Legends of Belariath

Magi Religion

Morpheous. In a single word, a single name, all religion of the Magi can be found. Some races have a pantheon of Gods, some have no Gods at all. Other still assign a deity to each Element, some to the Past, Present, and Future. For Magi, there is only one, has always been one, and never will be another.

She is the one that created the Magi as they are, winged and magnificent, and the one that cast the mighty spell to bring them from their doomed homeworld all the way through the howling dark to Belariath, and ultimately, the one to whom they owe their very existence. There is no single Magi on Oceana that is not aware of the debt he owes his Goddess. Many even consider themselves mere extensions of her, with free will to praise her, but no more separate than their own fingers or toes are separate beings.

She lacks an aspect of sorts. Her domain is Oceana, and the Magi that reside upon it, more esoteric than many other deities. In statues she is depicted as tall, long-haired and winged. Sometimes she can be seen in armour, the fierce embodiment of the war the Magi escaped, and other times in simple robes, smiling in benevolent fashion. Her emblem, where it is needed, is a simple Hexagon, an even, six-sided shape that represents the strength of the Magi people working as one. When color is used, every side of this Hexagon takes a color from a Temple. Crimson, Azure, Brown, Purple, Gold, and Green.

She manifests most often at a Magi's Rite of Reclamation. Every Magi meets with Morpheous during this rite, though descriptions of the rite herself, and her physical appearance vary from one individual to another. Always raven-haired, lynx-eyed, with wings of brilliant white, but there are no other fixed details. Wise Magi say that she appears subtly different to each and every one of them. She also plays a major part in the Rite of Ascension, the most important days of the year for the Magi.

The Rite of Ascension is a festival for the Magi. It occurs every year, around the first days of summer, and lasts for four days. The first day, June 18, marks the casting of the first great spell of Ascension, that brought Oceana up into the skies of their homeworld. Be they on Oceana or itself, or scattered around Belariath, all Magi must spend several hours, preferably the whole day, in meditation, lending their strength to their Goddess as she prepares to renew the spell holding their continent in the sky. She begins casting at noon, and the spell continues all the way through till midnight. The end is celebrated with a great hymn, sung by as many Magi as can gather on the steps to the Temple of Morpheous. In recent years, it has become tradition to carry a candle, or use magic to produce a light, for this parade. Regardless of how much care they have for Morpheous or Oceana, every Magi must spend the ten minutes leading up to midnight in solemn meditation, unless on Oceana itself.

The second day, June 19, marks their departure from their world, and their first day of travel to reach the place they would come to know as Belariath. Many of the more traditional Magi fast through this period, and spend their day in prayer or meditation. Others still visit the Wall, a great memorial inscribed with the names of all that they could remember as being left behind on their burning world, Gods and men alike. In the hours of this day before dawn, supplicants may visit Morpheous, and beg for her decisions on their problems. Many outcast Magi return home for this supplication, seeking forgiveness from their Goddess for their wrong. Still more come forward with wrongs they believe they have committed, but have not been punished for, to be forgiven.

The third day, June 20, was the dawn of hope for the travelling Magi. On this day in their history, some claimed they could see light, faint and approaching in the distance, rather than the endless, starless night which had dominated their skies for the previous day. To mark this, candles are lit. It was at this point in their journey that the candles and wax they had taken with them ran out, and so, rather than being swallowed by the night, the Magi took to burning non-essentials. Furniture, books, tapestries, weapons - anything that would burn. As a remembrance of this, many Magi take the opportunity to "spring-clean" , and fill bonfires with things they have no more use for, and cannot give away. In the evening, between sundown and midnight, Morpheous hears supplicants once again. This is a sober day for Magi across Belariath.

The fourth, and final day of the Rite of Ascension could not be more different from the previous. Far from the great labour of the first, and the anxious waiting of the second and third, on the fourth day, Oceana arrived in the skies above Belariath, and there was a great rejoicing. Food that had been stockpiled, expecting a week-long journey, perhaps more, was set on tables, and the Magi had a great feast and celebration. Loved ones, and even strangers, found solace in one another's arms, rejoicing in the simple fact that they were -alive-. There are no more supplicants on this day, and any outcast Magi that have failed in their pleas must leave before the sun rises. As dawn comes, there is singing and dancing across Oceana, with magical displays and demonstrations put on by every Temple. Great works of art or literature are often unveiled on this day, and plays are often performed, almost non-stop. Recognising the celebration, Morpheous extends her Blessing to every Magi in Oceana, and indeed, the world, except for those pitiful outcast few. Every Magi is imbdued with the power of their Goddess on this day, starting from dawn. Their energy is limitless, their happiness infectious. For those with creative talent, their muse pours endless concepts, ideas, genius into their ears, and the more.. social-minded are driven to first seek out their Magi brethren, then, in groups, to gather up the people around them to sing and dance and talk of the great Goddess Morpheous. Rumour even says that Morpheous herself emerges from her Temple to join the celebrations and lead the chorus in Oceana. A more cynical mind might note that they make easy prey for slavers or rapists on such a day.

While many Magi offer their worship to Morpheous directly, through hymns, rituals, sacrifices and dedication, this is not the most common route for the worshipful Magi to take. Instead, many hold to the belief that the best way to serve Morpheous is to be the best they possibly can, in their own chosen school, to excel, to exceed wherever possible their potential, and prove that she was right to choose them to become Magi. In the wake of this, a system of ranking of sorts has sprung up, supported and maintained by the Temple Elders.

This Hierarchy is not written down anywhere on Oceana, nor is it likely that any single Magi has knowledge of the entire system, but each understands his own place within it. It is known, informally, as the Strata. Each individual Magi knows his own place within it, as defined by those immediately above, and immediately below him, extending for perhaps three or four Magi in either direction. In times of War, these peers will become his immediate companions in battle. The ranking is not decided exclusively by martial skill, but by all sorts of abilities within the Magi community, and governed by rules of courtesy. It would be, for example, extremely ill-mannered to ask for a singing contest with a Magi devoted to Ruby and Azure.

Magi may move within the ranking either by the most common method, of agreement between both parties, or, less frequently, a challenge issued to decide the matter. This challenge can be issued from any Magi, to any other, and ordinarily, must be accepted. However, Magi holding Master rank in any Temple may decline a challenge from any other Magi not of the same rank, and it is considered extremely presumptuous to issue such a challenge out of order. Should the challenging Magi prove victorious, he takes the position of the Magi he defeated in the Strata, while the loser takes the place immediately below. It is customary that after a defeat, the loser spends a week, sometimes longer, in direct service to the man or woman he challenged, to learn from his better. In the Ruby Temple, this usually takes the form of being a "page", in Azure, holding the candle and carrying the books, taking notes. Sometimes, particularly daring Magi will deliberately challenge one far stronger than themselves with the intention of being defeated, simply to be at the side of the one they admire, and learn directly from him or her.