Asgan

The Dauan Pantheon consists of the religious icons of the Dauan religion, headed by the deity Asga.
==The Great Creator==
Known by the name of 'Asga', the Dauans believe him to be the supreme being and the one true God. In the religious texts, Asga is said to be a construct of his own thought, and thus has always existed and will continue to unless he chooses not to.
It is believed that Asga was responsible for the creation of the six souls, and the forming of the beings they became. He uses them to control the universe from his own dimension, which became unreachable upon the formation of the 'human' universe.
In some sects, Asga has 'his thoughts around the edges', which is taken to mean that he is omniscient and capable of altering our world. It is believed that he will be responsible for the Flames of the New World, when his creations have grown tired and worn. Asga will raze the universe and give new forms and personalities to the souls, who will create a universe entirely different from the previous.
==The Six Souls==
The Six Souls were created by Asga shortly before the formation of the universe. Whilst exceedingly powerful, the Dauans believe that they are forbidden from directly interfering lest they break the 'chains of the world'. As such, the Dauans say that they visit Voldrania in other forms.
===Paro - The Uncertain===
The first soul said to be shaped by Asga, Paro was originally unsure of what task to undertake. He waited, and watched as his younger brothers Slaasht and Bram went forth and formed the universe itself. Eventually Paro decided that he would take their creation and order it, organizing the elements and individual aspects of them.
"Asga looked at Paro, who had finally achieved an idea. He took the random elements and fixed them in place; putting rarer rocks at the bottom, and waters in orderly circles and lines, and let the air roam free in the sky. Paro was a soul of order, and so he bonded the chains of the world."
In almost all sects of Asgan Paro is seen as both a creative idol and a model for those who struggle to find their path. His symbol is the spider.
===Slaasht - The Dancer===
The second soul to be shaped, and the liveliest. He is perhaps the most widely known Dauan figure in other cultures (though whether he orginated with Asgan or another religion is unknown) and in all sects is celebrated as the very creator of existence.
"From the second soul, Asga created Slaasht, a wild one. Immediately he sprang from Asga’s mind and created The Cosmos. Suddenly, there was space. Wherever he went, being followed."
Slaasht is often thought of to be the most powerful soul, and in fairy tales often takes the role of leadership in Asga's stead. He is an idol for leaders and athletes. His symbol is the horse.
===Bram - The Forger===
The third soul to be shaped, Bram is said to have been taken under Slaasht's wing and followed him with interest. Dauans say that Bram then crafted a great weapon, The Solar, and sent it into existence behind him and his companion, where it exploded and rained element - earth, water, fire and air - into every corner of Slaasht's work. His symbol is the sun and stars.
"Bram directed The Elestar at the cosmos, and suddenly there were planets, and rock, and air, and water. Bram had forged the elements from the bare bones of existence, and nothing would ever be the same."
===Fara - The Monk===
The fourth soul. Fara is celebrated as a being of birth and nature, for it is he who is said to have created the concept of 'living' beings. Dauans often speak of Fara as the only being to truly communicate with them, as he exists in all places where living things prosper (it is with this in mind that Dauans avoid Winter Desert and Mount Herobrine). His symbol is the tree, or the pig.
 "Fara was born. Fara created the trees and the animals, for he was a soul of love. He took it upon himself to create life, and the animals created were immortal, for there was no concept of death."
===Cetera - The Patient===
The fifth soul, Cetera is perhaps the second most widely celebrated amongst the Dauan peoples due to the sheer number of holidays attributed to him - "Cetera's Knock" for the passing of a full year, "Cetera's Moon" for the first moon of a Chill, and all Dauan birthdays and funeral ceremonies.
"Asga then bade to Slaasht to build a mighty altar where they might better communicate with him, and so each contributed a lock, so that only by uniting all of their powers may they communicate. He then called them all together, and spoke of a bittersweet age where they would eventually cease to exist, and all of their work would be undone. At first, the souls were tormented, but Asga told them that when The Cosmos faded, he would tell them The Great Secret of his origins and all would be well. The souls were comforted, and their work resumed.
Asga took the fifth soul, and created Cetera. The moment Cetera was born, things slowed down and sped up all at once. Time itself had been created. Things were aging – including, very slowly, the souls themselves. Cetera was welcomed wholly into the world, and joined his brethren amongst the stars as a time-keeper."
Cetera is often depicted as a gatekeeper, or a guide.
===Habrin - The Lesser Creator===
The most controversial and sixth soul. Habrin is celebrated amongst intellectuals and hated amongst loyalists. Originally created to record and ponder the world, Habrin is said to have become the creator of all human civilisation and the one who gifts the species with their sentience. 
"Finally, Asga took the sixth soul – the final soul. Into it he poured all knowledge of the world, save for The Great Secret. The other souls gathered as the soul grew into something mighty, and wiser than all others – Habrin. Habrin bid farewell to Asga, who left them be for the first time in eons. The world was independent at last.
After thousands of years, Habrin grew bored with his task. He called Slaasht forward, and begged of him a creation. For him, Slaasht constructed a series of humanoid figures, kin to their own physical forms. Habrin asked Slaasht to bring forth Fara, who gave the figure life. Habrin begged them to not tell anyone about these new beings, and to never speak of them again. Reluctantly, they agreed."
Habrin is often depicted as either a snake, an owl, or a beggar. In modern times he is often depicted as a Zaescan, who worship him above all others.
==The Champions of the Foul and Pure==
===Herobrine===
"In Habrin’s lands, things were uneasy. One man was close to learning The Great Secret itself, and was keeping his knowledge from Habrin. One day, he lashed out. The man expelled Habrin from the land, and took on a shadow name in a foul mockery of him – Herobrine; Her'O'Brine; Champion of the Foul."
Herobrine, one of the more famous outside the Dauan lands, represents the evil of ambition for one's own benefit at the expense of others. Herobrine unlocked the altar that allowed the pure souls to communicate with Asga and tapped into the magical power to grow strong enough to threaten Slaasht and his companions.
Herobrine found himself with particular competition with Habrin, who was the only being that came close to his intellect, and Slaasht, whose power was on par with Herobrine's. They successfully managed to hold off Herobrine and his own creations - the nightcrawlers - whilst Bram and Paro managed to construct a weak altar that could ask Asga for aid.
"As the wars drew on, the souls, which had been brothers, began to fall apart. Slaasht and Habrin, who could not be more different, set aside their differences and worked against the darkness, whilst Bram and Paro worked together as family to contact their creator. Fara took to protecting the life he had sowed, whilst Cetera took his loyalest and fled outside of time."
===Dau===
Upon contact with Asga, Paro and Bram were dismayed to learn that he could not enter their world directly and strike down what their brothers had created. However, Asga bade them to send forth one 'whose heart was pure and mind innocent', whom he then directed and infused with a small fraction of his power. This figure was Dau, who is worshipped as an embodiment of light and aid. Dau took the fight to Herobrine and struck him down in a ferocious battle in what the Dauans now call Winter Desert.
Upon the end of Dau's days, he is said to have created the original fire in Mount Herobrine, which warded off the dark creatures that Herobrine had sent to plague the planet. When Dau's spriit returned to Asga, it is said that the creator was angry at this contribution, and Dau was locked deep within Mount Dau to watch his creation from afar. The original fire was unstable, and resulted in the creation of Mount Herobrine and The Calamity.
Dau is often depicted as a Dauan, who claim to be his direct descendants. The name 'Dau' is Old Bramin for 'son'. The Dauans buried what is believed to be Dau's body towards the peak of the mountain, in the belief that his physical form and his spirit will one day be reunited.
==The Feral Dogs==
===Lume===
Thought to be a 'spiritual child' of Dau's original flame and Asga's anger upon the formation of Mount Herobrine.
"Asga turned his attention to the flame, and his wrath was great. The flame grew, and the grass burned, and the water boiled and mixed with fire."
In Dauan mythology, Lume initially swept across what is now Winter Desert in the sky and blacked out the sun with his bark, preventing all life except that of Herobrine's design from prospering. He returned to Mount Herobrine and slumbered, until two centuries ago when he sprang again and caused The Calamity.
Category:New VoldraniaCategory:ScavoranCategory:ZaescaesCategory:Religion