This article is a translation of an article originally published in German on www.norisburg.com
The twelve-god pantheon is primarily worshipped by humans in the Horas Empire and the Middle Kingdom, as outlined in the Silas-Horas edict. Further details can be found in Part 1: The Twelve Gods and their Adversaries and in Part 2: Demigods and Immortals. However, other gods are worshipped in some regions of Aventuria. Other peoples also worship their own gods. This article will provide a closer examination of these subjects.
Rastullah is the only god worshipped by the Novadis in the Khom desert. Around 300 years ago, he revealed himself to them in the oasis of Keft and brought them his 99 sacred laws to govern their coexistence. Although he has not yet performed any miracles, he has a large following among the desert people. Rastullah is one of the few gods who are never depicted figuratively. Instead, individual aspects of the god are used to reinforce the oath, e.g. in Rastullah's curly locks or the all-seeing eye of the All-One. His symbol is a white tent from which he is said to have descended from heaven.
The Nivese call upon the Sky Wolves. They are a divine pack that once shaped the world. The sky wolves are called Gorfang (pack leader, rule, revenge), Grispelt (Gorfang's consort, fertility) in the Midlands language, Ripgrief (hunting), Redtail (cunning and rebellion against rule), Firngrim (the winter mother), Arngrim (spring), Liska (mediator between Nivese and Sky Wolves), Rangild and Rissa (the eternal lovers),Tongja (beauty and grace) and Ranik (rolls the sun across the sky).
Mokosha, the great bee, is worshipped by the Norbardes. She is the patroness of their travelling society and the dynamic pace of their activities can likely be attributed to their deity. Through her worship by the ancient Tulamids, Mokosha has also found her way into the Twelve Gods pantheon, where she is sometimes seen as the daughter of Ingerimm and Peraine, but also sometimes as the daughter of Ingerimm and Hesinde.
The twin gods Rur and Gor, as well as the beauty of the world, are believed in Maraskan. Rur formed the world into a disc and threw it to his twin Gor. Since then, the disc has been on its way to Gor. In their worldview, there are no miracles because the course of the world is predetermined. Maraskans follow a strict dualistic world view in which everything has its appropriate counterpart. They believe in reincarnation and try to fathom the Sixty-Four Questions of Being, which will one day be answered by Gor.
Kamaluq, the jaguar-shaped god, is feared and honoured by the Forest Folk. But they worship the spirits of the jungle more. As they are constantly surrounded by these in their everyday lives and have to be appeased by their shamans. This is exclusive of the Forest Folk, other nature-loving peoples such as the Nivese, the Gjalskärlander, the Fjarninger or Orcs also have their shamans who appease the nature spirits.
The druids worship the primordial mother Sumu and endeavour to heal the wounds from her battle against Los. The witches believe in Sumu's daughter Satuaria, who is trying to bring the primordial giantess back to life.
Shinxir is a god of war from Myranor. He stands for courage, strength and the art of war. His sacred animal is the hornet. For a long time, he was worshipped secretly in the Horas Empire. In 1042 BF, the cult made itself known once again and since then attempts to break the supremacy of Rondra as a god of war.
There are also faiths that completely reject gods. The magician philosophy is particularly widespread among wizards. Their followers only see the gods as powerful beings whose power is related to the degree of worship. The Twelve Divine Churches condemn this school of thought because, according to them, mortals who are endowed with enough power can ascend to godhood. Even more disreputable and subject to severe punishment is Borbaradianism, which takes the basic idea of mage philosophy one step further. According to their teachings, they are convinced that every being must free itself from the shackles of faith and spiritual subjugation. The ultimate goal is to determine one's own destiny and to work magic through sheer willpower using one's own life force.
The dwarves worship only one god. Angrosch, the lord of fire, ore and craftsmanship. He bears many similarities to Ingerimm. Belief in Travia is widespread among the hill dwarves, who live closely with humans. The Brilliant Dwarves worship the resourceful Simia, the daughter of Angrosch.
Elves have moved away from true god worship, although they worshipped gods of their own long ago. Gods are perceived as powerful beings, but the reason why they should be worshipped is not clear to them. Instead, they have the principles of becoming (nurdra) and passing away (zerza), as well as something that threatens existence (dha): the eternal adversary (dhaza).
The orcs primarily believe in two powerful and bloodthirsty deities: Brazoragh (dominion, sun, battle) and Tairach (death, magic, knowledge). The less prestigious population groups also worship Gravesh (craft) and Rikai (healing).
Goblins worship the Great Sow Mailam Rekdai, who is said to have scavenged the world from the great heap, as well as the god of hunting and war Orval Kurim.
H'Ranga are reverently called the gods of the lizards. But they do not invoke them. As they are very vengeful, they try not to attract their attention. Most respected among them are Charyb'Yzz, who rules over water and seas, the irritable Chr'Ssir'Ssr, who commands the sky and dominion, the serpent-like H'Szinth, who stands for transformation, the tortoise-like Kha, the Very Oldest, Krr'Thon'Chh, the bloodthirsty Shatterer, the toad-shaped Ssad'Huarr, mistress of the end of time and life, Ssad'Navv, to whom time is subject, V'Sar, the lord of perfect souls, the lizard-shaped Zssahh, lord of new beginnings and rebirth and Ppyrr, lord of the elements fire, humus, air and ore.
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