Kosmevair
Kosmevair is a large religion which is followed by the majority of Fremedhe, Cloriadme, and the Verderé Hills. In the religion of Kosmevair, reality is broken into three plains of existence- Hemdis, Vagetore, and Enel, connected by the Great Pillar. Kosmevairi believe that the cosmos is in a great battle between the forces of good which reside in Hemdis, and the evil which resides in Enel. In Kosmevairi tradition, there are multiple instances of both Hemdis and Enel, which generally overlap with the races of the world. The Kosmevairi believe that it is possible to travel between instances of Hemdis and Enel, but that to get from Hemdis to Enel or vice versa, one must pass through Vagetore. When a person dies, if their soul is heavy with misdeed, they will slowly be dragged down to Enel, while if their soul is light it will float to Hemdis. However, this passing cannot happen without being dead (though beings from Hemdis and Enel can enter Vagetore). Kosmevair believe that the great balance between Hemdis and Enel keeps the world balanced, and that if the balance is disrupted the world will collapse in on itself, the Great Pillar no longer having the power to hold everything in place. The gods and goddesses of Hemdis know this and therefore only defend against the dark powers in Enel, as they do not wish for the world to be destroyed. Force of Enel, on the other hand, are always trying evil tricks to try and enter and destroy Hemdis, from attempting to climb the great pillar to trying mass invasions. Vagetore is the constant battleground between the forces of Hemdis and those of Enel, and the Kosmevair believe that magic is tapped by mortals interacting with the cosmic energy this releases.
The Kosmevair and Golynien faiths, both Dre'an, are almost constantly dueling over the Golynien elevation of mortal to avatars of gods, which Kosmevair rejects. It is unknown if the avatars were the reason for the split between Kosmevair and Golynien, as the two religions split before the arrival of the Fremedhian tribes to the southern coast of Telgren and the spread of Kosmevair, but both clergies feel strongly about their position. For their part, the Kosmevair clergy claims that the raising of mortals as avatars was a part of the pre-Dre'an religion of the Orentesh and that the Golyniens failed to properly embrace the true faith, while the Golyniens assert that avatars were part of the original religion but later dropped by the Kosmevair. Due to this dispute, Iconoclasm is commonly practiced in the more radical Kosmevair states, while Golyniens who reject avatars are occasionally burned at the stake. This has caused problems for both religious communities, as the Kosmevair occasionally destroy momuments that were not based on avatars, while Golyniens have suffered many false avatars due to fear of being labled a heretic on denouncing them.
Kosmevair is widely practiced in southern Telgren, mostly by Fremedhian and Cloriadmen humans, as well as the region's halflings. It has some followers among Blazennians, but the religion has mostly fallen out of favor for their indigenous Blazeology in the 800 years since it was spread by the Kingdom of Fraspika to the region.
Kosmevair is a polytheistic religion, and their pantheon of gods is as follows:
The Kosmevair and Golynien faiths, both Dre'an, are almost constantly dueling over the Golynien elevation of mortal to avatars of gods, which Kosmevair rejects. It is unknown if the avatars were the reason for the split between Kosmevair and Golynien, as the two religions split before the arrival of the Fremedhian tribes to the southern coast of Telgren and the spread of Kosmevair, but both clergies feel strongly about their position. For their part, the Kosmevair clergy claims that the raising of mortals as avatars was a part of the pre-Dre'an religion of the Orentesh and that the Golyniens failed to properly embrace the true faith, while the Golyniens assert that avatars were part of the original religion but later dropped by the Kosmevair. Due to this dispute, Iconoclasm is commonly practiced in the more radical Kosmevair states, while Golyniens who reject avatars are occasionally burned at the stake. This has caused problems for both religious communities, as the Kosmevair occasionally destroy momuments that were not based on avatars, while Golyniens have suffered many false avatars due to fear of being labled a heretic on denouncing them.
Kosmevair is widely practiced in southern Telgren, mostly by Fremedhian and Cloriadmen humans, as well as the region's halflings. It has some followers among Blazennians, but the religion has mostly fallen out of favor for their indigenous Blazeology in the 800 years since it was spread by the Kingdom of Fraspika to the region.
Kosmevair is a polytheistic religion, and their pantheon of gods is as follows:
- Wodur: chief god
- Salamandon: sun god
- Maniluna: moon god
- Tempor: god of storms, thunder, and lightning
- Varfeiteux: god of courage, valor, gallantry, honor
- Gottknig: god of authority and power
- Jotrahlent: god of youth and virtuous innocence
- Guekrigg: god of war (honorable)
- Charnheund: god of the ideal male form
- Eihrener: god of knowledge and wisdom
- Heigkeire: god of glory, snow, and blizzards
- Aulwulthur: god of heroes and light (brother of below)
- Ranethur: god of vengeance, revenge, vigilante justice, and slaying of evil (brother of above)
- Vesturdon: god of judgement, law, and order
- Njulun: god of trickery, thievery, and luck
- Gewence: god of war (barbaric), nature, and madness
- Scharmun: god of the oceans and rivers
- Vurdegut: goddess of wisdom
- Krisgoth: goddess of war (female), espionage, and trickery
- Gethurdigne: goddess of treaties and diplomacy
- Leifsrung: goddess of honorable death, protector of the dead
- Hestiae: goddess of non-honorable death, jailor of the dead
- Imjuene: goddess of youth, bees, and honey
- Dume: goddess of the ideal female form
- Frigkeitix: goddess of clemency, mercy, and medicine
- Donegen: goddess of giving and change
- Merus: goddess of oceanic travel, calm seas, and benevolent ocean creatures
- Vohlt: goddess of naval conflict, whirlpools, and sea monsters
- Rehsdbeng: goddess of the earth, nature (beautiful), and tranquility
- Aieber: goddess of love and trust
- Ablsung: goddess of refusal, scorn, and mistrust
- Frewald: goddess of nature (harsh), survival, and the wilderness
- Nanus: goddess of motherhood and the household
Cosmological Views
The Kosmevair faithful believe that before the world, there was nothingness, and into this nothingness the god wodur was born. Wodur was the first of many beings to be formed from the nothingness, which rapidly grew into the universe, which Kosmevair believes to be a great ethereal ocean. Wodur, as the eldest, bacme chief of these free beings, who had begun to form consciousness and society. However, some of these beings resented Wodur's control, calling him a dictator. They hid on the far sides of the universe, their negative and murderous thoughts dragging it down, while the light thoughts of the other beings dragged their realm up. It is believed that at this point the ethereal sea faded into two separate realms, marking the original split between Hemdis and Enel.
However, not all matter faded into one or the other realm, and this leftover land became Vagetore in time. Eventually, the matter of Vagetore began to coalesce into planets and stars, and in time the gods of Hemdis created life to populate these worlds.
Jealous, as they could not create and only destroy, the forces of Enel began a neverending war to seize control of Vagetore and to corrupt and destroy its inhabitants, whispering in their ears and shaping murder and violence. The gods and goddesses of Hemdis could not fully defeat Enel, as this would throw the balance of the worlds off, leading to the ascention of all matter to Hemdis. It is believed that someday in the far future, the world will be destroyed and this will occur, but that the inhabitants are not ready to ascend.
However, not all matter faded into one or the other realm, and this leftover land became Vagetore in time. Eventually, the matter of Vagetore began to coalesce into planets and stars, and in time the gods of Hemdis created life to populate these worlds.
Jealous, as they could not create and only destroy, the forces of Enel began a neverending war to seize control of Vagetore and to corrupt and destroy its inhabitants, whispering in their ears and shaping murder and violence. The gods and goddesses of Hemdis could not fully defeat Enel, as this would throw the balance of the worlds off, leading to the ascention of all matter to Hemdis. It is believed that someday in the far future, the world will be destroyed and this will occur, but that the inhabitants are not ready to ascend.
Worship
In Kosmevair tradition, each person or community primarily worships between one and five of the gods and goddesses of Hemdis. They may pray to these gods daily, while only honoring the others on their holy days or when they need that specific deity's strength. For example, a family may come together to honor the goddess Leifsrung upon the passing of a beloved grandmother, hoping she will protect the grandmother's spirit as it ascends. At the same time, a town may pray to Hestiae if a particularly evil murderer has just been hung, hoping she will keep his spirit imprisoned in Enel.
Priesthood
Due to the decentralization of Kosmevair as a whole, there are various orders of priests dedicated to each god and goddess, with some of these orders being very selective and others being open to all. Some of the orders are headquartered in towns or cities, spreading the teachings of their chosen divinity in the region and to smaller outposts in other countries or regions. Other orders are more druidic or migratory, with members travelling often and spreading teachings as they travel, meeting only rarely and with little centralized control. There are often many orders for each god, and occasionally these orders clash over differences in teachings. When the two orders are headquartered in different countries, these clashes may escalate to war. Due to the disparite nature of many of these orders, there is no formal priesthood, which makes fraud somewhat common, though there are several orders focusing on rooting out such criminals, as pretending to be a priest and spreading false teachings are sins (and illegal in many Kosmevair nation).
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