Algazi religion

Aghanism
Type	Syncretic
Classification	disputed
Region	Algazi Union, Letzia, Ebo Nganagam
Origin	11th Century Hafsighi Kingdom

The traditional Algazi religion, also called Aghanism or Quuro-Argeyazic religion is a collection of syncretic beliefs and practices that serve as the ethnic religion of the Algazi people and the state religion of the Algazi Union. The religion originates from the hybridization of Quurožarq (particularly Temyarq), Argeyazic animism, and, to a lesser extent, Iovism. There is no wide consensus as to whether the religion should be classified as a continuation of ancient Argeyazic religious practices, a highly divergent denomination of Quurožarq, or a distinct faith, especially considering the wide variation in beliefs and practices.

Practitioners of Algazi religion believe in four principal deities and many minor ones, as well as malignant spirits. Most also believe in reincarnation and the spiritual life of plants and animals. There is no central organization religious organization beyond an association of temples, which serves to create a loose consistency of practice and liaise with the Algazi Ministry of Culture.

Origins

Argeyazic and Hafsighi Religion

While little is known about Proto-Argeyazic religion, some information has been pieced together through archeology and comparative work on early Algazi and Hemeshi religion. The religion was animist, contrasting higher deities (*axa) of natural forces and phenomena, such as the sky, rain, the ocean, and fire, mid-level deities (referred to as "fathers" and "mothers") representing each species of plant and animal, and lower deities (*tahen) of places and geographic features. The spirits of the dead (*motyur) were believed to persist on earth, with many joining the god or goddess of death in the Baredinian Desert.

These beliefs and practices became more standardized during the Hafsighi Kingdom as a result of the emergence of a centralized, hierarchical clergy centered on Hafsigh.

Quurožarq

Following the political and religious shifts that re-christened the Adzamasi Empire as the Holy Adzamic Empire, Quurožarq was officially adopted by King Jir II in order to please Hafsigh's patron state. This prompted a mass conversion of the royal family and the Hafsighi court; as the motivations were primarily diplomatic, however, no efforts were made at mass conversion and many previous practices persisted. This also meant that, in spite of heavy investment in the construction of Quurožiri institutions and religious infrastructure in Hafsigh, the government (and aristocrats especially) continued to patronize indigenous temples, and no legal privileges were granted to Quurožarq. In spite of the lack of promotion, however, Quurožarq did spread to some extent among the upper ranks of the commoners, particularly the educated.

spread downward

Development

The persistence of animist beliefs and practices among the Quuoržiri elite and the downward percolation of Quurožarq already began to blur the boundaries of the two religions during the Hafsighi period; however, their formal institutions remained separate and competing, and served to maintain distinct identities and a certain degree of orthodoxy.

The collapse of the Hafsighi Kingdom after 1078 led to the complete breakdown of these centralized religious institutions. In the breakaway provincial cities, there remained only low-ranking clergy associated with individual temples. Without any central authority, religious beliefs and practices were increasingly defined by the general population, who had no qualms about incorporating beliefs from multiple sources. Owing to the upheaval of the period and the existing tendency towards hybridization, this popular mixture had largely coalesced into a single (albeit heterogeneous) religion within two centuries of the collapse of the Hafsighi Kingdom.

Dieties

The Algazi pantheon consists of four high-ranking deities (Algaz: aghan), the result of Argeyazic gods being mapped onto Quurožiri ones, and a multitude of minor spirits (tayinan) representing the Sun and Moon, bodies, and other geographical features.There is also a (nameless?) and deity of the earth, a clear combination of the Argeyazic earth goddess with the genderless and (particularly in Temyarq) inactive creator Quuros. This deity is generally believed to have died in creating the aghan, tayinan, and all living things, and is therefore rarely worshipped directly.

Aghan

The four aghan are as follows:

Idjud is the god of the sky, wind, and rain, originating as a composite of several Argeyazic deities. He is believed to be the father of the Sun and Moon, and is usually depicted with two faces: one awake, representing day, and one asleep, representing night. He is associated with time and communication, and, as a god of nature, with strength, protection, and wisdom.

Athir/Teli is the goddess of the sea and the mother of all bodies of water. She is a combination of the Argeyazic sea goddess and the Quurožiri goddess Taali. She is associated with travel and commerce, and, as a god of nature, with strength, protection, and wisdom.

Rashun is the god of animals and livestock. Rashun appears to have been the Argeyazic goat deity (he is still often refered to by the epithet "Father of Goats") whose role expanded to cover all livestock and, eventually, all animals. He is typically depicted as a man with the head of a goat. Rashun is associated with the social sphere and the family, and, as a god of life, with healing, fertility, and wealth.

Amet/Yena'a is the goddess of plants. She appears to have been transposed almost completely from Quurožarq as a replacement for the Argeyazic plant deities, as evidenced by the preservation of her Quurožiri name; however, this has been largely displaced outside of ritual contexts by the epithet Yena'a, meaning "fertile one". Amet/Yena'a is associated with childhood and beauty, and, as a god of life, with healing, fertility, and wealth.