Melekism
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| Melekism Melekiyatî (Dzhuven) | |
|---|---|
| File:Ezidi Mirza.jpg A Melekite temple behind a statue of Anasha Şêrko, an important Dzhuven politico-religious figure | |
| Type | Ethnic |
| Classification | Ayar religion |
| Scripture | Book of Revelation |
| Theology | Polytheistic |
| Members | 24.8 million |
| Other name(s) | Şerfedîn |
Melekism is a polytheistic ethnic religion with deep roots in Kardo-Ayar ethnic tradition. Followed mainly by the Dzhuvens in Dzhuvenestan and the Ayars of Shirazam, the religion has 24.8 million followers around the world.
Principal beliefs
The defining feature of Melekism, and the origin of its name, comes from the belief in Seven Divine Spirits, or Angels, which serve as the guardians of the Earth and its people. These Angels serve as the agents of Light in the world, often associated with the soul and the spiritual realm. They serve in opposition to the Dark Lords, or ahriman, which itself stands for materialism and the world. In this sense, Melekism contains significant elements of dualism in the battle between dark and light as well as polytheism in the praise and worship of the Seven Angels. Some schools have developed deeper and more detailed beliefs as to the nature of the ahriman. Various names have been given to these Dark Lords, as well as various sects assigning them different representative attributes such as specific sins or ways of sinful living that they represent.
Humans are also seen by Melekism as divided between body (belonging to an inner Darkness) and soul (belonging to an inner Light and the Seven Angels). Melekist thought encourages "self-cultivation," or a lifestyle of righteous spiritual action, worship, and thought. Upon a person's physical death, it is believed that the Angel of Fertility, Argimpasa, will measure the strength of their soul versus the weight of their physical being, at the Bridge. If a person has lived a spiritually cultivating life, their physical body will be cast aside at the Bridge, and they will cross into living on as Spirits of Light. If one has let their base, material instincts dictate their life or has otherwise lived a life devoid of spiritual cultivation, their spirit will be thus too weak to cast off their body; the soul will be destroyed and they will be the ones to experience true death.
In addition to the Light-Darkness divide and the Seven Angels, Melekism teaches that the world is composed of four fundamental elements: fire, air, water, and earth. These elements are sacred; typically, fire or air are seen as purifying elements in differing contexts, while the water and earth are not to be polluted. The custom of baptism is performed using water from the Kaniya Sipî, or "White Spring," typically derived from Mount Damezman in Dzhuvenestan or X place in Shirazam. Likewise, burial customs are eschewed at death in lieu of sky burials. As the body is associated with materialism and with being in opposition to the soul, it is believed that the righteous have no use for the veneration of their remains after death. As such, they are traditionally placed in large towers, where vultures and other carrion feeders will "clean" the remains. In some denser communities, especially those far from mountains or other locations where it is convenient to practice sky burial, it has become common to revert to cremation instead, with ashes usually released in isolated locations to be scattered by the winds.
History
Organization
Regional variants
Shirazam
The religious landscape of Shirazam is especially complex, with a core polytheistic belief system on which Sarpetic religions and Zilung Chen' State Cult had major influences. Shirazamites beliefs can thus range from polytheism to pantheism, henotheism, or even monotheism. Due to a lack of state religion or of any cult enforced by an institution, faith express itself in Shirazam mostly in the form of a Folk religion with many variants and sects, which are not mutually exclusive.
Like in other Melekist regions of the world, Melekites Shirazamites hold that there are a World of Light and a World of Darkness, with the Physical World at their intersection. Everything related to the Spirit or the Soul come from the World of Light, everything related to the Body or the Material Realm come from the World of Darkness. The Seven gods are Targit, the goddess of heat, fire, and the hearth, sometime represented as a peacock due to medieval influence from other Melekist schools. Targit, the Burning One, is the main deity of Light that existed before the World of Light and the World of Darkness met. From her was born the Sky-Father Ohrmazd (Heaven) and the Earth-Mother Api (Underworld). When the Dark Lord Ahriman invaded the world of Light, Api was imprisoned deep within the newly created physical world, becoming the soul of a universe made otherwise only of cold, dark matter. The son of Ohrmazd and Api, Mithra, then came down into the physical world in the form of a great fire to fight off Ahriman and free his mother but he failed. His sister, Anahita, stayed behind in the physical realm to dig wells and springs to create a path to the Underworld that will allow her mother to return to the World of Light. For six months (Autumn and Winter) she stays underground with her mother, exploring the Chtonic underworld. She return to the surface the rest of the year, bringing some of her mother's gift and energy with her and bringing back life and fertility to the world. Ashamed by his sister' dedication and taking pity on the many souls of light who were trapped in physical bodies during the battle with Ahriman, Mithra left behind his horse Gaitasura, the Sun, so that the lost souls would never forget the Light. But the forces of darkness pursue Gaitasura in an eternal fight, forcing him to flee across the Sky and the Underworld, creating the night and day cycle. Taking pity on the lost souls herself, Targit would end up sending to the mortal world her last child: Targitaos. Fighting against the demons of Ahriman, Targitaos became the first ruler and guide of the shards of Light trapped in physical bodies: Mankind. He was ultimately chased from the world by the forces of Darkness but left behind both the Oral and Written Traditions to guide Mankind back to the World of Light. He is said, like Mithra, to periodically return to the Physical Realm to battle against Demons, taking the shape of a Prophet or an Oracle guiding Mankind once more.
But beside the seven major deities, the Shirazamites worship a number of other deities: river and oasis spirits, heroes and ancestors, angels and saints. Veneration of the dead, Worship of angels, and Glorification of the saints are all common practices with private or public shrines, sometime with their own festivities that can sometime be led by ordained clergy but are more generaly performed by lay practitioners. These examples of folk religion contrast heavily with more structured schools and sects, gathered around a master recognized for his knowledge of the Classics, his mastery of the rites, and mystical powers.