The kinto-shah religion is, primarily, an ancient redemptive, but works-based, religion. It is also a peculiar business-based religion.
The Creation of the Worlds and the Heavens:
The primary mythology of the kinto-shah religion involves the two creator gods, the mother and the father. The kinto-shah believe that, in all creative acts, there is a father part and a mother part, even with single creators, even with things that have no gender. The father part, which is reflected in the highest deity of the religion, Kri-Nao-Kundroa, is the part of creation that puts, establishes, evokes, produces, pushes, etc. The mother part, reflected in the highest deity Kri-Uru-Kundroa, is the part that inspires, that receives or accepts or allows creation to happen, or which becomes the audience, critical part, or receiver, approver, etc. of creation. One is the push, while the other the pull, etc.
Kri-Nao-Kundroa is several things for the Kinto-Shah mythos: he is the god of time, the ultimate originator of ideas and paradoxically, the ultimate judge of what should be created or what should stay created. Kri-Uru-Kundroa is the ultimate goddess of adjustment, of acceptance, of allowance, of change, of existing. She critiques and suggests betterment of those things which exist, but she does not desire destruction or elimination at all.
The Actual Myth (yes, this is disjointed and broken, because the kinto-shah are not entirely sure of it):
At the beginning of time, the two kundroas said to one another: "Let us once again, create a universe, and let us dance the dance of time." And so it was, Kri-Nao-Kundroa sewed for his wife a new dress, a new universe, inside of which his beloved could dance the dance of the ages. Her old dress was tattered and worn."
And he gave to her jewels of stars and worlds, and all manner of things to adorn her dress, and they danced the dance of time, and they were happy.
Once the dance began, many things happened as a result, because creators cannot interact without their being creation, and Kri-Nao-Kundroa began to form the worlds and the heavens and all things that would exist in the universe, and Kri-Uru-Kundroa delighted in what he created and she helped shape it into worlds and stars and the heavens, but the two of them were not happy with only the heavens and skies and the worlds and the waters.
"Let us create for ourselves children, who shall share in our love and our heavens that we are making," suggested Kri-Nao-Kundroa to his wife, and this also delighted her. So, out of their love for one another, the two creators, one the originator, the other the acceptor and nurturer, created children for themselves to rule with them in the heavens. They created the ikoas, like their father, who would be the push, the desire, the love that reaches and embraces; they created also the yuroas, the pull, the desired, the love that accepts and is embraced. First among them was the combination of the two, Kri-Vu-Roshi who had both his mother and father in her (yes that was an intentional shift in pronouns; the kinto-shah call Kri-Vu both, because she/he is both at the same time, completely). They created also the Krinoas, the Ikoas, and the Yuroas. The Krinoas were the embodiments of the desires of their parents, combinations of their parents' goals. Kri-Thu-Yenoro was a god of cycles, of change, of rebirth, of renewal, and it was he who set many of the worlds in motions, who first began the weather, and who brought death into the world. And Kri-Kin-Tareo who wanted to emulate life, to create things that reflected his parents in their abilities to make choices and be alive, and so it was he who brought life into the world.
Born were the ikoas, who were leaders and aggressors, creatures that wanted to know, wanted to be, wanted to do, to push, to go, to move. Born were the yuroas, who wanted to exist, to be, to stay, to not move, and these were the children who caused the great calamity.
Kri-Kin-Tareo decided he would make life upon the worlds. First, he made life in the form of plants and insects, and made them to live upon the face of the worlds. And they were the first life to exist in the physical world, the world where life exists. Now, existence and the will to exist were combined. And these creatures, these plants and insects, flew in the face of Kri-Thu-Yenoro, because they lasted, and Kri-Thu-Yenoro desired change, and now the two gods grew to be in dispute, because life would last and not change, and now Kri-Kin-Toreo made other life. He made creatures of all kinds. He made life that dwelt in the air, and life that dwelt in the ground, and life that dwelt on the face of the worlds, and all kinds of life, and Kri-Thu-Yenoro wanted nothing to stay the same ever, even if this meant the creatures Kri-Kin-Torao made would die and be destroyed. The argument was brought to the great creators.
"I create life and put it in the world, and Kri-Thu-Yenoro tries to destroy it. He surges the oceans, and he sweeps the wind across the face of the worlds, and he makes it where my life cannot predict their world. They run hither and thither in terror, because their world is out to destroy them."
"His life reproduces itself, and it thrives, and it does not change. It stays, and it shakes in fear of my world and how I want to make it new again and again, and I wish for life to end and be remade over and over, to become better and more interesting, and I wish to see new and more interesting things, as you would have me do, mother."
And this might have begun an argument with the creators, and Kri-Nao may have ended all creation everywhere, but for Kri-Vu-Roshi who understood both sides of the argument, and who could speak for both of them.
"Let us have a compromise. Let us have the world change slowly, let upon them become places where beauty lasts, and fear is but for a moment, places where the creatures of the world can find peace and live long. But let us also have death. The spirit of the dead things shall live on through their offspring, in a sense, but yet that spirit shall leave the dead and go hither and thither. Let creatures die, so they may give back what they have taken from the surfaces of the world, so that new life may profit and grow stronger in their shadows."
And so it was, the worlds were made stable, and death entered the world, and balance and order was beautiful to the gods, and so they reveled in the clever compromise of Kri-Vu-Roshi. And when some creatures behaved foolishly, and demonstrated a lack of respect for the ways of the world, Kri-Thu-J'yenoro came for them, and ripped their spirits from their bodies and left their carcasses. But those creatures who listened to the sounds of their hearts, and listened to the world, and learned many things, lived long, and aged long, and when they were ready to leave their body for the world to take into itself, they lay down and Kri-Thu-J'yenoro quietly opened them and their spirit freely passed on. So the creatures of existence were added to the cycles of all things.
Kri-Uru-Kundroa and Kri-Nao-Kundroa were greatly pleased by this turn of events, and they watched with fascination what their children did with the created things. The living things fascinated him, and he wished to see more and more of what his children could create and make, and the created things delighted her and she wanted to see more of what was and see again and again the strange and wonderful workings of these worlds. Kri-Vu-Roshi loved all things, and saw beauty in all things. And so the Kundroas gave to the Krinoas, who had the highest of all power, the ability to create and shape the world.
But the yuroas and ikoas grew jealous. Or, so it was that the ikoas grew jealous and the yuroas, who knew less, grew jealous with them. The Krinoas were given power to control the heavens and the worlds and the seas and the air and all things, but the ikoas and yuroas did not have power over anything like their elder siblings.
And lurking among them was hatred and jealousy and deceit, which took the form of Kri-Lor-Nuroka. And he was like his sister Kri-Vu-Roshi, except opposite and all ways. Where Kri-Vu-Roshi saw the value in all things, Kri-Lor-Nuroka saw value in nothing: all was expendable and pointless to him; where Kri-Vu-Roshi was both male and female, light and dark, give and take, push and pull, give and accept, Kri-Lor-Nuroka was neither, and none of these, and instead he wished only for unity and singularity in all things, all things should be as he believed they should. And where Kri-Vu-Roshi understood the desires of the lesser children, the yuroas and the ikoas, Kri-Lor-Nuroka sought only to exploit them and use them for his own purposes.
Kri-Lor-Nuroka, who was nothingness and hollow, came to the yuroas and ikoas while they traveled through the gardens of the Krinoas, and he asked them: "Wouldn't you want to have planted that tree, or wouldn't you want to have made that beast, or wouldn't you like to have power over these things you see, true control of them?"
And the ikoas answered they would have liked to have had some say in the creation of things, in the lighting of the lamps of the heavens, in the setting of the dirt in the sea, in the growing of the plants of the gardens, and the management of the beasts of the field. And Kri-Lor-Nuroka said to them: "I can give you these things, if you will give me something."
The ikoas, who had been given some responsibilities over some things, and the yuroas, who followed and served the ikoas, said to Kri-Lor-Nuroka: "What would we have to give to you, to be like the greater gods of heaven?"
"You would have to forget that you are inferior to them. Merely give me your memories that they rule over you, and I shall give you power over them. See how you outnumber them greatly already, but you have been given too much knowledge of the universe, and you believe there should be a certain order, but if you forgot these things, you would be able to learn new thoughts and would know how you might beat them. You are defeated before you can go, but I will teach you a new way."
The ikoas, being lesser, did not truly understand this, but they agreed to these terms, trusting Kri-Lor-Nuroka and giving up their memories of the powers and authority of the higher gods. And Kri-Lor-Nuroka said unto them: "Now, attack the greater gods. Cause them pain and suffering."
The ikoas and the yuroas wondered how they could attack the greater gods, but they had forgotten that they could cause them no suffering or pain, and they had forgotten they lacked power over them, and so they went and attempted to harm them in whatever way they could do it. They used what little power they had to gang up on the Krinoas, and having forgotten many things, they forgot the love and understanding of Kri-Vu-Roshi, and they attacked him first among the Krinoas. But she laughed at them, and told them they were being silly, and she tried to remind them they could do her no harm at all, but they only attacked someone else. They attacked Kri-Thu-Yenoro, who pruned and trimmed the creatures of the world back and organized the gardens, but he also laughed at them, and reminded them they could not kill him, for he was a Krinoa.
The ikoas and yuroas did not know how they could hurt the higher gods and take over, so they returned to Kri-Lor-Nuroka and told him this. And he said, to truly hurt a creator, they must hurt the creations. The ikoas and yuroas were not sure how they might do this, but Kri-Lor-Nuroka thought of this as well. He said: "Enter into the animals of the world, the creatures the Krinoas have created, and make a place for yourself there in their bodies. When you are within them, begin to destroy these bodies and harm the other animals of the worlds. Go and slaughter them and devour them to no purpose. Go and make every effort to wipe them out. You will do what Kri-Thu-Yenoro does, but with greater effectiveness, so to unbalance the world itself, and unhinge it entirely."
The ikoas and the yuroas did this. They entered into the animals (And some of this was added later when the Kinto-Shah came to Trithofar; this is a collected and reworked mythology for this race). They entered into raigs and kintoras and became kinto-shah, and their bodies turned and changed to reflect the new spirit within them. They set out through the world, burning and pillaging and destroying. They found beauty and demolished it. They found order and disordered it, and became like petulant foolish children. Some of them entered pigs of the fields and became the hials, and others entered into gremlins and became kunjels, while still others invaded forest creatures and became humans. And these different races eventually found each other and warred against each other and caused each other horrifying pain, for the gods had given unto the animals nerves and sensations so they might satisfy their urges, and now there was great pain all over the worlds. Animal against animal, being against being, until utter chaos entered the worlds.
And the Krinoas became enraged and cried out to the Kundroas about this terrible plight of their creations. The Kundroas were saddened to see what had happened, to see pain and horrors enter the worlds, and Kri-Nao-Kundroa became so angry he threatened to wipe the worlds away. Kri-Uru-Kundroa took sadness into her heart, for she loved the created things and was not ready for this dance to end, and she wanted beauty and peace to return and last forever.
But what was worse was that the Krinoas were arguing amongst themselves. They blamed each other for creating the things they ikoas and the yuroas inhabited and used to destroy and kill and disorder. "Were it not for you and your wind, they would not be able to sail ships around and go from island to island and hurt each other," one would accuse the other. "Were it not for you and your iron and precious metals, they would not be able to build weapons to hurt and kill with," another would say. "And were it not for you and your desire to have death," the creatures' lives would not be threatened. "Were it not for you and your want of the animals to reproduce and keep living, we would not have them to be killed and cause so much pain and suffering in the heavens." And then, the great blasphemy of all among the krinoas, which was to cause the final judgment to fall on all created things: "Were it not for the Kundroas creating the ikoas and the yuroas, none of this would have happened."
And it was likened unto a glass thing falling from a shelf, the noise of which echoed through the home. It is of great debate who said it, but likely, it was Kri-Lor-Nuroka, or at least he is blamed, because it is always his plan for all to return to nothingness. Kri-Nao-Kundroa, in anger, stopped all time in all the universe, even for Kri-Uru-Kundroa.
He made this decision, and because he stopped time, none could do anything but listen to him. "I will sort this mess and make of it good. I shall obliterate all things, and make of them nothing, and my wife and I shall dwell with love alone. I shall not be accused of evil by my own children."
But somehow, Kri-Vu-Roshi spoke. For she was what love existed in all things, and she said unto Kri-Nao-Kundroa: "Please father, it is not all of their faults. They were jealous and confused. They have given up something precious for something less. I fear it would be a terrible thing to judge all equally, rather than to judge according to their deeds. See the yuroas and how they merely followed the ikoas into temptation, and see the ikoas being ignorant and giving up what knowledge they had so they could not understand what they were doing, and see how our own selves have been foolish and blamed each other instead of taking actions and instead of trusting you to help us correct these problems. See father how we are not perfect as you and mother are, but wish to become as you are, and to serve you perfectly. The ikoas and the yuroas merely wished to have the power to please you, as the krinoas can please you with their magic and their creative works. To that end, they have done these things, and not to displease you."
And Kri-Vu-Roshi's words touched Kri-Nao-Kundroa and made him glad that she was first among his children. And Kri-Uru-Kundroa was allowed to speak and she said: "I do not wish for my children you have given me to be entirely destroyed, but only the evil which has come to rule some of them. Let us find a way to judge and hold accountable those who are most responsible for this, and curse them, and let us judge the righteous and let them return to us restored."
"Then here," said Kri-Nao-Kundroa, "is my judgment."
"The ikoas and the yuroas shall live as part of the worlds they tried to destroy, and they shall become rulers of it, and they shall try to undo their evil. If they rule justly and wisely, and if they seek out beauty, love, and honor, and if they attempt to cause healing where once they tried to cause pain and hurt, then their souls shall be freed of their bodies and shall rejoin us here, fully restored to their statuses. But if they are wicked, and do bad things. If they seek chaos and evil and if they try to harm and kill and maim one another, then their spirits shall come from them and be cursed to watch the consequences of their misdeeds, until such time as I strike them from existence and feed them to the nothingness they have tried to serve.
"And the Krinoas who joined in this rebellion and have blasphemed, here is my judgement: you shall be given to the nothingness you have served, and you shall be broken. You shall know forever that soon you will be nothing, and all the existence you see, all the beauty of creation, shall become as alien to you as night is from day, as east is from west upon the worlds. You shall never know order or stability or peace again, and you shall suffer for it, until the day you are wiped from the face of existence." And so it was. The krinoas who had blasphemed and accused even the Kundroas of wickedness were cursed to count their days until they would be destroyed, and to wonder from that day until the last when Kri-Nao-Kundroa would keep his terrible threat to them. The ikoas were trapped in the bodies of people, and the yuroas became trapped in the bodies of animals, even less than the people, and sometimes, they ikoas would recognize their counterparts and sometimes they would not, but the ikoas would come to domesticate and take dominion over the worlds and would slaughter and eat of the animals with the yuroa souls. And the ikoas came to make peace and order in the worlds in which to live. They would learn to form governments, a heirarchy of leadership among them, so that they would instinctively reflect the order of the heavens which they had ruined. And if they proved they could respect order and heirarchy, they would be accepted once again in heaven as their former selves. But rebellious souls were punished and made to wander the worlds and see the consequences of their lives.
The End of This Myth.
This myth does (in its various forms) do several things for the kinto-shah. It justifies the social heirarchy inherent to Kinto-Shah society. Kinto-shah have several social castes and indeed believe in a caste system. Here is the basic breakdown of their caste system, which is established and justified through their religious doctrines:
The Emperor (Who is considered to be a god, or at least a connection to the gods. Basically, when an emperor is chosen, it is said a Krinoa comes to guide the world).
The Concubines: The emperors concubines are, basically, a counsel of queens who get closest to the emperor. They represent, in a sense, the presence of Kri-Uru-Kundroa. While they are, on one hand, responsible for entertaining the Emperor and his nobility in many ways (yes, sexually being one of these ways), they are also counselors and priestesses and the emperor's closest advisors and protectors. Woe be unto the one who makes these women feel threatened or in harm's way at all). Some of these females are even unofficially generals of various branches of militia and Lar-Kirthoa. In many ways, they are the neck to the emperor's head, the emperor's spine below his skull.
The Lar-Kirthoa: These are the emperor's most powerful and most trusted military force. They are like (in some ways) the samurai of ancient japan. The highest ranking members among them become like a shogunate. They believe in an extremely strict code of honor and are dedicated to enforcing the emperor's will (not necessarily the law of the land) in all things. They are trained to be nearly fanatical in their dedication to the emperor and his queens and to respect the chain of command. They believe they are the enforcers of the 'righteous order of the universe.' It is their duty to make sure the status quo remains and things go according to an order in the world.
The Nobility: The nobility usually includes the rulers of courts throughout the land. The nobility are arbiters of disputes as well as keepers of order, basically local governors for the emperor. The nobility varies greatly depending on their roles.
The Priests: The priests of the holy temples are administrators of local affairs as well as tax collectors, bureacrats, and justices of the peace. The priests are supposed to ensure all loyalty is given to the emperor and his retinue, and they are also the ones who make sacrifices and take up monies for the gods. They marry people and go and minister to people's needs as well.
The Military (which is not the Lar-Kirthoa): The military commanders are under the nobility in the forms of locally owned and operated militia or are under the direct command of the Lar-Kirthoa. The soldiers answer to the commanders, etc.
The Free People: These are people who have bought their way out of slavery or who have been taken out of slavery and given over control of business or industry. The majority of all kinto-shah are, in some way or another, enslaved. They begin their careers as slaves.
The Slaves: Slavery is not anything like for the kinto-shah what it is like for humans. It is not (supposed) to be based on race or social status of the child's forebears. Instead, it is a learn-on-the-job job. When a kinto-shah child comes of a certain age, he is usually sold to a school, where the teachers and administrators of the school (who are among the free people usually) will decide a track for the child to take based on aptitude tests, games, etc. Children who are deemed stupid, lazy, or unreliable, are often put in the most menial and boring commissions, or they are used like animals. Children who show brightness, aptitude, etc. are given contracts for much more interesting tasks. A child who gets a contract purchased by a Free Person (the only people able to buy and sell contracts), pays the school where they are trained and makes use of the slave for as long as the contract holds. Sometimes, slaves are contracted for years and years. Sometimes, they are contracted for the duration of their entire lives. A child can, through earning wages (which are usually parts of their contracts) buy himself free, and therefore become a member of the Free People and own business, buy and sell contracts, and keep his own house. He can even buy a spouse slave and either choose to free her or keep her as a slave and have children by her (not a particulalry pleasant part of Kinto-Shah society), but women can do the same to men, also. The only difference between being a slave for the kinto-shah and having a regular job is that the slave has no choices about when and where he can work, unless there is a violation of contract in some form. This is where the nobility and the courts of Free Peoples come into it. If a slave owner among the Free People is found guilty of a breach of contract (anything from not paying, clothing, or feeding a slave according to the contract to beating or abusing a slave without contractual permission) the slave can be immediately freed or have a new contract forged somewhere else.
A Free Person can also reenter slavery to gain higher position. So, a Free Person might enslave themselves to the temples and become a priest, or enslave themselves to the Lar-Kirthoa (if they haven't already found him) or to the Nobility, etc. Free people have to be capitalists at almost all times. They have to ensure their slaves are being trustworthy and helping them run whatever business they are running. They must know the type of contracts they possess and must ensure they follow the rules to the best of their ability.
Criminals are put into criminal contracts, which they serve for the government. Effectively, criminals are made into the more traditional type of slaves. They cannot earn their way out, but must be a slave for as long as their sentencing demamnds, working on slave farms for the emperor or the nobility. A criminal slave can pretty much be treated, during this time, however the nobles or priests or Lar-Kirthoa wish to treat them, and they can be made to do whatever these authority figures tell them to do. However, they can also earn their way up the ranks and even sometimes into the Lar-Kirthoa ("having done whatever was necessary to survive, now they shall do whatever is necessary to serve order and righteousness"), basically becoming trustees, etc.
Officially, the Kinto-Shah empire does not believe in gladitorial games and think they are wrong. Unofficially, they call practices where some slaves attempt to fight their way to prominence as warriors, and therefore enter the Lar-Kirthoa, 'training' exercises or 'honor battles.' Some particularly athletic slaves are even groomed for this. Tournaments, etc., are held in Lar-Kirthoa castles and some privileged people are allowed to watch, record, and organize these tournaments.
Many Lar-Kirthoa orders are set aside to guard the harems of the emperor, even if the emperor never sees the harem, as well as other forms of nobles, such as ambassadors, etc. Other Lar-Kirthoa are recruiters and trainers of soldiers and local militia, etc. Still others are put into service as judges, juries, and executioners (like, but not exactly, Judge Dredd). They are very like Kunjelic knights in this way, but they worry about threats to the emperor and the empire, and do not necessarily care about smaller matters (such as contract disputes) etc.
So, the Primary Deities:
Kri-Nao-Kundroa (who is detailed above): An originator of all things. The push. The desire. He is the god of time, movement, ultimate change, etc. He is a judge and the ultimate ender of all things as well.
Kri-Uru-Kundroa (who is detailed above): The pull, the desired, the sustainer of all things, the nurturer, a goddess of stability, long-lasting, peace.
Kri-Vu-Roshi: The god/goddess of love, acceptance, understanding, romantic and passionate love, etc. This is a god/goddess of utlimate compromise (not of principles, necessarily, but of mutual peace), and a god/goddess who bridges the gaps between sides. A god/goddess of healing and mending and joining, a primary god/goddess of marriage and unity.
Kri-Thu-Yenoro: A god mostly desiring change and renewal. He is the god of death. He ends things, so other things can begin. One might consider him a god of drafting and editing (if I were a Kinto-shah, haha). He likes to see things getting better, more stable, more interesting, different, new, etc.
Kri-Kin-Tarao: A god who is interested in making things last and build and grow. Believed to be the god who designed some of the first life in the universe, creating it to thrive in the world, despite its constant flux. Though kinto-shah do not necessarily call it 'evolution' per se, this god would be responsible for some of the changes that go on among creatures to make them better suited for their environments, so he becomes a sort of god of evolution in a way. The funny thing about him is that he's conflicted. He makes changes only so things can stay the same.
Kri-Lor-Nuroka or Kri-Lor-Nuroa, etc: This is the lord of 'evil.' He is the god of nothingness, chaos, orderlessness, destruction, turmoil, hatred, jealousy, greed, etc. The kinto-shah believe he is the lord of The Qwadro, the god who ruined Ollogriath, and who encourages people to destroy themselves and each other.
Kri-Tri-Thofar: This was a god who was sort of 'invented' after the Great Immigrations took place. They named him the name of the world as they came to enter it, the counsels of priests and priestesses agreeing he needed a name. This is the god/guardian who is lord of the world of Trithofar, and this belief system introduced a new doctrine to the faith called Kri'ism. The kinto-shah began to believe in gods who ruled over separate worlds and guarded them (sort of guardian angels). This is actually something close to the truth, though what they are naming are the aaviri, particularly the High Aaviri.
Kri-Sha-T'jona: This is a goddess of inspiration, art, creativity, etc. Often considered the consort of Kri-Kin-Tarao. Most often portrayed as female and very like her mother, she is one who takes raw materials and tries to make them better.
KRI'ISM and WHAT IT IS:
One of the reasons the kinto-shah have formed an empire is because they believe it is their duty to make the world become ordered and peaceful. They believed themselves, at first after the Great Immigrations, to be the first among the redeemables and other creatures were animals by comparison, and therefore yuroas rather than ikoas. Kinto-shah believe they are among the ikoas, and therefore responsible for finding, establishing, and following an order. Therefore, they want to guide others to the proper order of the universe.
The kinto-shah pray to various gods for different purposes. The most commonly prayed-to god among them is Kri-Vu-Roshi, and they often pray that Kri-Vu-Roshi will understand them, will forgive them, and will relate to the Kundroas why they are not doing or are doing right or wrong. They also pray to other gods and goddesses for various more specific needs, including the blessing of crops, voyages, station in life, etc.
Kri'ists pray that they can find and follow a plan or pattern in life and can therefore please the gods enough to prove themselves loyal. They assume when things go wrong, there is a reason behind it, that they are meant to be there, so they can better learn where they are supposed to be. Kinto-Shah meditate often for several different reasons: one, to find their path in life, the plan they are supposed to follow, their place in the world, their particular desired position; two, to figure out the reasons behind things happening to them and to understand why the gods are leading them where they are being led; three, to find the good in something bad going on and to see how they might find an advantage in it.
Kri'ists are, in a sense, evangelical, in that they believe the gods they worship are the only gods to exist and people who don't worship them and seek out their desires cannot possibly hope to please them. Those who fail to please them do not go to hell, or go to some eternal pit of judgment. Those who fail to please the gods are eventually grouped together with the evil krinoas and erased from existence altogether. However, before this happens, the spirits of the dead and damned, get to watch how their actions have made the world a worse place. It is said, among Kri'ists, that the ghosts of the damned can only feel pain and that they cannot move any physical object, but instead find themselves pierced and tortured by physical objects. In other words, "they are forever cut by the blades of grass, and the grains of sand in the wind can push them over like a boulder."
Another reason Kri'ists are evangelical is that they believe their gods can provide answers to serious questions. They believe, through meditations, one can discern why one finds himself in the position they are in, and can justify why it should stay or not.
THE EMPEROR:
As said before, the emperor, when ordained, becomes a sort of godhead, priest figure. Technically, the term for the emperor is Ip'frashoa, which is basically an intermediary deity, half in existence, and half beyond existence. The emperor functions very much like a pope from ancient times, in that he has extreme powers over the people of the empire. He does no wrong when he decides something. Among the harem-born children, there is an order as to which child of the emperor can become emperor, and this order is inviolate, typically. Unless, of course, the emperor is, for some reason, found to be impotent. While a prince, it is determined whether or not he is impotent, and if he is, he is not allowed to become emperor.
Harem-born children not likely to become emperor are put into the noble school to test their aptitudes and see if they should be nobles, Lar-Kirthoa, Black Hand (the emperor's secret assassins and mercenaries), or concubines dedicated to one of the above houses. They may also become slaves or servants in the Imperial City, Ipf-Sharon.
THE CONCUBINES:
The Imperial Harems have concubines which serve in various capacities. Some of them are made to be sterile, through chemical means, for whatever reasons, so that they can be made into either priestesses or entertainment concubines. Other concubines are made to become mothers of children (usually selected from among the more fertile or nubile females, or females that conceive the fastest or first).
The concubines are ordered into houses, like the Lar-Kirthoa are ordered in houses, and the houses serve different functions for the emperor. They can serve as hostesses and entertainers in various ways. Some are artisans, musicians, game players, teachers, etc. for the emperor or his children. Just because they are concubines does not necessitate that their role will be sexual, though the emperor or a prince can make it that way if he so chooses, and a concubine can make it this way for a prince as well. Young females born in the harem can become princesses. A princess will eventually become a concubine to someone outside the emperor's family, so is made to sort of step down.
The sterilized concubines are often marked as sterilized concubines, and as such, they can be given as gifts to people as rewards, or time with them can be. Again, their services are not always sexual in nature, but can be if that's what they're trained to do.
THIS IS ANOTHER BRAINSTORM MOMENT, SO I MAY NOT HAVE EVERYTHING THOUGHT OUT, BUT WANTED TO AT LEAST GET THIS DOWN. Thanks for reading.
This is a lot of info! Excellent post.
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