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Post by sky on May 28, 2018 4:07:00 GMT -6
the temple of meteora
The Temple of Meteora, colliquially known simply as Meteora, is the most prominent religion on the planet. Though its spiritual center is located at Meteora Crater, the Temple is headed from the heart of New Rome, resting atop a floating island accessed through frozen geysers. Resting at the crest of the clouds, the Temple is located on the second highest island in all of New Rome, only shadowed by The Imperium's isle, which resides on the other side of the city as to not disturb the serentity of the airy, bright Temple.
Followers of Meteora are called Mettites. There are six Gods who they worship, one for each house of magic, that are collectively referred to simply as "The Gods". Mettites refer to the will of the gods as "The Light", and often refer to it both in casual conversation and in blessing. Meteora has a heirarchical system, consisting of Postulants at the bottom (devotees to the gods who take oath and dedicate their lives to maintaining temples), Hieruses in the middle (leaders of worship who lead the temples), and a single leader at the top.
One of the oldest established religions on earth, Meteora's leadership spans back centuries to when the Meteora Crater site was discovered and the Prophet Andora proclaimed her knowledge of its importance. People who visit the site find themselves healed of most surface level wounds, a fact The Prophet insisted was truth of The Gods and The Light. Meteora is always headed by a mage, a figure referred to as The Andra, who is elected upon the passing of the previous Andra. Upon their election, the Andra is expected to take up a Dyad who is referred to as The Ora. Most Andras have multiple Oras during the span of their rule due to the longer lifespan of Mages.
Andras and Oras are referred to on a last name, first name basis, to allow The Andra to be referred to with familiarity without sacrificing their real name. The current Andra is Andra Topin Clair, a Light Mage, who succeeds his predecessor Andra Pater Amor, an Earth Mage, who was Andra for 147 years. She ended her reign alongside Ora Theron Nepr before passing of old age. Andra Topin has been in power for just over a year, but has been in the Temple for his entire life.
☄ beliefs In the third century, The Prophet Andora, a Light mage, discovered alongside a group of mages the Meteora Crater site. It was here that she was struck by a vision of The Gods and was gifted the ability to heal grave wounds and illnesses. She traveled the world with a group of five mages at her side- one from each house- and her Dyad, Tellor, who spread the word of The Gods to the masses. The beliefs of The Temple of Meteora, and the words that Prophet Andora spread, are as such: 01.) A great comet struck the Earth and wiped out its original inhabitants. This comet contained the souls of The Gods who, in their guilt for destroying intelligent creatures during their landing, revived the life that once occupied Earth and improved upon it.
02.) The first Mages were born of the husks of human corpses, refashioned in the image of The Gods, and gifted magical affinities to help rebuild and rediscover their societies. The animals that occupied earth were risen from their graves and given new life, providing sustainance and moral guidance to the Mages as they rebuilt society.
03.) Mages originally had access to a basic variety of magic, but over time were shaped into 6 houses by The Gods. Endor built mages who were in tune with nature, Fyorna forged mages who could harness heat itself, Alyc created mages who could manipulate sea and ice, Ceph created mages that could alter the atmosphere itself, Elior transformed mages so that they could see and alter pure light, and Metia imbued mages with stones from the ship that brought them to earth, allowing them to alter pure void. The new power mages gained in this exchange made them more powerful than ever before, but also bred conflict between factions that insisted one element was better than another. This type of thought led to a massive schism between the houses, leading into a conflict called the Great War.
04.) After the Great War reached its conclusion toward the end of the first century, the world was nearly as ruined as it had been discovered. All of the archaeological progress that had been made in a hundred years had been reset, and so The Gods, watching from the peaks of the mountains and the bottom of the seas, gifted the mages with companions in order to help them rebuild their society. They transformed the wisest in the animal kingdom to men, melding their flesh and bone with mages whose lives were lost in the war, and created the Animal-Shifters.
05.) With this gift, the bond between Mage and Shifter cemented by forming a Dyad, Mages rapidly rediscovered what the humans of old had left them. They abandoned their villages of mud and magic and filtered into cities and towns that had been overrun by the natural world in the centuries since The Gods first wiped out the Earth's previous inhabitants.
06.) The natural order restored itself with new discovery, the mages moving into metropolitan areas while Animal-Shifters found homes in towns and the countryside. Still they maintained their relationship, feeding off of and benefitting one another by forming Dyads. Seeing that the world was as it should be, The Gods dissipated into the earth and sky, strengthening the power of the mages with a silent, watchful, and blessed eye.
07.) It was at this point that Prophet Andora and her compatriots came across the Meteora Crater site and built up the evidence to conclude that it was where The Gods had originated. In the centuries since Prophet Andora first found the site it has been observed both for research purposes, to prove and disprove Meteora's teachings, and as a holy ground, where mages and shifters alike make pilgrimages to pay their honour to the gods.
☄ teachings The teachings of the Prophet Andora, and by extension the entire Temple of Meteora, focus very heavily on scientific advancement and anthropology, and the will of the Gods, referred to as "The Light". Prophet Andora spoke that the only true way to improve as a society was to understand the mistakes of Old Earth while being as virtuous as possible. The will of the Gods are less concrete, but are generally taught as referring to virtuousness, compassion, and open-mindedness. Prophet Andora claimed the virtues were charity, honor, and humility. Mettites are taught that science, magic, and spirituality all work hand and hand to create a greater understanding of the world.
Meteora also has an extreme focus on anti-war sentiments and pacifism, believing that violence of any sort is only acceptable when it's the only end to conflict. Avid Mettites will do anything both to avoid war and stop it once it's been set in motion. Mettites are taught that all disagreements can be solved with words rather than violence, and if there is any true sin one can commit under the teachings of Meteora, it is senseless anger and violence.
Mettites believe that the first Mages were born directly of the corpses of Old Earth's occupants, and that a century later Animal-Shifters were made with the corpses of Mages combined with animal life. Mettites believe in reincarnation and that after death, a soul frees itself from its body and occupies a new one. Because the Mages are The Gods' true people, only they can become Andra. Despite this slight, Mettites are taught to have immense respect for Animal-Shifters and approximately half of all Postulants and Heiruses are shifters.
☄ daily influence Although Meteora has complex system of beliefs beneath the surface, even non-religious institutions teach of the history of virtue and discovery brought on by Prophet Andora. The tale of her accomplishment is far-reaching, which is ultimately why it is the largest religion on Earth. Even though many have little care for the tale of The Gods and their descent to and destruction of Old Earth, the virtues spread by Propet Andora are relevant to people in all walks of life.
It is common for Mettites to refer often to "the Light" when greeting and speaking to others- "may the Light bless you", "thank the Light", "the Light is with us", and "with Light's blessing" are all common phrases uttered by Mettites. Most Mettites also use a formal greeting taught by the Temple to all at a young age- bow partially while holding three fingers and the thumb on the right hand straight up, cupping the left hand underneath it near the chest. There is also a shortened greeting, which simply involves pointing the first three fingers and the thumb straight up with a small bow.
Mettites are expected to go to temple services at least two times a week. Services are held for 90 minutes daily, split into two 40 minute segments, with the center 10 minutes celebrating sundown. The start time of services varies by the day depending on the time of sunset, and a schedule of services are posted two weeks in advance. In New Rome, the most popular day for temple is Thursday, which is when Andra Topin leads service. The rest of the week's services are led by other Heiruses. At the end of each service, Light Mage postulants offer blessings at the exit, which consist of leaving a thumbprint light "stamp" on the foreheads of blessing recipients. The thumbprint lets off a glow that fades over the course of 2-5 hours.
There are multiple smaller Temples scattered throughout New Rome that display a hologram of the main Temple's service, where people are able to participate without filling the crowded halls of the island. On the Temple's busiest days, including the Andra's service days and holiday weeks, the Temple is often so crowded that Mettites coat the entire island, from the doors of the Temple to the gardens sprinkled around it. The lifts are also often blocked by long lines attempting to gain passage.
Mettites celebrate a number of holidays. There are 6 holidays celebrating the Gods, spread evenly with one every two months. Each one is celebrated differently, ranging from weeklong fasting to day long parades. The passing of comets are also each given spiritual holidays, although they are more infrequent than the regimented 6, one for each god.
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