Year of Great Peace
In Namorese tradition, the Year of Great Peace (Даибенгнин, 太平年 tr. Daibengnin) is the last year of a 35-year cycle. Along with the Year of Salvation, it is one of the most important anniversaries observed by Namorese people.
Traditionally attributed to Ninshen, the Goddess of Peace, and her prophet Riro, the Year of Great Peace commemorates the end of Riro's exodus from Nozama to the promised land of Txotai. According to legend, Riro declared the first Year of Great Peace, decreeing that a Year of Great Peace occur every 35 years because the exodus lasted 35 years. During the Year of Great Peace, prisoners would be freed, debts would be forgiven, and enemies would cease fighting.
Although the Year of Great Peace is commonly associated with Txoism, it was actually introduced to Namor by the Christian Jidu dynasty, which declared two Years of Great Peace — the first in 1200 and the second in 1225. Many scholars thus believe the Year of Great Peace originated from the biblical Jubilee. It wasn't until the publication of the Book of Gods in 1317 when the year 1478 BCE was designated as the first Year of Great Peace to synchronize its 35-year cycle with the 7-year cycle of the Year of Salvation, which was supposedly observed for the first time in 2969 BCE. Most Namorese have since used 1478 BCE as a reference point for determining future Years of Great Peace.
The last Year of Great Peace lasted from January 29, 1987, to February 16, 1988. The next Year of Great Peace will last from February 1, 2022, to January 22, 2023; going by the counting scheme devised in the Dan era, the next Year of Great Peace will mark the completion of the 100th 35-year cycle since Riro's settlement in Txotai.
Historical Years of Great Peace
1917
The Year of Great Peace in 1917 occurred in the middle of an ongoing civil war between Namorese republicans and monarchists. Both sides held talks to discuss a peace agreement but failed to reach a consensus on the legality of the Restoration of 1915, which the republicans regarded as illegitimate. However, the talks did lead to the exchange of 5,000 prisoners on each side.
1952
On Liberation Day of 1952, the Namorese government granted amnesty to all Green Youth Organization (GYO) members who were convicted after the end of the Green Fever but did not commit murder, rape, and kidnapping during the Fever. The amnesty resulted in the release of over 50,000 people — the most of any amnesty in the history of the People's Republic of Namor. However, the amnesty was not officially attributed to the Year of Great Peace, but a desire to reintegrate the youth into society for the sake of national development.
Low-level talks between the People's Republic on the mainland the Republic of Namor on Peitoa began in 1952. When reports of the talks were confirmed by both sides in 1957 when they allowed reunions of families separated by the Namorese Civil War, Peitoan leader Jung Ki said he had agreed to talks in the spirit of the Year of Great Peace.
1987
On January 29, 1987, the first day of the new year in the Namorese calendar, Namorese President-General Chen Chanin declared 1987 to be a Year of Great Peace, becoming the first person in his office to do so. In his declaration, he announced his intention to bring about a "permanent peace in Borea" by pursuing a no first use nuclear policy, entering negotiations with the Apostolic Catholic Church over the status of the Patriarch of Gusev, and signing a peace treaty with Peitoa. He also called on both the ruling Liberationists and opposition Democratic Socialists to "move on" from the contested 1985 election.
That same year, the Central Council passed legislation banning the preemptive use of nuclear weapons in war and an amnesty that saw the release of over 25,000 prisoners. The Namorese government entered negotiations with the Apostolic Catholic Church that eventually resulted in the 1988 deal that ensured the return of Patriarch Ivan III to Txotai.