A Maze of Formulas and Rituals
The Zamorians as a whole are polytheistic and the people of Shadizar are no less so. Religion is considered a civilised refinement by the Zamorians and is embraced by most of them as a factor that raises even the lowest of them above the level of savage. Few foreign gods are accepted alongside the authentic Zamorian deities derived from ancient Zhemri myths and beliefs, Bel being a notable exception. Different Zamorian cities have patron gods, forces that embody the city or an aspect of the city. Yezud, with its infamous spidergod, is the most familiar of these patron gods. Bel, a Shemite god, is the patron of Arenjun, which is also called the City of Thieves. Several aspects of Zamorian religion are worthy of note. The importance of religion, the eerie beauty of their temples, the complex nature of their beliefs, the domination of the priests and the myriad strange gods are all facets of Shadizar’s temple district. Zamorians find religion to be economically important and they believe in the power of their multiple gods and priests. Like marriage, religion is considered by most Zamorians as an economic tool, not a spiritual tool. Most of the religions the Zamorians find tasteful would shock a votary of Mitra, for Zamorian religions embrace vice to an alarming degree, daring the vengeance of long-suffering gods of purity. Most of these religions embrace and idealise gross or animalistic sexual theories and purely physical uses of sex. Zamorian religions tend to condemn the idea of a spiritual meaning toward sex and ideas about romantic love, as these theories run contrary to the obviously economic value of sexuality, virginity and marriage. Since any Zamorian can see firsthand the economics of these concepts,
the idea of a spiritual value of these things is alien and corrupt. Casual, mindless promiscuity is almost always emphasised over sentimental and non-measurable attitudes about purity and sexuality. Two great festivals are celebrated throughout Zamora in its temples: The Spring Festival and the Festival of All Gods.
Zamora
Religion in Zamora Temples in Zamora are strange and beautiful buildings. Largely they are built in districts designated for temples, but this is not always the case. The buildings glitter in the starlight and are often blindingly bright in full sunlight. They are built out of white marble for the most part, with golden domes and silver inlays. Foreigners commonly find the Zamorian pantheon complex and difficult to understand. Philosophers and theologians hold long debates about reality, the cosmos, life after death, heresies, truths and gods. Zamora’s religion is intricate and complicated, housed in a mire of bizarre rituals masking, amplifying or altering the more simple Zhemri truths and beliefs. Their religions also seem to most foreigners to be oppressive, for Zamorian priests enforce absolute obedience among their followers. Grim priests and foul sorcerers are abundant in Zamora, all practicing diabolisms such as murderous rites of human sacrifice, wicked acts of soothsaying and foul divinations through ghostly contact with spirits and demons. Many
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