Shalymirs Prayers,Saints,Holy Days

Prayers of Shalimyr

The Beatitudes are the Shalimyn prayers, to be repeated

three times daily. The Beatitudes’ words are said as

Shalimyn perform the actions of prayer, pouring water on

their palms and touching their lips and eyelids. They are

often followed with less formalized prayers.

• Morning;

“Blessed art thou, Grandfather Ocean, From whom all blessings flow.”

• Mid-Day;

“I praise thee, Grandfather Ocean, For all thou givest daily.”

• Evening;

“I thank thee, Sea Father, For sparing me this day.”

Holy Days

The main holy days of Shalimyr revolve around the fishing

seasons, and depend on climatic conditions. The night

before fishermen sail out again after winter is called Return

Night, and is a festival of absolute abandon. The Shalimyn

drink and eat to excess, dance and sing, all to show their

gratitude to the Sea Father. Often a great bull is sacrificed

in thanks, and all Shalimyn feast upon its uncooked meat

after its blood has mingled with the waters.

The first week of winter, when the fishermen must

dry-dock their ships, is a somber time, and none of the

Shalimyn eat for the week, surviving on only water.

All Shalimyn must fast during this week, praying in all

three daily prayers for a short winter, even if they aren’t

anywhere near a fishing community at the time.

It is considered an unforgivable sin for one of the Shalimyn to eat

anything during the first week of winter; there are tales of

men who grew sick during the week and, after being were

force-fed by friends, cut out their own tongues in abject

shame. While most aren’t that zealous, it is not a matter

to be taken lightly.

Saints

Martyrdom is important to the Shalimyn, for it is their

belief that if they die heeding Shalimyr’s call, they are

taken into his bosom forever after. They do not believe

their spirits are carried to Shalimyr’s side to live as his

assistants—that would be a haughty, self-aggrandizing

belief. Instead they are made into water, a small part of

Shalimyr the Endless, and it is the greatest boon any

mortal might receive, for they are transformed into part

of a god.

Whether true or not, it does help to explain the

fervor with which many Shalimyn fight, prepared to lay

down their lives without hesitation.

Should they die performing the will of Shalimyr, the reward is magnificent.

Saints are a very different matter. Saints are folk so holy

they would certainly become part of the water when they

die, but are so profoundly good of spirit, humble, and sacrificing, they reject the opportunity to exist eternally, as part of Shalimyr.

Instead, they live on as his servants, aiding

mortals lost at sea, heeding their prayers to Shalimyr, and

performing great acts of compassion for the Shalimyn. This

amazing sacrifice earns the name “saint.” Quite often saints

come from the holy order of the ascetics, and rather than

continuing to go by their waternames (see below), they are

addressed once more by their birth names.

The Saints of Shalimyr actually appear in the Material Plane regularly. After their death, extremely devout

Shalimyn are called upon by their Lord and become celestials—ghaeles (an old spelling of the word “gale,” because they fly to the aid of the Shalimyn as swiftly as gales blow

across the sea) in celestial nomenclature. Ghaele servants

of Shalimyr introduce themselves as “Saint” with their

birth name from their mortal life, even though they have

more beautiful names in the heavens.

Type

Religious, Organised Religion