Jenolites

  

Scriptural narrative

In the scriptural narrative, the Jenolites trace their origins to a series of cultural heroes, the first of which being the matriarch Mothúdul. After proving herself by solving a puzzle (presented either on a seeing stone or from a shadag), Mothúdul established a sacred well in the Pass of Hands and debated the Lord of Clouds, traditionally held to be an Oratian magistrate. Because of her intervention, there broke out a Battle of Twelve Kings, resulting in Mothúdul’s first cousin, Goul, leading a tribe from Orat into the mountains. Having completed this task, he turned into a rock pillar after meditating in the sea for 22 days. Mothúdul became miraculously pregnant, and gave birth to the patriarch Zurduli after twelve months of gestation. The narrative associates each of the descendants of Zurduli as becoming progenitors of the tribes of the continent, who gradually replaced the indigenous inhabitants of the land, and defeated their divine patrons the Ijorunn. The sons of Zurduli competed to earn his blessing, by collectively conquering 13 cities and performing miraculous feats. However, his daughter Qordul performed the greatest feat by flying to heaven, causing Zurduli to bless her line as being eternal priests. The story of Zurduli ends with a vision on his deathbed of a future great revealing.

Qordul leads a great multitude of tribes into the Land of Stargalon where she meets the god Jana’ah and receives several prophecies. The tribes construct a temple in Jana’s Grove, after which two Heaveners appear, who guard its entrance with flaming swords. The tribes disperse, losing knowledge of the location of the Grove (or alternatively the Grove leaves the human realm). Qordul anoints a young warrior named Panonpalo, and tasks him with uniting the land in the name of Jana, before descending into a cave and disappearing. Under Panonpalo, the people do battle with the Oratians, who are stopped in battle by the sound of Mothúdul’s Horn. After forty years, Panonpalo conquers a kingdom stretching across all of Stargalon and conquers the holy city of Zor, which is called Zorqojanyahol (“the mound of the most high god”). An election selects Joreh as the first Regent of god, after which Panonpalo dies of his wounds after wrestling an orca named Shaviouth.

The Book of Levitations ends with the death of Panonpalo, but the Janist scriptural narrative picks up with the Book of Bargains, also known as the "Jenolite Book of Kings". Ardul the son of Panonpalo inherited his father's kingdom, establishing a centralized government across the entire Stargalon Valley. He created a magnificent court in the city of Kara, which consisted of dozens of distinguished princes and warriors from across all thirteen cities of the Jenolites. Ardul's "Court of Kara" is the focus of many epic traditions, a couple of which are recorded in the Book of Bargains, but also supplemented by local folklore. Among their adventures includes the slaying of many fire giants (Ijorunn), and in one case the hunting of a mountain-sized boar. The main focus of the Janist scriptures is to establish a continuity from Panonpalo to Ardul, and from there the rest of the Zurduli dynasty down to the Oratian conquest. The most prominent member of this court is Ambinian, the legendary founder and national hero of Gúlijalah, who's life and exploits are further detailed in the Book of Gúlijalah.

Ardul was succeeded as king by his son Carvo "the Wise", who relocated the capital from Kara to his own city of Zarpatulr. Carvo had a vast imagination and insatiable curiosity, and he desired to expand his knowledge and wisdom by testing every physical and magical phenomenon on Earth. So he constructed a vast network of underground chambers, extending for thirty fathoms beneath the city of Zarpatulr. These chambers would contain hundreds of unique objects or experiments, ranging from the mundane to otherworldly in nature. For example, one chamber was designed to measure the maximum length a cricket can jump, while another contained a Seeing Stone linked to a world of evil spirits. Still other chambers had various monsters imprisoned, such as men with the heads of dogs or bulls. Carvo is often depicted as rather callous if not irresponsible for the lives of those in charge of conducting these experiments, some of whom would never see the light of the Sun ever again. But he believed that the revelation of new knowledge and wisdom was worth the risk, which the Janist scriptures depicts as an admirable virtue.

When Carvo died, he willed the kingdom to his only daughter, Cheldul. Cheldul is described as a fierce and brave warrior, a cut above her peers in terms of agility and proficiency with weapons. She was betrothed to marry Cybo the son of Ambinian, and by the time of Carvo's death they had grown steadily fond of each other. However, Carvo's sister Galdul immediately seized the throne in a coup, placing Cheldul under arrest. Galdul transformed the chambers of Zarpatulr from a house of learning into a prison, re-arranging the corridors to become a labyrinth of confusing passageways, and there she locked up Cheldul and all her political supporters in the deepest part of the maze. As for the handsome Prince Cybo, Galdul planned to forcefully take his hand in marriage in Cheldul's absence. But Cheldul allied with an imprisoned sorcerer named Wettle, and together the two of them managed to escape the maze after overcoming many trials and tribulations.

In a rather colorful and dramatic passage, Cheldul managed to defeat Queen Galdul and rescue her true love. However, it was at this point that Wettle revealed his true intentions, and using a magic spell he banished both Cheldul and Galdol back into the labyrinth, taking control of the kingdom for himself. After putting aside their differences, the two women worked together to escape the maze once again, and confront the evil sorcerer in a final battle. Cheldul used a Seeing Stone to banish Wettle to the dark side of the Moon, finally putting the conflict to an end. Cheldul was then crowned as Queen of Stargalon, with Cybo as her faithful consort. She relocated the capital back to the city of Zor, and before long the city of Zarpatulr had become totally abandoned and forgotten. Later in her life, Cheldul erected a monument to Lady Biomi.

Historical Jenolites

Based on archaeological evidence, the majority of modern scholars consider the story of the matriarchs to be national myth narratives constructed centuries later. The story of Mothúdul, traditionally dated to 1300 AA, may speak to a cultural memory of migration out of the Oratian region into Stargalon, with the story of the Twelve Kings being related to the civil wars that transpired during the fall of the Middle Kingdom. It has also been proposed that the Jenolite narrative drew inspiration from the Kalleanite Exodus. However, most historians reject a migratory conquest model as there is no widespread evidence of a separate people group migrating into Stargalon from Orat in settlement remains. Instead it is proposed that the Jenolites began as a branch of the indigenous Stargalonians who gradually differentiated themselves through their religion centered around the worship of Jana. The Jenolites may have also been the descendants of peoples settled in the region after the establishment of the New Kingdom in Orat, based on inscriptions of Miktal the Restorer, which allude to pushing back “the Split Mountain Host” and subjugating several tribes of the east.

Many historians have attempted to connect the events of the Janist scriptures with the destructive civil conflict that occurred in the Middle Kingdom of Orat, called the War of Five Kings (1282-1265 AA). This is slightly later than the traditional date from the Janist Calendar, but according to Poth's revised chronology this can be reconciled by reinterpreting a few chronological references in the Book of Bargains. While there isn't any contemporary evidence for Goul's exodus, there are many examples of mass emigrations of foreign tribes in the last years of the Middle Kingdom, and at least one source implies that a similar event happened at some point in the past. While this theory has a strong following, especially adherents of Poth's revised chronology, it is not the leading view of most academics.

The historical matriarchs are believed to have likely worshiped the Stargalonian god Dul’uh, which is preserved in the names of the matriarchs and key locations containing linguistic reference to “dul”, such as in Mothúdul and Qordul. In Jenolite scripture, the word “dul” is also used as a generic term meaning “lord” in several passages, before the use of the name Jana after Levitations 11:3. Scholars have proposed that this text is likely a composite of two separate sources, one preserving the story of Dul worship, which incorporates more spiritual traditions associated with his cult, and a story of the Janist tradition, in which Jana is anthropomorphized as speaking to Qordul.

For a long time, it was theorized that the Stargalonian religion was directly inspired by the Pre-Douist polytheistic religion of Ancient Orat, due to many similarities between the two. For example, the Ijorunn bear similarities to the Predynastic demigods that are also referenced in the Kallean scriptures, and Jana himself may be a counterpart of the Ona Cult. Jana's Grove may be connected to the "Tree of Life" motif found in Predynastic Oratian tombs. This theory has lost much of its support in recent years, however. It is now believed that these connections are actually remnants of a hypothetical Proto-Methonan religion which existed sometime before 3000 AA, from which both the Oratians and Stargalonians descend.

The Panonpalo Cycle is linguistically and conceptually linked to the later Book of Gúlijalah, which likely represents a national myth of the Gúlijalist school meant to retroactively justify the unification of Stargalon, as it proposes the tribes had a common origin centuries prior despite a lack of evidence for such a unified state. In the process of compiling the Janist scriptures, it is possible that the Panonpalo Cycle formed as a hybrid of multiple local legends throughout the Stargalon Valley, where the local heroes of each city were synthesized into one person. Ambinian of Gulijalah and Ardul of Kara are two possible prototypes for this epic. While the Book of Bargains distinguishes Ardul and Panonpalo as two separate individuals, other sources such as the Songs of Jatom seem to use their names interchangeably, leading some scholars to refer to Ardul as "Panonpalo II Ardul".

The oldest historically-confirmed monarchs in the Janist scriptures are several generations removed from Mothudul, although the earlier matriarchs are most likely based on some historical reality. Archaeology confirms the thirteen cities of the Stargalon Valley date back to at least the 13th century AA, and were built on top of older settlements that are Neolithic in origin. The monarchs in Zor commanded the greatest respect among the Jenolites, on account of the holy sites in that city that are sacred to the Janist faith. However, as previously mentioned the archaeology suggests that these cities operated as completely independent polities, and at no time were part of a unified kingdom. It is often suggested that the "Court of Kara" and similar conferences in the Book of Bargains alludes to a loose confederacy of states, of which Zor may have been hegemon.

The supposed "Labyrinth of Zarpatulr" has captured the imagination of many historical enthusiasts and amateur archaeologists down through the centuries, leading to dozens of expeditions trying to find some trace of the city or its wonderous chambers. For now, however, the city's existence remains shrouded in myth.

Writing System

Stargalon script is a pictographic writing system which first appears in the 14th century AA. While it is the oldest known writing system in northeast Methona, it was rarely used prior to the tenth century AA. The earliest samples of this writing system are inscribed on Seeing Stones, which are religious monuments meant to intercede with the gods or other mystical beings. Janist scriptures imply there to be over a hundred such monuments at one time or another, but so far only 38 have been uncovered. Outside of these divinatory inscriptions, much of the history and laws of the Jenolites were kept strictly by oral tradition.

Starting in the tenth century AA, there was a dramatic shift towards literacy among the elites, which is when some of the earliest books of Janist scriptures date from. Many non-religious forms of literature have also been identified from this time, such as a cache of letters found in the city of Kara. This shift is most often attributed to the influence of Orat, after part of the region was annexed by Reman the Great in 970 AA.

Notes

1.^In Jenolite literature, seeing stones are described as large pillars erected in wilderness regions, usually containing a cryptic inscription. The Book of Bargains as well as several Songs of Jatom preserve the view of the seeing stones as being portals to other dimensions or locations, allowing supernatural figures to look through the stone on those in the human realm. Their inscriptions were said to be riddles, codes, and incantations meant to open the portal and reveal divine knowledge. Bargains describes the Mothúdul Stone as being erected by divine powers, while the Epistle of Jasjurdo implies it was raised by giants.

2.^The nature of the shadags are unclear, although later depictions imply they were heavenly beings with mixed humanoid and canine features. Alternatively, it has been proposed that the shadag myth preserves an ancient belief in other divine beings, which were later revised to a role as supernatural messengers.

3.^Usually translated as “fire giants”, from the Gezic root words “ij” meaning “fire” and “oror” meaning “impressive”. Based on the Book of Levitations, the Ijorunn are described as powerful beings with snake-like appendages and heads, and in popular culture have been depicted as being giant in height. However, based on literary reconstruction it has been proposed that the Ijorunn were initially viewed as an alternative set of deities associated with the city of Larchulam, whose worship involved the use of snake augury. The use of snake imagery in depictions of the Ijorunn is theorized to represent a priestly school of thought associated with distancing the Jenolites from the Larchulamian traditions.

4.^Lady Biomi is a divine figure of Janism, also known as the "daughter of Jana". She was initially worshipped as a deity in her own right, but in the Venerable Era her status was reduced to more of a divine helper or shadag. Those who connect the the Jenolites to the Kalleanite Exodus point out linguistic similarities between Biomi and Bomi, who was the wife of the Prophet Hobin.