Quramín

Quramín is an animistic, polytheistic religion in south Vidina. The religion has it's origins in the various belief systems of the Énqusqan peninsula, which were coalesced into a single, organised religion by [RELIGIOUS KING] in the 13th century. The name of the religion translate to "gods of the cities" which pays homage to the history fo the gods as patrons of the many cities across the peninsula. The common belief between the various sects of each god is in the concept of qótli (shadow) and zyéna (idea) and a veneration of ancestors and the environment.

Beliefs
While the specific beliefs of each cult of the religion are different, there are some consistent beliefs between them. These are the key tenets of the religion. Fundamentally, the religion is polytheistic and animistic although there is sometimes a degree of dualism.

Zyéna
Zyéna, or Ideas, are fundamental concepts that permeate existence. The zyéna are considered to be at-most semi-conscious and are often personified as existing in a dreamlike state. Despite the omnipresence of the zyéna, it is believed that they do not directly inhabit the world, doing so instead indirectly through their imperfect reflections, called qótli. During the mid-1500s the Oracles of Cevópó, the central organising institution of the religion, were consumed in debate over the nature of the zyéna. The primary focus was around 'plurality'. The oracles stood between two positions, one of 'aplurality' wherein one zyéna could be have multiple reflections within reality, thus manifest in multiple qótli; the other of 'plurality', wherein each qótli corresponded to a unique zyéna. The crisis eventually began to impact doctrine across the temples and the practicing of the religion. By 1565 the religious tensions had grown so great that there were threats of dissolution of the Oracles of Cevópó and allowing the cults to diverge. At a convention in 1569 with representatives from all levels of the faith, an official conclusion was made to hold the confederated faith together, which was to prevent an official stance on the issue from the top of the religion, allowing the practitioners to come to their own conclusions, with the faith accepting both interpretations as equally valid.

Cycle of the Ideas
The zyéna are an old concept that predate the religious reforms that unified the various folk religions of the Second Kingdom of Énqusqó. As such, theologians and philosophers have long debated the nature of the zyéna. One particular issue that plagued the early days of the faith after unification was the apparently contradictory zyéna that the different cults recognised. The paradox was resolved by Zú May Natli an Oracle of Énxyémútli who proposed that many of these seemingly contradictory zyéna were two sides of the same zyéna. He proposed that the zyéna were 'restless' in their dreaming state and that zyéna had a transient nature that could conjure qótli that seem at odds from the perspective of humans, at least in their existence within the physical world. The notion of several qótli being born from one, constantly shifting zyéna would later cause the Oracular schism crisis in the 1500s. Later in his life, Zú May Natli wrote about how this pertubance in the sleep of the zyéna was what formed the universe and the qótli were the manifestations of this turbulence.

The most important of these cycles to Zú May Natli was the cycle between Múxyí (death) and Qwóxyí (life), the domains of Énxyémútli. He suggested that these were the two sides of the fundamental zyéna of reality. As this cycle turns, it brings about a new universe. It was a very common belief that this world is but one in a long line of worlds that have and will exist. As the zyéna aren't physical, they permeate from one world to the next, and so according to the cycles, those who die will live again in the next turning of Énxyémútli. This theory became crucial to the unification of the disparate belief systems of the Énqutsa people and helped to provide much cohesion in the early days of the faith.

Qótli
Qótli, or shadows, are the fully conscious, imperfect, physical reflections of the zyéna. They are the beings and physical things that are found in the universe. In this regard, followers of Quramín teaching view their body as inherently tied to their consciousness. Conversely, their concept of self transcends their own experience as they believe they will continue to exist after they die.

An Oracle of Cácitli, Zóoru Nya Mace, wrote how the qótli are the avatars of the zyéna, able to influence their environment while the zyéna must passively experience the universe. Alutran theologians have sometimes pointed to the separation of the zyéna and the qótli as evidence that Quramín belief is dualistic, however, in modern academia this is deemed to be a false interpretation.

Ancestor worship and reincarnation
The followers of Quramín venerate their ancestors. Due to the nature of their belief system, they don't consider their ancestors to be dead in any final sense, instead their zyéna no longer has a physical form in the currently world and only the qótli that inhabited this world has passed on. Once the next cycle comes, their ancestors and themselves will have a new qótli once more.

A common belief is that the stars are representative of zyéna whose qótli no longer exists in the world, and that their light shines down to provide guidance to their relatives.

Quramín
The Quramín are believed to be beings filled with multiple qótli and are the namesakes of the faith. Often equated to gods, they are believed to be the only beings capable of directly influencing the Zhéna. In this sense, they are venerated instead of the Zhéna that they represent. Historically whole communities would worship specific Quramín, usually the patron of the city in which they lived, however, modern day and freedom of movement have facilitated a transition to more individualised patronage. There are eighteen recognised Quramín:

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Cults
Each of the 18 Quramín are worshiped by their own cult, which are loosely centralised by the Oracles of Cevópó. In theory, the oracles word to standardise the teachings of the cults, however, in practice, each cult has different teachings, sometimes verging on contradictory.

Ceremony
There are many ceremonies in the Quramín faith, including numerous holidays. The exact holidays observed vary from individual to individual depending upon the specific Quramín they worship, if any.

Burial
Burial practices have varied across the peninsula and during the centralisation process of the Quramín faith, the differences in funerary practices posed a serious challenge. There were several types of burial still practiced commonly under the Second Kingdom: burial at sea, ritual cremation, bog-burial and burial in a cémón. The theologians that worked on the unification deemed it best to allow followers of the faith to decide which burial methods were more appropriate to their own culture. Some of the cults of the Quramín take official stances on the best way to be honoured through burial.

Regardless of the burial practice, reverence of the dead doesn't take place at burial sites, instead being confined to family altars or public remembrance spaces. In the modern day, traditional burials are usually cremations, although cremations at sea or simple sea burials are also still commonly practiced. The famous Éncémón complex in Ényálusqó still contains hundreds of bodies within its catacomb complex within the limestone caves surrounding the central cémón. Whilst not used as an active burial site, there are many religious pilgrims each year. Tourism, whilst present at the site, is discouraged to ensure respect to the dead and worshipers.

Marriage
Marriage within Énqutsa society has always been considered to have two elements: Furthering familial and clan strength; and companionship. Traditionally, a person's first marriage is to someone of the opposite sex for the purpose of starting a family unit and raising children. It has long been a tradition that both men and women were able to have a second spouse of the same sex and textual evidence shows that it was considered odd for an individual to not have secondary spouses. With the evolution of Énqutsa society these norms have broken down immensely and the norm has become monogamy, even though the Quramín faith is perfectly comfortable with bigamy.

Marriages are usually very lavish affairs that can last for weeks. The individual ceremonies can be very varied, involving swearing the marriage before the patron Quramín of the two individuals being married and traditions to honour those Quramín. All marriage ceremonies are consistent in the exchanging of gifts between the two betrothed, and when the patrons are different sometimes two different sets of gifts must be exchanged. Many of these gift exchanges are symbolic of becoming bound or unified to the other person. These gifts can range from covering the other with a wedding shawl to slicing open the palm and 'exchanging the blood' by holding hands.

Altars
A large part of Quramín faith for its followers is personal worship. This is usually done at a family altar where offerings to a patron Quramín and ancestors are laid. These altars are normally decorated in various flowers, candles and incense burners. Traditionally, these altars would be situated in the central courtyard of a clan's estate, however, in the modern day family life is much different and so there are numerous public altars where people may meditate and light candles of remembrance.