Biārevah

Biārevah (Adzamasi: /bjɑʁɛva/) are an entity in Quurožan religion. They are powerful spirits, sometimes called minor deities, who can influence both the mortal world and the universal dream, interacting directly with both living beings and the gods. They can be good or evil and vary in power and temperament. There is no official list or registry of biārevah, but it is unusual for more to be added in the modern day.

Most biārevah were once mortal humans, who accomplished such extraordinary things in their lives that they returned to Kēnkenÿn (the mortal world in its present form) as superhuman beings.

Nomenclature

Biārevah is the plural form; the singular is biāren (/bjɑʁɛn/). In Old Adzamian the terms were beirevah and beiren (/beiχɛfɐh, beiχɛn/). In [Neviran religion] they are called [different name] (Neviran: /IPA/).

Sub-types of biārevah are the nakuvah and rekarēvah, discussed below. In modern Adzamasi these are naguvah and rekarēvah (/nakuva, χɛk'aʁeva/) with singular forms nagun, rekarēn (/nakun, χɛk'aʁɛn/).

Becoming Biāren

There are multiple paths after death for Quurožiri. Of them, becoming a biāren is considered most desirable; many people make it their goal in life to be become biārevah in death. In order to achieve this goal, one must perform great feats, accomplish the impossible, and leave a great impact on the world, for better or for worse. Among their ranks are monarchs, revolutionaries, masterful artisans, exceptional inventors, liberators of the oppressed - and leaders of the oppressors.

Naturally, the populace is not generally encouraged towards doing evil in order to become these biārevah of infamous deeds. It is seen as difficult to determine if one will become biārevah after death, and those who do wrong and fail to achieve 'greatness' in doing so are most likely to become temiārenet in death rather than biārevah. On the other hand, those who are not quite impactful enough to become biārevah but are overall good people, become rosönet, who will eventually live on in Abenÿn.

The presence of malevolent biārevah in the world is philosophically useful in order to explain bad luck, the corruption of good-seeming people to vile ways, and to facilitate looking back on once-celebrated acts like a war through a shifted moral lens.

The gods do not decide who becomes biārevah, although they may assist mortals in their exploits in life, thereby increasing their impact on the world. It is through the power of their own souls and the acts that have transpired because of them that allows someone to undergo this change after death.

Appearance and power

Biārevah who were originally humans are often thought to maintain that person's appearance as their true form in the afterlife. However, most biārevah are not capable - or perhaps not willing - to become corporeal on the mortal plane. Only the most powerful among them have been known to do this, and very rarely so. On the other hand, they may visit people in their dreams with their true form.

The appearance of biārevah within this world varies greatly. While those associated with a particular animal or plant may disguise themselves as one of these, or inhabit the body of one, most biārevah represent something less tangible like a skill or a past deed. In most situations, one assumes that there may be biārevah present - invisible, hiding in the shadows, staying just out of sight, or shrunk down too small to see.

In other cases, some people report seeing dark blots, diffused lights, disembodied or partial or transparent limbs, or a variety of other objects.

Powers

While the level of power they hold varies greatly, there are certain things biārevah are limited to doing. Even the most powerful are weaker than Quuros and the Four in that they cannot directly create or destroy life, souls, energy, or matter, and unlike the Four, they do not have control or providence over the temiārenet. However they can communicate with the living (waking or dreaming), the dead, and the greater gods; they can disguise themselves in order to trick and influence humans; and some may take control of beasts and natural powers like the weather in order to try and attack or even kill people. The more benevolent among them can grant good health, energy, perseverance, patience, and talent to humans they favour or guide easy prey and other good fortunes to those in need.

Types of Biārevah

Nakuvah

The first and original biārevah, the nakuvah (sg. nakun) are not the souls of departed humans, but were created by Quuros near the beginning of time, shortly after the other Four Greater Gods and alongside the world itself. These spirits are the most powerful of the biārevah, and never evil-natured, although they are also difficult to contact or petition on one's behalf. Each of the nakuvah represents an aspect of the natural world, such as types of weather, species of plants or animals, individual mountains, or bodies of water.

The names of all nakuvah are known: one simply takes the element in question and adds -(n)aku to the end. For example, the nakun of the birch tree (aylem) is Aylemaku. Particularly prominent nakuvah, such as those representing the weather or important prey species, will have known appearances and sometimes personalities, while the lesser-known nakuvah will not.

Local geography and ecology and their reflected nakuvah are usually reflected in local folklore or local interpretations of Quurožan mythology. Nakuvah associated with a specific landmark are generally considered physically bound to it and unable to leave its proximity or affect far-away places.

Rekarēvah

Certain villages, towns, neighbourhoods, tribes, caravans, ships, and other communities are known to have local patron spirits called rekarēvah (sg. rekarēn). These are actively if unintentionally created by dreamers in the locale. Like the nakuvah, rekarēvah are easy to name, as one takes the name of the community and adds -(n)aku to the end, although many have their own nicknames or epithets. Particularly large cities like Mehyaran are unlikely to have a singular rekarēvah but to incorporate several through their various neighbourhoods, more intimately linked with the inhabitants.

It is not always agreed upon by members of a community whether or not a rekarēvah exists among them. Typically the final say is left up to religious leaders, who will attempt to commune with the spirit in their dreams.

Rekarēvah are usually considered physically bound to their locale and unable to leave it, limiting their sphere of influence and knowledge.

Returned biārevah

The largest number of biārevah are among the "returned" biārevah, that is to say, those who once possessed mortal life. They are all powerful, but not so much as the nakuvah; at the same time, they are more active and more likely to interfere in mortal affairs, especially those who are particularly young. There are some known historical persons who are said to be returned as biārevah, mostly from the nobility, while most come from mythical figures, or are now widely known only as the spirits they have become.

There are relatively few "canonized" non-nakuvah biārevah that are known by all or even most Quurožiri. Most are minor, local spirits, occasionally prayed to in harsh times or blamed for poor luck.

Returned biārevah may be patrons of a skill, type of knowledge, or something they invented in life. There are many biārevah of war, medicine, trade, and their various subdisciplines, some of which are only known at local levels.

Malevolent biārevah

While most biārevah are thought of as benevolent or ambivalent, there exist those who are not. Those who became returned biārevah through great acts of violence in their lives are usually considered malevolent spirits. They are usually less powerful than most, but able nonetheless to influence and corrupt humans into doing similarly evil things. These biārevah were often warriors, warlords, dictators, or those who killed important figures or hampered historical progress. There are many practices taught in order to keep these biārevah at bay and to discipline the mind against their persuasion.

There are also the nakuvah of predatory animals, diseases, and the great forces of nature. While these are certainly not considered evil in the same way as those who were murderers, it is considered wise to be especially respectful to them and to be very careful when one believes one has drawn their attention.

Practices

Worship

It is not considered idolatry or blasphemy to worship biārevah so long as one also worships Quuros and the Four. Biārevah are, after all, known to be powerful and capable of affecting the mortal world. Some Quurožan sub-sects have formed almost entirely around the prominence of one or more biārevah, and some splinter religions have also occurred this way after these deities become of greater importance than the five central gods.

Most Quurožiri have a handful of biārevah who they include in their prayers at least occasionally, if not on a daily basis. These will typically be local nakuvah and rekarēvah, as well as biārevah representing the individual's craft, or other spirits to whom the worshiper feels a particular personal link for any reason.

Thanks are often given to local biārevah at small shrines specifically made for the purpose. Quurožiri may leave some food, flowers, a few coins, or some other trinkets as offerings to these deities.

Some locales will host small festivals - annually or even just once - for particularly beloved local biārevah.

Affiliation (Tutelary)

Sometimes an individual or family will form a totemic bond or affiliation with a particular biāren, almost always the local rekarēn or another minor biāren. This practice is much less frequent in modern times, especially in urban areas, but is still popular in some smaller communities, especially the nomadic bands. It is sought to improve skill, bring good luck, or increase social standing.

Affiliating with a biāren is traditionally a public act that must be officiated by religious and community leaders, and accepted by members of the community at large, in a ceremony not unlike a wedding. In order for the affiliation to be considered valid, the individual or family has to indicate that they have a good working relationship with with this biāren and that they are good representatives for it. Their good favour in the biāren's eyes is proved through good fortune after worshiping them, through great talent at an associated skill, by claiming lineage to the biāren's mortal life, or other methods, plus a good amount of dream interpretation by the religious leader.

After the ceremony, the new affiliates or devotees of a biāren are expected to represent the qualities of that biāren, and to help those who would ask that biāren's favour. Affiliation with a biāren cannot be undone at the will of the devotee, although sometimes it is said that the biāren's favour has changed and they no longer have any relation to this person; or if the devotee fails to meet community expectations, the title may be taken away. If the devotee maintains the title until death, it may pass on to their offspring.

Affiliation with a powerful biāren like a nakun or one known to most Quurožiri is generally not permitted, although there are legends of such relations in the past - often leading to the devotees becoming biārevah themselves. Although biārevah are not bound to their devotees the same way the devotees are to them, it is still expected to take some of the biāren's power, attention, and focus to give the individual favour, which would be a dangerous request from a very powerful biāren.

In urban settings, there are often bylaws prohibiting politicians and entrepreneurs from seeking affiliation with biārevah. The use of a biāren's name in products, logos, advertising, or business names is highly frowned upon or illegal in many locales.

Biārevah and other religions

The gods, deities, prophets, and other important figures from other religions are usually acknowledged by Quurožiri as biārevah. (Sometimes they are considered aspects or incarnations of the five greater gods, especially if they are a highly powerful deity or share many things in common with one of the Four.) This is one of the many ways in which it is easy to syncretize Qurosism with other faiths and lead to hybridized religions.

Followers of other religions may find this practice insulting or even blasphemous, since biārevah are considered fundamentally less important and less powerful than Quuros and the Four. Furthermore, Quurožan belief holds that in the next age, after the deaths of Quuros and the Four, the biārevah will become mortals once again (or for the first time in the case of nakuvah). This would indicate that the deities of other religions will eventually become no different from mortal people.