U'Chan Gompa

U'Chan Gompa, or simply U'Chan, was a monastery (a gompa in the Tabotan language) of the Way of Enlightenment and the capital city of Tabot, being the seat of power of the High Lord of Oceans. The city itself was called Koko Nur before becoming synonymous with the monastery; the name continued to be used by the common people. It was the most famous monastery of Tabot and the largest city in Tabot. The monastery's symbol was a dragon.
==Geography==
It stood in central Tabot, where the Haraki Ridge met the Po Yul Dzayul Range, among the foothills. To the north and south stood Lii Gompa and Pokarr Gompa, nicknamed the Left and Right Hands of U'Chan, and beyond them lay the towns of Ji and Chophon. A road, not marked on maps, led to Ji.
==Description==
U'Chan Gompa was both monastery and fortress. The entrance to it was a grand staircase leading up to a gate. Within was the palace of the High Lord of Oceans and forty-five towers topped with gold-leaf-adorned onion domes and twelve minarets. The minarets were twice the height of the standard towers and it was said a monk could meditate inside one for days without being bothered.The source says "minaret", but these are also towers and are more associated with mosques than a Tibetan-style monastery. A meditation-room gompa or a stupa may be intended instead. The gompa held many treasures and was noted for its libraries, holding precious works like the Puvarna and Chu's treatise on war. The whole structure was riddled with concealed rooms and secret passages.
Koko Nur, meanwhile, was a sprawling and crowded city where no building stood over three stories in height. Four separate temples stood here; these had tall pillars, marble statues, and tin dragons hanging from their rafters and decorating roof peaks, owing to U'Chan Gompa's dragon symbol.
U'Chan was a common subject of Tabotan paintings, often depicting it as long and white before the black mountains of the Po Yul Dzayul Range. Mount Shun was often visible in the distance, appearing craggy and mysterious.
==Government==
U'Chan was the meeting place of all the councils of Tabotan government: the Council Kashag, the Lon Chen (chief ministers), and the yig-tsang (monk council). The gompa itself was led by the Abbot of U'Chan, who was also High Lord of Oceans; circa 2607, this was Ning D'Ahn.
==Population==
As of , the most recent census recorded approximately 22,000 people in the city, including 4,000 transients, many of whom were guests and supplicants. This made it the most populous city in Tabot, and also quite crowded. The monastery complex itself housed 2,130 people, with 1,200 men, 230 women, and 700 children. Spies of Lady Holang of Pim Tung operated here.
==Trade==
The great monastery city naturally enjoyed much trade, with caravans departing every day for Ji; the road was safe and saw heavy traffic. Some 400 horses and 200 goats were kept in the monastery.
==Activities==
At the start of each year, the priests of U'Chan Gompa conducted a special ceremony in which they asked a question of the gods and burned a tortoise shell by placing it in cherry-red hot coals. From the markings that appeared, they divined the future. They inscribed their interpretations on the tortoise shells and hung them on the temple wall, so lamas and common folk alike could consult them and plan for the year ahead. Countless questions were asked of the gods in this way, and many influential people submitted their own questions.
==History==
It was founded some time between and , when fifteen groups of monks and temple guardians escaped persecution in Shou Lung and journeyed southwest in search of a holy land that would remain pure and lasting, ideal for isolated hermitages. One of these groups built the beginnings of U'Chan.
In , a tortoise-shell divination at U'Chan suggested burning rocks would fall on Khampo during Qwa'chein Goh celebrations; they elected not to warn the city, as punishment for its recent rebellion. Another shell promised better news: the finding of a very rich gold mine near Mount Pojah.
==Appendix==
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===References===
Category:Monasteries
Category:Fortresses
Category:Settlements
Category:Cities
Category:Locations in Tabot
Category:Locations in Kara-Tur
Category:Locations on Toril