Corps - Revision history

Forthright: /* Cosmogony */

2024-02-09T05:20:45Z

‎Cosmogony

Forthright: /* History and Spread */

2024-02-09T05:20:13Z

‎History and Spread

Forthright at 20:06, 25 July 2023

2023-07-25T20:06:55Z

Forthright at 03:26, 15 June 2023

2023-06-15T03:26:46Z

Show changes

Forthright at 04:14, 1 June 2023

2023-06-01T04:14:58Z

Forthright: Forthright moved page Religion of the Corps to Corps

2023-06-01T04:08:19Z

Forthright moved page Religion of the Corps to Corps

Forthright at 13:21, 30 May 2023

2023-05-30T13:21:49Z

Curtana at 04:37, 10 December 2018

2018-12-10T04:37:41Z

Curtana: /* Religious Practitioners */

2018-12-10T03:32:38Z

‎Religious Practitioners

Curtana: /* The Six Kinds */

2018-12-10T03:30:03Z

‎The Six Kinds

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 === Cosmogony ===
-There are no gods or beings like gods as part of the Corps tradition.  The universe is eternal and self-created, and is in constant tension between [[Coherence]] (that which brings the universe together and causes entities to have permanence) and [[Unfolding]] (that which causes the universe to change and decay.  Coherence does not meant that everything stays the same and Unfolding does not mean that everything is constantly changing - only in the balance can the world be meaningful for people.
+There are no gods or beings like gods as part of the Corps tradition.  The universe is eternal and self-created, and is in constant tension between [[Coherence]] (that which brings the universe together and causes entities to have permanence) and [[Unfolding]] (that which causes the universe to change and decay).  Coherence does not meant that everything stays the same and Unfolding does not mean that everything is constantly changing - only in the balance can the world be meaningful for people.
 Before there was the universe, there was no time.  Perhaps there was merely a formless mass, without any Coherence.  If things changed, no one could sense it, and time itself had no meaning in the absence of form or of change.  Coherence and Unfolding have always existed and co-constitute the universe.  Coherence brings together that which is changing into a stable form, for a time.  It is a process of change-by-stability, allowing us to perceive the world as it is.  Coherence tells us that there are patterns in the universe and that by observing what is the same, we can come to a better understanding of what to expect.

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 The early history of the Corps is linked directly to [[Zunuga]] and her early teachings between 16 BE and 6 BE, the time when her Maxims were proclaimed (although many of them were not written down during her life).   Spread alongside the conquering Omban armies, the ability of the early priests to speak to ancestors, animate dead corpses to fight as bubun, or even to resurrect the dead, were highly motivating factors to abandon what is now called the Old Faith or the Hulti tradition.   By Zunuga's final death in 6 BE, the Corps had at least reached large parts of what would become the Empire.
-However, it was not until the awakening of the first Emperor, Eluli Gandachi, as the saint [[Eluli Ula]] in 22 IE that the Corps became linked firmly to the Omban Empire.  The great Temple of the Voice had just opened the year previously, and Eluli's awakening turned the minds of many of the noble lineages to the potential of the Corps.  The [[Gandachi dynasty]], while initially respectful of the old faith, soon turned against it as it became clear that revenants and saints were considered monstrosities by the shamans.  In 63 IE, the Hand and Voice were recognized as co-equal and official throughout the Empire.  In the decades that followed, the [[Jemosine Purge]] and [[Atamurine Purge]] sought to limit the influence of the Hulti and expel infidels out of the Empire, largely to Malfan.
+However, it was not until the awakening of the first Emperor, Eluli Gandachi, as the saint [[Eluli Ula]] in 22 IE that the Corps became linked firmly to the Omban Empire.  The great Temple of the Voice had just opened the year previously, and Eluli's awakening turned the minds of many of the noble lineages to the potential of the Corps.  The [[Gandachi dynasty]], while initially respectful of the old faith, soon turned against it as it became clear that revenants and saints were considered monstrosities by the shamans.  In 63 IE, the Hand and Voice were recognized as co-equal and official throughout the Empire.  In the decades that followed, the [[Jemosine purge]] and [[Atamurine purge]] sought to limit the influence of the Hulti and expel infidels out of the Empire, largely to Malfan.
 By the third century, Malfan itself fell under Omban attack, and while the [[conquest of Malfan]] succeeded politically, the Corps never reached fully there as it did elsewhere in the Empire, and the Treaty of Romaz in 271 affirmed religious freedom for the Old Folk in the southern part of the province.  But the [[Battle of Burafa]] in 242 solidified permanently that nobles and citizens would need to follow the Corps to enjoy the right to hold lands in the remainder of the Empire, further cementing the dominance of the Corps.

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 === Religious Practitioners ===
-The Corps is divided into two complementary sex-segregated priesthoods, each with their own temples, traditions, and roles, the male [[Voice of the Dead]] and the female [[Hand of the Dead]].  Both the Hand and the Voice are celibate, and while they are permitted to have sex, may neither marry nor are they supposed to have children once they take their vows.  Priests who marry must leave their order. The aim is for Hands and Voices to commit to their specific order, above ties of family. Each branch has its own leader - the high priest of the Voice is known as the Head, and the high priestess of the Hand is known as the Heart.  The intention, and usually the practice, of the two branches is that they should be complementary, but inevitably conflicts do occur.   Adherents use the services of both priesthoods and it would be nonsensical to describe oneself as a believer in one but not the other.
+The Corps is divided into two complementary sex-segregated priesthoods, each with their own temples, traditions, and roles, the male [[Voice of the Dead society|Voice of the Dead]] and the female [[Hand of the Dead society|Hand of the Dead]].  Both the Hand and the Voice are celibate, and while they are permitted to have sex, may neither marry nor are they supposed to have children once they take their vows.  Priests who marry must leave their order. The aim is for Hands and Voices to commit to their specific order, above ties of family. Each branch has its own leader - the high priest of the Voice is known as the Head, and the high priestess of the Hand is known as the Heart.  The intention, and usually the practice, of the two branches is that they should be complementary, but inevitably conflicts do occur.   Adherents use the services of both priesthoods and it would be nonsensical to describe oneself as a believer in one but not the other.
 The Voice of the Dead are male priests in charge of communication with [[ancestors]], the care of the dead, the preservation of knowledge, the keeping of ancestries, care of [[saints]], jurisprudence over inheritance, and the resurrection of the dead.   They are more monastic, separated from the world, and contemplative.  They live in large communal temples, largely on the outskirts of major communities, where they tend to the burial vaults of the dead, and where people come to consult their ancestors.  Preservation of and curation of the Ancestors is one of their most central roles.  Families will play some role in deciding which temple of the Voice holds the remains of important ancestors. The Voice speak to the ancestors and thus acquire great knowledge about the past, which they record in great libraries.  They do so not only at the behest of families, but also speak to the long-dead who have no descendants to visit them.   They are the only ones who can resurrect the dead, although this privilege is not bestowed automatically or lightly, and they are primarily responsible for the care of the saints as well.

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 ==Cosmogony==
-There are no Gods or beings like gods as part of the Corps tradition.   The universe is eternal and self-created; it was once a formless mass that came together into an ordered Coherence, and then began the process of Unfolding - an ongoing, neverending process of revealing the coherence of the universe.  Humans are part of, can observe, and even participate in the Unfolding.  They are not capable of transforming its broader patterns, but can, at the scale of a lifespan, play their part and shape its individual channels and grooves.   Different theologians and poets have understood the Unfolding as the cracking of a cosmic egg, the blooming of a flower, or the shimmering of a curtain of light (the aurora).  The Unfolding is unpredictable - as life itself - but its patterns can be understood once they occur.
+There are no Gods or beings like gods as part of the Corps tradition.   The universe is eternal and self-created; it was once a formless mass that came together into an ordered [[Coherence]], and then began the process of [[Unfolding]] - an ongoing, neverending process of revealing the coherence of the universe.  Humans are part of, can observe, and even participate in the Unfolding.  They are not capable of transforming its broader patterns, but can, at the scale of a lifespan, play their part and shape its individual channels and grooves.   Different theologians and poets have understood the Unfolding as the cracking of a cosmic egg, the blooming of a flower, or the shimmering of a curtain of light (the aurora).  The Unfolding is unpredictable - as life itself - but its patterns can be understood once they occur.
 Within the Corps, there is is a belief in the [[First Ancestors]], who are ancestral to all humans and to some other sentient beings.  The First Ancestors emerged out of the primordial chaos but do not themselves have an ancestor / creator.  They are unnamed (at least, by humans) mythical entities that may have been extremely powerful.  Species that have First Ancestors are persons and are capable of sentience; other species, including most nonhuman animals, are not persons, do not have spirits, and are thus secondary creations.   The growth of the body (i.e., from fetus to child to adult) is the individual’s expression of the Unfolding.  Bodily death is not the end of the Unfolding, but merely a point of disjunction or inflection in the course of any given pattern.
-Practitioners of magic differ on how the use of [[fos]] relates to the universe, but most believe that it is used to create minor new folds / alterations in the Unfolding, tapping into the Source of the universe and giving it new coherence that it would not otherwise have.
+Practitioners of magic differ on how the use of [[fos]] relates to the universe, but most believe that it is used to create minor new folds / alterations in the Unfolding, tapping into the [[Source]] of the universe and giving it new coherence that it would not otherwise have.
 Some believe that at the end of the Unfolding, everything will collapse back into chaos / disorder.   However, this is not central to the theology as currently understood.  Rather, most hold that the ultimate goal or endpoint of the Unfolding is unknowable, if it exists at all.
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 Both the Hand and the Voice engage in conversion activities and missionary work.  Of particular interest is reducing the influence of the [[Hulti]] (Old Folk) who follow the old shamanic tradition that preceded them, and which still exercises some power throughout the region. Both are also involved in social and pastoral care for those who come to them for aid.  Both male and female believers use the services of both the Hand and the Voice.  The proper way to address a member of either clergy is as Voice (First Name) or Hand (First Name).
 ==The Afterlife and the Ancestors==

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← Older revision		Revision as of 04:37, 10 December 2018
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	The word bubun can be used to refer to a corpse in general, but more often restrictively to corpses specially treated by the Hand of the Dead to become reanimated. The connection between body and spirit is temporarily severed, and the body is instead animated with a more general lifeforce, allowing it to obey simple commands that allow it to walk, use tools, fight, and serve any number of other basic labour tasks, as instructed by a Hand that controls it. It cannot speak, acquire new memories, or use the skills or abilities it had in life - it is a shell. The bubunne came into existence at the time of the Corps, first in small numbers but later in much larger quantities. To be rendered bubun, a body must be largely intact. The lifespan of a bubun is around seven years - at that time, whatever lifeforce was in it fades, and its spirit is permitted to rejoin it as it becomes an ancestor, remembering nothing of its time. The main sources of corpses are enemies slain in battle, executed criminals, and the poor. Impoverished families frequently will allow a family member to be rendered bubun in exchange for payment, a form of rental of the body that defers its time as an ancestor for a seven-year term. Bubunne are about 2-3% of the population in most regions of the former Empire, but in [[Hasmala]] as many as 10% of the population at any time are rendered bubun.		The word bubun can be used to refer to a corpse in general, but more often restrictively to corpses specially treated by the Hand of the Dead to become reanimated. The connection between body and spirit is temporarily severed, and the body is instead animated with a more general lifeforce, allowing it to obey simple commands that allow it to walk, use tools, fight, and serve any number of other basic labour tasks, as instructed by a Hand that controls it. It cannot speak, acquire new memories, or use the skills or abilities it had in life - it is a shell. The bubunne came into existence at the time of the Corps, first in small numbers but later in much larger quantities. To be rendered bubun, a body must be largely intact. The lifespan of a bubun is around seven years - at that time, whatever lifeforce was in it fades, and its spirit is permitted to rejoin it as it becomes an ancestor, remembering nothing of its time. The main sources of corpses are enemies slain in battle, executed criminals, and the poor. Impoverished families frequently will allow a family member to be rendered bubun in exchange for payment, a form of rental of the body that defers its time as an ancestor for a seven-year term. Bubunne are about 2-3% of the population in most regions of the former Empire, but in [[Hasmala]] as many as 10% of the population at any time are rendered bubun.

		+	==Resurrection==
		+
		+	Resurrection is an uncertain and sometimes risky process. It can only be attempted by a high-level Voice on a recently-deceased individual (dead less than a week, or have been subject to the Voice’s power of gentle repose) with a mostly-intact body. The church will not normally even attempt the ritual on individuals over the age of 70, those for whom too little of the body remains, or those who are held to be of immoral lifestyle or behaviour. The ritual takes roughly three hours to perform. The resurrection is not always successful, working approximately two-thirds of the time. If the ritual is successful, a generous offering to the church is considered appropriate. Resurrection can only be attempted once per death - if an individual is not restored to life on the first attempt, no subsequent attempts will succeed.
		+
		+	Individuals who are resurrected will return to life healed of their wounds or illnesses (though missing body parts will not be restored). They normally appear as they did in life, with some exceptions (see chart below). However, all resurrected people have a chill to their flesh that can never be removed. Skin-to-skin contact will reveal this to an observer. There is no particular stigma attached to resurrection, apart from among followers of the old religion, so this chill is considered a harmless side-effect. Other side effects are also possible. Each time an individual is resurrected, they must roll on the following table. It is possible for an individual who has been brought back from the dead once who later dies again to be resurrected a second time, or even more, but each time they must add 20 to their roll.
		+
		+	{\| class="wikitable"
		+	\|-
		+	! Roll !! Result
		+	\|-
		+	\| 01-05 \|\| The subject's eyes change in color or shape.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 06-10 \|\| The subject's flesh becomes pale and haggard.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 11-15 \|\| The subject's hair becomes brittle and colorless.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 16-20 \|\| The subject develops a minor but noticeable tic, twitch, or idiosyncratic habit.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 21-25 \|\| The subject's voice becomes hoarse and raspy.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 26-30 \|\| The subject suffers from frequent bruising and bleeding (all damage is increased by +1)
		+	\|-
		+	\| 31-35 \|\| The subject becomes reckless, feeling that death is no longer to be feared.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 36-40 \|\| The subject becomes fascinated with death and seeks others who have returned from death to share stories and experiences.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 41-45 \|\| The subject becomes overly cautious, fearfully holding on to her second chance at life.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 46-50 \|\| The subject develops a craving for life-affirming activities such as eating, drinking, sex, music, etc.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 51-55 \|\| The subject suffers from occasional hallucinations.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 56-60 \|\| The subject develops a phobia of some common item or activity (e.g. cats, crowds, fire, etc.)
		+	\|-
		+	\| 61-65 \|\| The subject sleepwalks, even attacking people in his sleep (although usually unarmed).
		+	\|-
		+	\| 66-70 \|\| The subject develops an aversion to natural light and prefers to be nocturnal.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 71-75 \|\| The subject has horrible nightmares that disturb her sleep; she requires an extra 2 hours of rest to be fully rested.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 76-80 \|\| The subject's emotions are numbed, leaving her cold and distant, unable to truly experience happiness, sadness, anger, etc.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 81-85 \|\| The subject develops a taste for raw flesh (or for maggots, rotting meat, or another repugnant substance).
		+	\|-
		+	\| 86-90 \|\| The subject is haunted by an evil spirit that wants to kill her and those who raised her.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 91-95 \|\| The subject's memories of his previous life are hazy and indistinct. He may retain some class skills and abilities, at the GM's discretion, but has limited recollection of events, personal relationships, etc.
		+	\|-
		+	\| 96-00 \|\| The subject becomes a psychopath, with no regard for human life or emotions.
		+	\|}

	{{ashnabis}}		{{ashnabis}}

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 ==Religious Practitioners==
 The Corps is divided into two complementary sex-segregated priesthoods, each with their own temples, traditions, and roles, the male [[Voice of the Dead]] and the female [[Hand of the Dead]].  Both the Hand and the Voice are celibate, and while they are permitted to have sex, may neither marry nor have children once they take their vows.  Each branch has its own leader - the high priest of the Voice is known as the Head, and the high priestess of the Hand is known as the Heart.  The intention, and usually the practice, of the two branches is that they should be complementary, but inevitably conflicts do occur.   Adherents use the services of both priesthoods and it would be nonsensical to describe oneself as a believer in one but not the other.
 ==The Six Kinds==

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 ==The Six Kinds==
-*'''Living''':  This is everybody, or at least, everybody, once upon a time.  The ordinary state of life to which all are entitled for a time, but none may have forever.  A living person consists of a body and a spirit; in life, the body is an uninterrupted conduit for the spirit to express itself, whereas after death, the link is broken and must be re-established by the Voice.    All humans are seen as having spirits (Corpseborn, members of other cultures, etc., etc.) but not everything that is alive and sentient has a spirit - Hith do not, because they do not become ancestors after death.
+*'''Living''':  This is everybody, or at least, everybody, once upon a time.  The ordinary state of life to which all are entitled for a time, but none may have forever.  A living person consists of a body and a spirit; in life, the body is an uninterrupted conduit for the spirit to express itself, whereas after death, the link is broken and must be re-established by the Voice.    All humans are seen as having spirits ([[Corpseborn]], members of other cultures, etc., etc.) but not everything that is alive and sentient has a spirit - [[Hith]] do not, because they do not become ancestors after death.
 *'''Ancestors''' (Abas): These are those who have died, but whose spirits are still accessible through the Voice of the Dead.   Bodies of ancestors are treated with reverence, preserved in great communal vaults in the temples of the Voice. The communal link between past and present maintained through this veiled channel of communication.  Ancestors cease accumulating memories upon death but retain that element of their memory and some of the personality they had at death.
 *'''Corpses''' (Bubun): Upon death, some bodies are committed voluntarily by their families, or involuntarily (enemies fallen in battle, the executed, etc.) to have their bodies brought to a new temporary existence as bubun.  The spirit of a bubun is broken away from its body, leaving the vessel devoid of will and speech but capable of managed action.  These are the tools of the Hand of the Dead, who use them during a seven-year span, after which they may be turned over to the Voice to become ancestors (if their families are known).