Zahiism

### **Purpose**

A small **Ascensionist** group, Zahiism eschews both extremes of nomadic life, and life within large cities. Believing that a connection to the Earth is essential to reach an understanding of the body, Zahiists primarily dwelt in small towns or villages. Zahiists believe that upon reaching a perfect understanding of the Body, the Earth, and the chosen Zahii, practitioners would ascend to become a star in the heavens. Zahiists were largely denigrated by **Akarist** communities, seen as misguided at best, and insane at worst.

### **Lifestyle**

Prior to the Varimanian collapse, Zahiists had sizable populations in only two towns: Zahiaderia and Merish. These towns were situated at the crossroads between the **Lam** holding of **Ovdalam**, and the **Varimanian** town of **Auril**. Serving primarily as a trading post between the two cities, the towns lived in relative wealth until the Varimanian collapse forced the Zahiists to flee their old homes, adopting a forced life of nomadic travel until the undead pushed them entirely out of Imeris.

Zahiist celebrations were a form of expression and worship. Each year, a star sign would be chosen, and a festival lasting a month was dedicated to it. Zahiist bands made elaborate feasts, dancing, games, and re-told their stories to each other and any traveler. Feasts were of a particular importance to the Zahiists, with the act of eating being seen as a form of connecting your body to the fruits of the Earth. Frequent arguments and debates were had about whether the proper form of feasts was in temperance, with only simple, healthy foods being served, or in indulgence, with large arrays of delicious, rich foods.

When not organizing festivals, Zahiists devoted two hours a day to meditation and contemplation. This meditation was done as an act of self-reflection, considering their place in the Earth and in the Cosmic Order. Meditations were done in the form of various exercises and stretches, often performed in groups.

Zahiist storytelling was entirely oral, with most of their population being illiterate. Zahiist sages would memorize and recite long, poetic verses telling the story of various Zahiist sages, histories, and deeds. These poems were forbidden from being written, with Zahiists believing that the written word would trap the essence of the stories in a cage of ink and paper. On a similar note, it’s likewise forbidden to speak the name of a dead Zahiist. The dead are referred to only in nicknames, allowing their true names to be forgotten and rest in the Earth. Even the name of their founder, Zahia, is a nickname: meaning ‘Shining Guide.’ The true names of the great Zahiist Sages have been forever lost to time.

### **Relations**

The Zahiists lived in a divided society of two separate groups. These groups, ‘Zahia Haqiqiun Mamarun’ (The Shining Pathwalkers) and ‘Tamal Al'ard Walsama’ (Heaven’s Watchers). They were formerly of one, united group but fractured after a schism broke out over the differing ideas of Temperance and Indulgence. While separate, the two groups refused contact with the other: both proclaiming themselves the true heirs to Zahia’s vision.

Other Ascentionist groups generally ignored the Zahiists, viewing their tiny bands as a moribund, fractured society on a steady decline. Akarists viewed the Zahiists as sacrilegious, claiming that their beliefs of physically ascending to the heavens violated the Grand Design.

### **Faith**

Zahiist faith revolved around an understanding of one’s body, a connection to the Earth, and the perfection of a Zahii. A Zahii is the collective term for a set of physical practices taught by Sages. These practices were wide ranging, from the tasting of food to martial arts and dances. Most practices are named after their Sage’s chosen name, and are taught by practicing Sages to every member of the Zahiist faith.

The Zahiists venerate the stars. They view each individual star as an ascended Caeli, and the various star signs as the assemblies of the greatest Sages united. On each equinox, and during eclipses, great feasts are made and burnt in offerings to these ascended Zahiists.

### **History**

   Founded in the aftermath of **The Battle of the Udarah**, the Sage Zahia claimed that the victory over the Akarists was a sign that the Ascentionists should spread beyond their cradle of **Penhira** and Faisah. Traveling North, the Zahiists bought a small patch of land in between the Lam hold of Ovdalam and the Varimanian town of Auril. This town was named ‘Zahideria’, in honor of its founder. The small town reached great prosperity over the centuries, dedicating most of its income to worship and festivals. Eventually, the town grew to a large enough size to found a new holding in the town of Merish, founded by the famed temperance Sage Az’Merish. This township was almost entirely composed of Zahiists following the temperance movement; a philosophy claiming that true understanding of the body and Earth could only be achieved by abstaining from luxuries. This was in contrast to the indulgence movement, which claimed that understanding the body could be achieved by feasting on the fruits of the Earth. Over centuries, these movements grew more and more separated from each other, being united as Zahiists only in name.

This division eventually spelled the end of both Zahiists holdings; with the Varimanian collapse ending the formerly lucrative trade route, and constant attacks from the crazed Varimanian remnants led to the fall of both Zahideria and Merish. Believing the settlement of the North was a mistake, the Zahiists attempted to return to Penhira. However, the Zahiists were ill-equipped to re-settle, and were forced into a life of migration, constantly seeking a home. This continued for decades until the appearance of the undead.

### **Terminology**

* **Zahii** - A collective term for a set of physical practices, including martial arts, dances and meditative exercises. Specific practices are named after their founding Sages.
* **Sage** - In Zahiism, the term Sage almost exclusively refers to those that teach religious and physical practices, although the amount of students they take can vary wildly. Some Sages create their own Zahii, while others master and reinterpert them.