Hanctheism

Hanctheism
Baiq Ba-Shi
Language	Classical Kwang
Headquarters	Jwanna, Thòunnha
Territory	Domain of the True Sun
Separated from	Haomism
Number of followers	1.83 billion (1995)

Hanctheism (Kwang: Baiq Ba-Shi 'Sovereign-Sun religion') is a monotheistic interpretation of Haomism. Its scripture affirms the role of Hounshi as the utmost important creator solar deity, and declares the worship of the rest of the traditional Haomist pantheon as heretical.

Name

The term Hanctheism comes from the Greco-Roman name for Hounshi, Hanthēus, itself derived from the Middle Kwang pronunciation of the name (hàng thi).

The Kwang name, Baiq Ba-Shi, translated as the Sovereign-Sun Religion, refers to the status of the Sun being the utmost important deity in this religion.

Beliefs

Avatar of Hounshi

The

Nyansàn

The Hanctheist nyansàn (lit. 'arrive to pray') is a pilgrimage conducted at least once in life to the Jwanna Grand Temple. The rites of the pilgrimage should commence ten days before the autumn equinox. Unlike the Haomist nyansàn where the pilgrim could choose any holy site, the Hanctheist nyansàn must be conducted to the Jwanna Grand Temple.

Like in Haomism, the completion of the nyansàn gains one the honourific prefix oun (lit. 'clear, bright'), replacing the default honorific tàn.

Early History

Early forms of Hanctheism can be traced back to the ideologies adapted by righteous peasant armies that arose during the chaos of the Two-Hundred-Year Unrest (1043-1293), where Qonklaks underwent dynastic change in quick succession and faced an invasion from northern Öörzic nomads, most notably the X Horde.

Hanctheism's central dogma of monotheism which centers Hounshi as the sole deity to be worshipped was promoted by philosopher-priest Waun Jìsõ in a series of open letters written during the early Ha Dynasty. He argued that the reason the then-current age of unrest was due to the fact that Hounshi was never meant to be part of a pantheon of gods, and that worship should be concentrated only to him.

By the turn of the 12th century, numerous righteous armies adapted this ideology, and began to systematically demolish any shrine they would come across that housed the old gods of Haomism. Naturally, these actions were seen as heretical by the Haomist establishment. Early converts to Hanctheism would face religious persecution if caught by authorities. During this period, law enforcement would force suspects to pray or make sacrifices to a minor Haomist god, such as the god of the underworld Hài Jaw, to determine whether they were really a Hanctheist.

Among the righteous armies, Nã Wein and his Order of the Four Sages, founded in 1195, would lead an uprising that saw the establishment of the first Hanctheist state, Oun Byàn, in 1204. Nã Tha, grandson of Nã Wein, would unite Qonklaks under his banner by 1293, founding the Byàn Dynasty as the Witaiq Emperor.

First Schism

The Hanctheist clergy, like the Haomist clergy before them, initially tolerated the unanswered question of the nature of life after death. Under Haomism, whether the soul of a deceased person would enter an afterlife (a heaven or a hell), or undergo a cycle of reincarnation, was up to the individual practitioner. As the Hanctheist clergy was significantly more organized than the Haomist clergy ever was, such unanswered philosophical questions could no longer be tolerated.

The resulting conflict split the Hanctheist world into two: that of the paradisiacs, who believed the soul would enter another realm forever upon death, and the samsarics, who believed the soul would be reborn into another body. The Witaiq Emperor attempted to mend the schism with an imperial edict, declaring Samsaric Hanctheism to be the prevailing ideology. He reasoned that if Hounshi could reincarnate a part of Himself within every Avatar of Hounshi, then it would not be wrong to think that a human soul could do the same.

Jiqjõ Reformation

The Jiqjõ Reformation, observed under the reign of the Jiqjõ Emperor, saw several key changes to Haomism.

Separation of Emperor and Avatar of Hounshi

The interpretations of the Jiqjõ Emperor's third haemorasis ritual advised that to ensure the longevity of the Byàn imperial lineage, the role of Emperor and Avatar of Hounshi must be separated, or else the bloodline could meet an untimely end. As such, the Jiqjõ Emperor declared in 1745 that none of his successors would become Avatar of Hounshi.

The new Avatar of Hounshi would henceforth be selected by a long ceremonial process, where upon the death of an Avatar of Hounshi, clergymen would travel across Qonklaks and locate potential reincarnations of the avatar amongst young children, and bring them to the Jwanna Grand Temple in Jwanna, Thòunnha Province. There, candidates would be placed before an assortment of objects, where one of them would have been items used or owned by the previous avatar. Should a candidate select the correct item, he or she would be declared the next Avatar of Hounshi.