Kammism
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| ~360,000,000 | |
| Founder | |
| Kamm the priest | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Prei Meas | ~210,000,000 |
| Mustelaria | ~55,700,000 |
| Canton River Delta | ~95,370,000 |
| Languages | |
| Aschari • Phná • Preimeai • Zaprei • Zhoushi | |
Kammism is the traditional faith followed by most people in Prei Meas. With a sizable following worldwide.
History
According to Kammist beliefs the religion was founded by a lonely monk named Kamm who became who found the voice of Preah speaking to him from atop a mountain and after speaking to the Akthireach Vireakboth Sisowath the declining ancient Prei Meas Empire under this new faith was able to finally subjegate the ancient Phau Confederacy.
Important Figures
Kamm
Kamm for whom Kammism is named after was an ancient monk or hermit living in the First Preimean Empire in about 20BCE. After having his revelation with the Kammist god Preah either on top a mountain or within a cave he went to the Emperor who became the first convert to this new faith. Kamm later became an important spiritual leader and advisor and through his teaching most philosophies of Kammism would emerge.
Akthireach Vireakboth Sisowath
The 3rd ruler of the now ancient Sisowath dynasty. Under his almost mythological 60 year long reign the First Preimean Empire which probably only existed in myth expanded far into the eastern jungles and subjegated the Phau tribal confederacies for the first time. At the age of 20 he became the second follower and first convert to Kammism and through his efforts converted his Empire to the new religion.
Beliefs
Caste System
Traditionally Kammism believes in a caste system which has somewhat lost its influence in modern Kammism. On the top is the Baucha or Priest caste responsible for operating and maintaining temples. Next is the Aphichon or noble caste. They are the rulers and nobles said to produce leaders of all kinds. The third caste is the Sangkream caste or the warrior caste. The next caste is the largest caste. The Kammokar caste or the working caste. It is made up of the merchants laborers and others. The last caste which is technically outside of the larger caste system is the Kakhvak literally meaning "dirty". They are the untouchables. Although discrimination is illegal unfortunate Kakhvak members still face some job discrimination and occasional violence.
Karmaa and the path
In Kammism it is believed that the most sacred thing a person can do is follow a path called the Phlauv according to the teachings of Kamm according to the direct words from Preah. In the Phlauv one follows the ideals of his or her caste to the best of their abilities while trying to relieve suffering and misery. The Phlauv also puts emphases on people commuting themselves to nature and charity to help people. If a person fulfills the Phlauv's demands in him or her that person will be endowed with Karmaa or if one goes against the Phlauv he or she will lose Karmaa. Karmaa will be how Preah and Preah's angels will judge the soul of a person and how that person shall be reborn into a new caste or as an animal.
Preah and Preah's angels
At first glance Kammism might seem like a polytheistic religion due to all the deities in it but in reality in Kammism Preah is the only god with all the other beings being angels who serve Preah or prophets who carried out the word of Preah and became angels. Preah can either be a woman or a man depending on who Preah is showing himself or herself to and to what Preah's intent is. For this very reason Kammism teaches that both men and women are regarded equally by Preah and therefor it would be heresy for people on Anteria to treat men and women differently based on gender.
Reincarnation and the afterlife
When a person dies according to Kammism they will feel like they are asleep for Two days with each day representing ten of the years the first convert to Kammism was "asleep" before embracing the teachings of Kamm and Preah. On the end of the second day the soul with awake in a daze and walk to the nearest stream to wash itself of the debris and impurities before returning to its place of death before praying. An angel known only as Anak Bramoulobrak or "the gatherer" will arrive to comfort the distraught soul and then they will both get in a small boat which will be sailed through the air to the court of Preah. In the court the soul will be assessed by Preah who will take a form to look exactly like the soul as when the soul was alive. To the right of Preah will be an angel who has the form of the soul's father and to the left an angel who has the form of the soul's mother. Preah will then replay every action done by the soul and the soul's accumulated karmaa and advised by the two angels of justice decide how to reincarnate the soul, to exile the soul from reincarnation entirely to Desert of Souls where the evil for lack of better words are banished to and live for the rest of time or until they are able to redeem themselves in punishment. Or to ascend from the castes of the mortal realm into an elevated spiritual state with Preah and Preah's angels. After the trial Preah will smile and bow to the soul who will instantly fall asleep as Preah rises from the bow and awake in their new life as a baby exiting the womb in their new caste or wherever else they were sent.
Angels
Despite the fact that Kammism has only one god Preah the religion has a myriad of angelic beings with some having almost divine power. The angels are seen as either the servants of Preah or just miscellaneous spirits who can give blessings and do their own thing. It is also important to note as Kammism really doesn't have a defined duelist approach to good v evil and instead has an order and spiritual philosophy so no angels are entirely inherently good or inherently bad. Some notable examples include Daktondakam who is the angel in charge of guarding the Desert of Souls. While Daktondakam may at first glance seem evil as he is the Kammist equivalent to Satan the angel is seen as a kind and sorry spirit who will frequently appear to people in their dreams who are in danger of ending up in the Desert of Souls to help guide them spiritually to avoid that fate. Another notable spirit is Anak Bramoulobrak who gathers the souls of those who recently died and is the only being known to regularly sail up and down the angelic canal which in itself can be seen as an angel in Kammist philosophy.
Other Faiths
Kammism believes that all Monotheistic faiths are valid as they all worship Preah be it in different ways. Therefore, all monotheisitic faiths are technically correct and Kammism does not try to encourage conversion to Kammism from a monotheistic religion. All monotheistic prophets like Moses, Zarathustra, Muhammad, and etc. are seen as equal to Kamm and to have brought their people their own version of the Faith in Preah but Kammism is seen as the chief among these. Interestingly Kammism believes that there are multiple afterlife versions for each monotheistic religion governed the way Preah dictated to that people. Polytheistic or Pagan religions are seen as false by Kammist philosophy.
Religious Practices
Kammism has no official head and is practiced differently depending on the location with huge cathedral like places of worship only at important holy sites with other religious temples being minor shrines called a bramoul from the Preimean word for "gather". A bramoul will tipically be a small shrine or house of worship in a place of natural beauty so that the worshippers can be inspired in their meditation and admire the natural beauty created by the angels and Preah.
Bramoul
A bramoul is a Kammist shrine and traditionally it would be a small outdoor shrine with places in the grass or with mats for the worshippers to meditate or sit at in prayer listening to the sounds of nature. Now different sects have different kinds of bramouls with some even building more perminant stone buildings for people to worship in western styles with standardized services. In more traditional bramouls it is traditional to worship scilently so that one may offer his own prayers and reflections and offer food typically vegetables, fish, or other kinds of produce but ussually not meat like cattle. which will be divided into 3 parts by the local monks. preahsangkh (food for the monks), tangveay sat (food given to the local wildlife), and tangveay khangvinhnhean (food for the angels which is charred on a second alter).
chekromlek porchy
chekromlek porchy is an important ritual for monks where after charring the tangveay khangvinhhean they will eat the food sure not to leave any left overs after saying a blessing which will be like sharring that food with the angels and Preah. As the charing process was them eating their parts of the food is what they left behind and offered to the monks.
Marriage
Marriage is considered a sacred union blessed by Preah and by the spirit Sralea. Interestingly Kammism does allow polygamy for up to 3 spouses for a family of up to 4 spouses if all the members agree. This practice of Kammist polygamy however is extremely rare in the modern day. In the wedding ceremony it is customary to do it in the presence of flowers or a scene of natural beauty which is believed to be created by Preah for the angel Sralea and for the lovers. Instead of exchanging rings the couple will exchange a floral crown as flowers are the symbol of marriage in Kammist philosophy.
Nenam
A Kammist religious figure is called a nenam literally translated as "guide" are mainly seen as teachers, roll models, and literal guides in religious matters. There can also be cheamuoy who are people who chose to only live as Kamm did by living off the land to achieve spiritual enlightenment. Assisting a cheamouy is considered a great act of piety in the Kammist faith.
Branches
School of Tonle
The oldest school of Kammist philosophy is called the School of Tonle. It is centered in Prei Meas and is widely considered as the "generic Kammism"
School of Mori
Centered in Phnom and regions of Mustelaria the School of Mori reveres horses and its Nenams follow strict vows of living off the land.
Schismatic Offshoots
As an old and fairly decentralized religion Kammism does have a few schismatic religions, with the most notable and largest one being Heirism.
Symbolism
Kammism has no official symbols but its most commonly used symbol is the 3 pointed star (ផ្កាយបីចង្អុល phkay bei changaoul in Preimeai)
while to a lesser degree the Preimeai Adthochant Meas is occasionally used as a symbol to represent the Kammist faith despite it losing its original religious meaning to most people.
Scripture
There are very many pieces of Kammist scripture resulting from the way they have been made from various hermit monks who would have a direct ability to communicate with Preah Herself called Grand Nenams. All religious texts are collectively referred to as simply "the texts" or អត្ថបទ Atthabat.
The role of Prophecy and the Grand Nenams
The Kammist Faith has many sacred scriptures written by various holy hermits colloquially referred to as the "Grand Nenams" who like Kamm were believed to have a direct ability to see into the realm of Preah. There could only be one Grand Nenam at a time with at the passing of the current one it was believed that a celestial sign would reveal the next one. However before the Preimeai dark ages this connection has been thought to be lost when the last Grand Nenam was murdered. The loss of the prophecy has served as one of the reasons for some predecessors of Heirism's rise and various religious conflicts which contributed to the fall of the 1st Nokor and the region's long lasting dark ages before submitting to Neuewland.
The Primary Atthabat
While there is no official name for the Atthabat passed down directly from Kamm they are considered the most important ones and are held in a higher regard then other atthabat.