Incandesity

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The Goddess Tàmhaire

Introduction and History

The faith of Incandesity grew from an ancient unnamed pagan belief system that was held by many of the Northern Atamaran peasant families. An old tradition of these worshippers was to paint or carve a woman's face, framed by long hair, somewhere on or around the main fireplace of the household. A distinguishing feature of this female visage was that her long hair was always portrayed as floating upward, rather than hanging down. If they were asked about this feature (which was rarely), the response would be, "The Lady's hair is light."

As it turns out, this response was rather a clever pun. The portrayed Lady's hair was literally light -- light as in illumination, or more properly, flames. Another common descriptor for this image was, "the Lady with the light hair", or "the Lady with the shining hair". This Lady was a fire goddess, and as such, her upward-reaching hair represented licking flames.

This goddess's name was known as Tàmhaire, or, "Brilliant One". This was a half-pun on its own, as Tàmhaire is the goddess of not only fire, but also intelligence and inspiration. In the peasant language, inspiration means literally "the fire in the head" and as such any "bright ideas" are thought to originate as a spark from the sacred flame of the goddess.

Tàmhaire is considered to be the goddess of every flame, and as such held a great deal of importance. She is simultaneously goddess of the family hearth, campfires, bonfires, candlelight, smithy-fires, war blazes, controlled field-fires used to clear the land for planting -- and perhaps the most sacred flames of all, lightning strikes. In addition, she also rules over metalworking, blacksmithing, poetry, artistry, oration, brewing, warfare, and the culinary arts.

Children of the Goddess

The goddess is considered to have three children, named Caitham (smoke), Steorra (stars), and Dorcha (dark). When Tàmhaire first burst into brilliance from the depths of the cold void, She gave birth to her twin daughters in a shower of sparks and ashes. Her daughters were both beautiful, one fair and one dark.

The fair one was much like her mother in brightness and comeliness, and the goddess named her Steorra. Steorra took the light from the sparks of her birth and created the stars. Steorra also formed the moon as her home.

The dark twin was named Dorcha, and she was jealous of the shining beauty of her sister, although she herself was also beautiful. She took the ashes of her birth and with those made the earth. The earth in those days was bare dirt, flat and empty like the desert. Dorcha made her home deep in the ground and created the underworld, so that she would not have to face the beauty of her bright sister and mother.

Then Tàmhaire gave birth to a son in soft billows of smoke. This son She named Caitham, and from the smoke he created clouds, wind and rain. Caitham then formed the mists as his home. The first rains fell to earth, and sensing a change, Dorcha rose from the ground to meet her brother in the mists. Thus the earth grew fertile, and from that time came the plants, animals and humans.

But Steorra grew lonely as she looked down from above and saw her sister and brother. Knowing that Dorcha would not come to her in her brilliance, Steorra made the moon to pass through both light and shadow. Cloaked in shadow and not having to see the brilliant face of her sister, Dorcha agreed to visit her for a time when the moon grows dark. Thus does the Queen of the Underworld travel between her home and the sky, and thus does she show all faithful souls the path from earth to heaven after death.

The Revival of the Faith

Incandesity is a sophisticated renewal of this old belief system. Followers of the faith, known as the Incandesi, are no longer confined to the peasantry. The warmth, light and power of the goddess has expanded to illuminate and inspire the highest-ranking nobles in the kingdom.

Symbol of the Goddess

The traditional image of a stylized woman's face with flaming hair frequently included another element -- that of Her finger or hand reaching downward. This additional element was said to symbolize the Goddess in one of Her other forms: lightning striking the earth.

Over time, this symbol gradually morphed into a more streamlined image. That image is now known as the Spiral Fire.

The Spiral Fire image resembles two licking flames, one reaching upward and the other downward. They spiral toward one another to meet in the middle. There are many variations on this basic image, and all of them are recognized symbols of the faith.

Goddess of War

This is one of the primary roles of the goddess, although there are several. In Her warrior aspect, Tàmhaire is fierce, dangerous and unrelenting as a wildfire or a lioness protecting her cubs. All enemies are thought to be quenched in Her all-consuming flames. This is partly a judgement and partly a mercy, as the enemy soldiers killed on the battlefield are later cremated on great pyres, in order to purify their souls through Tàmhaire's holy flames, just as the dross of impure metals are purified through fire. Since the followers of Tàmhaire also cremate their own dead for much the same reasons, burning honourable enemies on a funeral pyre is considered generous and altruistic.

In fact, soldiers who are cremated are usually referred to as "the keen blades of Tàmhaire" -- being both a reference to the purified spirits of the warriors and the appearance of a wildfire over a field, advancing like an army with swords waving.

Tàmhaire is also the patron goddess of the forge and blacksmithing, for obvious reasons. Thus in the making of weaponry, calvary horseshoes and other forged items, the blessing of Tàmhaire is thought to be imbued directly into the items themselves. All blacksmiths have the symbol of Tàmhaire somewhere carved into the walls of the forge so that everything they make will be under Her guidance.

Priests are frequently asked to bless the blacksmith's forge, and they also chant over the battlefield the night before a battle to invoke Tàmhaire's fury. Holy symbols are burned into the ground by the priests in order to aid their soldiers and confuse the enemy on the morrow.

Goddess of the Hearth

Here Tàmhaire is of a gentler aspect, that of guardian of the home. Her influence is thought to permeate the household much like the heat of the fireplace warms all within it. She is also the nourisher, as the art of cooking is under her influence, and the sustainer of life through the fire's welcome warmth and heat. Difficulties that arise in the household are dealt with by whispering the problem into one's hands and making a tossing gesture into the flames, thus passing the difficulty over to the goddess and asking for Her guidance. More educated nobles write the problem on a piece of paper and then burn the paper. Thus one's petty difficulties are reduced to ash and swept away.

Her purification aspects come into play in other ways as well. Pregnant women frequently stand before the hearth until their belly warms during their pregnancy, in order to gain Tàmhaire's blessing for the unborn child and to protect the mother during her term. After the birth, newborns are tucked into a padded basket after they first partake of their mother's milk, and the basket is placed on the hearth between two large candles. The significance of this common household ritual is to purify the child from any dangerous influences it may have been exposed to during labour, and to drive off any evil spirits that may want to steal the child's soul. Carved beeswax birthing candles are specially made for this purpose. A priest is frequently invited into the house in the event of a birth to officiate, although midwives are also trained in a simpler version of this ritual.

The art of pottery partakes of Tàmhaire's blessings as items are subjected to intense heat, and is considered part of Her hearth and home aspect as pottery is frequently used around the household. Potters, like blacksmiths, have an image of the goddess somewhere near their kilns and ask for Her blessings as they create their works. Like blacksmiths, potters have their kilns blessed by the priests.

Goddess of Coronation

The highest levels of leadership are under the Goddess's influence as well. When a new ruler is chosen to serve the people, they are first brought to the temple to be purified. Temples are orientated east-west along the course of the sun as it travels through the sky. Temples house the Eternal Flame of Tàmhaire, which are fires tended by the priests in circular stone firepits located near the eastern end of each temple.

When a candidate for new ruler is brought to the temple by the priests, first they are ritually annointed in fragrant oils that have been warmed by placing them near the Eternal Flame. The candidate is then clothed in a white linen robe with red and gold embroidery, and brought to the Head Priest of the realm. Standing before the Eternal Flame with the ruler, the Head Priest lights a prepared torch and swings it three times over the bowed head of the candidate for rulership. If the candidate outwardly flinches or ducks, they are not considered fit to lead. This is the test for courage in the face of adversity.

If the candidate passes this test, the priest then hands the candidate a large, brilliant ruby set in gold, and then quickly snatches it back from the candidate's hands. If the candidate clutches at the gemstone as it is taken away, they are not considered fit to rule. This is the test for restraining one's greed for riches and lust for power in order to rule wisely for the good of the people.

After this test is passed, the priest douses the flame of the torch and smears its ash over the candidate's forehead. The candidate is expected to allow this and not attempt avoid the charred end nor wipe off the ash, otherwise they are not a fit candidate for rulership. This symbolizes the ruler's own mortality, something they must come to understand. In this way the ruler is humbled and made to realize that despite their newfound powers and responsibilities, they are still mortal and must someday be gathered into the warm arms of the Goddess, to join the ranks of all those who have gone before.

At this point, the High Priest leaves the candidate alone by the Eternal Flame to meditate on their responsibilities, ask for Tàmhaire's guidance, and to prepare themselves for the great task of ruling their people. After this period of meditation, the High Priest has the candidate undergo one final test. (The details of this ordeal are shrouded in secrecy by the priesthood, who have sworn a vow of silence that it shall not be revealed.)

If the candidate passes these tests, they are now considered fit to rule.

Generally by this time it is now twilight. The ruler mounts a white horse and is brought to the palace by a procession of priests, who carry lanterns and torches. They joyfully sing hymns to the Goddess to thank Her for revealing their chosen ruler and invite the people to join in the procession. At the palace the ruler is crowned before the people with the blessing of the High Priest.