Tag: religious writing

Religion plays a critical role in The Eirenic Verses. One of the main characters, Cerie Korviridi, is a member of the High Poet Society who gained her powers through years of training; she is our entryway into this fascinating field. Today, I’ll delve more into its tenets and basis.

A brief overview of Etymonism

The term “Etymonism” hasn’t shown up yet in the series, and for good reason: it doesn’t exist until later. However, most of its components are present in the first book, 9 Years Yearning, and remain ever-present throughout the rest of the texts.

In this religion, it’s believed that the goddess Poesy wrote the world into existence, maintaining a constant log of all happenings in the past, present, and future. She is Breme’s patron deity and concerns herself primarily with this culture’s needs rather than those of other countries, which we’ll discuss in a bit.

The idea of a permanent log is similar to the concept of the Akashic Records, but there’s a twist: some humans can influence this writing, namely the High Poets. These women are blessed by Poesy with the ability to change reality through poetry; they are either given this gift at birth or learn it through intensive training.

Saint Luridalr was the first High Poet; it’s believed that Poesy had never directly interacted with a human before Luridalr raised the Rimuk Mountains and discovered the gift of High Poetry. Her story is told in the upcoming Saint Luridalr and the Peony Phoenix.

Now, Poesy and her subalterns have become an irrefutable element of Bremish society and culture, informing everything from warfare to medicine. The High Poet Society is a powerful force, and their meronyms (religious centers) are the epicenter of most towns throughout the country.

At the end of the world, Poesy will erase everything and start from the beginning, where the dead Bremish will be reanimated in a new world. They are said to rest in the Cave of All Fallen deep under the Rimuk Mountains.

Etymonism is not an attempt to convert anyone.

I understand that many are leery of religious themes in any text, as they believe it’s an attempt to impose a certain ideology on the reader.

Though my made-up religion is based on real things, its inclusion is not meant to sway anyone toward any spirituality, real or otherwise. I would hope that you can enjoy this book as an atheist or adherent of any religion whatsoever.

By bringing up its origins, I’m not telling you that Buddhism, Shintoism, Catholicism, or anything else is the “one true religion,” because I don’t believe any one true religion exists. The fact that Poesy and the High Poet Society are so tied up with one culture – Breme – is an acknowledgment of this.

If there is a universal force, I believe it can take many channels, especially as so many religions share basic principles: love one another, do no harm, become the best version of yourself. The religion that speaks to you is the correct and true one for you.

And if you don’t believe in any religion at all, that’s okay; you don’t have to be religious to be a good person. An all-loving god or a supreme universal essence would still accept and support you even if you didn’t believe in them.

Rather, I use religion as a vehicle to explore greater themes – and, of course, to have magic exist in this universe. One of these themes critiques the concept of religion in the first place: the idea that one must pray for good favor and that one’s own free will doesn’t matter.

I’m not expecting you to rip out your fingernails or start reciting poetry in hopes it will make miracles. You don’t need to believe in anything I’m saying to enjoy what I write.

With that out of the way, let’s get down to the basis of Poesy, High Poetry, and Etymonism as a religon.

Poetic terms form a crucial basis for the religion.

As I explained in the post about names in the Eirenic Verses, meronym refers to a term that represents a whole. For example, giving someone your hand in marriage does not actually mean you’re cutting off your hand and giving it to them; you’re offering them your entire self. “Hand” would be a meronym in this instance. The opposite is homonym, where the whole stands in for the part.

So, the meronyms dotted throughout Breme are parts representing the whole of the High Poet Society.

Later on in the series, High Poetry becomes a more widespread practice and a more codified religion rises up called Etymonism. You’ve probably heard of the term etymology, or the study of a word’s origin. Etymon is the original form of a word. This perfectly represents Poesy, who is said to be the origin of all words.

Buddhism is the main influence on Etymonism.

While I never preach to readers about what religion they should believe in, my Buddhist studies have had an impact on how I interpret my made-up spirituality.

As Etymonism rises in popularity, we hear that adherents must take refuge in the 9 Syllables: Poesy, the Etymon, and the meronym.

This is a direct reference to taking refuge in the three jewels of Buddhism, those being the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.

But there are definitely other Buddhist factors in Etymonism. One such element is self-actualization, a component of Buddhism that is especially dear to my heart.

Buddha never preached that people could expect miracles or that praying for something automatically makes it happen. Similarly, Poesy does not grant miracles without effort. She won’t fix things you can fix on your own; all prayers have a price. You are in charge of reaching enlightenment or making positive changes in your life.

In some ways, the evolution of Etymonism also mirrors the development of Buddhism. Before the Lotus Sutra, which Nichiren Buddhism is based on, it was believed that only certain people could reach enlightenment. Others could support the mission but had to wait for their next reincarnation to get a chance.

The Lotus Sutra revealed that enlightenment is possible for everyone if they work hard, take refuge in the three jewels, and perform meritorious deeds. Nichiren Daishonen, the founder of Nichiren Buddhism, streamlined this by encoding the messages of the Lotus Sutra in the mantra nam myoho renge kyo.

Earlier in High Poetry, only Bestowed Poets could learn High Poetry, but this was later found to be untrue. Certain people, unskilled at birth, could learn this through extreme effort and sacrifice; these are Inculcated Poets.

Cerie is an Inculcated Poet who worked hard to develop her skills. I chose to focus on her throughout the series because I wanted to demonstrate this concept of “enlightenment” being open to the everyday person.

But of course, High Poetry is currently limited to women, though Etymonism later accepts lay poets into their ranks. In the future, can men obtain this skill too? It’s possible.

Shintoism is another essential element of this spiritual system.

It’s no coincidence that Poesy is seen as an unknowable, untouchable deity, more like an ever-present spirit than a personified goddesss. She is an elemental force who wrote the world but cannot be directly talked to or interacted with.

This comes from my interest in Shintoism. The Japanese folk religion plays a critical role in many Japanese Buddhist schools, including Nichiren Buddhism.

Shinto spirits (kami) are often more elemental in nature, not necessarily something one can see in a specific form. A spirit may take shape in a tree, a sword, or a river; it is like amassed life force in these places or items.

I mostly became turned on to Shintoism through the game Touken Ranbu, which does personify kami. More precisely, it focuses on tsukumogami, which are household objects or utensils that can gain a spirit after 100 years of steady service.

The game gives a variety of famous Japanese katana their own bodies and personalities; it has been crucial for reinvigorating interest in Japanese history and traditional swordsmithing. I, for one, did not care a whit about Sengoku-era politics or different sword classifications before falling in love with this series.

Another critical component of Shintoism is that spirits aren’t necessarily good or bad. They’re performing their roles and keeping balance in nature, which may not always bode well for humans.

Similarly, Poesy isn’t depicted as benevolent or all-loving. She is about maintaining the flow of history and ensuring everything is calibrated rather than lavishing luck on her favored people.

Lastly, Catholicism informs Etymonic aesthetics.

Few can argue that Catholic iconography and architecture are not breathtaking. Soaring cathedrals, sacred relics, and the many epithets of the Virgin Mary have become inseparably entwined with cultural consciousness, so it’s no surprise that one finds these in my work.

Though I’m a Western Buddhist, I’m a product of my culture nevertheless, and America has a strong Catholic church. I’ve always been drawn to the trappings of Catholicism despite not agreeing with the religion in most aspects.

Given that Breme is heavily influenced by Celtic culture, and Irish Catholicism is its own cultural monolith, it only made sense to incorporate many of its themes.

One sees this influence primarily in the “Amen, amen, amen” responses that are ubiquitous throughout High Poetry prayers, which come after the actual magic. However, I also based the architecture of meronyms on Catholic churches, giving a sense of awe and beauty.

Additionally, Catholicism led me to introduce the idea of keeping sacred relics from saints or blessed people at meronyms or other important locales, as mentioned in Pride Before a Fall. The idea has always creeped me out, and I love creepy things.

Eirenen is a polytheistic, nationalistic world.

While we see little about the additional countries in Eirenen, it’s mentioned that most have their own patron deities. This may seem like an odd decision to monotheistic readers, quick to assume that Poesy is the omnipotent goddess who controls everything. However, it’s important to consider the world’s context.

Eirenen is a premodern world with little communication between different societies, most of which are on their own islands or continents. While there are likely missionaries attempting to spread the word about their religion, said missionaries would be up against incredible odds, especially as most cultures are fiercely loyal to their patron deities.

As such, hundreds of gods and goddesses exist, each with their own domain. This brings up a number of fascinating questions I leave up to the readers. For example, are all these deities different faces of the same god, like the innumerable versions of the Virgin Mary? Or, to the contrary, are they all distinct beings who have chosen certain domains as their own?

When two countries fight, are their gods pitted against one another, or are they attempting to bring peace? How much contact do these gods have with each other, and are they all beholden to an even higher deity we don’t know?

I encourage you to ponder these concepts and come up with your own theories. Should you have headcanons, you can always contact me at hello@eirenicverses.com to share your thoughts.