Al'Fatimi
The Al'Fatimi faith is a sect of the Illahic religion, and is currently the largest among the Al'salaani themselves, founders of Illahism, mainly thanks to its adoption by many of the Orcish invaders of the Illahic homeland. Al'fatimi is a Denialist sect, which means that they deny that Ali Shahr, uncle of His Holiness Abdulhamid Illahar Edeghor w Jafarid II (the last undisputed Jafarid Holy Successor) was granted the Holy Successorship by his nephew. They believe that the notion that the Holy Successorship was to be made electoral was both heretical and unnatural, and that all successors would have to follows the Jafarid bloodline, which they proclaim as divine. The Al'Fatimi assert that the Emperor was under sinister mind control by his uncle, believing him to be an evil wizard. Evidence for this is scant due to the events following the assassination of His Holiness, but the Al'Fatimi point to the suspicious timing of the founding of the Al'Ukhan w Alzal'a, which would later go on to become an order of religiously-motivated assassins, alongside the final 3 Jafarids all dying via assassination. They claim that the Jafarids were overthrown due to their opposition to the corrupt priesthood, ending the line of Successors which followed from father to sun from Jafar I.
Abdulhamid II was assassinated in 1246, thus leading to his son assuming the throne as expected. However, things soon came to a head when Durvar Illahar Al'Sakar w Jafarid II, the new Holy Successor Emperor, attempted to assume his role as head of the prietshood, which he was denied. His great uncle, Adar Illas Ali Shahr w Jafarid, came before him and decreed that the Emperor's father had intended for him to take over that position, so as to separate temporal and spiritual power. Durvar II, who had been told nothing of this, immediately assumed this was a plot by his great uncle to take control of the nation himself, and decreed that he was the new head of the priesthood, whether Shahr agreed or not. Though the document presented by Shahr was proven to be legitimately written by Abdulhamid II many centuries later, at the time Durvar refused to believe it, claiming that Shahr had manipulated or perhaps used dark magic to force his father to pen the letter before killing him. It is ceratinly true that Durvar should have been told about the changes made by his father, and that the letter was a breach in proper proceedings, and the fact that Shahr was the only one to see the Holy Successor write the letter which empowered him specifically was suspect. The fact that Shahr was a powerful enough mage that the charges brought by Durvar were plausible didn't help the matter, but Durvar's main argument was actually initially focused on how his father would certainly have known that such a letter would casuse strife and therefore would never have written it if he was in his right mind. The sorcery charges only became popular later, as the other factors faded from living memory. Despite the proven incorrectness of Durvar's argument, the actual legitimacy of the supposed changes cannot be proven, and therefore the Al'fatimi believe they are invalid.
Durvar was furious at clerical elite for their supposed collusion, and intended to place restrictions on the clergy until the matter was settled once and for all. Ironically this led to most of the clerical body joining Ali Shahr's faction, even those initially on the fence. Durvar then decreed that all clergymen who backed Ali Shahr were in contempt of the imperial person, and that all must swear an oath of loyalty to him. He would be given little chance to actually do anything about this before a priest who came to do so murdered him in cold blood, thus passing the throne to his son, Hamidhal I. Hamidhal immediately declared that the assault was clearly from the clergy and that they must allow his men to search for evidence of the supposed conspiracy. The priesthood, for their part, claimed the man involved had never been a priest at all, and that they should conduct an investigation. Years later evidence would prove the killer was indeed not a clergyman, but this still left open the possibilities of the man having been part of the Al'Ukhan w Alzal'a or even being a simple hired contract killer. Still, at the time evidence pointed overwhelmingly towards the clergy, and their refusal to open their quarters to searches remains extremely suspicious to this day.
By refusing to do so, the clergy had clearly broken from the crown, whether or not they were actually guilty, and were thus effectively in open rebellion. Hamidhal declared a public blood feud with the clerical leaders, as well as declaring war on the institution itself. Such a declaration meant that the royalists and clergy were bound to come to blows, and full-scale war erupted. During this war, Hamidhal was slain in combat by priestly forces, shattering the royalist forces due to his lack of male offspring, and so his line was ended. This left the initiative on the side of the Al'shahri forces, who were easily able to capture most of the remaining empire. Following the defeat of the Jafarids and their removal from power, those who still believed in the sancity of the Jafarid line were heavily persecuted, and their numbers dwindled rapidly. They were only safe on the fringes of the Illahic world, where some regional governors retained control. Despite the survival of some of these newly independent Sultanates and Emirates, the anti-Shahri, as they were then called, were disunited and never managed to challenge the Al'shahri. Thus, heresy began to rise even among those who were still loyal to the crown, as many of them lacked a strong priestly class due to their suspicion born from the war of the schism. This led to further splintering and left the denialist cause unable to challenge the Al'Shahri.
This would all change with the rise of the Fatim dynasty. Tracing their ancestry back to the sister of Hamidhal I through a matrinileal line, they claimed the mantle of the Holy Successor-Emperor on the basis of the holy blood. This path began when Jafar Hamidhal Jafarid Shorkot y Fatim II began working with other warlords and rulers of Lower Ægyia in order to fight against disorder, banditry, and lawlessness in the region, which eventually evolved into a full-on religious reform. Uniting Lower Ægyia under one government and one religion, he would begin the long process of codifying the pro-monarchial sect of the Illahic faith. The teachings of rulers such as Jafar himself and of later rulers such as Andalus Ali Jafarid Sharid y Fatim would once again unite most of the anti-Shahri and from then on, in recognition of the Fatimi family the sect has always been known as Al'fatim, while the remaining anti-Shahri who did not follow this reborn sect became known as the Al'Aqali.
Jafar's swiftly rising Fatimi Empire of the Holy Successor would go on to destroy the decrepid Uthmarid Empire of the Holy Successor, conquering much of its lands and establishing a strong denialist state for the first time. Although mighty, various defiant Al'Shahri bastions of coastal sultanates and dryland tribes would remain outside of the Fatimi sphere, thus leaving the empire confined to inland regions, as well as preventing the spread of the Fatimi doctrine amongst their subjects. However, within the Empire the Al'Fatimi sect spread rapidly, and the religion became popular among a significant number of the Illahic faithful. Although the Fatimi Empire would later crumble under the strain of a series of Orcish invasions, finally being dismantled in 1863, over time the orcs came to follow the Fatimi sect themselves, thus bolstering and restoring the Al'Fatimi faith and continuing its trend of growth, leading to it arising as the largest Illahic sect among the Sholi, Ægyians, and, of course, Al'Salaanics.
Theologically, there are several critical and foundational tenants of the Al'Fatimi faith which differ from the Al'Shahri. The Al'fatimi accept the divine blood of the family of Jafar Illahia himself, and believe that only one descended from Jafar can be worthy of the title of Holy Successor. They also reject the Uthmarid Empire of the Holy Successor and assert that during the years from Hamidhal I's death to the rise of Jafar Hamidhal Jafarid Shorkot y Fatim II there was instead no legitimate Holy Successor. In Al'fatimi canon, the line of the Holy Successor then stays with the Fatimi family until the fall of their Empire in 1863, and has once more sat vacant since; though various rulers have tried to claim the title since then, all have failed to rally the faithful behind their banner. Currently, the main rivals for the title have been Ægyi'adana (former seat of the Fatimi) and Ghamakar (the most powerful urukai state).
Abdulhamid II was assassinated in 1246, thus leading to his son assuming the throne as expected. However, things soon came to a head when Durvar Illahar Al'Sakar w Jafarid II, the new Holy Successor Emperor, attempted to assume his role as head of the prietshood, which he was denied. His great uncle, Adar Illas Ali Shahr w Jafarid, came before him and decreed that the Emperor's father had intended for him to take over that position, so as to separate temporal and spiritual power. Durvar II, who had been told nothing of this, immediately assumed this was a plot by his great uncle to take control of the nation himself, and decreed that he was the new head of the priesthood, whether Shahr agreed or not. Though the document presented by Shahr was proven to be legitimately written by Abdulhamid II many centuries later, at the time Durvar refused to believe it, claiming that Shahr had manipulated or perhaps used dark magic to force his father to pen the letter before killing him. It is ceratinly true that Durvar should have been told about the changes made by his father, and that the letter was a breach in proper proceedings, and the fact that Shahr was the only one to see the Holy Successor write the letter which empowered him specifically was suspect. The fact that Shahr was a powerful enough mage that the charges brought by Durvar were plausible didn't help the matter, but Durvar's main argument was actually initially focused on how his father would certainly have known that such a letter would casuse strife and therefore would never have written it if he was in his right mind. The sorcery charges only became popular later, as the other factors faded from living memory. Despite the proven incorrectness of Durvar's argument, the actual legitimacy of the supposed changes cannot be proven, and therefore the Al'fatimi believe they are invalid.
Durvar was furious at clerical elite for their supposed collusion, and intended to place restrictions on the clergy until the matter was settled once and for all. Ironically this led to most of the clerical body joining Ali Shahr's faction, even those initially on the fence. Durvar then decreed that all clergymen who backed Ali Shahr were in contempt of the imperial person, and that all must swear an oath of loyalty to him. He would be given little chance to actually do anything about this before a priest who came to do so murdered him in cold blood, thus passing the throne to his son, Hamidhal I. Hamidhal immediately declared that the assault was clearly from the clergy and that they must allow his men to search for evidence of the supposed conspiracy. The priesthood, for their part, claimed the man involved had never been a priest at all, and that they should conduct an investigation. Years later evidence would prove the killer was indeed not a clergyman, but this still left open the possibilities of the man having been part of the Al'Ukhan w Alzal'a or even being a simple hired contract killer. Still, at the time evidence pointed overwhelmingly towards the clergy, and their refusal to open their quarters to searches remains extremely suspicious to this day.
By refusing to do so, the clergy had clearly broken from the crown, whether or not they were actually guilty, and were thus effectively in open rebellion. Hamidhal declared a public blood feud with the clerical leaders, as well as declaring war on the institution itself. Such a declaration meant that the royalists and clergy were bound to come to blows, and full-scale war erupted. During this war, Hamidhal was slain in combat by priestly forces, shattering the royalist forces due to his lack of male offspring, and so his line was ended. This left the initiative on the side of the Al'shahri forces, who were easily able to capture most of the remaining empire. Following the defeat of the Jafarids and their removal from power, those who still believed in the sancity of the Jafarid line were heavily persecuted, and their numbers dwindled rapidly. They were only safe on the fringes of the Illahic world, where some regional governors retained control. Despite the survival of some of these newly independent Sultanates and Emirates, the anti-Shahri, as they were then called, were disunited and never managed to challenge the Al'shahri. Thus, heresy began to rise even among those who were still loyal to the crown, as many of them lacked a strong priestly class due to their suspicion born from the war of the schism. This led to further splintering and left the denialist cause unable to challenge the Al'Shahri.
This would all change with the rise of the Fatim dynasty. Tracing their ancestry back to the sister of Hamidhal I through a matrinileal line, they claimed the mantle of the Holy Successor-Emperor on the basis of the holy blood. This path began when Jafar Hamidhal Jafarid Shorkot y Fatim II began working with other warlords and rulers of Lower Ægyia in order to fight against disorder, banditry, and lawlessness in the region, which eventually evolved into a full-on religious reform. Uniting Lower Ægyia under one government and one religion, he would begin the long process of codifying the pro-monarchial sect of the Illahic faith. The teachings of rulers such as Jafar himself and of later rulers such as Andalus Ali Jafarid Sharid y Fatim would once again unite most of the anti-Shahri and from then on, in recognition of the Fatimi family the sect has always been known as Al'fatim, while the remaining anti-Shahri who did not follow this reborn sect became known as the Al'Aqali.
Jafar's swiftly rising Fatimi Empire of the Holy Successor would go on to destroy the decrepid Uthmarid Empire of the Holy Successor, conquering much of its lands and establishing a strong denialist state for the first time. Although mighty, various defiant Al'Shahri bastions of coastal sultanates and dryland tribes would remain outside of the Fatimi sphere, thus leaving the empire confined to inland regions, as well as preventing the spread of the Fatimi doctrine amongst their subjects. However, within the Empire the Al'Fatimi sect spread rapidly, and the religion became popular among a significant number of the Illahic faithful. Although the Fatimi Empire would later crumble under the strain of a series of Orcish invasions, finally being dismantled in 1863, over time the orcs came to follow the Fatimi sect themselves, thus bolstering and restoring the Al'Fatimi faith and continuing its trend of growth, leading to it arising as the largest Illahic sect among the Sholi, Ægyians, and, of course, Al'Salaanics.
Theologically, there are several critical and foundational tenants of the Al'Fatimi faith which differ from the Al'Shahri. The Al'fatimi accept the divine blood of the family of Jafar Illahia himself, and believe that only one descended from Jafar can be worthy of the title of Holy Successor. They also reject the Uthmarid Empire of the Holy Successor and assert that during the years from Hamidhal I's death to the rise of Jafar Hamidhal Jafarid Shorkot y Fatim II there was instead no legitimate Holy Successor. In Al'fatimi canon, the line of the Holy Successor then stays with the Fatimi family until the fall of their Empire in 1863, and has once more sat vacant since; though various rulers have tried to claim the title since then, all have failed to rally the faithful behind their banner. Currently, the main rivals for the title have been Ægyi'adana (former seat of the Fatimi) and Ghamakar (the most powerful urukai state).
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