Dekàli

The Dekàli pantheon is a collection of deities assembled in antiquity from conquered city-states. Though no record remains of their true origins, much can be gathered from the rites and worship that surround each god. Though individual worship of the gods was mostly abandoned over the span of the Empire, many particulars of worship remain. This is an outline of the gods as they are revered today, and a look at how they were worshiped at the Empire’s end.

Dekàli Cults are, without exception, both religious and political organizations. Each Cult is headed by a Prydyrim Gor (Primate). Each Prydyrim Gor is supported by a number of Prydyrim (Bishop) which typically preside over cities or regions within a kingdom. Each Prydyrim governs a Temple within that region. A Temple, using the Dekàli definition, is a place where a Prydyrim sits. Prydyrim govern all shrines within the borders of its region. Shrines are attended by Pryn, a priest or clergyman of the Cult. Pryr may also serve directly under a Prydyrim within the Temple.

The following story of creation is basic learning for most that have studied the Dekàli faiths.

“In the last forever, before the Wars of Men, the worlds circled in emptiness. This we know to be true. In that timeless span Life arose. Whether she came from another place, or formed from the emptiness, we cannot know. That she came, is irrefutable. This we know to be true. When Life arrived she planted many seeds across the worlds, and each seed grew into a beautiful tree, and each tree blossomed and produced wondrous fruits. She gave each of the eternal trees a name, and told them to drop their fruits and bid their children live. This we have been told. One tree dropped one hundred fruit. Each sank a root into the soil and grew into a god. This is where time began. We assume there was a time before, but it had no meaning.

“The gods grew and circled the world, finding all that was hidden, seeing all that could be found. In time, they learned all that they could know, so they sat on the world and they stared into the emptiness; and although a hundred sat there, each was lonely. This we have been told by Those That Remember. Each child of the Eternal Tree was different, together they embodied all variations of nature and what we define as the unnatural. In time, discontent grew among those sitting on the world, and an unnamed god walked across to another and killed him. The Eternal Tree moaned and all knew something grave had occurred, but none knew what had happened. The unnamed god came to another and slew him, and found the discovery of this new sensation, this new experience, an insatiable addiction. Gods fell unknowing, unsuspecting beneath him, and the Tree moaned despairingly each time her children fell. This too we have been told.

“The first named god was Tarras, who asked the Tree what had made her sad. She told him that one among them was killing the others, and that the unnamed child must be stopped. This was the end of the Time of Waiting, and beginning of the First War. Tarras returned to the others and explained why the Tree was despairing. Some agreed that action must be taken. Others didn’t care. Others could not decide. In the time that followed the gods clashed at every corner of the world, letting the blood of their sisters and brothers fall to the ground. Where the blood fell, people arose, and hid among the stones to escape the notice of the giants as they fought. This we know to be true. Many gods fell during this time, others disappeared. The unnamed god was found and destroyed along with his sympathizers, and the First War was ended.”

Some stories relate that Kændlan arose from death following the First War. Other gods asked how she had done this and she pointed to the people of the world, and their farms and fields. She showed them how the people gathered and prayed for her aid, and how their crops had withered away in her absence. “They did this for me,” she explained. The gods were joyous to see the Lady returned to them but their happiness was not without shadow; for they looked at the battlefields of the war and the graves of the monsters they had buried and knew no death was eternal.

The fate of the Eternal Tree is a matter of theological debate. Some believe that it no longer exists, while others believe it is a part of all trees, plants, and animals. Others believe that the tree produced more fruit in a second season, which in turn created animals. Still others believe that during the First War, the tree grew very ill, and produced malformed fruit, from which sprung many of the monsters. There are numerous theories as to what may have happened, but very little evidence. The story of the Eternal Tree(s) is not mentioned in most cult scriptures following the creation of the gods. It serves as an instrument rather than an active figure in the legends.

At the height of the Old Empire, there were eleven Cults. Each of these groups were considered to be one element of a larger religion, though most were founded independently. Before the admittance of a city-state, the Council of Lanàdus would interview the Cult’s regional patriarchs to determine how they might best serve the Old Empire. If a good fit could not be made, a new Cult was created (e.g., Ildûn, Viríllis).