# Senaria (The Six Gods) ##### Sehn-AIR-ee-uh >[!infobox]+ >#### Alwen >![[TyrennhianFlag.png|text|324]] >#### Deity > >##### Details >| | >| :---------------- | :------ | >|**Evangelical**|Yes >| **Areas of Concern** |... | >| **Worshippers** |Zelcoran Humans | >|**Demonym**|Senarian| >| **Sigil** |Hexagram within a circle| >|**Epithets**|They Who Are One, the Reborn, the Six >| **Sacred Colors** |...| > >##### Statistics > >| | >| :---------------- | :------ | >|**Alignment**|Neutral Good >|**Domains**|... >|**Subdomains**|?? >| **Favored Weapon** |...| > Senaria or "the Senarian Gods" are six gods that are worshipped as a single deity. In totality they comprise every virtue and positive aspect of life, though worshippers will pray to specific aspects as needed. Zoskar, Sanya, Burthuu and Nizeri represent specific aspects of virtue, while Nakanaka and Kemba are more nebulous concepts of divine providence and the splendor of creation. ## Dogma Senarians believe that the Creator (that which defies a true name) created the world and all the good things within it. The Adversary would befoul and destroy everything the Creator made, making them the Adversary's, but the Adversary would resent them for being broken. The Adversary attempted to break the creator, but in doing so, made it so that the creator could suffuse itself into all mankind, ensuring the immortality of the soul and granting humanity the rightful dominion over all the world and all the creatures there in. Because the creator is a part of every human being, obeying the will of the Creator is an act of cosmic self-preservation, as the immortality of the soul and the cohesion of the world is dependent upon defying the destructive will of the Adversary. ## History ### In The Beginning... At the beginning of time, there was the Creator and the Adversary. The Creator created all things. The Adversary, being fractious and petty would destroy the things that the creator created, claiming them as his own. The Creator created light, and so the Adversary destroyed it, thus forming darkness. The Creator created life, and the Adversary destroyed it, forming death. The creator created Eternity, and the Adversary destroyed it, shattering time into past, present and future. ### The World of Creation In the days before the [[Great Cataclysm]], there was no death, no division and no despair. People lived in harmony as a single unified people. The adversary resented the creator and his creations. He wanted to see them destroyed. ............. Incapable of creating anything of his own, and resenting the things he had broken, the Adversary attempted to destroy the Creator, shattering him into a million fragments. The consequence of this shattering re-shaped the entire world, and brought havoc and destruction to the people that lived there. The touch of the Adversary lay heavy on the bodies of some creatures, twisting and corrupting them, making them into abominations. But they were not the creations of the Adversary, they were the Creator's despoiled of the glory and robbed of the dignity bestowed upon by the Creator. The Creator, being a force more powerful than the Adversary, could not be destroyed or despoiled. Instead, the million pieces of the creator suffused into the people of the world, granting a small piece of himself to those he created. This granted people eternal souls, which would persist beyond the bounds of life and death. It granted them the capacity to act righteously and to further the glory of the creator, and it made them the inheritors of all that the Creator had made. The Adversary was furious at his failure to destroy the Creator, as well as his inability to create anything of his own, and his unwillingness to embrace the things he had tainted. So he attempted to destroy the creator again, by destroying all of humanity and detaining their souls. Six divines rose to defend humanity. Manifestations of the virtues of humanity, the glory of creation, and the power of the Creator. These six are the aspects of the Creator, made in the image of humanity, who are in turn made in the image of the Creator. The Six waged war against the Adversary. But as the creator was not a force of destruction or malice, the six did not destroy the Adversary. Instead they cast the Adversary out of our world, and sealed him there. ### In The Beginning... ## Church of the Six T ### Holy Texts The holy text of Alwen is _Alwen's Almanac_, a collection of proverbs and parables outlining traditional halfling values, as well as practical wisdom regarding the maintenance of homesteads, raising of crops and livestock and other domestic concerns.  ## Worshippers The faithful of Alwen pride themselves on their craftsmanship, practical knowledge, and their sense of community. They are swift to help those in need, but contemptuous of the lazy. They are typically distrustful of new ideas, believing that society flourishes when everyone knows and accepts their place. Iconoclasts and rebels are people of low moral character who are too lazy, cowardly or dumb to embrace their proper role, and destined to be ultimately dissatisfied with their choices. Alwen worshipers disdain decadence, are distrustful of secular magics, and have little patience for "empty knowledge," which is most academic fields that they deem impractical. If you can't put your knowledge to work, then it's sheer idleness or fancy. ### Signs of Faith Many Alwen worshipers will work a sickle and furrow design into tools they work with on a regular basis. Sometimes this is a simple crescent and horizontal lines carved to the haft of a scythe or rake, while some will have immaculately detailed renditions stamped into the metalwork of a hammer or blade.  ### Taboo Like most halflings, the worshipers of Alwen will not eat mushrooms. The practice is likely symbolic of the halfling desire to turn the undersanctuary into land as bright and vibrant as the world above.  Alwen worshipers will typically refrain from "poisoning the heart," with smoke or inhaled drugs. They also shy away from powerful odors, though which scents they find to be poisonous to the heart (and which aren't) can seem strange to an outlander.  ### Clergy Priests and druids are common among the Alwen clergy, oracles, wu jen and healers are rarer. Prayers are typically performed at the dawn of the day. Group services are usually held at mid-day at the week's end. Such services are a chance for the people to come together as a community, and for halflings of all castes to enjoy the bounty of their combined efforts.  ## Other Worshipers and Faiths ### Halflings of the Undersanctuary Trinitarians worship the Halfling gods as a single divine force, but those of the Warven and Shriven castes view Alwen as the god for "common" halflings. It is necessary, and appropriate, for all halflings benefit from the blessings of Alwen, but direct worship is not appropriate for someone of their station. Alwen is still venerated for domestic affairs such as marriages, banquets, home-cooked meals, blessings of new-built homes and the like. ### Other Halflings Worshippers of Laleeri still venerate the Trinitarian gods, but do so through the example of Laleeri herself. She is not divine herself, but possessed of the blessings of the divine three. She exemplifies Alwen's love, Warre's strength and Siriven's cunning. Many of the rites, holidays and teachings of Laleeri's worship are based on Trinitarian traditions. ### Non-Halflings The halfling gods are not evangelical, and apart from halfling enclaves or itinerate families, most are unfamiliar with the "folk-religion of the halflings." Outsiders tend to see Alwen as a god of harvest and plenty. Since what few traditional holidays are outwardly celebrated are dedicated to Alwen, some mistake him for a god of revelry or excess.