[OOC] Religion

[Shan Furen]

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[Shan Furen]

Religion

Shan Furen

Shan Furen is the only goddess worshiped within the Mlima Tuokoa. She is said to be a beautiful female leopard with a white pelt, accented with a muted teal and light blonde. Her blue eyes are said to be like looking into the vastness of the ocean and her fur as soft as a freshly groomed cub's. She is said to a kind goddess as she is credited with saving the colony once before, but she also expects their loyalty. She can also be wrathful if not treated as her position deserves or if the colony goes against her will as she is also credited with causing the avalanche in recent history due to the re-introduction of lions into the colony.

All records show her with a cheetah travelling with her, but the colors and true information on this cheetah is unknown as nothing was written about it. But the fact a cheetah is seen with the goddess of the Mlima Tuokoa is the main reason that colony allows them within the mountain.

In lore, she is called the creator of leopards, beings formed in a forest and made of sticks, mud, leaves and water. Sticks being bone, mud as muscle, leaves as fur and water for blood. From there, the first leopards thrived but some turned away and began thirsting for more power, thinking they could take it from Shan Furen. In-fighting soon followed and the first blood spilled is said to have created the first of the hyenas which caused two parts of the now split first leopards to band together to defend themselves while the third sided with the hyenas. Shan Furen eventually intervened and cast them all from her forest. The leopards went their own separate ways soon after, becoming cheetahs and lions in time. All while the hyenas left while some mutated into wild dogs thanks to Shan Furen's blessing, wild dogs of today now represent an ongoing purification ritual to turn them back into blood.

From then, Shan Furen is said to have withdrawn from the world until Riho sought her help.

Impact on Daily Life

Information here.

The Afterlife

When a member of the Mlima Tuokoa dies, their body is returned to the earth that they were made from while their spirit is taken by Shan Furen to the afterlife to hunt with her in her Endless Forest. This is a common belief for any devout follower of Shan Furen and only those who stray from her lose their place in the eternal hunt and instead go to the Grasslands of the Gods.

Those who never knew of Shan Furen (rogues, children and unborn) are said to go to the Grasslands of the Gods where Shan Furen teaches them what they would have learned until they are ready to journey into the Endless Forest with her. If they refuse her, they remain in the the Grasslands, but may change their mind at any time.

The Gift of Seeing

Most found with the gift of seeing are expected to join the clergy and become a priest in the name of Shan Furen. This is not always the case, but can be looked down upon as the colony believes they are squandering a gift that is thought to have originated from Shan Furen herself. Beyond that, seers have very little expected of them. Generally they are more respected due to this gift, but this is not one that is always given. Many stalwart believers in Shan Furen will give this extra respect in the form of a small bow of their head or providing a seer with a small extra bit of food.

All seers are always being considered to become the high priest, even if they are outside of the priesthood. This is due to the high priest traditionally always being a seer. Typically the previous high priest will name a successor, but as in the with the current high priestess' predecessor, he did not. Leaving the colony to scramble for a new voice to their goddess which resulted in a guard named Junius being named high priestess.

Other Deities

No other gods are worshiped by the Mlima Tuokoa as a whole and worship of any others aside from Shan Furen is strictly outlawed. Worship of any other god is punishable by exile from the colony as they fear that any straying from her may invoke her wrath and harm the entire colony. Other gods, even those that visit the colony, are never openly accepted and are seen as messengers or servants of Shan Furen.