Major Religions

Xodanvadi
	Overview:
		Type: Henotheism
		Basic Tenants: The problems of the world stem from idleness, and the solution is honest labor.
		Name of Clergy: Keshish, [God]vadi, Mobadan, Dasturan.
		Places of Worship: Temples, shrines, and monasteries.
		Founder: Sarder, the First King

	Nature of the Divine:
		In Xodanvadi there are several different divine and spiritual entities. There is the eponymous Xodan, which is the collective consciousness of all past rulers of the Bashkan. Then there are the old gods, the Xodayan Kohan, which are primarily animistic deities which embody concepts like luck and fertility as well as natural phenomena like rain and the sun. The Xodayan Kohan are depicted either as outright animals, or as men and women with the heads of animals. Then there is the Maniya, the gestalt composed of all one's ancestors which one's consciousness joins with upon the hour of their death. Only nobles, or rather those blessed with a talent for magic, possess a Maniya. The Maniyan collectively form the Niyakan, and attend the Xodan's court in the afterlife.

	They can only be loosely termed henotheistic, and in truth representing the Xodanvadi as a single, unified faith is a grave inaccuracy. Most nobles worship their ancestors first and foremost, and the religious practices even of neighboring clans can vary wildly. Many peasants, even though few among them practice a truly organized religion, continue the rituals, traditions, and celebrations of the Old Gods and pay only lip service to Xodan himself. Indeed, some tribes deny the divinity of the Xodan entirely, claiming that he is merely the Maniya of the imperial family and rules over the Niyakan only, rather than both the Niyakan and the Xodayan Kohan.

	Meaning of Life:
		Xodanvadi believe that the root of all evils in this world is aimlessness. The man without a goal, without a purpose, turns his idle hands to sin. The cure for this greatest of evils is thus productive labor, and any man who provides his fellows with honest labor is considered to be doing good for his community and for all society. To work is to worship the old gods and the new, while to succumb to laziness is a sin against both the faithful and society as a whole. One of the most basic tenants preached by the Keshish, the priest of Xodanvadi, is that there is dignity in even the lest glamorous of task. The man who scoops shit out of the gutters has more worth to society than a noble who does nothing but eat and drink and whore away their day.

	Clergy & Places of Worship:
		There are temples to Xodan in every major city across the Turani Shahdom which are established, maintained, and staffed by the Imperial family. These temples serve both political and religious purposes, as they often house the local bureaucracy, the granary, the police, and many other important aspects of centralized authority. The priest of Xodan are called Keshish, and are appointed specifically by the Imperial bureaucracy. They often serve as tax collectors, scribes, and judges. Priest of the Old Gods are usually referred to as the name of their god appended with the suffix -vadi (e.g. Pylvadi, Shagalvadi, et cetera). Their role in society is not nearly so strictly defined, and they often serve as wandering healers and the advisors to tribal chieftains. There are shrines to the Old Gods scattered throughout the Turani Shahdom and beyond, erected in any location that is emblematic of the concepts the god in question embodies.

		There exist a monastic system parallel to but separate from the religious hierarchy. Generally speaking these monasteries trace their lineage back to great thinkers, powerful mages, or incredibly rich nobles and serve in the capacity of universities for the academically inclined noble, or the magically gifted peasant with no other options. Many own the surrounding land and rent it out to tenant farmers who in turn provide for the needs of the monastery's inhabitants. Each monastic order is headed by a Dastur, who handles the day to day task of running what is generally the largest and oldest of the order's temples. The Dastur appoints a number of Mobedan, who see to the operation of smaller/newer institutions. The Mobedan in turn appoint several Herbadan, who oversee the lands owned by each individual monastery and see to the education and care of the student body.

		Taxes are collected by each monastic order and paid by the Dastur to the Shahryar, but otherwise the orders are allowed to operate independently and see to their own internal affairs. Several rulers through history have taken issue with this arrangement, and some have tried to a greater or lesser extent to exert their authority over the orders. However, these efforts have generally been politically unpopular and more than that the Shahryar's armies have a poor record when facing the so-called Sarbaz-e Loxt, Naked Warriors.

	Practices & Beliefs:
		The tenants of the Xodanvadi faith were passed from generation to generation by oral tradition for nearly a millennia before being properly recorded, and the lands that the faithful now inhabit have been scoured by war innumerable times since then. Fortunately, the archives deep beneath the Shahryar's palace have remained largely untouched, and the documents kept there form the basis of the religion's dogma. Most of these sacred documents recount the actions of Sardar, the legendary First King, and his successful attempt to usurp the jackal-headed god Shagal. The legend goes that Sardar united the disparate tribes of the Gondarin Kof mountains and ruled over his kingdom for a hundred years and a day. Upon the hour of his death, rather than being subsumed by the Old Gods, Sardar's will was so powerful that he instead claimed dominion over the dead from the gluttonous Shagal, who had grown fat and powerful by feeding on the souls of the dead.

		According to the scripture, Sardar required only six days to seize power from Shagal, and rose from the dead on the seventh. For three days he shared his teachings with his family and his close companions, passing on his knowledge of the afterlife and the best way to attain entry to Ahangxane, the House of Song, and how to avoid banishment to Dorugxane, the House of Falsehood. Those that attain entry into Ahangxane are said to combine their consciousness with that of their ancestors, becoming one with their Maniya, and from that point forward attend the court of the Xodan, the gestalt entity composed of Sardar and all his descendants. However, those that are banished to Dorugxane are denied unity with their ancestors, and forced to wander the hellish plains which lie beyond the Xodan's court. There they will almost certainly be devoured by the creatures which deny the Xodan's rightful rule.

		Chief among his teachings were to respect one's ancestors, for they can ultimately deny or accept someone into the unity of their consciousness. He also preached the importance of family and hierarchy, both at home and in society at large, as well as the value of hard work and honesty. Indeed, Sardar elevated truthfulness as one of the highest virtues. He instructed his followers to meditate regularly on their lives, either at home or in groups, praised generosity, especially to the sacred animals (dogs, cats, cattle, leopards, et cetera), and cursed all those who would retreat from life to live in isolation.

		Sardar's teachings were many and manifold, but after three days of preaching to his successor and companions he returned to his kingdom in the Underworld. The practices advocated by Sardar form the religion's most basic practices, but these are further expounded upon through accounts of Sardar's actions in life and the teachings of his companions.

Yihodi
	Overview:
		Type: Monotheism
		Basic Tenants: The problems of the world stem from man's inability to perceive truth, and the solution is gaining knowledge through the study of tradition.
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Isteniyya
	Overview:
		Type: Monotheism
		Basic Tenants: The problems of the world stem from arrogance, and the solution is submission to God's law.
		Name of Clergy: Kahin
		Place of Worship: Mustaslam
		Founder: Ma'mur ibn Ali

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Dorosianism
	Overview:
		Type: Autotheistic
		Basic Tenants: The problems of the world stem from ignorance, and the solution is individuals striving to perfect themselves.
		Name of Clergy: Sorcerers
		Place of Worship: Colleges
		Founder: Doros of Kyrkira

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Guizhuyi
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		Type: Animism & Ancestor Worship
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