Revisionist Adenism
The Divine lives within all.
All lives within the Divine.
In 1862 of the Fourth Age, a young woman named Ishara began preaching a different version of Adenism. For thousands of the years, the religion had focused on worshipping two complementary deities, Nimel and Laeril. Ishara proposed an overarching Divine, who had created the sea and the flower the original deities were said to have emerged from.
The Divine
Ishara's proposed third god is a gender-neutral, omnipotent deity. They created the universe - they are the universe. The Divine is the purest form of consciousness and all existence takes place within them. As in traditional Adenism, life is thought to be Nimel's gift to Laeril, but since revised Adenism contends that Nimel is just one aspect of the Divine, then all existing life is also an aspect of them.
Adenism preaches for finding a balance between two opposite gods; revised Adenism claims the Divine is the balance and humans should focus their worship on and attempt to emulate the Divine, with the two original gods as lesser deities.
Adenism preaches for finding a balance between two opposite gods; revised Adenism claims the Divine is the balance and humans should focus their worship on and attempt to emulate the Divine, with the two original gods as lesser deities.
The Prophetess
Ishara came from a small village on the eastern slopes of the Iceforge Mountains. Due to its location, the region had long been isolated from the central church. Ishara, who claimed to have been granted a vision of the Divine in a dream, spread her teachings first in her home village and then to surrounding areas. By the time the Cenobiarch of the central church noticed, the revised version of Adenism had already taken root throughout the mountains.
Ishara was labelled a heretic, and the church proclaimed that anyone who followed Ishara's heresy would have their soul corrupted by misinformation and they would be unfit to join Laeril in death. Ishara claimed that orthodox Adenism was only a piece of the whole, and that it was not Laeril who their souls went to, but the Divine, and that those who didn't adhere her to version would never be able to truly become one with the universe upon death.
Ishara was labelled a heretic, and the church proclaimed that anyone who followed Ishara's heresy would have their soul corrupted by misinformation and they would be unfit to join Laeril in death. Ishara claimed that orthodox Adenism was only a piece of the whole, and that it was not Laeril who their souls went to, but the Divine, and that those who didn't adhere her to version would never be able to truly become one with the universe upon death.
Spread of Revisionism and Death
Ishara eventually left the mountains and spread her teachings across southern Cuyania. Even without her direct input, her ideas were spread by her followers. For about ten years, Revisionist Adenism spread slowly through the region, meeting great resistance. Outside of the mountains, it was never more than a fringe cult.
Around 15 years after Ishara first had her vision, she came to the city of Istru to spread her gospel. The rector of Istru Academy, a devout Adenist, made ending her heresy a priority and had his guards raid one of her gatherings. Ishara was arrested, tried for breaching the peace, and burned at the stake.
The rector was too late. Although Ishara was dead, her followers turned her into a martyr and continued to spread her beliefs. For the next few centuries, revisionists worshipped the Divine in secret while the religion was officially banned in the Valaran Empire.
Everything changed when Pashel Hivazasus was elected Imperial Rector of Valara and converted to Revisionism. Not only was Revised Adenism no longer persecuted, but it became the official state religion of Valara. Orthodox Adenist monasteries were allowed to remain, but they no longer received state funding and were no longer allowed to conduct ceremonies or preach in public spaces.
Around 15 years after Ishara first had her vision, she came to the city of Istru to spread her gospel. The rector of Istru Academy, a devout Adenist, made ending her heresy a priority and had his guards raid one of her gatherings. Ishara was arrested, tried for breaching the peace, and burned at the stake.
The rector was too late. Although Ishara was dead, her followers turned her into a martyr and continued to spread her beliefs. For the next few centuries, revisionists worshipped the Divine in secret while the religion was officially banned in the Valaran Empire.
Everything changed when Pashel Hivazasus was elected Imperial Rector of Valara and converted to Revisionism. Not only was Revised Adenism no longer persecuted, but it became the official state religion of Valara. Orthodox Adenist monasteries were allowed to remain, but they no longer received state funding and were no longer allowed to conduct ceremonies or preach in public spaces.
Revised Adenism Today
Although the Valaran Empire is a thing of the past, Revised Adenism remains the dominant religion in the region it once occupied, while Orthodix Adenism is more popular farther north, in the region is originated in. Tensions between the two religions have always been high, and adherents generally do not get along. Revised Adenism is more common in Kaabara.
Structure
Unlike Orthodox Adenism, Revised Adenism has a very loose structure with no central authority. Individual congregations are led by Seers, who answer to no one, with worship focused on individual communion with the Divine through meditation and prayer.
