>Given the history of the region I really don't see the Carmanian religion
>being
>restricted to a tiny few at the very top of society.
It depends on your definition of Carmanianism. You started from a rigid definition that excluded people that could otherwise be described as Carmanian - such as Bisosae that don't accept the Carmanian scriptures.
>Having belief in the Carmanian religion a prerequisite for being "free"
>makes sense to me.
But the trouble is Carmanians aren't really interested in making converts or winning popularity contests. They are far more interested in keeping the distance between the Truth and the Lie. If a serf were to go up to a Carmanian and say "I believe in the Light and the Darkness, the Truth and the Lie...", he'd be lucky if he was patted on the head and told to go back to the fields.
Now if the serf was a member of a religious group that was useful to the Carmanians (such as Bisos), the Viziers are likely to liberate them _en masse_ by declaring the group to worship one of the Good Gods. But the Carmanians still aren't going to like people seeking to free themselves by joining that group. After all, servants of the Lie are always seeking to worm their way in.
--Peter Metcalfe
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