Majuyue

The ***Majuyue*** is the leader of an Order of Scripts shrine. These priestesses train for years to perfect their knowledge before they take on a leadership role within the Order.

## Duties of the *Majuyue*

*Majuyue* are much more than just the leaders of their shrine. They are responsible for training and caring for their *asheindae*, ensuring that devotees and other people in the vicinity of the shrine are being taken care of by the *asheindae*, initiating and planning local events, and handling the careful documentation of births, deaths, and marriages.

While it varies from shrine to shrine, the majuyue often views the asheindae as her children. She is responsible for every aspect of their lives, from food and sleeping arrangements, to offering advice and life lessons, teaching them to read and write, and even helping them prepare for their upcoming marriages if they are younger than the sovereign marriage age. Since many asheindae join the Order when they are quite young, and may even be given over to the Order as infants, the comparison is not without merit.

Training the *asheindae* is not as straight-forward as simply giving them tasks to complete and assuring that they are completed in a timely manner. They not only assign training, but work to make certain that the lessons from each task are learned on multiple levels. This might involve talking about the emotional impact of performing funeral rites, or even asking the purpose behind a charitable donation. For asheindae who have a stated interest in pursuing a *majuyue* path, she will also spend extra time on religious training.

While the *asheindae* are a large part of their focus, the shrines are responsible for helping to care for the local population. This involves caring for people suffering from illness, acting as a midwife, providing food for a family who has lost their crops, and otherwise ensuring that their shrine functions as a vital resource for the community. While many of these duties are handled by the *asheindae*, it is the *majuyue* who takes responsibility for the outcomes.

Shrines that are located in more heavily populated areas, such as those around Mi-Fe Cie, are also responsible for holding regular public events. These are typically in the form of lively festivals, which offer a rare opportunity for the everyday miranen to contribute their creative skills through storytelling or cooking food to be shared among the community.

Typically, festivals center around a skit or play of some sort performed by the asheindae. As the festivals are typically planned around holy days, the chosen tale to be acted out is chosen based on its relation to the holiday in question. Popular subjects include the creation of Sura Naii, Delphai and Haro, and Mabris's golden shoes. They pointedly avoid any legends (such as Mishue and the Seven Stars) that might breed contempt or fuel racist views in any way. The skits are usually performed with colorful costumes, with part of the shrine being used as a stage.

## Promotion from Asheindae

All *majuyue* began their career with the Order of Scripts as an *asheindae*. In order to become *majuyue*, they must complete all of the training tasks expected of *asheindae*.

While the training shows devotion and also guarantees an aspect of knowledge and capability, openings for new *majuyue* are rare. In order to ascend, an *asheindae* will need a majuyue (preferably more than one) to make the recommendation or the promotion itself. They will need to demonstrate a few qualities that are a firm requirement for handling the duties of a majuyue, including quick thinking, a level head, experience working with *mishu* and *shan*, and a proven leadership ability both inside of the Order and with people in the community.

Once they have been promoted to *majuyue*, they will never again be *asheindae*. That is true even if they decide to step back from their duties and allow another majuyue to take charge of their shrine due to health, age, or personal preference. The *majuyue* title will stay with them until death.

## Retirement

While most *majuyue* remain with the Order until they die, some choose to retire and return to a traditional life. This is often a difficult transition, since the life of a traditional Miranen woman is vastly different from that of a *majuyue* living communally within a shrine.

As with retired asheindae, majuyue typically continue to wear their *benaha* and *shiveren* beads.