The Totem Dance

While the Totem Dancers do believe that the Gods are gone from this world, they are firm in the idea that they will return, and with it, they will bring Souls. All of the moral dead are believed to enter into the arms of the Gods at their death, who hold onto them until the Age of Ash is over. Once the slate has been wiped, their Souls will be deposited onto the world once again, where they may live once again with their families. While it is generally believed that those who are dead shall not die again, there is considerable debate amongst Satyr clerics as to if regular people will be granted immortality (with those who believe this often also believing that sinners will all be smited) or if they will first have to die and be judged before they can return again. As for those the Gods judge to be unworthy, it is believed that their very Souls will be purged from existence never to return and feel the light of the sun or the kiss of the wind again.   This, of course, is all nonsense, as the Gods cannot create an "afterlife" nor can there be one at all, as when a living being dies, their soul leaves their body for good and simply joins with the rest of the mana in the universe.

Like all religions on Ecumene, the Totem Dance worships the Divine Trinity, but the religion has chosen to worship specific aspects of the Trinity over others. Yxotl is worshipped as "Yxotl the Thunderthrower". His domain as the God of Weather is focused upon by the Satyrs, with all sectors of society praying to him so that their land is not hit with brutal thunderstorms or blanketed by snow. The Satyrs also highly value this God's domain over the Animals.   Qhaxsus is worshipped as "Qhaxsus the Propagator". His domain as the God of Plantlife is focused upon by the Satyrs, who believe that he springs from and holds dominion over all of the forests and fields of the world.    Oxlan is worshipped as "Oxlan the Manifester". His domain as the God of Wisdom is only loosely prioritized due to its overlap with his other domains of Art and Medicine. Oxlan is invoked in anything having to do with the creation or propping up of the Totems which the Satyrs so revere.

The name "The Totem Dance" refers to the connected religious practices of the Satyr race that sprung up after the Broken Crusade. This faith is more or less a continuation of the Pre-Age of Faith Satyrian one, although, after the Broken Crusade, they have adopted a distinctly millenarian set of beliefs centered around their realization that the Gods have left them.   Indeed, unlike all others on Ecumene, the Satyrs know that the Gods are no longer active in the world. This largely springs from their entirely unique view of the Gods. While other religions simply believe them to have sprung out onto the world out of nowhere, the Satyrs believe them to be the divine manifestations of "the Henki". The Henki (literally meaning "soul" or "life") is an immaterial concept within the Totem Dance: all the laws of nature and existence given manifestation. Once the Gods appeared, they came to believe that each was an "arm", so to speak, of the Henki. The Satyrs lived simply and in accordance with the Henki, but they are not the only race on the world, and through their practice of the "Unnatural", the other Intelligent Races threw the Henki out of balance. Angered by this, the Gods left the world to its own death spiral, culminating in the Broken Crusade. This rape of their holy land made wise Satyrs realize that existence is in turmoil, and it is up to them to save it.   However, they do not believe that this "Age of Ash" is the end. Through the veneration of the Gods and living in accordance with the "laws of nature", it is believed that the Satyrs will show their Gods that a worthy few remain, prompting the Gods to come back and "purify" the world, purging it of the Unnatural and restoring balance to existence. The exact way this purification will occur is unknown, with some believing it to be a removal of all things the Satyrs consider heretical, while others believe it is also a removal of those who use and indulge in such things.   But what is the Unnatural? In simple terms, the Unnatural is anything that the Satyrs believe to be counter to the balance of the Henki, which is quite a lot of things. For one, Satyrs abhor industry of all kinds. Steamstacks and cities are anathemas to nature and life themselves, throwing the Henki into turmoil more than any other thing. However, this goes deeper. Totem Dancers are not permitted to use or even touch any piece of refined metal, for such things are entirely man-made. This is actually a very good measure of the Unnatural, for if it is artificial, the Satyrs very likely fear and despise it. While one is allowed to use bows or build cabins, for they are taken from the earth, but one is not permitted to use things such as morphine or alcohol. Rather interestingly and in line with this, Satyr society completely disallows the use of Magic. Within their faith, magic is thought to tear power from the Henki and put it to the use of an individual, a taboo if there ever was one. As such, Satyrs are forbidden from using magic and those who do so are put to exile or death for their use of the Unnatural.   Conversely, the Satyrs believe the land itself to be holy. The Totem Dance preaches that living in the world is a most supreme gift, and the land one has been allowed to use by their Gods should not be disrespected. Of course, an invading army that comes in to burn villages and kill those they deem heretics is guilty of this, but those on the land who disrespect their own land are committing a far greater sin. Before purposefully taking the life of any animal, a Satyr must pray to Yxotl both for permission and forgiveness. Likewise, before picking any plant, one farmed or not, a Satyr must pray to Qhaxsus for the same. The faith also mandates the freedom to roam, meaning that while individual communities can have territory, no one can prohibit another from crossing onto their land if they bear no ill will. After all, Ecumene belongs to all, and no one on its surface has the authority to tell another where they can and cannot walk.   Unlike all other societies on Ecumene, Satyrian society is strictly matriarchal. As women are responsible for giving life, it is seen as only right that they rule over it. In a Totem Dancer society, they have power over the household, priesthood, and government, much like the men do in Trinitist society. However, it is still the job of the men to work and hunt, concerning themselves more with the material as the women concern themselves with the spiritual (which includes child-rearing and defending their communities).    Of course, the faith has its own virtues. Satyrs should strive to be respectful of themselves, each other, and the world. They should only indulge in existence's bounties, be they food, sport, or carnal pleasure during times of warm weather and plenty. During times of strife and cold, they should become chaste and self-restrained, showing respect to the Gods so that they may see fit to perhaps ease their burdens and end this Age of Ash. Of course, theft and murder are cardinal sins. Adultery, however, is not. It is the view of the Satyrs that while not entirely excusable, adulterers are sympathetic if they are being treated badly by their spouse or if they truly "love" who they are cheating with, and they will even be protected in such cases. Largely, the Totem Dance is a sex-positive religion, not being homophobic in the slightest and encouraging sexual relations among couples (at least outside of times of famine) even if they are not done with the intent of bearing children.

The actual worship practices of the faith are what give it its name. While spoken-word prayers are fairly common and said throughout the day (with no real set praying times), the center of the Totem Dance faith is the Totem Dance itself. A totem, towering poles that display the beauty of creation through animal carvings and painted scenes of nature, is owned by every Satyr community and will be propped up in the woods near to a town whenever the local Druid calls a Totem Dance. As the sun begins to set, fires will be lit around the totem. As the Druid jumps and dances around, howling and praying as the fires twirl in her vision, the community will join her in the same, attempting to reach a sort of religious ecstasy. This serves as a sort of meditation, for during these Totem Dances, all a Satyr knows is their fellows jumping around them, the fires crackling and flashing, and the imposing Totem staring down at them, serving as a sort of meditation due to this, allowing a Satyr to focus on their connection with themselves and the divine instead of their worries.   While harvest feasts are quite common, the only mandated holiday of the religion is the Refulgencia, for anything else would be considered to be without true, discernible meaning. Held, of course, on Heraldsky 8th, on this day the Satyr community gathers for a day-long festival. In the morning, beasts are slaughtered, mushrooms and other herbs are intaken, and the Totem is erected. For the entire day, Satyrs eat, dance, sing, "mingle" and pray, trying to find the Gods and get them to return through their wild dancing and hollering. So far, it has not worked, but the Satyrs have kept the faith.

There are two classes of holy women in the religion of Elinaikainen, and they are more or less equal in status, though they fulfill very different roles. In addition to their position as the primary priests of Satyrian society, the Druids are the temporal rulers of Satyr communities. When not tending to their temporal responsibilities, a Druid leads their people in rituals and gives their community spiritual advice, not to mention that they ensure the Unnatural is kept out of the hands of good, God-loving Satyrs. When doing rituals, Druids will hang animal bones from their horns and don an animal-skin robe, marked with divine symbols. As Druids are not held to celibacy, it is usually the eldest daughter of a Druid who is trained in their ways and succeeds her mother on her death, though Druids choosing someone else as their apprentice is not unheard of, though quite rare all the same.   As mentioned, there is another class of priest. The Seers are women who, in their teenage years, believed themselves to have received a vision from the Gods. Those who truly and in their heart believe this to be true will go into the forest, living off of the land and off the kindness of others, striving to learn from other Seers. While they, as Satyrs, are not permitted to practice true magic, it is said that they have been given a gift from the Gods: the gift of prophecy, one that allows them to peer into the Henki and see the future. Through "Rituals of the Mind" (which are conducted by taking in large amounts of hallucinogenic mushrooms and dancing around wildly), Seers will "see" visions of the future, which they will then interpret and dispense. While most Seers travel across the taiga, some have made permanent residences in grottos or caves, which are known as Oracles.

As a religion without a centralized priesthood or holy book, there are quite a few local variations of the Totem Dance, although the aforementioned practices and rituals are near-universal.