Fhonaal'shenae -- The Foundational Temple

The Fhonaal'shenae is the Captiol and seat of power of Laan'Shaela Haka'am, which is ruled by the Guardian A'Losshae.
Very little is known of the Fhonaalsh, as it is often called, outside of Laan'Shaela and even within Laan'Shaela not a lot is publicly known about life within the Fhonaalsh itself. Aal'shenae'em throughout Laan'Shaela and the other Haka'amen will usually embrace any who wish to become initiates (though not everyone reaches the higher levels of initiation) and it is commonly assumed that the Fhonaalsh does the same. This is not actually the case. 
The Womb is a large district within the city surrounding the Fhonaalsh that is populated primarily by Zhemenimae--haka'a'manem who have petitioned to enter the Fhonaalsh on their own initiative or who have been sent by their families as a way of dealing with too many heirs and not enough inheritance to go around. These Zhemenimae often wait 'Rounds before being admitted to the temple and some never are. When a Zhemenimae arrives at the Fhonaalsh, they are interviewed in depth about their skills, talents, likes and dislikes and reasons for wanting to become Zhama'ahn'Ven (temple apprentices). Once the interviews are completed, they are given quarters in The Womb and offered some form of employment. Whenever possible, the employment offers match interests or skills mentioned in the interviews. The employment is guaranteed for one 'Round, at which time the Zhemenimae has two choices: continue with their current employment (so long as their employer agrees) and withdraw their request to enter the Fhonaalsh or continue to pursue admittance to the Fhonaalsh. If they continue to pursue admittance, they will be interviewed again and either be admitted or assigned another 'Round in The Womb. if assigned more time in The Womb, they may choose to continue with their previous employer or request alternative employment. This process continues until one of three things happens: the Zhemenimae is admitted to the Fhonaalsh, the Zhemenimae finds employment to which they are well suited and chooses to pursue that rather than apprenticeship in the temple, or the Zhemenimae gets sick of the process and leaves. There is no clear criteria for which Zhemenimae are admitted and which are not, some speculate it is whim, others that it has to do with temperament or involves some form of inscrutable spiritual perception. It could be any or all of those. Less than 60% of Zhemenimae ultimately enter the Fhonaalsh and only a tiny fraction of Zhemenimae have ever been accepted following their first interviews. The majority of those who enter the Fhonaalsh as adults (17'Rounded or older) have actually been Called there either by A'Losshae herself or by one of her highest initiates.
There are two main ranks (and multiple levels of each) within the Fhonaalsh: Zhama’ahn (full initiate) and Zhama’ahn’Naan (highest ordained initiate). A third rank, Zhama'ahn'Shao'Naan (soul master initiate) exists, but is unknown by any but the highest level Zhama'ahn'Naan. The Shao'Naan are always initiates who entered the Fhonaalsh as children, most often as infants. They can be thought of as magical/spiritual special forces operatives.
The Fhonaal’shenae is not simply a temple for worship or healing, but for knowledge and wisdom as well. Its primary focus is on a depth of understanding of the connectedness of all things that is greater than can be achieved in a single lifetime. All Zhama'ahn'Naan and Zhama'ahn'Shao'Naan have access to the collective ancestral memory of the initiates who have come before them, though the ease with which they can access this information may vary. In this way, understanding can continue to be expanded rather than having to constantly be rebuilt. A’Losshae’s Chosen Zhama’ahnNaan ultimately become well versed in ALL forms of magic except Saur’Khurandrikam, which is symbiotic and requires bonding with a Dragon. This includes Dark Sorcery (primarily, but not always, in the sense of knowing one’s enemy and how to counter them). Some practice multiple paths, some simply have an area of specialty and base knowledge in the rest, though their “base” is fairly comprehensive. Those who practice multiple paths are almost always Chosen who were sent to the Temple in childhood and are often the ones that ultimately become Zhama'ahn'Shao'Naan.
There is a close connection between A'Losshae's Fhonaal'shenae and the Guardian Raa'Phen's Amphae'a (academy), a kind of exchange program as it were.  Raa’Phen’s Aam’phae’a is essentially the end-all-be-all of academies. A dedicated hub of learning containing books, scrolls, and so forth that cannot be found elsewhere. Primarily the knowledge covered is material rather than spiritual, though there is, of course always overlap between the two. Students at Raa’Phen’s Aam’phae’a study astrology, chemistry, physics, biology, medicine, history, philosophy, writing, math, sociology, anthropology, architecture, engineering, and on and on. Chances are good that if you want to learn about it, Raa’Phen’s Aam’phae’a can help you do so. Areas of knowledge in the Aam’phae’a will naturally overlap with Fhonaal’sh in areas of psychology (not as we know it, per se, but study and insight into behavior, emotions, habits, etc. as well as a holistic approach to mental aberration and illness and the healing of same), herbalism, numerology, meditation, energy work, religion and so forth, but areas of esoteric/spiritual study are more in depth in the Fhonaalsh. So, Raa’Phen’s Chosen may also do some spiritual/esoteric/religious training in the Fhonaal’sh as they are inclined. Virtually all of A’Losshae’s Chosen spend time at Raa’Phen’s Aam’phae’a in order to gain a foundational understanding of as broad a range of topics as they can comprehend. Time at the Aam’phae’a generally occurs between times of learning at the Fhonaalsh, since much of the earliest temple training—meditation, focus, discipline—supports deeper learning and a greater breadth of knowledge, and time at the Aam’phae’a brings greater context to the higher teachings at the Fhonaal’sh as well as practical understanding of knowledge retention which is vital to reaching the highest levels of ordination within the temple.

Alternative Name(s)

Fhonaal’sh