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The Grave Path is a religion dedicated to the veneration and softening of death. Though they are not afraid to kill other stars (indeed, they do perform star sacrifice under rare circumstances), followers of the Grave Path would rather love other stars than kill them. They do not worship killing; they do not live to maim or to hurt. They merely wish to spread the news that death is nothing to fear, that it is just another step on the journey.

This is not meant to be an evil religion (besides the sacrificing thing), though they will probably appear very unsavory to most stars and herds for a variety of reasons. Murderers, conquerers, and kill-crazy psychopaths would be unwelcome in Grave Path communities.

If you have any questions, aim them towards Ice_Dragon_Demon or Geyser Eelborn--we're the ones running it.

Introduction - Gods and Goddesses - Rituals - History - Hierarchy - Current Members - How to Join

Summoning the Gods
To invoke, commune with, or communicate with a god/dess, that god/dess must be summoned. Gods are summoned by performing a sacrifice specific to the individual god/dess and consuming the meal (consisting of a meat dish and a beverage) specific to the pair to which the god/dess belongs. To digest the meat, worshipers consume an herb. Over time, they may grow used to the meat. Gods are traditionally summoned at the start of something new, such as the rainy season, or the growing season, or a journey; goddesses are traditionally summoned at funerals.

The Earth Gods: Stew and beer
>Madame Grave: vulture
>the Buried God: mole

The Harvest Gods: Snake (prepared any way but raw) and wine
>Madame Venom: snake
>the Poisoned God: crow

The Weather Gods: Fried food and vodka
>Madame Lightning: frog
>the Storm-Struck God: bird of prey

The Healing Gods: Jerky (or chicken soup for the patient) and brandy
>Madame Torment: lizard
>the Tortured God: rabbit

The War Gods: raw meat and blood
>Madame Sword: a star
>the Bleeding God: deer

The Fire Gods: barbecue and whiskey
>Madame Flame: robin
>the Burnt God: salamander

The Water Gods: chowder and rum
>Madame Wave: dolphin or large fish
>the Drowning God: sea bird

The Slave Gods: sausages and tequila for the Captive God; Madame Web is assumed to be always present and therefore does not need to be summoned. His sacrifice is a small bird.

The Wintry Grave Variations
The food for the winter gods are steak and vodka; the drink for the weather gods is mead. Madame Ice's sacrifice is an owl, the Frozen God's sacrifice is a lynx. A ritual for the Frozen God is performed at the beginning of winter, and a ritual for Madame Ice is performed at the end of winter.

Obsidian Knives
Obsidian knives are considered to be important tools of the trade for any priest; they are used for sacrificing, mostly. When a priest/ess of one of the earth gods leaves to make a new mission, whoever is the spokesperson of the settlement they hail from will give them the gift of an obsidian knife. The older it is, the more valuable it is—an old knife has seen more rituals and is thus inherently more sacred.

Honoring the Dead
The Grave Path teaches that those who die are reincarnated. It is believed that if the skull of the deceased is removed, cleaned, placed on the family altar, and cared for, the deceased will be reincarnated back into the family. The skulls of the founding members of a mission or village are placed in especially important places in the settlement, and the bones of past Mictecacihuatls are kept in a shrine in the most holy place of the religion.

Rituals of War
Are censored for good taste. These rituals are only performed during a time of war, which thankfully has been very rare for the Grave Path.


The Mictecacihuatl
Titled after the founder of the Grave Path, the Mictecacihuatl is a priestess of any god chosen to be the leader of the entire religion. She is taught every ritual and tradition by the current Mictecacihuatl and rededicates her focus to the gods of the earth. When her mentor dies, she sits a silent vigil with her mentor's body before removing and cleaning all of her mentor's bones and wearing them over her body. These bones will not be removed until she dies, at which point her mentor will, at long last, be laid to rest at the shrine of the Guardians of the Ancestors. Each Mictecacihuatl chooses and trains her successor until she dies of old age--and it is considered vital that she die of old age. She is buried by her successor in a sarcophagus.

Until she dies, she will be expected to officiate over the most important ceremonies and to participate in minor ones as well (although in minor ones dedicated to gods other than the gods of the earth, she will defer to those deities' priests/priestesses).

If the Grave Path were ever to be wiped out, the Mictecacihuatl is to be kept safe and out of harms' reach so that she can refound the religion, with all its traditions and ceremonies, intact.

Holidays
The new year is around the Winter Solstice. At this time, the Wintry Grave celebrates the Frozen God and the beginning of winter; both the Wintry Grave and the rest of the Grave Path celebrate the creation of the world by Madame Grave with a pageant. Every five years, members of the Wintry Grave, most of whom live in isolated mountain valleys or the tundra, make a journey to the capital to celebrate the new year with the rest of their religion.

The Spring Equinox is marked by the Wintry Grave with the celebration of the end of winter and prayers that those who passed during this difficult time be sent on to another life through a celebration for Madame Ice. When the planting season begins (depending on the location of the settlement), the Poisoned God is worshipped to bring on a good growing season. After the harvest, Madame Venom is worshipped with prayers asking her to protect their food and prevent it from going bad in the months to come. At the spring equinox, when snakes come out of hibernation, the first snake to be seen leaving its den is caught by the priests and kept throughout the growing season. This snake is then sacrificed at Madame Venom’s ceremony. It is considered good luck if this snake is venomous. In places where there are no snakes at all, they are imported from places where they do (although the algorithms by which they decide which settlement gets to keep the first snake varies; in some places, they are harvested from separate dens, in other places they send off the first or the second. It varies between settlements, with agreements and treaties regarding the trade of the snake). In places where snakes do not hibernate, it is the first snake seen on the spring equinox.

Introduction - Gods and Goddesses - Rituals - History - Hierarchy - Current Members - How to Join

Mictecacihuatl: Highest priestess of the earth gods. Guardian of the Ancestors.

High Priests: One per god. Each high priest may only be high priest of one god (see below for how confusion could sprout).

Founding Priest: The founding priest of any given settlement or mission. Represents the settlement or mission and cleans the bones, but does not rule the place. When they die, they are replaced by an elected spokesperson, who may not even hold the job for long!

Priest: Priests typically handle 1-2 gods each. Priests are expected to help out on the farms, caring for crops or livestock.

Acolyte: Priest in training.

Laborer: The average Joe of the Grave Path. As an agricultural society, they are usually craftstars or farmers, and are well-respected.

Introduction - Gods and Goddesses - Rituals - History - Hierarchy - Current Members - How to Join