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Ruqhnah History:

Beliefs

Ruqhnah religious beliefs:
The Ruqhnah religion holds belief in a single ultimate good/creator called the Source and a single ultimate evil/corruptor called the Dark One. Each of these deities rules over one kind of an afterlife, the Otherworld and Tel’kar. Admittance into one of these afterlives is based upon a Ruqhnah’s deeds and actions in life, where honour is held in the highest regards. If a person has lived their life and died honourably then it is believed that the gates of the Otherworld would open and welcome them in. If a person lived their life and died without honour then it is believed that their soul would be taken down into the fiery depths of Tel’kar where a person would relive all of their dishonourable moments until a time when they would be sent back to the mortal coil to try and atone for themselves. In rare cases, when a Ruqhnah has so dishonoured themselves the body is not buried for the planet to claim. Without this return to the soil a soul can not be guided to one afterlife or the other and instead wonders the vast cosmos until the end of time. Unlike those that go to Tel’kar, this person has no chance for redemption. This is the worst fate of which a Ruqhnah can dream.

A matter of honour:
Honour is the driving force of Ruqhnah social culture. Such a concept has been so ingrained into the Ruqhnah and their society that it has created a social cohesion that has sometimes kept society functioning even through lawless times. Honour is involved in nearly every choice and decision that a Ruqhnah make, this ranges from scientific research to simple parties to war and because of that, exactly what is honourable is as difficult to define as what is right and wrong. Different actions can give varying amounts of honour, such as donating goods to the needy is honourable, but not nearly as honourable as putting one’s life in danger for another. While honour is built up throughout a Ruqhnah’s life the acts of dishonour a person commits will almost always follow a person longer then their honourable acts.

From birth to death:
When a Ruqhnah is born it is both a time of joy and sorrow. Ruqhnah celebrate the birth of the new family member who will someday go out to make their mark on the world, however there is also sorrow, since no life is without pain. From birth to the age of six a child is considered honourless; this is different from one with no-honour since a child under the age of six is not held responsible for their actions that dictate honour and dishonour. When a child reaches the age of six they have reached the age of apprenticeship. Historically this was the age at which a child was apprenticed to learn a trade, in more modern times this is the age at which a child’s education begins in any great depth. A child remains under tutorage until the age of eighteen, when they reach the age of ascension. It is at this time a Ruqhnah is tested and if they pass they are considered an adult. The actual test varies for each individual; historically this was the test in which an apprentice became a master or a squire became a soldier. Now the tests are administered by the school that the child attends and it covers all studies from the past twelve years of their life. From this point on a Ruqhnah becomes an adult and they are treated as an adult in all regards. At any point after a Ruqhnah becomes an adult they may choose to be bonded. Bonding is one of the most series traditions because it is thought of more then just the joining of two Ruqhnah, it is thought of as the joining of their souls. Once two Ruqhnah bond there is no way to nullify it, the two are bonded together for the rest of their lives and beyond. Even after the death of one partner the surviving Ruqhnah cannot bond another because their very soul is still bonded. It is because of this that family and friends of the couple-to-be discuss greatly a proposed bonding. If there is even the slightest reason to postpone or cancel a bonding ceremony then the couple-to-be and the priest or priestess are consulted and discussion continues until a decision to proceed or cancel is reached. From ascension on a Ruqhnah leads their life as they see fit, until death. When a Ruqhnah dies one of several ceremonies is performed. If the Ruqhnah dies with honour then there is great celebration. The ceremony celebrates the life that was lived and that they are beyond the problems of the mortal coil and that they have gone on to the Otherworld. This is also the fate of an honourless child under the age of six. The body of the person is then wrapped in a white cloth and buried so the soil can reclaim both the body and soul allowing the soul to be guided towards their afterlife. When a Ruqhnah dies without honour, or dishonourably, there is little talk aside from the priest or priestess proceeding over the ceremony. The body of the person is then wrapped in black cloth and buried so the soil can reclaim both the body and soul allowing the soul to be guided towards their afterlife. If a person has so dishonoured themselves then a short ceremony is conducted. During this only the priest or priestess talks and the body is left naked and put atop a wooden pyre and left for the wilds. With no return to the soil the soul is not guided anywhere and is left to wonder for all eternity.
With the advent of space travel and the increasing frequency of stellar conflict it is sometimes impossible to recover a body for burial. Because of this it was thought that if a person was killed in space and not recovered their soul would wonder unguided, this was terrifying for early space travellers. With this in mind Ruqhnah religious dogma shifted and stated that even without a body, a token could be buried instead, to act as a guide for the soul, to draw it back to the soil so that it could makes its journey towards an afterlife.

Fate and destiny:
With constant struggle between good and evil, honour and dishonour in a Ruqhnah’s life fate and destiny play their own role. The Ruqhnah’s belief has a delicate balance between freewill and destiny. For many a person’s freewill allows a Ruqhnah to act anyway they wish, but when an ordinary person rises to do extraordinary things there is more at work then just a person’s desire to do something. Generally, when fate plays a role in the Ruqhnah’s life it can have massive repercussions, for good or for ill.