Sorcery in Paxism
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Sorcery in Paxism (Packilvanian: luHaxaanishme aPaxashme), also known as witchcraft or magic, is refers to the institutions, practices and beliefs that aim to induce supernatural outcomes in ways that are forbidden by the Magisterium of Paxism. As such, according to the canon law of Paxism, sorcery is a sin and it is forbidden for Paxists to engage in it. In some Paxist-majority countries such as Packilvania, Allegheny and Drakkengard, some forms of sorcery are banned and prohibited and punishable by law for either Paxists only or the general population regardless of religion, while in others it is frowned upon and seen as socially deviant.
Many of the practices and institutions and beliefs that are considered sorcery emerged thousands of years ago. The Kingdoms in central Yasteria, namely Akil, Adrien, Yehudah, and Bakil formed the locus of Paxism and thus many practices and beliefs which they did not believe in or adopt such as those of the kingdoms in the east of the Packilvania such as Jumhurikesh and Fidakar were forbidden and vilified to the extent that sorcery became seen as an evil thing. The Magisterium of Paxism cemented this ban and has continued to teach against it even today. So deeply was the hatred for sorcery entrenched into the Packilvanian psyche that even an atheistic government such as the Packilvanian Communist Party banned sorcery, witchcraft and its affiliants.
Practices such as divination, incantations, icons, effigies, amulets and potions are banned by the Magisterium and are seen as anathema and carry sentences ranging from imprisonment to execution particularly in the ultra-conservative Paxist countries such as Packilvania. Practices are not automatically considered sorcery if they are carried out by another religion and the Magisterium can overturn its own teachings as is often the case when it comes to medicine and science in relation to what constitutes sorcery. Sometimes, the term sorcery only applies to Paxists and not to adherents of other religions.
History
Ancient History
Around 4,000 years ago, the area of the Ufrata River basin in modern-day Ashura was populated by an ancient civilization that depended on planting and harvesting crops and herding animals. The people were semi-nomadic, returning to places regularly based on the change in the weather and the fluctuations in the water in the river. With much of their lives dependent on these natural forces for their survival, they developed a rich tapestry of myths, legends and accompanying practices aimed at alleviating some of the suffering of life or gaining an advantage over competitors. Some of the earliest practices that emerged include using bones and turtle shells etched with symbols to divine future events and diagnose ailments. Others include belief in the presence of supernatural beings that caused illnesses or brought good fortune that through incantations could be willed into intervening for the living.
Early Paxism
Around 2000 BCE, there existed two Kingdoms in the area of central Yasteria: Akil and Yadra. They were predominantly sedentary societies that practices animal husbandry and crop farming. They were descended from the semi-nomadic tribes that used to live in the area. In the Kingdom of Akil, the spiritual leaders were called Yimam and the spiritual leaders of the Kingdom of Yadra were called Hexaan. The two Kingdoms began to diverge in their beliefs about which practices were good or right. The Kingdom of Akil believed in Nah but the Kingdom of Yadra believed in Burkh as their deity. They also had different ways of worshipping and practicing.
The two came into conflict over resources and control over areas that were considered sacred to their god. These conflicts resulted in wars and enmity against the people of the other Kingdom. Prophet Besmali and his contemporaries grew up and lived in this environment. The Yimams taught that the Yadra people were evil and that Nah would rescue them. They vilified their practices such as divination with bones and praying to Burkh. As such, the Yimams considered the Hexaans who taught these beliefs to be evil. Prophet Besmali travelled to various towns and cities with his friends teaching that worship of Burkh was evil and that the practices of the people of Yadrayeen were wrong.
The two Kingdoms had a war and the Kingdom of Akil won the war. They felt that this vindicated their god, Nah and their beliefs, and the way that the war between Akil and Yadra unfolded is claimed to have aligned with Prophet Besmali's predictions. As such, Prophet Besmali and his compatriots became prominent and their teachings became part of the religion of the Yimams and subsequently part of the religion of Akil. Akil then imposed these teachings upon the people of Yadra. Those people of Yadra who resisted Akil rule were vilified. The foremost people who rebelled against Akil rule were the Hexaan. Thus, Akil saw the Hexaan and the religion of Yadra as evil. They taught that their deities and practices were morally wrong. When the Ichtmar, the first Paxist scripture, was being written and the various mythologies of the Kingdom of Akil were coalescing and being recorded, some artefacts from the religion of Yadra made it into Paxism. For example, Borg, the is believed to be adapted from Burkh and the word Hexaan was used to refer to people who practiced sorcery. It is from their name that the Packilvanian word for witch, sorcerer or magician muHexaan is derived.
In contrast, the deity Nah of Akil was referred to as Noi in Paxism and Yimams were seen as good teachers and prevailers against evil and thus the Packilvanian word for priest became muImam.
Middle Paxism
With the second major collection of authoritative works approved by the Council of Adrien around 1000 BCE for inclusion into the sacred and core texts of Paxism at the time, there some of the practices of meHaxaan made their way into the literature although Paxists theology denies this influence. The religion spread to other nations where there were other types of people with similar or different roles. These include ngweQachakhiya, from the Kingdom of Mudyahan (which evolved into Medayin in Iganar) a term which evolved to mean a healer or doctor meHayahiya which is still used in modern Packilvanian. They were people who believed that ritual meditation could expel evil spirits.
There were the ly*Ujhtyar from the Kingdom of Jojgur (which eventually became Tashkar in Mekedesh) who were the practitioners who believed that burying the dead (an innovation at the time) instead of cremation would enable the souls of the dead to be present in the land and give them powers to intervene in the lives of people and they were rumoured to be able to fly. All these different practitioners were largely recognised as valid based on cultural exposure and sometimes even political utility. In the Kingdom of Pyanghal (which evolved to the name Bingol that we use today) around the 7th century CE, there was a class of officials, the ghJyakhjha who believed that there were those on Urth who bore not only power from Noi but were the mortal spawn of them. They taught that these people who often occupied the highest echelons of their ranks, had not merely powers but authority that extended to the governing not only of Pyanghal and its immediate surrounds but also far flung kingdoms that stretched many miles away.
With Pyanghal rising in prominence and the city being given increasing weight and importance by lands as far north as Khiya (now Tsuhe) and Imhan Hajha (modern day Belaquis), the Kingdom of Bakil which ruled over lands extending from Adrien (heretofore called Yadrayeen) and Akas Akil (heretofore known simply as Akil) was losing credibility and influence with manifest consequences in areas of trade, grazing and farming rights that led to physical conflicts. With lands to the north and east of Bakil facing similar geopolitical pressures from the supporters and tributes of Bingol, there was increased propensity to disparage their practices and beliefs and to embed themselves into the canon of Paxism.
The proverbial nail on the coffin was when King Obed of Bingol summoned a Council in Bingol of like-minded scholars akin to the Council of Adrien summoned by Suleiman of Yehudah. They approved a collection known as the Haagemar which spoke of the Haagen, the descendants of Noi and Pax from whom the ly*Ujhtyar claimed descent and powers. This compelled the confederation and coalition at the head of which was King Iktan of Bakil that ruled over Bakil to attack the southern kingdoms. Further encouraged by the material benefits of increased land and population in the fertile and verdant south, the Iktanite dynasty that he founded established and unified Packilvania. With that, the ly*Ujhtyar became known as meJahad (or bringers of conflict and the word evolved to just mead war in the modern luJaheed). This association with disaster led to the villification of their beliefs which became relegated to the dark magics and occultic practices that were banned by this new government.
Melkezedekism
Nevertheless, where the Packilvanians could not reach such as the south eastern Kingdoms coextensive with modern day Fidakar and Jumhurikesh, the term muHaxaan was reclaimed by leaders and spiritualists there to show resistance and a distinct understanding of Paxism. They seemed to have been tolerated for the most part with their rulers called Dominators and their lands called Dominions (as distinct but substantially indistinguishable from Kings and Kingdoms in the centre and east) seemed to maintain largely cordial relations. But with the rise of the Dominion of Halaler and its advocacy of practices and institutions outside of the control of the United Kingdom of Packilvania, and conflict over control of resources and strategic outposts such as the Jumhur River (that passed through Iganar, one of the core realms of Packilvania) and the Meked River which passed through Mekedesh (a core realm of Packilvania), there increasing enmity and a propensity to villify their beliefs including their attempted reclamation of the term muHaxaan.
With the damage and destruction of parts of the Temple of the Restoration and the slow response of the Bingol government and suspicion of its aims to displace the Adrien-Akas Akil axis as the primary locus of the Paxists religion, meImam and meNaweeb across the Kingdom revolted causing such intense political pressure on Melkezedek the Great, that a Council was summoned in Bingol to close the canon of scripture and establishe the Magisterium of Paxism to govern the religion everywhere and not just Packilvania. They crushed the revolt and subsumed them into their newly established clerical government. Backed by the King and with a desire to maintain internal order, the meNaweeb and meImam were preserved, serving the place of the Prophets and Priests (words with which they were formally translated to in Staynish).
But the meHaxaan continued to resist. To supplement the military conquest of those nations ruled by them, the Magisterium issued many bulls and edicts which criminalized them to such an extent that the word muHaxaan could be translated to Sorcerer in Staynish or Hexe in Ethalrian and was used with the same intensity and disdain within Packilvanian circles. Many of their beliefs and practices were banned and discarded. From thence, the Sorcerer were definitively placed in the category of social and spiritual miscreants to the extent that practices that they advocated for and that had existed to varying extents in other parts of Central Yasteria including Packilvania such as homosexuality, gender non-conformism, and matriarchy were vilified to the extent that they became embedded in the moral law of the canon law of Paxism, a legacy that had persisted to this day.
Modern Paxism
With sorcery evolving to not only mean the practices of the meHaxaan but also whatever the Magisterium deemed cursed or debased, practices which the Magisterium disdained were pushed to the periphery and seen as apart from and an affront to Paxism itself. As such, a body of laws have emerged to specifically target sorcery. This intensity has persisted to such an extent that Packilvania retained laws against sorcery even after the Packilvanian Communist Party took over and deposed the Paxist Demirite dynasty. Nikobar Luden, the founder of Yasterian Communism, called sorcery and even religion the "opiate of the masses", a harmful body of beliefs and practices that kept the proletariat and the peasants subservient to and dominated by the capitalist class that entrenched itself and found expression in the nobility of Packilvania, the bourgeoisie and the petit bourgeoisie system of petty farmers and landlords.
Despite experiencing similar oppression under the Communist rule, Paxism's hatred from sorcery became so deep as it in part attributed its woes to sorcery and thus doubled down on teaching and propagating the core values and precepts espoused by the Magisterium. This fervent and zealous desire to preserve the core teachings of Paxism and the confidence that the Paxists acquired as they conquered more territory under the Carriers of Mercy during the Second Packilvanian Civil War further entrenched disdain for sorcery to the extent that when a new government was proclaimed sorcery was banned and punished in the law of Packilvania. Today, sorcery is a crime that carries prison and in some rare cases death.
Comparisons with mainstream Paxism
Divination and Prophecy
Divination (luNazrakhuwaj) is the process and practice of predicting the future and diagnosis ailments. Prophecy (luNawaabishme) attempts to achieve similar goals. Divination is used to refer to forms of prediction that fall outside of formal Paxist recognition. This includes using bones and shells of animals, astrology, tarot cards, inducing a trance-like state through meditation or the consumption of intoxicants, palm and tea bag readings to receive information about people. The source of this knowledge is believed to be communicated either by the soul or spirit of the subject of the reading or by spiritual beings. These beings are believed to be Esma in some cases or even spiritual beings that inhabit physical objects or exist in nature but are invisible to mortal perception.
Regardless of the form of divination or the belief in its source, the Magisterium states that only people whom it recognises are indeed prophets. They believe that prophecy comes only from Noi and no other source, that it applies to entire nations and phenomena as opposed to individuals, that it must conform to and be consistent with the teachings of the Magisterium and that it can only come through spontaneous visions rather than deliberate attempts to glean information. Most of all, the Magisterium believes that the predictions must come true or the person bringing the prediction must be accompanied by a verifiable, spontaneous miracle independent of their personal effort and station and solely from Noi. These supposed miracles must pass the scrutiny of the Magisterium to be deemed as valid and subsequently demonstrate that a person is a prophet.
Incantations and Prayer
Paxism believes in the practice of prayer (luSilah) as the primary means of communicating with the divine. The Magisterium only recognises prayers that are performed in line with its teachings. Prayer is normally spoken (to the extent that the person is able to speak). It falls into different classes that are performed at different times for different purposes. Incantations (luBabalazanay) may be similar to prayer in aesthetic or form, but they differ in that they do not follow the format or speak to the beliefs and teachings espoused by the Magisterium. What specifically makes something an incantation is the appeal to spiritual or other powers other than Noi. Paxists are forbidden from praying to Pax, Esma or Prophets or any mortals even within Paxism. Doing do is considered an incantation or spell.
Miracles, Charisma and Powers
Both miracles and powers are supernatural. Miracles and charisma are seen as good things that come from Noi but powers are seen as bad. Miracles are supernatural and spontaneous phenomena or events without scientific explanation that cannot be attributed to a person's effort, status or qualifications. Charisma are spiritual gifts that are given by Noi to people to make a supernatural impact on the world. Miracles and charisma are seen as only good and beneficial to uplift, protect good people and to stop or destroy evildoers, with good people often being seen as Paxists and evildoers and sinners being seen as everyone else. As the world has become more scientific and reason and evidence-based, the amount of miracles and actions considered spiritual gifts have fallen sharply. Powers are seen as evil and brought about by Borg and other dark forces when that belief existed. People in the present gravitate to viewing powers as a ruse or illusion created by a magician to trick people into believing they have supernatural abilities when in fact they do not. Often depictions of superheroes are met with suspicion by Paxists as subtly glorifying witchcraft and parading it as art or entertainment.
Icons, Effigies and Amulets
The Magisterium is iconoclastic and it teaches against idolatry which is the teaching that icons, images and effigies used from religious purposes are evil and forbidden. So Paxists are forbidden from creating images of Noi, Pax, or prophets. No images or depictions are permitted in Majhids or Shrines. They also teach against using effigies such as a doll of a person, or a statue of a being or anything meant to stand in the place of one like an amulet. Thus the worship of objects of any kind or the belief that objects have supernatural powers is expressly forbidden by the Magisterium and is seen as sorcery.
Potions
Potions are seen as elixirs, concoctions, and other brews that are seen to induce supernatural outcomes such as bringing a curse or misfortune onto someone or mind-control or making someone love you etc. Potions are seen as distinct from hallucinogens and medicines. Medicines are accepted as scientifically and medically valid and used to heal and alleviate ailments. Hallucinogens are simply substances that cause trances, visions and hallucinations. These are seen as natural by the Magisterium although the Magisterium does not condone the use of hallucinogens but they treat is as the sin of gluttony and debauchery rather than the sin of sorcery. Potions are often characterised by the use of materials that are disgusting to the Magisterium or used in was that the Magisterium finds disgusting or harmful. The thinking around potions has evolved significantly through the evolution of modern medicine that has often debunked many myths around certain substances and their use. There are some medical practices such as stem cell research, intravenous treatment, organ and blood donation that while permissible are contested in more orthodox and conservative circles and remaining ongoing areas of discussion.