Nothindrian Mythos

Nothindria has a belief system which could be called their religion, but is more similar to spiritualism and mythology. It tends to revolve around the gods Lilyakaarta and Kryvyakhy, and the various animal spirits who aid them. Nothindrians do not tend to worship these gods overzealously, and rarely build temples or religious institutions, instead they simply respect the gods, and treat them more like metaphysical forces.
The Isles of Nothindria have a deep culture of stories and myths. Their priests are known as “Storytellers”, and every Nothindrian will grow up listening to tales around the fireplace, passed down through generations. For centuries, it was considered taboo to write these stories down, resulting in many different variations of each tale, and some details being lost or twisted over the centuries.
After the military coup overthrew the old Tsars, the newly established Nothindrian Republic decided to cast aside the old ways which had been holding them back, and allowed for these stories to be documented and cross-referenced, in order to uncover the true secrets of their history.
Storytellers know that not all stories are true. They are aware there is some exaggeration and made-up tales. But they strongly believe that all stories tell a purpose, and deserve to be treated respectfully.
The degree to which the Nothindrian Spirituality is strictly followed, varies across the isles. The Northern isles are very spiritual, but the large cities such as Zenganamaarv and Groznyak tend to treat things much more liberally, picking and choosing which bits are convenient to follow. In addition, there is a clear divide between the Government and the Religion. This allows them to have friendly relations with other nations who usually have starkly different beliefs.
== Themes ==
=== Balance ===
The Nothindrian religion is one of the few belief systems which sees Light and Darkness as equal forces, both worthy of following, and both key to the way the world works. They see the forces as being in balance, but also in conflict. When the two forces clash, they are testing and refining their skills, and will both emerge stronger.
This balance is important to Nothindrians, and they consider that those who promote imbalance, such as nations who only allow a single kind of divine worship, will bring about Calamity.
=== Spiritual Animism ===
Nothindrian Spiritualism has a key focus on the idea that everything has a soul. Even inanimate things like rocks and trees. Some souls are greater, and some are lesser, but everything has a spirit which must be respected.
==== Origin of Souls and Connection to the Gods ====
Nothindrians believe that all these souls come from Lilyakaarta and Kryvyakhy, who themselves were spirits born from the day and the night respectively. When these great spirits found the world, they imparted souls upon the hollow things they found. Lilyakaarta imparted the Soul of Flame, which created light and life. Kryvyakhy imparted the Soul of Ice, which created objects of stubbornnes and inevitability. Thus, all living things (plants, animals, etc.) are born of Lilyakaarta, and all objects and natural concepts, (stone, seas, wind) are born of Kryvyakhy.
==== Malleable Souls ====
Nothindrians have a very metaphysical approach to what a “thing” can be, and it is entirely based on how the thing is spoken of. A rock is a singular rock, with a singular soul. If that rock is shaped and becomes a brick in a home, then all the souls of all the rocks combine, and form the single soul of the home. However, if the rock is split in two, then its soul does not split into two, it is merely a single soul in two places. They believe a soul being seperated for too long causes it to lose its integrity, so the two parts should remain as close together as possible. Because of this, Nothindrian buildings tend to be constructed from stones from the same place, as rather than splitting the soul, it becomes a case of reconstructing it into something new. Also because of this, if a tree is chopped down to make a ship, then the wood will not be split across multiple ships, it will all be used on the same ship. Any wood left over is burned, as burning it is considered to be returning the soul to Lilyakaarta.
The definition of what a single soul can be is said to be the duty of humans, which they do so by naming it. This is supposedly the reason they were created. When a human names a mountain a mountain, it is able to have a single unified soul, rather than being a collection of many stone souls. This makes it stronger.
==== True Souls ====
Some things are considered to be souls of both Lilyakaarta and Kryvyakhy, known as ‘True Souls’. Humans, and other intelligent beings, were said to be created by both gods and thus have True Souls. Additionally, humans are able to create things with True Souls. When a human applies heat to metal to forge a weapon, that weapon has aspects from both Lilyakaarta (in the flame) and Kryvyakhy (in the metal). When building a home, it can be given a True Soul by including a hearth, bringing light and warmth to the cold stone.
==== Entwined Souls ====
Certain objects, creatures, or people, are said to have “Entwined Souls”, meaning that they are stronger together and weaker apart. This is most commonly referred to in family terms; the souls of married couples, or twin siblings are entwined,. It can also be used in reference to people who have made strong bonds with animals, a Nothindrian who rides a steed may refer to being entwined with it. It can even apply to objects; A ship’s soul is entwined with its captain, a warrior and their favoured weapon have entwined souls.
Entwined Souls can be seperated, as this is not the same as a single soul split across multiple places, however it will usually result in grief to each soul.
==== Hollow Things ====
A Nothindrian Spiritualist’s greatest fear is things which have no soul at all. These appear commonly in myth, but rarely in real life. In myth, they are the result of evil forces, such as Shidiqura, removing the soul from a thing, or creating something without putting anything into it. Hollow things are always evil, they often have a flexible form, or no form at all, and they often hunger for the souls of other things, thereby creating more hollow things around them. Hollow things are also invulnerable to magic.
Outside of myth, this rarely is relevant. However: Aurichalcum, the magic negating metal, is considered to be a Hollow object, since it cannot be affected by magic, and steals from around itself.
=== Greater Spirits ===
Lilyakaarta and Kryvyakhy may be the prime spirits, but they are not the only powerful souls. Objects or creatures of significant magical power, or major geographic features such as mountains and islands, are part of the mythos as Greater Spirits, with great power. Before scaling a mountain, a Nothindrian will offer a prayer to the spirit of the mountain, which is usually either a request for good fortune, or a challenge to the mountain, treating the climb as a competition and requesting it to play fair.
=== Family & Home ===
Family and Home life are integral to Nothindrian belief, and this largely is due to their beliefs around unity and balance. Myths often focus on marriage, childbirth, and the relation between siblings, or children and their parents. Myths often imply terrible consequences for this structure being broken.
In the Nothindrian family structure, the female is in charge. She possesses the intelligence to properly maintain the family, the emotional empathy to understand her family, and the willpower to keep everyone in line and together. She is also the only one who can bring new life into the family and home, through childbirth.
Nothindrians accept adoptive families as valid, in cases where a child’s original parents have died or abandoned them.
Nothindrians also allow two women to marry and start a family.
== Symbology ==
Nothindrian spirituality doesn’t really have any unified symbols or religious iconography, as it is a very disorganised religion. However, spiritual Nothindrians may craft talismans and trinkets which are said to bring luck and the favour of the spirits.
The most common symbol for Nothindrian spirituality is a burning hearth fire.
Nothindrian talismans are almost always made from smelted metal, as it has a ‘True Soul’. The talismans will usually be in the shape of animals.
== Death ==
=== Funerary Practices ===
Nothindrians believe that the bodies of the deceased should be removed from the mortal world as soon as possible, so that the soul is not tied to something physical, and is able to freely pass on. This is usually done by cremating the body, or giving it to the seas. This doesn’t only apply to humans, but to animals too. If, while crossing the tundra, a Nothindrian dies, their companions are always careful to make sure the body is burned. According to their beliefs, if a body stays intact after death, and is preserved by the ice and snow, then the soul will be broken and restless, unable to fully leave the physical realm. This is their belief for how Undead happen.
=== Afterlife ===
Like most cultures in Coryphiel, Nothindrians believe in reincarnation, through a process of passing through the afterlife. They believe that deceased souls go on a journey north, past the great ice barriers, as they are no longer constrained by the physical. There, they pass into the sky, and are reunited with Lilakaarta and Kryvyakhy, who will make their soul pure again, and cast it back onto the world in a new form. If a Nothindrian has their soul Entwined with another, such as a partner, twin, or favoured pet, then supposedly the souls will wait for each other at the ice barrier, to pass through together, to increase the likelihood of being together in the next life.
Unlike most other belief systems, Nothindrians believe that when reincarnated, you will not necessarily return as a human, but may return as an animal, or even a plant.
== Animal Spirits ==
Various Animal Spirits are recognised across the Nothindrian isles. These spirits are usually a manifestation of a Greater Spirit, acting in the physical realm. The argument of whether the Animal Spirit are physical beings, or incorporeal manifestations, is undecided. The Animal Spirits have shrines across the isles, at which many Nothindrians will leave offerings.
=== The Hawk Spirit ===
The Hawk is said to be the Spirit of Novorosshka, the largest of the Nothindrian Isles. The Hawk is a watchful spirit, who protects the isles, and supposedly lives among the highest mountains, alongside the Goat Spirit. The Hawk’s name is invoked by sailors and hunters, who wish to be able to see danger before it strikes.
The symbol of the Hawk is synonymous with Nothindria, as the nation has taken it as their national symbol. Since this became the case, new themes have become associated with the spirit, such as Freedom and Exploration.
=== The Bear Spirit ===
The Bear is the Spirit of the Isle of Chezchnyka. It is a patron of warriors and is often invoked for strength and courage. It is said that the Bear Spirit spends most of the year fighting the forces of evil in the far north, then spends the depths of winter hibernating at Lilyakaarta’s hearth. Many warrior groups will utilise the iconography of the Bear.
=== The Goat Spirit ===
The Goat is the spirit of the Rusta Mountains, a notoriously stubborn creature, difficult to please and even more difficult to control. The Goat Spirit is invoked for resilience.
=== The Walrus Spirit ===
The Walrus is the Spirit of Zevskaya. Notoriously competetive, the Walrus is a creature who knows when to work hard, and when to relax.
=== The Whale Spirit ===
The Whale is the Spirit of the Ocean. It is a patient and wise creature, whose life will outlast the isles, and whose motives are on the scope of centuries. The whale knows things humans never will; the secrets of the ocean’s furthest reaches, and it is very discerning in what it chooses to reveal. The Whale Spirit is invoked for wisdom.
=== The Puffin Spirit ===
The Puffin is the Spirit of the Stars, and lives in the sky with the gods. The Puffin sometimes acts as a messenger for the gods, a mediator between the physical realm and the world beyond. It is also said that the Puffin can pass messages from deceased souls back to the physical realm, and vice versa.
=== The Seal Spirit ===
The Seal is the Spirit of Eiskaya, the shifting ice isles. They are a mischievous and fickle spirit, but not deceptive. Rather, they use their cunning against the forces of evil, and usually help humanity. However, they can be easily offended, and if a human does so, they will suffer bad luck for a year.
=== The Eel Spirit ===
The Eel is the Spirit of the sunken island of Yevayaga, and is considered an evil spirit. Supposedly this Spirit betrayed the others and joined Shidiik during the early days of the isles. The Eel is renowned as being a violent and slippery beast, impossible to catch. Shrines and talismans of the Eel are not respected and prayed to, rather they are places where a Nothindrian may speak of their problems and blame it all on the Eel, regardless of whether or not they think it is the Eel’s fault. Doing so will supposedly pass on the blame and lift the curse of misfortune.
=== Other ===
There are plenty more animal spirits, pretty much one for every animal which can be found on the isles. There’s a Fox Spirit, a Seagull Spirit, an Otter Spirit, a Wolf Spirit, a Narwhal Spirit, etc.