The Four

Life/Creation

Alternatively known as Creation, Life covers the beginning of things. Not just flora and fauna but even more abstract concepts like the creation of communities, traditions and art.

A building, such as a church, represents not only the physical creation of the building itself but the creation of the community that will use that building and the memories and traditions that will occur in and around it.

Love/Cooperation

Alternatively known as Cooperation, Love is an act of agreement and mutual understanding between entities. While this does cover personal relationships, it also covers more communal and abstract ones.

A river can exist because the water and the land agree to be the way they are. A store can exist because people agree that things have commercial value and agree that things can be bartered and traded rather than simply taken. Law can exist because people agree upon rules and agree that certain people have authority to enforce those rules.

War/Competition

Alternatively known as Competition, War regards the unequal nature of reality and the necessity of choice. Situations are constantly existing in which options exist, whichever option is chosen, the others will cease to be and so the options are in competition with each other.

Does the river flow east or west? Do you wear the red dress or the blue? Do you buy that new sword or keep your money? Do you attack or defend? Do you elect this person or that one?

Death/Destruction

Alternatively known as Destruction, Death is the end of all things. Flora and fauna die, as do ideas, nations and words. Death may be the end, but it is often necessary for new beginnings.

Death is responsible for the last time a breath is taken, the last time a door is closed and the last time a name is spoken.

Coexistence of the Four

The four play a part in everything, every person, every event, every entity. It may seem like certain events only relate to one of them but all four play a part, no matter how small. None are greater or lesser than the others.

Take the example of a wedding. At first glance it may seem that a wedding is exclusively the domain of Love, after all it is a celebration of love. However, Life celebrates the creation of a new entity as the two become one, as a new family is formed, as eventual children are conceived, as a new chapter of life starts. Love obviously celebrates the love between the couple but also between the families and peers, as well as the social agreement of what marriage means. War celebrates all those choices that led to this one, all the potential lovers, all the potential invitees and all the potential outcomes. Death sees the end of an old way of life, the destruction of the two people as individuals, and death is recognized as the one who will eventually break them apart again.

Another example, a simple family meal. Life made the people as well as the animals and plants they are consuming, just as it created the food from said creatures. Love values the agreement that the family exists as a unit that serves each other. War sees the choice of food and company just as it sees the methods used to hunt and harvest the food. Death allowed life to become food and allows the food to become consumed.

Meosic Ceitheism

By far the most common and influential form of Ceitheism is Meosic Ceithism. It is a strict, organised religion that follows a hierarchical pattern including many monarchs and officials.

The Four Gods

In Meosic Ceithism, the Four are conscious beings that reside atop Mt. Meos. They speak directly to a mortal sage each, these sages then pass their words down throughout the mortal world.

Ancestral Determinism

A major principle of Meosic faith versus other forms of Ceitheism is the idea that everyone is born into the role they are meant to serve. Everyone's life has been decided by the Four and the circumstances of their birth are exactly as they should be. A family of serfs will always produce serf children, a farmer will always have children who become farmers, merchant's will always have merchant children and so on. Deviating from your family's typical path is seen as unusual, taboo and sometimes even heretical depending on the severity of the deviance. In some places it may be acceptable for a butcher's son to be a hunter but it is rarely acceptable for a farmer to try and become a tailor. Attempting to cross class lines is effectively heresy, a princess should never stop so low as to become a simple farmer nor should a stable boy seek to be a knight.

The only notable exception is war. In times of war it is both acceptable, and often expected, for able-bodied adults of all classes and occupations to become soldiers. However, class lines are still very strict, a peasant can not become a captain or general just as a noble will almost always be a high ranking officer regardless of experience.

Hierarchy

A proper hierarchy is an important part of Meosic faith.

The most important figures in this church are the four sages who reside atop the great mountain of Meos. They commune directly with the Four and survive on minimal food and water. When a sage dies, a replacement is chosen by the remaining sages.

The sages are attended to, and often chosen from, the Order of Meos. A group of monks residing the monastery atop Mt. Meos. They are very secretive and exclusive. What is known is that they attend to the sages needs and deliver their messages down the mountain.

At the base of the mountain is Alba, the white city. Ruling Alba are the Cardinals, a council of 120 clergymen who interept the words of the sages and the order. They then issue commands and decrees to monarchs and deacons across the world.

Most countries in Uros and some in neighbouring continents will have an Archdeacon, though some large countries may have multiple and small ones may share Archdeacons. The Archdeacons are responsible for keeping the monarchs in check and for managing the deacons below them. To Meosic people, no monarch is a true monarch unless they were appointed by an Archdeacon and currently have the endorsement and support of an Archdeacon.

Oletic Ceitheism

Oletic Ceitheism is less popular than Meosisim but still has a strong standing in the world with the support of several monarchs. Olecticism seems to have been formed in direct opposition to Meosism with similar base principles but a very different messages.

The Four Forces

The four are not conscious beings like people or pagan gods, but rather, metaphysical forces that permeate the world and those in it. They still influence the world but do so in a less deliberate manner. Being pious does not necessarily mean you will be rewarded because you pleased the gods. Rather good fortune is the result of your actions influencing the forces and that result aiding you down the line. Think of a stream, if you keep the stream clean and remove clogs, you will have a constant source of water and fish, but if you pollute or clog the stream the water and fish are lost to you. The stream did not consciously decide to punish you, but your actions inevitably caused it to hurt you.

Self Agency

Also in constrast to Meosism, you decide your fate and place in the social heirachy, not the gods. In theory, a farmer 's son can be an artist, a nobleman can be a stableboy, a blacksmith can be king. A person's parents do not always define who they become. Of course the hurdles to becoming a king are vastly different for a prince than a pauper but, in theory, if someone can rise to the challenge, the church will happily approve almost anyone suitable to any position regardless of their birth station.

Hierachy

Olecticism is far less strict than Meosism but is nonetheless an organised religion.

WIP

• Four are more like unconscious forces than beings

• Anti-Ancestral Determinism (people decide what their life should be, successfully ascending class structure is celebrated)

• Loose hierarchy (most countries are treated separately)

• Less popular than Meosic but has a few monarchs support in Uros

Terrian Ceitheism

Terrian Ceitheism is far less popular and is not the official religion of any state in Versera, but it does still have a moderate following. Despite this, Terrianism may be the oldest form of Ceitheism in Versera, tracing it's origin to Noicism.

The Four Worlds

Whilst the four still champion their respective concepts, physically they are actually planets. Life is Versera, the ground. Love is Rubar, the red moon. War is Caeru, the blue moon. Death is Griag, the sun.

While Terrianism shares similar stories with Noicism, there is an implication that the stories are more metaphorical than literal.

WIP

• Four are worlds; Versera (ground), Griag (Sun), Caeru (Blue Moon), Rubar (Red Moon)

• Much closer to Noicism

• Very unpopular, except for isolated rural communities

One Brother, Two Sisters

In the beginning, there was naught but barren, flat land and empty seas. Griág, the sun, mated with the blue moon, Caeru, to conceive twins, Caérag and Farra. Griag also secretly mated with Caeru’s sister, the red moon, Rubur.

Their secret was reveled when Rubur gave birth to Andae, the third brother. In fury, Caeru cast Andae to the world below, in retaliation, Rubur also banished Caérag and Farra.

The two sisters have remained in constant battle ever since, eternally circling each other in the night sky with Griág keeping his distance.

Three Brothers

The three sons fell to the world below.

Caérag, the largest took the rock and fashioned a bride, Méara, and they birthed the Alachs, the first rock giants. The alachs in turn birthed many beasts of the land and hills, such as goats, bears and horses.

Farra, the next largest, made the seas Préa and Múra as his brides. From Farra and Préa’s union came the Kelpie, water spirits. The Kelpie carved out rivers and marshes through the land. Múra gave birth to the fish of the rivers and seas.

The smallest of the three, Andae, also took a bride, this one of the dirt, Séra. With her, Andae fathered the trees and grasses of the land as well as all the creatures of the forest, the deer, the birds and the Duín, humans.

The Kin War

For eons, the brothers existed in harmony with Caérag ruling the mountains, Farra the seas and Andae the forests.

However, Méara was growing resentful of Farra’s wives and how they and their kelpie kept cutting through rock and slowly reduced her own kingdom. When a sizable chunk of cliff face collapsed into Préa’s sea, Méara took revenge and launched great shards of salt rock into into the bay, killing a number of kelpie and greatly injuring Préa herself.

Farra went to Caérag and demanded justice for his wife but Caérag sided with his own wife and stubbornly refused. Tensions rose and when it seemed clear war was inevitable, both twins approached their half-brother Andae to gather support.

Initially, Andae refused, stating conflict was between the brothers and their wives and he had no part in it.

TODO: Incite Andae to oppose both twins and children of each brother gets involved

While the alachs had strengh and the kelpie had speed, the duín had courage, numbers and the creativity to make new weapons and tools to combat the rock and water. Where it took kelpie years to drill through rock, duín did it in weeks with pickaxes and shovels.

Where the alachs’ bodies fell became the mountains and hills overgrown by grass and trees. Where the kelpie fell became ponds and lakes, cutoff from their mother and father.

TODO: Add significant final conflict