Theism

Theism is a religion that began in the Commonwealth of Dhi but has spread across all five islands. It encompasses a vast spectrum of beliefs and deities, which makes it difficult to define. In general, Theists believe that many gods exist and it is up to the individual to decide which ones to worship and how to do so. The role of the religious leader is to share stories about gods and introduce new gods as potential objects of worship. It is a highly decentralized religion without a single, widely-accepted holy text.

## History

Originally, theists held that three deities created and controlled the world, Bhakpa the Farmer, who planted the seeds that would become each island in the world at the beginning of time; Lhemba the Healer, who helped the islands grow to their present sizes; and Jembai the Protector, who keeps the Forest safe from outside incursions and humans safe from the Forest.

Each deity corresponded with, at the time, a Dhi gender role: men as farmers, women as doctors, and wifere as defenders. This simplicity allowed it to spread quickly through villages and towns in the Dhi mountains. Because most villages had their own local deities or protectors, few wanted to convert to Theism wholesale. Instead, they integrated their own local beliefs into Theism, creating a patchwork religion that is different in every village.

The first widely accepted integration was of geotheism, a more ancient Dhi religion that held geologic processes each corresponded to a deity, generally a goddess. Each peak in the Aleya Range has its own deity, as do the Solir Crater, Chomo and Akadh Valleys, and the volcano off the southern coast. Because these deities played such an important role in the day-to-day lives of farmers and laborers, Dhi were unwilling to give them up. The decentralized nature of Theism made it possible for the eighteen most important deities to join Theism immediately. This led to a a drastic decrease in geotheists, at no costs to the holy people who preached it, as they were also integrated into Theism, now referred to as priests or elders.

Theism spread through Ju and Diao, combining with the teachings of Mu and Jin and Paraism to become something almost unrecognizable as Theist. Trade routes carried it to the Seprum island as well, where it was quickly adopted by Henesian and Seprum leaders as a simple way to take power away from a too-powerful clergy and reduce religious tension. Lykan first and second priests rejected the teachings of Theism, preferring to keep power consolidated in the temples of accepted deities. Some Lykan citizens converted nevertheless. When Lykos fell to the Seprum army, the temples were looted and destroyed and the priests slaughtered or conscripted into labor—without religious guidance, most Lykans adopted Theism as the overriding structure for their worship. In Seprum, Theist leaders are called augurs or oracles.

Theism was less widely adopted in Kuan, though no Kuan beliefs oppose those of a Theist. However, Kuan spiritual practices fit better into their pre-existing religion and few citizens felt the need to convert. Theism met stiff resistance on the Mauzji islands, where elai banned its spread and responded by sending more preachers to Dhi and Ju to stop Theism at its source. This backfired, unfortunately, as many Theists happily accepted the Sudhai god into their pantheons, unperturbed by that fact that, according to Sudhaism, there is only one God. This upset the elai to a great extent and they ceased proselytizing for almost thirty years.

## Local Pantheons

### Common Seprum Deities

* Mar, goddess of war and patron of Meditas
* Alexi, divinity of wisdom and patron of Emperor Fenix
* Aila, goddess of pain and patron of the current grey hand
* Elektra, goddess of the sea
* Deinos, god of leadership
* Malacostra, goddess of light
* Denoc, divinity of metallurgy
* Tyndal, divinity of beauty
* Zanardeli, goddess of fire and lightning
* Dravidian, divinity of plants
* Andamaneis, goddess of love, family, and the heart
* Eisely, goddess of ice
* Eulecon, divinity of animals
* Orisa, goddess of stone, rock, and metal

### Common Dhi Deities

* Mountain goddesses: Ghiri, Asha, Lheka, Gathar, Sasha, and Dhulma
* Solnir, divinity of the Solnir Crater
* Anghiari, goddess the triple kingdom's island
* Lani, god of potatoes and barley

### Common Ju Deities

* Takla, divinity of deserts
* Han, god of food and plenty

### Common Kuan Deities

* Rankagai, god of tea
* Sartel, god of horses
* Khoizan, goddess of fire and tea
* Kyzylkum, goddess of luck