Rhatoui

Rhatoui is a syncretic religion which is practiced en masse by Telgrener Goblins, specifically those of the Rosklet and Blotnyin ethnic groups. It is essentially a polytheistic religion which incorporates all deities into two levels, either upper or lower. Rhatoui believe that the world was created by the upper gods, powerful and unknowable figures, and given to the lower gods for management. Rhatoui practitioners may disagree on whether the lower gods are servants, children, or simply lesser versions of the upper gods, but they all agree that praying to the upper gods is pointless because they do not get involved in mortal affairs. This creates a self-fulfilling prophecy, where Rhatoui will pray to any god they hear of, and upon doing so immediately make the god a lower god. Due to this, almost none of the upper gods have even been developed with names or pruposes outside of a vague "cosmic overseer role". There is, however, one diety that is known only by the moniker of "mother" which is deeply rooted into Rhatoui lore. Goblins believe this diety was the one that created and nourished their race before arising to the heavans, and their faith in her is often much deeper than the Rhatoui's often fluid tenets would have one believe.

Rhatoui pantheons are often different depending on which foreign deities the goblin in question has heard of, and are almost always composed of human dieties the goblins have been exposed to. This means that the Rhatoui pantheon of the Blotnyin goblins is often more developed, as it incorporates deities from Relvetsians rather than just the gods of the Orentesh and Clesentian cultures. Rhatoui believe that every deity is associated with some unique combination of time, color, and domain, and these do not even always agree between different branches of the faith. However, it does create highly ritualized types of prayer for each god, such that, for example, the deity of Salamandon might only be prayed to during a sunny day while wearing yellow on the first day of the month. These are common associations with the god, who is of the sun. Yellow of course represents the color of the sun, and the Rhatoui often associate the first day of the month with Salamandon because it signifies a new beginning, just like the appearance of the sun symbolizes the beginning of a new day. Of course, other Rhatoui may disagree, and say that Salamandon may be reached during any sunrise.

The Rhatoui also believe in a third tier of diety, who are often associated with spirits. These are believed the be ghosts, ancestors, and any other type of generalized spirits which, though they do not have godlike powers, are considered divine due to their association with the afterlife. Also associated with this group are former goblin deities from wherever the goblin in question descends from. Rhatoui deeply venerate these spirits, and are often liable to be found worshipping random ghosts in abandoned houses. It is this association with ghosts that gives Rhatoui its popular perception of a heretical cult which worships the dead and places them above the gods. Rhatoui believe that certain spirits (usually mythical ones) are deeply tied to whichever "house" a worshipper is from. There are many houses, all of which date back to the original place the goblin in question was enslaved. Many houses are associated with spirits or gods which originally entered Rhatoui from the religion of that region, and consequentially these houses serve as a sort of trans-national clan structure, in particular with how and when one worships spirits.