are good.
Culture
Principles
In general, the religion of Terra, although varied slightly, is universally focused on ensuring everyone is taught the ways of the Star Empresses, avoiding impurity, and to a lesser degree, striving for spiritual growth. Above all the people are to watch for the Void and not allow it to gain a hold on their lives or the world. On a personal level, people focus on avoiding impurity, ending sin, and in general kindness to others. The laws of the empire do not go against any doctrine and there would be great strife if the civil government attempted to make any such law.
Ethics
Good people are expected to be faithful and diligent. Evil is defined as cowardliness, recklessness, and irresponsibility. Taboo subjects are bodily functions, incest, displays of affection, and more rarely eating certain animals.
Attitudes
The spirit world includes divine spirits, tricksters, and more rarely ambivalent nature spirits. The average person avoids any spirits, and sometimes tolerates them. The highest art forms are instrumental music, pottery, stone-carving, drawing, and often textiles. Outsiders are usually forcibly converted, and sometimes ostracized.
Rituals
Prayers
- The divine is more likely to hear the first daughter’s and matriarchal petitions.
- The divine will sometimes speak through signs and messengers.
- The divine will only speak to saints, prophets, and the Augur Optimus.
- The divine is more likely to speak during times of great social strife.
Liturgy of the Hours
The people of terra are expected to perform the Liturgy of the Hours just like the priests.
- Morning Liturgy - privately or communal, before beginning the day's efforts.
- Midday Liturgy - privately or communal, between eleven and noon.
- Evening Liturgy - privately but strongly encourage to be communal with charges, between three and five in the afternoon.
- Dusk Litergy - recommended being done privately, however it may be shared if a charge needs support performed between seven and eight in the evening.
- Day's End Liturgy - privately before bed, no later than midnight.
Miracles
There is no record of miracles or wondrous supernatural powers or anything beyond normal. Meaning no mention at all. Anything remotely mystical is left in the myths. There are only miracles granted by the Star Empresses in answer to great sacrifice and much praying.
Major deities
Star Empresses:
The core Star Empresses that built Terra.
- The stars and sun - Empress Gwenna Duianna the red empress - leadership, power, fortitude
- The moons and planets - Empress Liath Brenull the green empress - motherhood, fertility, harvest
- North - Summer - Empress Eveka Krenal the blue empress - battle, cunning
- South - Winter - Empress Vaneesh Junnae the white empress - planning, engineering
- East - Morning - Empress Nothiam Bree the yellow empress - industry, construction
- West - Evening - Empress Minooia Oolikn the orange empress - health, education
Minor deities
The Lost Empresses that gave their lives that all may live.
- Empress of Nomads
- Empress of Protection
- Empress of Courtship
- Empress of Mapmaking
- Empress of Celebrations
- Empress of Seafaring
- Empress of Valor
- Empress of Learning
- Empress of Vengeance
- Empress of Storytelling
- Empress of Stable Keeping
Prophets
- Dereina Fred De Bithisbrok
- Wymer Felicia Belle
- Wugan Thibaud Louet
- Brightulf Gylot De Ardern
- Ellemus Wymer Willames
- Turkild Olive Le Rouvile
- Desiderata Gregory Cissor
- Johannes Magota Kest
- Egelina Eigus Euerard
- Mar' Aaron Westoun
- Elicia Mariota Russel
- Emelina Wiviva De Thorp
- Lithulf Traher Ad Fontem
- Ormer Elys De Weston
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