The Spirit World

This ape was unlike any other that had come before. It was so different, in fact, one should say it was unlike any other who had come before.

It was self aware.

For the first time in the history of Planet Earth, a being walked its surface and asked the question: Why?

From this question sprang the Spirit World, a world made manifest by the imagination of beings in the physical world and powered by belief. Outside of space and time, it became the collective answer man gave himself to the question of why.

Gods and monsters, fabulous things and unspeakable places all exist in the Spirit World because man believed they were real.

Now the barrier between the spirit world and Earth is flimsy, allowing easy communication back and forth, and even passage between. Welcomed by the most spiritual denizens of Earth, it is both a bane and a boon as the bad comes along with the good.

It is very important to note that Man, and for that matter any of the denizens of Earth, is not aware of their role in the creation of the Spirit World. In fact, the stronger their belief in the Spirit World, the less likely they will accept their role in shaping it. This is because it is that very belief itself that is the power behind its existence. In other words, the more you believe in the mythology and lore of the Spirits and the Spirit World, the less likely you are to question its existence as the product of your own imagination. Likewise, the more you question it, the less likely you are to believe in it and thus the less likely you are to be able to access it and influence it.

Geography

The Spirit World is a parallel world to that of Earth. It shares the same geography, with a few exceptions.

Fauna & Flora

Much of the flora and fauna in the Spirit World are what you would expect to see and that have existed on Earth. There are exceptions both wondrous and horrible.
The coming of the Rifts has caused a number of disparities as new species appearing on Earth have yet to manifest in the Spirit World.
Not all intelligent, self-aware beings on Earth can impact the Spirit World. They must have been on Earth long enough to form their own spiritual connection with the place. Such connections depend upon the power of their spirit, the depth and intensity of their beliefs, and how powerful their imaginations are. Tales passed down from others who have established connection with he Spirit World will also help to establish a connection for newcomers.
An interesting phenomenon of the spirit world is that visitors from two conflicting belief systems who visit the same location in the spirit world will not only see the flora and fauna of the predominant belief systems in that area of Earth, but will also encounter visitors from the conflicting belief system. In other words, if a Norseman were to visit the spirit world in the Arizona Desert, he will see Coyote, and Eagle, but he might also run across a pair of crows, for instance. The local fauna will react to these spirits as anomaies, usually unfavorably.

History

Time passes in the spirit world to match that of Earth. But as man can create myths of creation that occurred long before anyone was able to witness them, those belief manifest in the Spirit realm at their designated place on the timeline. So just as man's belief can jump to different times in the spirit realm, so too can travellers pass between the two to different times and places as well. A person travelling from Earth to the spirit world can travel to any time in the past they are aware of, but they return to the present in their own world taking into account the amount of time they spent in the spirit realm.

Tourism

There are two ways a person from the physical realm of Earth can visit the Spirit World.

The first is by separating their spirit from their body (a.k.a. astral travel). When the spirit leaves the body it can slip into the spirit world with but a thought. This can only happen if the person doing so believes in the spirit world to begin with. There must also be a spiritual connection for them to use as a destination, an anchor, a navigational landmark, so to speak.

The second is to physically travel to the spirit world. This is the equivalent of dimension hopping, something shifters are adept at. It can only be achieved by the most capable shamans and usually requires someone on the spirit world side to establish the link to make it happen (or the shaman to make a spiritual journey first to set up the destination)

Only the most spiritually aware can travel from Earth to the Spirit World. The presence of a physical visitor in the Spirit World creates disconcerting ripples and cannot escape the notice of denizens of that realm. Many denizens are wise and magnanimous. Many are aloof or capricious. Some are truly nightmarish. Any visitors must be vigilant.

Believers who visit the Spirit World will possess powers of creation while they are there. Much like those of a "User" in the world of Tron, a visitor from Earth has the ability to form the Spirit World around them to some extent. The irony of this is that those most capable of doing so are also the least likely to think of themselves as creators. Any such powers will thus be viewed as suprise "gifts from the spirits" or some spiritual interference of some sort rather than an inherent ability they possess themselves.
Since it is possible to visit the spirit realm at a time in Earth's past, it is possible for visitors to attempt to alter Earth's past. Any visitor attempting to use the Spirit World to alter the past on Earth will find it is nearly impossible to do. They would be fighting to insert a thought into the consciousness of all the people who lived on earth at that time, overriding their existing beliefs. The spirits themselves would be aware of this interference and defend their existence vociferously. They do this usually by "negating" the offender. When one is negated, one is made to not exist. Anyone back on Earth will have no knowledge or memory of the offender.
Even so, this punishment does not stop people from trying to change the past.

Throughout history, there have been people with a close connection to the Spirit World. In most cultures these people have been called Shamans. And while each culture may have its own belief system, from creation myths to explanations of natural phenomena and the collection of denizens both helpful and harmful; they all have the one thing in common. They are spirits, they influence our world and react to our actions.

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Alternative Name(s)

Vaikuntha Planets
Mount Olympus
Vanaheimr

Type

Dimensional plane

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The denizens of the Spirit World are many and varied.
One of the paradoxes is that even though the Spirit World is the product of man's beliefs, it contains beings of far superior intelligence and wisdom than man. It does so because of the power of this belief. But not all beings are so superior. Many are just as imperfect as man and many are animalistic or represent pure aspects or character traits.
Some denizens of the spirit World have an inherent ability to visit Earth, and have since they were brought into being. Creatures such as the Wendigo, for instance have been visiting Earth for millenia. But there had always been a limitation to their appearance. They could only appear to people and places where there was belief in them. Much like how Elementals can only come to Earth where their element is perceived by an observer, so these other visitors could only cross over when there was someone here who believed they could.
After the coming of the rifts, crossings have become more common and include more than the same spirits we're used to seeing.

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