Ashan Shamanism

The Tribes of Asha have the particular honor of being one of the only known and accepted heretical major groups. The Rakhnid humans of the Rakhnid Peninsula have defied assimilation by greater powers not just politically, but culturally and religiously as well.
At is most reductive, the Ashan faith can be broken down into three major themes:

1. All things have a spirit. This includes both living things, monsters, and inanimate things. The Ashan people believe a home has a spirit, as does the material it is made of and the ground it sits on.
2. Spirits can be broadly categorized into three types:
   1. general spirits that exist regardless of human actions such as spirits of stone, ice, beasts, etc. These spirits are to be honored and respected for their role in the life of the people. They generally do not seem to be treated as conscious entities.
   2. malicious spirits that either through specific actions, general inactions, or natural malevolence are hostile to humans. For the Rakhnid this is a general category encompassing a wide variety of natural phenomena, magical and planar creatures, undead, and even particularly dangerous predators. These spirits offer trials to be overcome and when that is impossible placated.
   3. boon granting spirits that take a protective role of humanity. These vary greatly in power from spirits of a plentiful fishing spot to spirits that keep blizzards away. Most every tribe believes they have a particular spirit that protects the tribe. The most powerful spirits are referred to as wild gods.
3. Spirits by their very nature test humans. Based upon human actions the spirits can move between the above categories; a disrespected god may become a monster, and a bested foe may become a protector spirit for one's entire lineage.

Foreign Relations

While the Ashan faith has proven impossible to shake, and the elves of Yval have found very few outright converts, in many places they gained traction by integrating the Ashan pantheon into Yvalian worship. It is said that one of the most powerful wild gods, Unichue, serves as personal guardian to the Immortal Empress.

Divine Origins

Though evidence is scarce, it is reported that the tribes believed in simple animism, augmented by particularly powerful ancestor or tribal spirits, until coming into contact with the Yvalian Faith. There is some evidence of cultural borrowing, the mapping of powers associated with the the Thirteen to wild gods, and inflation of powers (theoretically to put Ashan gods on the same level as these foreign gods).

Tenets of Faith

Most of the religion of the Asha is practiced away from the views of outsiders. What has been seen appears to be largely a matter of asking permission and giving respect or tribute to the various spirits, monsters, and gods that the Ashan people come across.

Priesthood

The Ashan people are lead in spiritual matters by their shamans, who traditionally have been the source of magical prowess for each tribal group. The most powerful tribes tend to have the strongest shaman advising their chieftains, though it is unclear if this is a cause or an effect of the tribe's status.

Type

Religious, Other

Permeated Organizations

• Tribes of Asha

Divines

• Unichue

Location

Rakhnid Peninsula

Related Ethnicities

• Rakhnid