Cardinalism

Cardinalism is the native religion of the Huitca people of the Huitca Federation. The Huitca people believe that the four main Deities each balance out the others as guardians of the cardinal directions, and if one is angered, they may abandon their duties as guardian of the Great Balance, throwing the world into disarray. The Great Balance is the balance of the four cardinal directions, a delicate and fragile system that could collapse if one of the gods become angry. The Huitca people worship and appease their gods by performing sacrifices and other rituals in their names on special occasions in order to keep them satisfied and keep the Great Balance. 
== Gods ==
=== Tlahatepa ===
Deity of the West, Deity of Peace, Deity of Fertility, Deity of Day.
Gender: Male
Colour: Cyan 
Attributes: Depicted as a man-snake, embroidered in gold and lapis jewelry. Jade (Emerald) is his sacred stone, symbolizing peace and fertility. 
Ritual: Breeding of two sheep at the top of the Grand Temple, on the 20th of every month. There, the priests must prepare the sheep to be bred atop a temple dedicated to him. The priest begins to chant a prayer extolling the virtues of peace during the mating ritual, the lamb is then painted cyan and given to the sacred herd as an offering to the Lord of the West.
Note: This ritual is not practiced during times of strife, as Tlahatepa remains imbalanced during this period and cannot accept the ritual. Rather, Priests are expected to appeal to him for peace and to bring balance to the Four Borders.
The patron god of the city of Tlahatl and the embodiment of tranquility, this god is represented in physical form by a humanoid lizard-like creature. Tlahatepa was one of the main guiding forces who helped the Huitca people find their island home. Due to his role as the patron god of Tlahatl, Tlahatepa is celebrated on the nation's most important holiday, Independence Day. Tlahatepa so far the only Deity to have made a physical appearance to the Huitca people. Tlahatepa has made 3 confirmed and documented appearances in the human world. Once on October 16th, Tlahatepa made an appearance in the center of Tlahatl, turning the top of Knossos fountain into solid gold. On November 18th, Tlahatepa made his second appearance at the coronation of Calipha-Empress Dalatra as the Empress of Yimmu-Audal. There, Tlahatepa blessed her with gifts on behalf of the Huitca people. On November 20th, just two days later, Tlahatepa made a physical appearance at Tlahatl's first Independence Day celebration, endorsing the breeding of sheep as his preferred method of praise. Notably, on the same day, Tlahatepa, as interpreted by Tlatoani Infinick of Tlahatl, caused the floating sheep of Tlahatl to levitate in the air using his power, signaling his desire for a change in the planned ritual.
Tlahatepa abhors the sacrifice of living things, thus unlike the other Cardinalist gods he frowns upon the slaying of others, blood offerings must be carefully done with the consent of both parties as to not offend the god of peace. He prefers offerings of the harvest, good fruits and maize, but will accept blood to fuel himself as long as the sacrifice consents. 
=== Meclahua ===
Deity of the East, Deity of War, Deity of Destruction, Deity of Night
Gender: Female
Colour: Red
Attributes: Depicted as a thylacoleo woman with red eyes, wielding a Tepoztopilli and an atlatl (bow in Kharakese culture), wearing a cloak and skirt made out of flayed skin. Her sacred stones are Obsidian and Quartz, the stones of war and the moon.
Ritual: Human sacrifice before going to battle. Before and after every battle, the Cardinalist priests must capture an enemy and bring them to the altar. Once brought, they must extract the heart while singing hymns and praises to the Lady of Slaughter, afterwards they must begin skinning the victim while still alive (if possible). Afterwards, the cult statue of Meclahua is drapped in the skin of the victim with their heart burnt and blood smeared on the statue’s face.
Note: During times of peace, these rituals are not observed yet during congregations she must be ‘sated’ by regular offerings of meat and blood. The chosen flock of Tlahatepa must be marked red if overpopulation occurs and sacrificed to Meclahua.
The Goddess Meclahua is the embodiment of conflict, and her wraith can often be seen raging through Eastern Rathnir. Scholars theorize that Meclahua is a brutal guardian in her realm, causing all the destruction that has come to characterize the east. Meclahua was once spoken of in legend to take the physical form of a large humanoid acamtemicti (murderer crab), a native apex predator of the island Cuiciloa. Yet in the days following the forced migration from Ummarnu (and even today), Meclahua has been depicted in her true form, a Marsupial Lion (Thylacoleo carnifex). A confirmed appearance of Meclahua in the physical world has never been documented, although her wrath was felt in the west in the destruction of Bardonia and the sacking of Sanctuary during The Great Golden War. This was likely because the Huitca warriors failed to honor Meclahua with a human sacrifice before entering battle, due to the fact that they didn't actually think that a battle could happen.
Meclahua revels in bloodshed and destruction, her sacrifices are brutal with her desire to sow fear into the enemy while emboldening the Cardinalist warriors during their fight against the enemy. Her offerings must be blood and flesh, rejecting any gift that is given without bloodshed. Her regular offerings are the blood of others (animal or humanoid) and the meat and skin of others (animal or humanoid).
=== Cualitzin ===
Deity of the North, Deity of the Overworld, Deity of Life, Deity of Order
Gender: Female
Colour: White
Attributes: Depicted as a goat woman wearing a huipil embroided in gold, lapis, green vines and flowers, she wields a scepter with a head of lapis and diorite depicting a ram/billy goat’s head. Diorite is her sacred Stone, a stone commonly used in Farafin to honour her.
Ritual: Ascendence (sacrifice) of a cuahuacapra (goat-cow) on the 3rd of each month. Cualtzin of the four Cardinalist gods/spirits is the most hidden of the gods, preferring to remain on the sidelines yet appearing every 3rd of the month to the Cardinalist priests in her holy city of Farafin. There she awaits the crossing of a goat to dwell with her in her realm above in the sky, along with poems and praises extolling the virtues of life and order.
The Goddess Cualitzin is the embodiment of discipline. Valued as a highly important Deity in Huitca culture, she is worshipped almost just as much as the patron God of the Huitca himself, Tlahatepa. Cualitzin according to legend was paramount in guiding the Huitca people to their island home, and therefore earned a special spot among the Huitca people. Despite being the second most important Deity to the Huitca, she is also the most mysterious of them all. Virtually nothing is known about her, besides her role in the Great Balance. Cualitzin's physical form is completely unknown, although its speculated to be a humanoid goat (goats are theorized to exist but have never been found in the wild). Due to her role in the Huitca finding their island, the Huitca celebrate her with a sacrifice on their Founding Day.
Cualtzin is a kind yet strict goddess, upholding the social and natural laws of society that keep both life and order intact. She favours the offerings similar to Tlahatepa yet takes no issue from the bleeding of one as long as they are kept alive during the procedure and it does not lead to excess. Her preferred offerings are plants, blood, milk, wool and handicrafts made from that which was not killed to obtain it.
Her praises are given during the birth of every Cardinalist child, thanking her for the healthy birth and life of the mother and child, along with an appeal from the Priest for Protection and Safety during their life.
=== Xoalcoatl ===
Deity of the South, Deity of the Underworld, Deity of Death and Reincarnation, Deity of Chaos
Gender: Male
Colour: Black
Attributes: Depicted as a skeletal man (sometimes with rotting flesh) dressed in the black clothes of a Tlatoani, usually accompanied with his skeletal horse (Omiyaoh) by his side or as a mount and wielding a Macuahuitl of bones. His sacred stone is deepslate and blackstone.
Ritual: Sacrifice of an animal or humanoid before a long journey via the underworld. Xoalcoatl is the herald of death, his influence in this world can be felt whenever something meets its end and crosses into his realm of the Underworld. From atop his steed, he rides through the Underworld and the Nether (his passage to and from the overworld). As such, he demands payment prior to any lengthy journey by a shaman or priest through his realm. A chicken or turkey is the most commonly slain animal to him, though he will accept any being that is slain as an appropriate offering. His festival is marked at the end of every month, where Cardinalists mark this opportunity to offer prayers and visit the resting places of their loved ones.
The God Xoalcoatl is the embodiment of death as a natural part of life. Huitca do not view death as an evil, but instead a natural part of the cycle of life that should be accepted. Xoalcoatl's physical form is disputed. Newer religious thought believes it resembles human skeletal remains, due to the tendency of such beings appearing riding xoalcotle (Xoalcoatl's steed), while others still maintain that Xoalcoatl's physical form resembles humanoid decaying pig (a view that has since all but disappeared from Cardinalist worship). Xoalcoatl first came into the lives of the Huitca when a mysterious portal pre-existing the Huitca was found on the island, surrounded by ruins. This portal lead to Xoalcoatl's underworld realm, and there the Huitca found that they could travel to far away locations much faster. In order to thank Xoalcoatl for this transportation ability, the Huitca people sacrifice an animal (usually some kind of fowl) before every long journey through Xoalcoatl's realm. As theorized by the new generation of scholars, the Xoalcotle are believed to be directly connected to Xoalcoatl, and are believed to be provided as both a gift and a challenge by the Deity. In order to take the beasts for themselves, the Huitca have to fight undead skeletons that ride them. When a soul is sent to the afterlife, Xoalcoatl is said to carve the soul's name onto a slate tablet which is then kept in the catacombs of his vast castle so it can be protected for eternity.
Xoalcoatl keeps a record on his deepslate tablets in his castle in the Underworld of all the souls that pass through his gates, there he guides them to the Hall of Judgement where the Four Gods of Cardinalism (and an un-named 5th) oversee their fate in the afterlife based on their deeds and character, abstaining his own judgement save to act as a devil’s advocate against whichever the other gods decide.
Xoalcoatl, of the four is the most likely to offer bargains and deals with Priests, he is completely unpredictable and may help or hinder those at a whim. He demands the death of that which is sacrificed to him, whether humanoid or animal. The method used is irrelevant as long as the sacrifice crosses into his realm, though like the other gods he prefers the blood of the victim to be drained either during or after their demise. Likewise, the remains of rotting flesh and bones also make suitable offerings, along with the handicrafts of those that were slain to obtain them.
== Divine elements ==
=== Gold ===
Cardinalists believe that gold is the material from which the Gods and Goddesses were formed, and as such, use it for religious purposes. In the past cardinalists saw its use as currency abhorrent and disrespectful, as it devalues its spiritual worth. However, the current generation is very much ok with using it as a currency, but still likes to use it for garb, décor, and religious ceremonies.
=== Lapis ===
Lapis's strange powers are believed by Cardinalists to stem from the crystals being physical conduits for the power of the Great Balance. They are often used by Cardinalist priests to channel the power of the gods into tools and armor. Lapis, however, can also be used in lapis incense, which look similar to blue candles. But unlike simple candles, lapis incense can be burned during prayer, ritual, sacrifice, etc. For a stronger magical and spiritual connection with the Cardinal gods. 
=== Blood ===
The Four Gods of the Four directions require blood to maintain their roles in upholding the Great Balance, Cardinalist stories relate how the sacrifice of blood is necessary for the world to remain in balance. All of the gods accept blood, the most common method use during congregations is bloodletting onto amatl (bark paper) and burning it, honouring the gods with this form of auto-sacrifice and as a reminder of the power of blood to sustain the Great Balance so the world may live.
=== Chocolate ===
Chocolate or ‘Xocolatl’ in Huitcatl, is believed to be a gift the gods brought down to the world from their own realm. As such, Cardinalists put chocolate and cacao in high esteem, drinking a frothy beverage made from a mix of water, peppers, honey (or sugar), and chocolate during ceremonies at Teocalli (Temple). Likewise, the gods themselves enjoy indulging in it as well, offering tortillas and other foodstuffs made with the sacred beans to show thanks for this divine gift that rejuvenates the soul. 
== Religious texts ==
=== Founding myth of Tlahatl ===
Tlahatl was founded near the beginning of the Rathnir's life.
According to myth, the legendary founder of the city was originally a poor nomad wandering the plains of Rathnir. Taken in by the ancient peoples of Neos Knossos, the founder and his people, the Huitca, were given food and clothing and lived among them for many years. Meanwhile in the distance, the God of the East Meclahua raged across the land, as Empires battled for scraps of dust. Seeing the distress of the people in the East, the God of the West Tlahatepa and the Goddess of the North Cualitzin contacted the founder in his dreams, asking them to find a land safe for the Huitca people. The founder searched for years, scouting locations here and there, looking for a sign of the Deities' wishes. Finally the founder spotted what they were looking for. On an island in the ocean, the founder looked up. Him and his people watched as the sunset's rays pierced the setting sky, forming a cross-like mirage on the island's gentle waters and soft sand. At the mirage's center was a sunflower facing west, an impossibility which can only be a sign of Tlahatepa. The golden rays illuminated the world, this was the place to found the great city.
The Huitca people adopted Tlahatepa, the God of the West, Peace, Fertility and the Day as their city's patron God, and named their new city in the God's honor. Later, they discovered an already-existing portal to the God of the South Xoalcoatl's Underworld realm, through that portal, they found easy access to the other peoples of Rathnir. The Huitca people have since been slowly building their city as time passes.
=== Further religious texts ===
Huitcan scholars Juan Coyo (Spacebeing_J) and Infinick are currently in the process of translating ancient texts into our modern language. The first of these texts to be translated is Nextla'e'hualli Tlahatepa. Further religious texts will be posted in the future. The process of transcribing these texts from the Classical Huitcatl language is still ongoing by newer generations of scholars at the Calmecac.
== Cardinalist temples and holy sites ==
=== Cardinalist Teocalli (Temples) ===
Cardinalist Temples, or Teocalli (god house in Huitcatl), are the main places of worship for Cardinalist practices. The temples are kept by a Priest that maintains the Teocalli and administers their congregation and rites to the god(s) dedicated to the Teocalli. The most common teocalli used as references have been Amoxtli on Tlahatl’s main temple as a basis for new Tecalli. As the Cardinalist faith has spread, the standard ziggurat/pyramid design favoured by traditionalists has been modified by other cultures that have adopted the Ancient Huitcan faith as their own, using local elements, architecture and design in the construction of their own Teocalli.
=== Tlachtli (Ball courts) ===
In Huitcatl culture, the game of ‘ōllamalīztli’, or the ‘Ball Game’ as it is known amongst non-Cardinalists, is a sacred ritual in Cardinalist worship. Thus, some Teocalli also house a court on their grounds. The Game itself represents two of the Cardinalist Gods in competition to their opposite (West vs East & North vs South), with each player or team donned in the colours of the god in question. The Priest tosses a ball into the air, as the players bounce it amongst each other with their hips to shoot it through one of the hoops with the tally marked by the Priest. In most games, ties equal a win for both teams, symbolizing the act of balance. Yet for an imbalance, both teams lose (with the exception of Sacrificial Matches in which the losing team is sacrificed.) 
=== Tlahatl ===
Holy city of Tlahatepa and named after him. Seat of House Tizoc on Rathnir and former capital of the Huitca Federation. Once held an animal blessed by Tlahatepa upon preparation for sacrifice by Tlatoani Nyk’los I Tizoc (Infinick), to float, signifying Tlahatepa’s desire for change in the name of peace. Tlahatl received many pilgrims, both Pipiltin and Macehuallitin alike, to offer prayers to the Lord of Peace in his Rainbow City of Tlahatl. Though the Floating Sheep has since passed on, the city itself existed as a model for all future Huitcan cities to follow, both in form and in the ideals of the Great Balance.
=== Farafin ===
Holy City of Cualtzin, northernmost Huitcan city on the mainland of Umarnnu. Founded by Tyo’ntyo Dou’walla Tizoc. (Redfirerex) Farafin has had a long and tenuous history, despite being under the aegis of the goddess of Order, it has been the site of many rebellions against authority. Thus it has been said in hushed whispers that the holy city has been abandoned by Cualtzin during these times, although an alternate explanation has been it being the site of Entropy’s tomb rather than loss of the goddess’s favour. 
== Last rites and the afterlife ==
=== Last rites ===
==== Macehualli (Commoner) ====
The death of a Cardinalist is marked with the preparation of burial or cremation depending on the culture of the Cardinalist. After which, the shrouded body or urn is buried into the ground along with the possessions of the deceased and sacred amoxtli with spells acquired from a Priest of Xoalcoatl to aid them in the next world. The Cardinalist Teopixqui extols deeds of the dead and words of encouragement for the living and the dead while sprinkling the grave with lapis copal incense before sealing the grave.
==== Pipiltin (Noble) ====
Upon the death of a Cardinalist noble, the body is quickly brought to the Temple of Xoalcoatl (or Meclahua if there is no Priest of Xoalcoatl available) and prepared for mummification (unless specified otherwise). The body is meticulously prepared by a mortician Priest, preparing the nobility (especially a Tlatoani) for the intense mummification rituals to follow. The body is washed and perfumed, with the internal organs removed. The Heart and Brain are carefully extracted and dried, while the body is preserved by the Mortician-Priests through esoteric methods passed down from master to apprentice. Once the body has been mummified, the dried heart and brain are gilded and placed back into the mummy, with the Priest chanting hymns to Xoalcoatl during this process. 
The Pipiltin’s mummy is dressed in their finest clothing after the mummification is complete, being given a lavish funeral before being entombed under their family’s estate or at a resting place of their choice. Afterwards, a shrine is erected for the family to seek blessings and give offerings to the spirit of their ancestor. 
=== Afterlife ===
Upon the completion of the Last Rites, the soul of the departed is guided by Xoalcoatl to a room with three doors, each door with it's own challenge. The departed will have to pass all three to get to the afterlife (Xoalcoatl refrains from answering which unless given amoxtli). Tlatoanis or those entrusted with Mysteries are only granted the final test. 
The Three Trials:
1.  Navigate a jungle (Only having a Macuahuitl as your weapon) where there is a river of blood the spirit must find and get across. Jaguars, eagles, crocodiles and Meclahua’s Chosen (Marsupial Lions) will hunt the spirit til they reach the other side of the river. 
2.  The spirit must surpass the highest mountain range ever with minimal supplies and with Xoalcoatl’s owls hunting the soul without any armaments. 
3.  The departed will have to have to sacrifice themself (being already dead yet still feeling pain), by cutting out their own heart at the summit of the Teocalli of the Opening.
If successful, Xoalcoatl will guide the soul to the City of Gold, the city of the gods. 
==== Judgement ====
In the Teocalli of Judgement, there is a room with Thrones of gold and precious stones, a facsimile of the style of Old Huitca. There, the four Gods are seated, awaiting the departed for their final judgement. The gods shall present the dead with an account of all of their good or bad deeds, depending on which the deceased committed more of in their mortal existence. Before the verdict is meted, Xoalcoatl shall appear a final time and will present the righteous deeds of the sinner or the sins and heresies of the faithful as an act of balance. Once the intervention is given, the gods then determine the fate and Final Destination of the departed’s soul.
If the deeds of the departed were exceptional and true to the Great Balance, the departed becomes an Ancestor Spirit and live with the gods, or the god they were closest to in life. There they may perform acts for those that praise them in the Overworld, the foremost example being Tlatoani Nyk’los who sacrificed himself to honour Tlahatepa. Many Tlatoanis after have become Ancestors in his example, ruling alongside their patron deity in their heavenly domain.
The souls of Cardinalists who performed faithfully to the gods and were good in their dealings in life are granted entrance to the heaven of the deity they praised or emulated the most in life, Tlahatepa’s Golden City, Cualtzin’s Garden, Meclahua’s Fortress, or Xoalcoatl’s Castle. There they shall live forever without hardship, given the pleasures of their chosen path in service to the keeper of the Great Balance. 
Those that remained perfectly balanced are most often sent back to the Overworld, reborn again to start life anew and to be given another chance to sacrifice and maintain the Great Balance, although Xoalcoatl may intervene on their behalf to gain entrance into one of the heavens if he feels they are worthy or have been granted esoteric wisdom. 
For those that have brought mostly ill upon the world, Xoalcoatl takes to be imprisoned in the dungeons of his Castle. A dreary and gloomy place of no light save for the flickers of candles, the cackling of mad souls left here to be forgotten until Xoalcoatl ‘remembers’ them and grants them Reincarnation, usually at a bargain in which the deceased is given one last chance to do good or be devoured…
Enemies of the Great Balance and those that grievously sinned and proclaimed heresies against the gods are sentenced to be devoured by Omiayoh, Xoalcoatl’s steed, at the spot of Judgement. There the Soul’s heart is extracted and fed to Omiayoh by their master before being devoured entire, their soul obliterated as if they never existed… 
Category:Religions
Category:Tlahatl
Category:Hiarlliia
Category:Traveler's Era
Category:Ummarnu
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Category:Abexilas
Category:Huitca federation