Hameenism

God King of the Great House

The Hameens and thereassociated religious systems are an integral part of Kemetian culture, informing much of the Kemeti language, culture and state. The Kemetians revere the world's natural resources in the form of animal-headed humans whose divine will is tempered by the Hameen of Pharu, a term which tranlates to 'King of the Great House'. The Great House is both a royal and spiritual title as well as an actual physical domain thought to encompass the remains of the once massive Enkariad. The holder of this position is believed to be the mortal incarnation of a Kemetian god. While Hameens are typically representatives of Montu, Taweret or Dihauti, they may sometimes represent other, even heretical gods.

Keeping the Balance

Religious rituals are often a combination of attribution to Kemet's Hameen and the gods themselves. The Hameen is seen as an intermediary between the average person and the gods, and are obligated to sustain the gods through ritual and offerings to keep divine order, embodied by the goddess Ma'at. Doing so repels chaotic forces embodied by the form of the god Apep.

Folk Magic as Divine Providence

Kemetians will also interact directly with the gods for their own purposes, appealing for help through prayer or compelling the gods to act through magic. These practices are distinct from formal rituals and institutions and are considered a kind of 'folk magic'. Despite the condemnation of the Grand Accord and their technical illegality, such practices are considered to be a normal part of daily life in Kemet.

Undead Reverence

Kemetians are adamant believers in continuing life beyond death and put great importance on funerary practices and magic rituals which sustain the undead. Tombs, grave goods and offerings as well as preserving the bodies and spirits of the deceased are common. The Kemetians see the risen undead as holy ancestors, viewing unintelligent or roaming undead as lost and abandoned ancestors. This means Kemetians consider the enslavement of the undead to be morally abhorrent, which has created a significant rift between the House Kemet and the Grand Accord.

From Floodplains to Flood Survivors

Over time, various gods have supplanted one another as the primary source of Kemetian focus. The inundation of the Iteru into a large channel during The Fall has majorly shifted Kemetian worship away from flood gods and fertility gods towards gods of the horizon and gods of creation, with Taweret and Nuun finding a place of increased reverence alongside old favorites like Hathor and Montu.

Rogue Hameens

There are some Kemetians who still practice a form of worship where the Hameen himself is considered a literal god, made popular during the Gilded War Interregnum some 1200 years ago by the Hameen Nikan, a strange inconoclast and heretic god-king who claimed the throne through iheritence. Nikan insisted he had been an incarnation of the Hidden God, a deity who Nikan claimed exceeded those of Montu, Khepri or the other sun gods. Nikan's temples bore the inscription 'For his light is the ocean above, untethered from the sun'.

Origin

Kirbadi