The Sunfaith

The Sunfaith
The Sunfaith is a religious order that follows the beliefs of the First Flame, often called the Teachings of Ember. Religiously they are quite open and embracing toward other beliefs, as they consider theirs to simply be the way the world works, and as such can be followed alongside the beliefs of others. They simply see unbelievers as people who have not been enlightened or cannot be, but not in a bad way. Their strong belief in destiny means they do not force their beliefs upon anyone, because if they do not accept it that is not their destiny, and their own destiny lies elsewhere. They all seek enlightenment over all else, and often embrace any knowledge with open hands so long as it is not considered heretical or evil. Often their view of heretical or evil corresponds with many other good-willed religions and ideals, so there is rarely a problem. And even then, as long as the knowledge is not harmful, all knowledge is considered valuable even if it is not considered fact.

In general, the details of the Sunfaith are kept secret from those who are not part of the priesthood. It is taught to the citizens of Kaz’Arann from a young age as any parent would teach a child about the world, and while it is encouraged to pursue faith and enlightenment, it is not taught as a faith that everyone needs to follow. As such, the details of the practice and rituals are kept secret to all but the priests and the initiates, including people from other countries.

The Sunfaith is the only truly established religion still widely practiced in Leratia. It is generally accepted by the Coalition and the rest of the people of Leratia, although it might be more accurate to say tolerated. As it does not believe in the existence of deities and does not encroach on non-believers, it is generally not seen negatively. However, many still think that while the beliefs of the Sunfaith are deeply rooted in history, they are mostly stories and fairy-tales. Public opinion can vary between respect for the cultural heritage of the Kaz’aranni, to loathing of the savages that still believe in made-up nonsense, and includes everything in between.

The Origin
In the beginning of the world, there was only darkness. A Void, lifeless and without either form or conformity, where no feelings; pain, joy, or love, existed. Existence was just that, a timeless toil of nothing. That time is known as the Dark Age, and one day, it would come to change. A light would set the world ablaze, and all that we know would one day spring from this light that came to be known as The First Flame. The Age of Light started at that very moment, but it was still not the world as we know it. The world was a torrent of uncontrolled flames. Flames born of wrath and chaos, unrefined and primal. Over time, the Days of Fire passed, and the Flame waned and settled into a more refined, gentle state. Such a state that would give birth to the first life. When the world we lived in was finally formed, it was like the void. Cold and empty of any life. Even with the Eternal Warmth shining upon it, it was barren. It remained barren until the first Cinders began to fall upon the Earth, granting the blessing of life upon the world.

''Of note is that the First Flame is not referring to the Sun. The sun is believed to be the part that can be comprehended. The physical manifestation of the Flame that sheds light and warmth. However, the First Flame is much more, and exists beyond (at least our) comprehension.''

Cinders and the Ember of one’s Soul
Magic, Plants and Creatures were all formed from such Cinders, some possessing a larger part of the Flame than others. The strength and intensity of one’s Ember, granted by the Cinder of the First Flame, defines a living being’s traits and, to some extent, its capabilities. A single straw of grass might have a stronger Ember than a human, although that is rarely the case. Its intensity can be defined by, and therefore define, physical factors such as strength. Just as a human would have strong muscles, a flower would have a strong stem. It can also be defined by other factors like intelligence and willpower, something that plants cannot have and therefore intelligent life often has a stronger Ember. Since magic is born and fueled by one’s Ember, magical potency can also be said to define a being’s strength of ember. The final, and most important factor, is one’s feelings. A strong Ember defines a person with equally strong feelings, and as such is limited as to that person’s potential for feelings. Feelings such as Empathy or Love are signs of a strong Ember, while feelings like Rage and Jealousy are signs of weakness. Still, these cannot be measured by one’s Ember as the Ember simply represents the potential of a person. Potential is also referred to as Fate or Destiny, although believers of the Sunfaith call it Potential.

One’s Original Cinder
An Original Cinder is the Cinder from which one’s current line of Embers originated. There are thought to be 17 Original Cinders, each with their own line of Embers. It is also thought that, depending on one’s Original Cinder, one’s Ember has certain characteristics and tend to choose hosts of certain types. For example, the Cinder Baam is thought to be every humans Original Cinder. Some Cinders have been attributed to certain types of other living beings, but it’s a long and arduous process to investigate and prove that even one race or plant is attributed to one Cinder, so much so that it can take a lifetime to attribute a single straw of grass. Over its long existence, believers of the Sunfaith have attributed certain beings to three Original cinders; Humans and Humanoids to Baam, Leaf-based plants to Belm, and Aquatic animals to Baqe. The known Cinders that exist are as follows: Baam, Belm, Baqe, Brim, Bygh, Bhin, Bvrn, Buhw, Blto, Btrm, Btim, Bcrt, Bhar, Bzxn, Blei, Baio, and Bkzk.

An offshoot can be created on an Ember’s path by the ignition of an Ember, that creates a new Cinder. The Original cinder remains, but this offshoot has what is called a Diverging Cinder. These are also named, but their names are less relevant and often serve as homework for young priests, as simply being pieces of history.

Passing the Ember and Reincarnation
Life comes from the ember in one’s soul, as the Ember comes from the Cinders of the First Flame. Since the first Rain of Cinder, there has been no other such event. As such, all life in the world should be finite. But that is not the case. During one’s lifetime, the Ember in one’s soul typically grows in strength as you start fulfilling your potential. Once one reaches the end of one’s lifecycle, the Ember disperses and finds new hosts. Typically, it splits, creating new Embers and several new lives. In each of these lives, the Ember lives on, and as does the person or being it originated from, tracing all the way back to the First Life. This means that, while a Vessel dies, the Soul never does. That is, if the Ember is properly passed. For the Ember to pass, one must either at least fulfill one’s potential in life or a certain ritual to free the Ember must be performed on a deceased. As such, Embers are also lost, but almost never at a rate that out scales that of its creation.

Women are held in higher regard in Kaz’arann, partially since it is believed that they pass on their ember to their children more directly, while the men’s ember is more inclined to disperse into nature. It is as such with all life. This does not mean that women always pass it on, or that men’s always disperses, it is more of an inclination toward one or the other.

The Void
One belief as to where the Soul and Ember goes after an incomplete death is that it returns to the void. The Void is still believed to exist beyond the light of the First Flame. Beyond does not mean far away, rather beyond its reach or beyond one’s perception of it. Simply put, beyond one’s understanding or comprehension. The void is a dark place, where life once again is as it was before the First Flame. A meaningless, endless toil. Certain practitioners of the Sunfaith can walk the edges of this void through the dreams of others, to peer into what lies beyond, as well as peer closer into the First Flame itself. They can use that to aid in a person’s recovery and spiritual soundness, but such practitioners are rare.

Soulmates (Pieces of Self)
A very strong and prominent belief in the Sunfaith is the belief in Pieces of Self, or Soulmates. This is usually the final extent of most believers’ knowledge of the Teachings as deeper knowledge is only gained by the most devout believers, like how commoners might believe in a religion while priests are the only capable of practicing it. The belief of Soulmates (as I will refer to it as) is the belief that one was meant for each other. While often connected to love and romantic relationships, the Sunfaiths beliefs are a bit deeper. Simply put, a Piece of One’s Self, a Soulmate, is any living being with an Ember close to one’s own Embers state. An Embers State is what kind of connection it has: First State is an Ember that originates from the same Host as one’s own Ember, after that each state is further removed. Typically, Soulmates occur among the first three states.

The definition of a Soulmate is the unusual resonation between two Embers. It does not always happen when two Embers of the same state meet, but it is often the case. The resonation always happens between both hosts, and it can stir emotions such as Love, Trust, and Loyalty. A Soulmate is not always a lover, as mentioned, but that can be the case. One can also love someone else more than one’s soulmate, and it is not rare, although Soulmates often stick together after having met. A soulmate to a human could be a cat, or an elephant, a shark, another human, or even a tree or flower, so long as the embers resonate. Finding a Soulmate is something many believers spend their life doing, and is often what sparks their journey of pilgrimage. One of the most holy and greatest acts of trust and devotion to each other is the act of Conjoining. It is the act of two Soulmates, merging their Embers into one, to exist together. However, this has since a long time ago become considered taboo, and is in many temples a crime, because of the emergence of Fusing.

Fusing (Forbidden)
A very obscure and forbidden art is the art of Fusing. Long ago, a corrupted scholar of the Sunfaith was on a hunt for power. Strengthening his ember in abnormal ways, he kept seeking more knowledge, more power, and it was never enough. Being a devout believer, he of course believed in soulmates, but disregarded them as weaknesses. Until one day, when he was researching ways to empower himself, he realized: The Ember that spawned his, spawned many others, usually equal, Embers. While his had increased in strength it was not comparable to the power of his original ancestors if it had been whole. So instead, he became obsessed. Obsessed with “recreating” his “rightful Ember”, he started hunting for Soulmates, to force them to conjoin with him. After fusing with many of his soulmates, brimming with power, he realized he could fuse his Ember with any ember of any state, regardless of it resonating or not, with the right power and rituals. As such he started fusing with everything. Nothing was too much, until it was. No one had been able to stop him as his strength was immeasurable, some believe it to equal that of an Awakened, but his end came abruptly. Fusing with another’s Ember means fusing with their very Soul. Usually, souls can coexist by choice when they conjoin, but the corrupt scholar was forcing them into servitude. He thought he could control any number of Embers, but in the end they overwhelmed him from within and scattered. His death caused enormous devastation, but in the end his evil was gone. A person to practice such arts came to be known as a Consumer, and they are hunted down swiftly and without mercy for fear of another evil rising. This lead to widespread banning of Conjoining, but it has lightened over time as the number of Consumers declined, although they still exist.

One’s True Flame
All prior information is considered general knowledge, that most believers know and were taught by parents and during Summits, and that defines the religion. But like most religions, the Teachings of Ember have much hidden knowledge, granted only upon priest and those truly devout to the religion. One such teaching is the teaching of One’s True Flame. It differs from one’s Ember but is the same. The True Flame is one’s Ember, ignited. When an Ember ignites, it regains the properties of a Cinder of the First Flame. What this means for the Host is the reestablishing of the connection with one’s prior lives (Embers), all the way back to the First Life and the Cinder that spawned the current hosts Ember. A host that has lit their True Flame has access to all memories, knowledge and skills of every host that preceded it. They also gain a true understanding of the First Flame and the world, although much of that is already required for the ignition itself. A simple person cannot ignite his Flame in a few years, the Ignition of a Flame happens only very rarely, and has never occurred more than once a hundred years. It takes an incredible amount of generations for a single Ember to ignite, and each generation must work toward that goal or all progress is lost. Since new generations have none of the previous’ knowledge, it’s all up to chance. Therefore, many priests are encouraged to aim for their Ignition regardless, because even if they didn’t succeed they will have furthered their chain. Generally, not much is known about what truly happens when one reaches Ignition, since someone who has been Awakened rarely conveys such information in understandable ways. With the change of one’s perception of reality, comes many other changes. An Awakened is known to have great, miracle-like powers, and have always been known to lead the Kaz’Aranni forward in great ways, often to just disappear. What happens after that, or why it happens, no one knows, and no one will ever know unless they Ignite and become Awakened themselves. That is why this is the biggest goal any devout believer has and is another large cause for pilgrimage.

However, during the later years of the Void Age, this belief was dwindling as there had been no such Awakenings in over 350 years. But, the belief remained even through this time, as there had been written in texts and records that more than 300 years could pass before a follower of the Faith achieved an Awakening, and that only continued perseverance and dedication to this cause is what will make it happen once again.

Note: Any being can Ignite their Ember, but it is often achieved by intelligent species.

The Strengthening of one’s Ember beyond their Potential.
While the Ember in one’s soul represents one’s potential, one is never limited by their Ember. To ignite one’s Ember, one must rise beyond its potential and reach the potential of their Original Cinder. Strengthening one’s ember is incredibly difficult. It requires a lifetime of training. One must master control of their feelings and give themselves to the First Flame to become one with their Original Cinder. The road to strengthening one’s ember is in majority the road to enlightenment and to knowing one’s true self. Of course, young priests are taught in their religion and in the use of gifts and other things that help, but those are just stepping stones on an infinite stairway, the rest of which must be discovered by oneself.

Path of Cinders
An important part of the truly devoted to the teachings is walking the Path of Cinders, a sort of Pilgrimage. There are several reasons to walk the Path, and the Path differs from person to person. Some walk it in groups, some alone, and some don’t even leave their homes. It’s all about self-enlightenment and the path to reach it. Some walk their Path for their entire lives, choosing to interpret the teachings as a goal to find their Soulmates, and some simply walk it to visit different cultures and learn their customs. Before embarking on the Path, one must have a clear vision of their goal. This is not as simple as deciding on a goal: it is something like a vision or message, a goal with true conviction that comes from realizing your own self and realizing what you need to develop as a person and believer of the Faith.

The pilgrimage is an important part to the most devoted to strengthening their Ember. As noted, each individuals path varies greatly. Very few walk Paths that take them out of Kaz’Arann, and those who do usually walk Paths that last large portions of their lifetimes, and some never return home.

The Priesthood
The priesthood has only three real ranks: Initiate, Priest and High Priest. Within these there are roles, such as Teachers and Scholars among the Priests and different duties and responsibilities of the High Priests.

The priesthood consists equally of both genders, but female priests are held in higher regard like they are in general among the Kaz’Aranni. As they are the mothers of the people, they are believed to have purer qualities that are important to the priesthood.

The initiates of the Sunfaith undergo teaching in the faith and history, as well as rigorous physical and martial training. The martial part of this training is mostly tradition but helps serve the purpose of teaching discipline and self-control. This training takes different time for every initiate; some may take only a few years while others take as many as 10, and some remain Initiates for life.

The Priests have a wide variety of duties. Most are scholars, who conduct research or write philosophy. There are teachers, lore keepers, healers and emissaries, among many others. All priests have certain duties they must perform for the Faith, but once initiated as a priest one is generally free to choose what to do oneself.

High Priests, on the other hand, are only chosen among the priests who excel at their area of work or who are truly devoted to the Faith. They usually have big responsibilities, as they are chosen as much by the people as by the priesthood itself. Some spend all their time pondering and searching for the answers of questions too deep for most to understand, while others simply have the responsibilities to handle the education and teachers at one of the temples. Usually, one or two High Priests also serve as personal advisors to the Monarch, and some High Priests may be the ruling judge in trials of the law.

Rituals
There are a few major rituals that followers of the Sunfaith perform. They have a multitude of different daily or weekly rituals, as service to the sun and to the stars. As the religion doesn’t really revolve around the service of a deity, most rituals that ordinary people might attend are more like history lessons and readings of stories.

Summits
The most common ritual performed twice per week and open to uninitiated, as well as non-believers. During the summits, there is no actual teaching of the religion or encouragement of belief or dedication. They are like history lessons, where the leading priest reads from books and scrolls of lore to educate the masses on the important parts of history, often taking stories or events that have something to teach such as compassion, life, and conflicts. They usually cover either the most important and iconic pieces of history from the country in the last 350 years or the few stories that survived the Purges. The rest of history and the teachings of the religion are reserved for schools and priests.

The Purges
The Purges started happening around 400-350 years ago as the work of the Coalition and are the biggest reason for the rift between them. Many important archives were destroyed and all the scrolls and books of history from before this time were burned, stolen, or otherwise destroyed. The most important of written stories and accounts including the original religious texts were important enough to have been kept safe in vaults or personal libraries, but almost everything except word-of-mouth accounts have been forgotten from the time before the Purges. What knowledge remains is inconclusive and as such, knowledge from those times is considered forgotten and lost. This event is shared among every civilization in Leratia and can also be known as the Erasure.

The First Day
The First Day, the exact moment that marks the beginning of the Age of Light, is the day that marks the new year in the calendars for believers of the teachings. It occurs on summer solstice, with the sun of its highest peak. The summer solstice is celebrated grandly in Kaz’Arann. The priests parade down the streets, giving out food and aid to those they pass before high noon. Once the sun is at its highest, they return to their temples to perform some of the most important rituals while the rest of the populace engages in festivities for the rest of the day. It is a day of giving and sharing, and it is customary to give gifts to your closest.

Rites of Ember
The followers of the Sunfaith believe in the cleansing fire, and that offering a part of oneself to the fire is not only a sign of dedication and conviction, but also an important step to strengthen one’s Ember and to gain greater understanding of the Flame.

Rite of Initiation
The initiates of the Sunfaith undergo teaching in the faith and history, as well as rigorous physical and martial training. The martial part of this training is mostly tradition but helps serve the purpose of teaching discipline and self-control. This training takes different time for every initiate; some may take only a few years while others take as many as 10, and some remain Initiates for life. The most important part of this training is the physical endurance, as it is vital in the survival of the Rite of Initiation.

The Rite of Initiation is one of, if not the, most important of the Rites of Ember. The initiates chest, right over the heart, is subjected to intense flame as the initiate rests on a heated brass altar. The symbol of a sun is branded into the chest. The purpose of the ritual is two-fold; it is a way to test both the will, dedication, and endurance of the initiate, important to their future as a priest. Secondly, it also serves to cleanse the body by subjecting it to the searing, cleansing heat of true flame.

Most initiates survive, as they are only allowed to undertake it if the priests deem them capable of passing. There are, however, some cases of death where unforeseen circumstances were present, or the evaluation of the initiate was faulty. After the ritual, they are considered a priest of the Sunfaith.

Rite of the Hand
As initiates, members of the Sunfaith are not taught to harness the gifts of the Sun. That training starts in theory after they are first initiated as priests. However, before they can use the gifts in practical they need to undergo the Rite of the Hand, to become a Hand of the Sun. Many priests do not seek this, as their goals either end at priesthood with the access to knowledge and libraries for contemplation or they simply do not have the aptitude. Those that do undergo it are first subjected to intense exercises in will and mental integrity, as the privilege of wielding the gifts carries immense responsibility.

The Rite of the Hand involves subjecting one’s hands to intense flames while the sun is at its highest. During that moment, the participant must of his own accord learn to apply what he has been taught in theory to envelop his hands in the flames without destroying them. The rite can fail in one of two ways: either the participant removes his hands from the fire, and as long as they are not overly damage he can try again later. If the priest lingers to long however, his hands can be ruined. This doesn’t necessarily mean he has failed however: one can still succeed in the rite as the hands are not entirely necessary. But usually, one’s will is broken after such a failure. But, as with the Rite of Initiation, the rate of failure is low due to the strict requirements before even attempting it.

Most priest’s hands remain gravely scarred after the ritual, but this is a sign of the success in most cases. Since the nerves have been burned out, priests that are recognized as Hands of the Sun have no feeling and thus cannot feel the pain of channeling the gifts through their hands. This is a secondary, more practical reason the rite is necessary, as the channeling of the gifts can otherwise be painful and break concentration, which can be fatal.

Rite of the Stride
This rite is more optional than the others and is only really undergone by those with the strongest of faith. Its purpose is to help the priest walk the path of their Ember, and the path of the First Flame. In the rite, the priest burns his feet as with the Rite of the Hand. This serves no great practical purpose but is supposed to aid in the spiritual learning that the priest undergoes on his path to understanding. It symbolizes a connection between the Flame and the Stride; that every step one takes, every day it takes to learn to walk with no feeling in the feet, is a step toward understanding and a day toward enlightenment. Such a priest walks bare footed at all times and keeps in mind with which purpose it is he takes each step, what devotion it is that keeps him walking.

Rite of the True Sight
And finally, the Rite of the True Sight is the final milestone of only the most devoted of all the priests in the Sunfaith. It is the most secret and holy of the Rites of Ember, and it involves the complete burning of the priest’s eyes, nose, ears and upper hear. This finalizes the destruction of the priest’s sensations. During the ritual, the priest focuses on separating his mind from his body, to perceive the world through the help of the Flames themselves. This requires extremely fine control of both body, mind, and the gifts. Once the ritual is complete, if successful, the priest perceives the world with eyes of flame. The world is seen as fine variations in heat and temperature: it is as detailed as normal sight, but more complete and enlightened. They can perceive the world as it truly is, seeing and hearing things that no ordinary human could dream of.

Almost exclusively High Priests perform this ritual, and if the priest isn’t already one of them this is often the final step.

Rite of the True Sight: You lose normal sight and gain Blindsight 120ft., that is interrupted by 1 foot of stone or wood or 1 inch of any metal. You also automatically detect illusions within this distance.

Houses of Fire
The Sunfaiths version of a Church or Temple is called a House of Fire. Its purpose is simple, as opposed to being a place of worship it is simply a place of gathering and collective contemplation and teaching. The most important part of the building is the central gathering hall. Built in a style similar to a gazebo, although larger. They are always built on high ground, often being the highest point in a city in Kaz’Arann, sometimes being built on the top of towers or built as towers. In the center is a large Brazier, made to be filled with different types of wood, depending on the time of year, rituals, and special days important to the Sunfaith, such as the celebration of The First Day. There is nothing else required except the Brazier Room, but there are a few more important parts of larger Houses. One such part is the Sun Gardens. The main part of a House is designed to be completely omni-directional, with no indication of directions or differences on either side compared to the others. One of the first things that break this are the Sun Gardens, two balconies built to always face the sunrise and sunset. These are built in order to make the Sun Ritual easier to perform, and is the biggest reason that Houses are built on high ground. After the Sun Gardens come the Archives, an integral part of Houses built in central cities, as this is where they gather scrolls and other information. These parts make up most Houses, but larger Houses that are built as places of learning often feature classrooms and halls of teachings and they double as public schools.

Aspect of the Moon
The practitioners on Crescent Island follow a different aspect of the faith, that is the same but focuses on the second aspect of the Moon. It follows the exact same religion, but simply focuses more on a different aspect, choosing to search for enlightenment in different ways. They focus on the part of the religion that deals with death and the Void, the afterlife. They are more connected to nature, and as such tend to be more similar to Druids than Clerics.

Mechanical
Priests of the Sunfaith are Clerics or Paladins. Clerics are the typical priests and by far the most common, and Paladins are much rarer specially trained warriors that usually hold positions as Royal Guard or guards at the True Flame Temple in the capital on mount Jaziratti. The Paladins are known as the Flameguard.

Among the people on Crescent Island, some priests also practice the faith in a way more similar to Druids. They belong to the Circle of Dreams. There are some practitioners of this Circle among the main followers of the Faith as well, but they are exceedingly rare.

Clerics
The main priesthood consists of clerics. Mechanically, the clerics consist of four Divine Domains, depending on the training of the Priest. By far, most are members of the First Flame domain, following the unique practices of the Sunfaith. There are a few others, from more specialized Houses and regions, that follow the Life, Grave and Light Domain. They do not practice the Sunfaith in entirely the same way, and do not channel their power raw through their body. They are rare, and mostly come from the same regions.

Life Clerics mostly come from the Kaz’Arann that live on Crescent island and the practitioners in the more remoted cities and villages of Kaz’Arann. Light clerics come mostly from the nomadic tribes in the Karazhan desert, where the Sunfaith is practiced a little bit differently. The practitioners on the Crescent Island also belong to the Grave Domain, as they focus more intently on the aspects of death and afterlife in the Sunfaith.