The good Doctor Moose raises some excellent ideas and provides some needed synthesis.
> To my mind there are two fundamental issues underpinning the
nature of holy
> sites, shrines or temples (hereafter "temples") both in RW and
Glorantha
> (and more specifically among the Heortlings)– the identity as a
site (which
> may be a deliberately built location) and the identity as a
community.
I agree. There is a tendancy for role-playing games to identify a temple with a site and its attendant priests, and ignore the temple as a community. In many cases, the site is merely a traditional gathering place for the community to engage in ceremonies and rituals and the community is much more important than the site. In other cases, the site is a holy place that is sacred regardless of whether ceremonies and rituals are performed there.
> RW temples often spring from the gathered community, those who
hold a
> common cultic allegiance and may well go so far as to use the
language of
> the body corporate as a temple (certainly true in the Judaeo-
Christian
> tradition again).
Yes - and I think that for the cult of Orlanth and Ernalda, this may actually be the most commonly used sense of "temple" - your clan temple.
> So in this respect the temple is wherever the people are, and at
its
> simplest it is even arguable that a hero band, complete with
guardian,
> forms a temple and has cultic characteristics – the guardian
provides
> assistance and effectively receives worship for these to continue.
I think this is right.
> PRACTICALITIES & SOCIETAL IMPLICATIONS
> Only once it has drawn the attention and gained familiarity, and
some form
> of visible "constructed" features, such as standing stones or
another
> similar focus might it receive the status of a shrine. It might be
that
> features of this scale are what actually rate as clan temples,
> especially among a non-dominant but culturally common cult.
(Perhaps even
> a particularly prolific corner of the clan farming lands might be
> recognised as holy to Barntar, for example).
I'm thinking that most clan sites are simply mythologically appropriate sanctified sites where the temple gathers to perform ceremonies and rituals. In game terms this is a "Power Spot" (worth +10 to +15 for ritual magic).
A windy hilltop would be an example of an "Auspicious Place" (worth +1 to +10 for ritual magic).
The Hill of Orlanth Victorious is where Orlanth actually left for the LBQ and would be an example of "Place Where the Myth Actually Happened" (worth +20 for ritual magic).
Does that help for organizing thoughts?
> Beyond the physical there is the social impact. The interplay
between the
> cultic hierarchy and worshippers has already drawn comment. The
conflict of
> interests between devotees ("religion geeks" who can genuinely
transcend
> clan or tribal squabbles in the name of their god) and the priests
(the
> "institutional" powers who may actively promote their clan and
tribal goals
> and prejudices through the use of the cultic apparatus) could form
a very
> satisfying story arc for a group of heroes (in fact I feel an
adventure
> coming on: how do you reconcile the dictates of your god with the
agendas
> of the hierarchy? Who do you fear most?
And what is that heirarchy? That is what interests me the most right now. A priest enjoys the status and wealth of a thane. He or she is supported by the clan and is a prominent member of the commuunity. We know that they enjoy complete support from clan, tribe or temple (depending on what they are the priest of).
So for instance, Korlmhy Orlgardsson is appointed by the tribal ring of the Colymar to be the full-time priest responsible for performing rituals and ceremonies to Orlanth the Thunderer and Vingkot for the benefit of the Colymar tribe. Kaylin Maniskisdottir is a priestess who performs rituals and ceremonies to Ernalda at the Clearwine Earth Temple and was appointed a priestess by the Chief Priestess of the Clearwine Earth Temple. Willandring was chosen by the Orlmarthing clan ring to be one of the three full-time leaders of the clan's Orlanth ceremonies. And so on.
All things considered, Korlmhy is probably going to be much more involved in tribal politics than Kaylin. Priestly politics may be a bigger issue for Kaylin than for Willandring. And so on.
> In a similar vein even tribes with clans who vehemently disagree
might have
> one common temple in recognition of the founder-hero. IMG Balkoth
> Browncloak's temple in Harnafal's Rest is one of the few places
for Penbal
> and Daldari clansmen to meet without aggravation.
Yep. And periodically this may get tested. I also suspect that there is no reason that a clan would necessarily respect the items and places of worship belonging to another clan. I'm sure there are plenty of examples of clans descecrating other clan's holy places. Sometimes they are punished by the gods for their deeds, sometimes the gods seem to support their actions.
Jeff
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