Unathi Religion

Overview
There are two major religions of the Unathi. While there are many beliefs that have existed on Moghes since the earliest Unathi societies, Th'akh and Sk'akh remain the primary, dominant faith. Both share communal elements and a focus on the spirit.

Th'akh
The most pervasive and common religion amongst Unathi. It dates back even before the First Hegemony, and as a byproduct of Unathi stubbornness has remained central to Unathi spiritualism. The basic concept of Th'akh is that all the spirits of past Unathi now reside in the spirit world that exists in tandem with the material world. These spirits exist in objects and nature - bringing either good luck, or sorrow. Particularly nasty natural disasters were often attributed to particularly strong groups of spiteful spirits influencing events in the material world. They tend to paint their bodies in paint blended of berries, some shamans even going so far as to mark themselves with the name of villagers who died in his village, making him or her a walking library to add onto the strong oral traditions of Tha'kh. This practice, for obvious reasons, tends to be more common in smaller villages.

The Shamans
Many tribes had their village shamans, who were elderly males - or rarely, women - seen as having a special connection to the spirit world. They consumed mind-altering herbs to enter and interact with the world of spirits, and to channel their energies into the spiritual world. Tribes would hold elaborate rituals where the village shaman would call upon the ancestors of the hunters or warriors to enter their weapons or fill the warriors with great courage and ability in battle. In modern times, this ritual is still practiced, but most Unathi now call their ancestors to fill their weapon and grant it extraordinary abilities before they enter battle.

Shamans tended to live simple lives, and dedicate their efforts to improve the community. They were spiritual leaders, and it was very rare that any got involved in politics. This lead to them being exploited by the Izweski nation, who drafted many into the army to make them perform rituals for the soldiers, often under duress. After the war ended with the nuclear devastation, the shamans began to be discriminated against by the government, and many are leaving the Izweski nation as travelling shamans or even leaving Moghes entirely. Very rarely do shamans enter Guwandi, but it is not unheard of.

Doctrines of Note
The foundation of Th'akh belief is that soul is the true individual, while the body is a vessel that the soul inhabits.

Th'akh shamans almost universally believe that synthetics cannot possess a soul and do not even count as living things. No matter how expertly a synthetic may imitate life, it remains a tool; an extremely convincing computer with text to speech.

Shamans believe that the physical body is merely a vessel for the soul. So when a person dies and is cloned, the spirit finds a new vessel to inhabit. Cloning for many shamans is a form of reincarnation. While the innovation is exclusive to Skrell and Human systems due to its extremely expensive and complicated methods, many Th'akh see very little ethnical issues with cloning.

Th'akh shamans have mixed views on prosthetic limbs. Because of the consensus that synthetic parts cannot possess a soul, many feel prosthetic limbs can maim the very soul of a Unathi. In contrast, other shamans feel prosthetic limbs are completely normal and necessary. Because of the decentralized nature of the faith, results may vary when consulting different shamans.

Like the Sk'akh, most Th'akh shamans believe that a soul could have been given a body of the different sex when developing in an egg. This means that a particularly strong-willed female with aspirations to enter a traditionally masculine field could be said to have the soul of a man trapped in a woman's body in a mindset that is both surprisingly progressive to outsiders but also extremely patronizing. That said, shamans have radically different views of what this means, so there is no common consensus save for the fact that it is important to balance self-identity with Clan, family, and society.

Non-traditional relationships are frowned on by most Th'akh shamans because of the cultural importance of arranged marriage and one's duty to continue a clan's dynasty. Because of the eternal nature of existence in this life and the afterlife, shamans heavily stress the importance of monogamous relationships - eventually the ghosts of past, scorned lovers can cause problems in their jealousy, or their ancestors could become frustrated with the continued lack of grandchildren! Relationships for shamans are taught as combining Lust (physical desire), Love (romantic desire), and Duty (proper desire). The more all three are balanced, the longer and healthier the relationship is for the couple and the entire Clan. With that said, a same-sex couple is not seen as a proper end-goal for Unathi, because their Duty (to carry on the dynasty) is impossible to fulfill. This view varies wildly with Shamans (with some being completely accepting of the concept of same-sex couples being eternal), but most shamans caution against non-monogamous relationships in general. Because a marriage is usually a political contract between two clans to combine their dynasty, there are no mechanisms in place for same-sex marriages.

Burial rites are similar on solid ground or in space. If a person dies and is unable to be cloned then the body must be tended to and made as presentable as possible in order to appease the passing spirit, which can often become upset and therefore malicious if they see their former body being defaced. The corpse should have any open incisions cauterized and all wounds should be sealed and treated with gauze or an advanced trauma pack to stop any bleeding. The corpse should then be dressed in a white uniform or the uniform the person died in; whichever is more respectable or available. The funeral should be communal, with the shaman overseeing the viewing and encouraging people to share stories of how the person lived a good life. Once this is done the body should be buried or cremated. If a person dies and is cloned then the former body is simply an empty, rather useless vessel, and should be disposed of as soon as possible.

Sk'akh
The second most common religion, which is followed more by Unathi from the Izweski nation and enjoys a status as its unofficial state religion. It still follows the ancestor worship of Th'akh, but with a major notable difference. The spirits of all Unathi who die become part of Sk'akh, the Great Spirit. Sk'akh is a gender neutral God, being called 'he' or 'she' interchangeably to represent that Ska'kh is a collection of all Unathi, so it becomes a matter of preference. She is often called Three of One, because the spirits combine into three minor aspects that are all part of Ska'kh: the Warrior, the Healer, the Fisherman. These three spirits are personifications of the most important aspects of Unathi society. It is said that all three are equally important, and that disasters are caused by an imbalance in the Great Three. Priests often stress the importance of balance, both in matters of spirit as well as in society and personal life.

The Priesthood
The Sk'akh Church has seen power increasingly centralized into a handful of influential priests in the last few decades, with the High Priest being a mere honorary title for a priest that oversaw ceremonial rituals for the Hegemony's royal family. This status quo came to a surprising head in 2458. High Priest Yizra Unzi used a moral panic on Moghes over alledged cultist infiltration to solidify his own power base and begin an inquisition across the Hegemony. After a dramatic confrontation with the Izweski family itself, the resulting negotiations created an agreement that reformed the Sk'akh church. Now the entire Church is overseen by the High Priest, who has authority over the church and its dogma.

Sk'akh priests tend to try to embody one of the Great Three. They become warrior priests, doctors or surgeons, or aquatic farmers. Warrior Priests of Sk'akh are near universally highly respected, and form a small, elite fighting force that is on par with the War Riders. They go into battle with intricate runes drawn across their armored plates, chanting to Sk'akh for her blessing in the battle. Regular worship is communal, with Unathi clans or villages coming together for feasts or festivals to give thanks to their ancestors and Sk'akh for good tidings, or to ask for favors or assistance in life, with a priest to guide the service or provide interpretation of Sk'akhs intentions or assistance in contacting ancestors. Sk'akh priests universally consider synthetics to be devoid of a soul, and thus they cannot be considered living beings. In December of 2457 the Council of Teht was held, in which an assembly of Sk'akh priests mandated this as doctrine for the faith. While a minority of priests argued against this, they were overruled by the majority.

Typically to become a priest you must seek and obtain a Master in Sacred Theology in a major Moghean university. The degree usually takes 3 - 4 years to obtain.

Doctrines of Note
One of the foundation for Sk'akh beliefs is that the soul is the actual person, and the body is a vessel it inhabits.

For robotics, Sk'akh doctrine goes farther than the Th'akh generally do, believing even full-body cyborgs to be without spirit. To ardent Sk'akh the concept of borgification is to have your soul sent to oblivion.

Sk'akh believe that when a body is cloned that the soul is snatched out of the spirit realm and put back inside the body. So cloning is not creating a new person but a continuation of the same individual. While there remains internal debate about the ethical issues with cloning, most Sk'akh priests welcome the medical innovation.

Priests typically frown on prosthetic limbs and augments, believing them to be unnatural.

Burial rites require the body to be treated with respect and any open wounds sealed or cauterized. A priest oversees a funeral process and gives a sermon on the individual, which are traditionally communal affairs, assuring the attendees that the individual in question has joined their ancestors in the Great Spirit. If a person dies and is cloned then the former body is simply an empty, rather useless vessel, and should be disposed of as soon as possible.

Because the soul is separate from the vessel that is the physical body, it is accepted that a soul could have been given a body of the different sex when developing in an egg. This means that a particularly strong-willed female with aspirations to enter a traditionally masculine field could be said to have the soul of a man trapped in a woman's body in a mindset that is both surprisingly progressive to outsiders but also extremely patronizing. This does not change the low status that women have in the society, and Priests have historically only pointed out that this phenomenon exists.

Non-traditional relationships are frowned on by the Church because of the cultural importance of arranged marriage and one's duty to continue a clan's dynasty, as Sk'akh demands of all Sinta'Unathi. Relationships are defined in Sk'akh theology as either Lust (physical desire), Love (romantic desire), or Dutiful (proper desire). In this context, Sk'akh preaches against lust and love becoming more important to Unathi than their Dutiful relationships. A same-sex couple is just as sinful as a heterosexual couple who don't intend to have children, because their love or lust has become more important than their duty. This view varies within the church, but most priests are frustrated with homosexual relationships on equal terms as child-less marriage. Because a marriage is usually a political contract between two clans to combine their dynasty, there are no mechanisms in place for same-sex marriages.

The Maraziite Order
Also known simply as The Order, the Mariziite Order is a military order under the command of the High Priest with the right to bear arms and dispense justice against spiritual threats to the Hegemony, following the revelation that a secretive religious cult had infiltrated the Hegemony government. In its short existence it has arrested several hundred individuals and seized many tomes and documents that Mariziite authorities claim are evidence of cult involvement.

Maraziite's are commanded by the High Priest of the Hegemony, directly overseeing a small council of Guildmasters appointed by himself.

The Guildmasters form an elite council under the High Priest and advise him on the day to day matters of the Order. They also command the overall operations of the Order through their subordinates, the Chapter Masters.

Chapter Masters run individual Chapters of the Order in their specific settlement or City. They oversee the Maraziite officers and are responsible for the efficient running of their Chapter.

Individuals officers are merely referred to as Maraziites. The officers are often called the Iron Masks because of their tendency to wear iron masks while on patrol.

Qualifications to become a Maraziite are, outside the obvious need of being a Sk'akh, is to have at least minor experience in law enforcement, military experience, the priesthood of the church, or a completed Apprenticeship in a university. After applying a Hopeful is put under a quick, extensive interview and investigation. Upon completion they are assigned to a Chapter and sent to enforce the law of the Great Spirit upon the souls of the Hegemony.

Credit to ShutUpBecca for the painting of High Priest Unzi.