Followers: Avonists
Main countries of worship: Civiel, Iksand, Siana, some population in Riwen
Avonism worships one god, the titular Avon, and five saints who were originally ordinary people. Avon is the king of all of the universe and is associated with wind, rivers, mountains, and the sky.
Saint Sadie is the first of the saints, the one who wrote the first works of Avonism. She was known for having a sharp wit, and is the matron of scribes, musicians, and artists. She worked closely with Saint Ruth, who she met in Siana while she was compiling her first work. Saint Ruth inspired many of Sadie's works, and frequently debated with her friend. She is the patron of sailors, weather, and the seasons. She disappeared some time after the Wrath of the Gods, sailing to find the island Taumaeo and never returning. After Ruth's disappearance, Sadie tried to find her, but was blown off course to Iksand, where she continued to write and later advised important chiefs. She was poisoned after admonishing the ruler of a neighboring clan.
Saint Caleb is associated with wealth, craftspeople, and mountains, and lived many years after the first two saints, and lived as a clerk and secretary, where he discovered some of Saint Sadie's works in a private collection. He turned his studies purely to the works of Sadie and Ruth, annotating their works and later writing his own. He left his employer and traveled around the country, founding monasteries based on his teachings. He died in a rockfall while tending to one of his mountain monasteries.
St. Finley began as an ordinary farmer who had a special connection with nature and was said to have been able to speak to animals. He took an interest in the writings of St. Caleb and spent long hours in nature, trying to find the connection between nature and the divine. He is the patron of farmers and animal handlers, and is said to have been killed by a hunter's arrow as he tried to protect a stag.
St. Edward lived as a soldier and guard at Fort Dravos, hundreds of years after the final battle. He is said to be one of the last people to see a dragon at the foothills of the Dragonback mountains. He spent his life in the forges and on the battlefield, and died as he lived, fighting for what he believed in. He is the patron of soldiers, blacksmiths, and fire.
There is a belief in an immortal soul that ties all of their other beliefs together. Followers believe that the body and soul must be one, and that neither can take priority over the other. The afterlife is seen as an extension of this life, in a world without evil and pain, where bodily and spiritual sensation are felt the same. There is a seperate afterlife for those who blaspheme and commit acts against Avon. This afterlife is a version of purgatory in a bleak, rocky, windless landscape.
Nonbelievers are pitied and regarded as one would an injured person - with wishes that they will heal from their injuries or illness. In the afterlife, nonbelievers who haven't blasphemed feel bodily and spiritual sensations as seperate, and are thus unable to achieve full unity with the divine.
Scent is believed to be the way to communicate with Avon, so cleanliness is seen as being closer to divine. Those who work in professions that are associated with strong smells are seen as needing cleansing before entering the temples. Thuribles and braziers are especially prevalent in temples, as are wind chimes, since Avon is associated with wind.
There are regional variations in beliefs surrounding Avonism, influenced by region and other religions in the area. For example, Riweni Avonists focus more on the saints and the river aspect of Avon, forgoing the hexagonal temples for rectangular communal shrines with all of the saints on one wall. Faenlic Avonists from Siana focus on the wind aspect of Avon and build their temples as standing stones and carved poles, always six in a circle. Sianic believers also lessen the aspect of the purgatory, with the belief that all people go to the good afterlife.
The Avonistic religion is relatively loose, and worship is not always strictly defined. Worshipers are expected to go to the temples at least once a week, once a day for more devout persons. Nobles and monks are expected to go twice a day or more, and many nobles have private chapels and hired religious mentors to better their chances of not accidentally blaspheming anyone.
Temples are based around a six-sided shape, one side in the main room for each major deity. The north face has a foyer extending from it, where most simple gatherings are held. The foyer typically has benches, prayer nooks, and small statues of the saints. In the hexagonal room, the saints and Avon are arranged as follows, clockwise starting from the main foyer doors: Sadie, Edward, Caleb, Avon, Ruth, and Finley. The wall behind Caleb has a door that leads to a morning chapel, typically facing eastward. The wall behind Ruth has a door that leads to an evening chapel, facing westward. Behind Avon, there is often a large stained glass window.
Many major temples are fitted with two organs, one in each chapel. The morning chapel has a more elaborate organ with many stops, while the evening chapel has a smaller, quieter organ. This has led to the distinction between morning and evening organs outside of chapels as well, such as in entertainment halls and ballrooms.
Outside of the temple is a bell-tower, often in front of the main door, to call citizens to worship.
The clergy exists only in large, clergy-ordained temples placed in cities around the nations of Iksand and Civiel. Riweni and Sianic temples are not considered places of worship to the Iksandi Avonists, nor are smaller temples present in villages and small towns. The order is as follows: the Bontir watch over the lordships and ladyships, followed by the Overseers or Ventir, who watch over regions within that territory. The Niltir are the priests of cities and specific temples. The lower ranks include the priests and the acolytes, who fulfill temple duties.
Monasteries, which are often religious towns that sprung up around a temple or sacred site, operate independently, but sometimes have connections with the Ventir or Niltir in their region, often run by a Niltir. They are not gender segregated. The ranking is as follows: Father or Mother, the leader of the monastery; Adri, the teachers who have specific knowledge about things important to the monastery; monks, who are fully initiated; and acolytes, who are uninitiated members of the monastery, often to learn specific information and sometimes noble children sent off to behave themselves.
Monasteries are places of training to better connect the body and soul. Many of the activities common in the monastery take years to perfect, such as painting and manuscript illustration, while others require control over motor skills, such as archery. Monasteries are places with strict diets, often brought about by separation and the need to grow or produce all food, but also in place to prevent food that may imbalance body and soul. Most monasteries rarely require an oath of complete nonviolence, only an oath of protection: monks cannot harm without reason and must act in protection of others.
Sunrise: Morning prayer & vigil | Breakfast | Silent study
Midmorning: Physical labor (Archery, gardening, etc.)
Noon: Midday prayer & vigil | Midday meal | Recreation
Afternoon: Physical labor/ministry
Sunset: Sunset prayer & vigil | Sunset meal | Sleep