Bez

"Bez" can refer to multiple concepts:

• The predominant religion of the Fwonnel Peninsula, Permechiko, and Kleo
• The state of "ordered and maintained balance against entropy" sought by adherents to said religion

Bez as a religion has existed in one form or another since around the time of the arrival of Cahilan peoples in the west coast of Menaiceraum in approximately 1500 BR.

Core Tenets

Though the specific beliefs, habits, and literature vary between the denominations, some of the core features of an adherent to Bez include:

• the belief in a collective mission of the species to alter their environment in a stable, sustainable fashion
• the belief that the Pups species is the current, and perhaps final, iteration of a cycle of appearance and extinction of "sentient species" given the chance to create a perfect world
• the belief that the force of life itself is order (dmanib) trying to sustain itself against entropy (xororx), and that order is innately the desired condition for the individual, the society, and the land
• the veneration, or fear, of Xororx (called "King Horror" in some English-language media), the amorphous god of Chaos and Entropy, who has chosen when to begin and end each cycle of life on Earth throughout its history
• the acknowledgement and praise of the continuity of organic matter in the ecosystem before, during, and after life (from which the Arodjun phrase ja k'a wa, jo k'o wo "I am, I was, I will be; it is, it was, it will be" originates)

Deities and Mythological Elements

Xororx

All varieties of Bez feature the belief in a deity of chaos and entropy, Xororx. Depictions of Xororx range from malevolent to neutral toward Pups and their continued existence. It is referred using inanimate and gender-neutral terms in nearly all cases. Many interpret destructive forces of nature such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, hurricanes, and droughts as "warnings" from Xororx. The more severe the natural disaster, the stronger of a vice the affected sentient life must have committed, potentially putting all life in the world at risk.

The Flattenings

To adherents of Bez, the world as it is known by Pups is simply its current version. The previous world-state featured Humans as its sentient species, but they were killed and all the "texture" of the world was flattened after their failure to reach or maintain Bez. Xororx dragged its hand over the Earth and smoothed the world, crushing all mountains and filling all valleys. Xororx then allowed the buried essence of life to bubble to the surface with immense energy, creating a fresh set of mountains, rivers, and life. Many consider the Flattening of the Humans to be not the first or second, but frequently the 5th or 6th time the surface of the Earth was "restarted" by Xororx.

Spirits and "Animations"

While not considered deities, there are various folkloric entities that exist in Bez mythology. There are two main classes of these supernatural entities: called cirewa and cinrjawa, often Anglicized as "spirits/sprites/naiads" and "animations."

Spirits/sprites/naiads (cirewa) are animal-like beings that are found near sources of fresh water, considered to be new vessels of order that spring from lifegiving points in the world. Some are kind, others are mischievous and can even (very rarely) be outright evil. Many of them take the forms of various fish, reptiles, birds, and arachnids. For example, Kuna is a bird cireu that is interpreted to signify the longevity of the viability of a water source.

Animations (cinrjawa) are beings composed of things other than animals; often rocks, plants, moss, mushrooms, or minerals. These are often given more negative traits, as they are seen as vessels of Xororx brought to life to damage things and cause chaos. For example, Duk is considered a rock cinrjau that causes landslides.

Denominations

There are dozens of denominations and sects of Bez, many of which diverged from their Cahilan origins due to political differences, teachings of heretical messiahs, and geographical distance causing changes in practice over time. It's difficult to declare a definitive "original" Cahilan Bez religion, and in fact there may not have been one at all. It is very likely that the cultural mixing and diffusion of ideas and peoples during the Cahilan migrations led to philosophical mixing with the previous inhabitants and their faiths.

By 1500BR, there were several faiths described in writing throughout southern Menaiceraum that shared Bez-like traits. As these societies became more established, beliefs continued to mix, but eventually clash, coinciding with political power conflicts. The first time a unified authority held dominion over the majority of Bez adherents was the Fwonnel Bezuv during the First Fwonnel Empire (740-100BR). By 500BR, even regions not outright conquered by the empire considered the Bezuv to be the leader of their faith. This continued after the fall of the first Empire, subsequent Delsh Akuvate rule, and rise of the Second Fwonnel Empire by 150AR. However, a notable early branch from this Imperial Fwonnel Bez formed during the reign of the First Empire's last Bezuv, Neruzin Zani - the Zani Death Cult.

During the periods of the Second Fwonnel Empire and the unification of Dedun and Kaxila into what is now called Permechiko, the world was rapidly changing. The Rediscovery of human technology had spread from northeastern Menaiceraum to every corner of the Pup-inhabited world and the major civilizations of the southern and western parts of the continent began to have major philosophical divisions on top of the political ones. (TBC) A chart of the geneaology of the sects of Bez can be approximated as the following:

• Ancient Cahilan Mythology (~3000 - ~1500BR)
  • Ancient Kleo Bez
  • Ancient Dedun Bez
  • Ancient Kaxila Bez
  • Ancient Arodjun Bez
  • Ancient Fwonnel Bez (~1500BR - ~1000BR)
    • Imperial Fwonnel Bez (~1250BR - ~900AR)
      • Zani Death Cult (~120BR-present)
        • Temple of Bez (~300AR-2011AR)
      • Quartz Bez (Reuxalusia, Kraker, Pakoya, Fwonn)
      • Water Bez (Arojaunza, Cahilan Tribes)
      • Wood Bez (Frufi, Zessis, Kleo)
      • Pemex Bez (Permechiko, ???-???)
      • Old Bez (Irkun, Delsh, Zhon ~100AR-present)