The Jagefja religion, which is largely borrowed from the T’anlhawes to the north, is a polytheistic-animist religion. It features a rough division of divinities into two groups: the Otwroğònsōr, or Major Gods, and the Otwroğor, or Minor Gods.
Otwroğònsōr
The Major Gods are those that are directly involved in the creation of the world. Although not strictly speaking a god, the primordial night-sea Zōs is included here for clarity.
Zōs
Not strictly speaking a god, Zōs is the primordial force that existed before the gods. It is usually depicted as malevolent, and constantly attempting to destroy the world. While not able to directly affect the world, due to the Rings, it sends demons to do its bidding.
Xo
One of the first two gods, Xo is credited with creating the sun. Xo was later killed after attempting to impose his will on the other gods. His body became the moons, while his soul became the Goddess Mēves as well as all humans collectively. Xo is usually given the epithet of Tsevgevezgesašem, ‘the Crowned Sun.‘
Zra
One of the first two gods, she is credited with creating all plants, as well as growing the Rings (which, in the Jağefj religion, were held to be a plant). She is often given the epithet of Pfle Tsemvağes, ‘birth-parent of oaks.‘
Tso
The eldest of Xo and Zra’s three children, credited with creating all land.
Tle
The second-eldest of Xo and Zra’s three children, credited with creating all animals (save humans and birds).
Seğes
The youngest of Xo and Zra’s three children, they are credited with creating the sky. Usually depicted as a child, they are held to reside on the Lesser Moon, which is the location of the afterlife in the Jağefj religion, where they watch over the spirits of the dead.
Mēves
Created from half of Xo’s soul after his killing, Mēves is the goddess of higher thought, mathematics, and civilization. Usually depicting as residing on the Greater Moon, she is considered to be simultaneously the father and sister of the three children of Xo and Zra.
Otwroğor
In addition to the Major Gods described above, there are also an innumerable number of Minor Gods. Many of these are minor tutelary gods of specific places, but some are well known enough to be listed below. These usually consist of the children of the Major Gods, or certain well-known demigods or deified humans.
Atleng
A child of Tso and Tle, Atleng is the goddess of water and rivers. Many narratives describe her as having been born in a great bay to the west, before coming east.
Sezis
A demon sent by Zōs who was defeated in battle by Zra. The blood spilled by the two in their fight watered some vines to grow into the Rings. After defeating him, Zra tasked Sezis with maintaining and protecting the Rings. In some areas he is known as Zjov.
Xesi
A daughter of Mēves and Seğes. Usually depicted as a giant falcon, she pecks undeserving souls out of the sky to keep them from reaching the afterlife.
La
A daughter of Mēves and Tle, and the twin of Međenges, La is the god of order and justice, and the patron of judges.
Međenges
A son of Mēves and Tle, and the twin of La, Međenges is the god of festivals, celebration, and alcohol. Often serves a comedic role in narratives that mention him.
Saves
A son of Tso and Tle, Saves is the god of horses and horsemen, and manifests as a mounted warrior. He is often worshipped by the common soldiers of the Jağefj armies.
Šaš
A demigod, the child of Tso and the mortal Jowōsofon, a legendary ruler. Died in a battle with a great beast, the Tseval, whereupon Seğes elevated him to become the pole star. He is treated as the patron of the Jağefj in general, and the city of Dwāššgwes in specific.
Tsağğj
A son of Seğes and Atleng, Tsağğj is the god of rain, snow, and storms.
Niğezsez
A son of Tsağğj and Tso, Niğezsez is the god of fertility and crops, and is often invoked for help with agriculture, pregnancy, and similar matters.
Niğēns
A daughter of Saves and Mēves, Niğēns is the goddess of war and tactics. She is often worshipped by the generals of the Jağefj armies.
Šatrisaz
A god of wind, certain small storms, and mischief. His name can be literally translated as “Cousin Whirlwind.”
Rituals
Coming-Of-Age and the Horse-Test
A Jağefj person comes of age at the age of 13 years, near the end of puberty. This is formally celebrated in the coming-of-age ceremony, or loğō, which happens on the summer solstice of their thirteenth full year since being born (i.e. not counting the year they were born). During the ceremony, the forehead will be marked with three spots of horse blood, applied by the middle three fingers of their birth-parent.
Like the Wajahe to the south, the Jağefj divide their population into categories of ”True” and “False,” or Lələ and Šə̄šk, respectively. This is accomplished by means of the Fonođudzòf, or Horse-Test, which formed the climax of the coming-of-age ceremony. If a person is capable of riding a horse a set distance, without being thrown, at least once in three attempts, then they are considered True; otherwise, they are False. The precise distance the horse is to be ridden varies from settlement to settlement, but is usually around the distance a horse can gallop in three minutes.
Lineomancy
Lineomancy (lasgağağats) is a type of divination, traditionally performed by members of the cult of Mēves. The practice is the primary mode of divination in Jağefj society. It involves blindly drawing a multitude of lines in sand or dirt, done either by hand/staff or with a pendulum, and prognosticating based on the resulting patterns. Sets of parallel lines are usually heralded as good omens, as are lines that cross at right angles. Lines crossing at very shallow angles are held to be bad omens; the more crossings on a single line, the more the effect.
Funerals
Jağefj funerals usually involve posing the corpse into a fetal position, with the knees brought up and the arms crossed across the chest. The corpse is then wrapped in horse-leather strips, and the face is covered with a featureless death mask.
For most families, the corpse will be buried without a coffin in a communal graveyard.
For wealthy families, the corpse will be placed into a small stone coffin, called an āsseval (literally ‘corpse box’). As these coffins are designed for bodies in the fetal position, they are more cuboid than coffins designed for supine corpses, having a shape reminiscent of safes. The lid is fitted to the ‘front’ side, i.e. the one the corpse is facing.
In the most wealthy families, these coffins are interred in a subterranean catacomb called a geğatsl, literally “grave-well.” These are large stepwells, constructed entirely underground, though the limits of mechanical engineering impose upper size constraints. The walls are fitted with slots into which coffins can be inserted, and are filled up from bottom to top.
Organization
Following a meeting of scholars in the year 3011 KS, the Honorable Families of Ofjonbof instituted a series of laws - the Great Reforms, or Enimadzīns - placing certain legal limits on precisely how those in their territories may worship the Jağefj gods. The primary effect of these laws was a formalization of certain forms of the rituals (specifically, those forms practiced by the Honorable Families. What a strange coincidence), a compilation of a semi-official list of commonly worshipped gods, and the codification of the social roles of members of those gods’ cults. The cult of Šaš, the god of the South Star and patron of the Jağefj, have exclusive rights to practice astronomy and astrology; only members of the cult of Mēves may legally practice lineomancy, etc.
They also took the time to rename the city of Ofjonbof to the rather more regal Dwāššgwes (literally ‘House of Šaš’). Those living in Ofjonbofi (or, rather, Dwāššgwesi) territory who wish to perform rituals for foreign gods are required to pay a small fine; they are otherwise totally unaffected by the laws.