Andam
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| Andam | |
|---|---|
| Death, aging, disease, destruction, pestilence, suicide, despair, fear, nightmares, underworld | |
.jpg) | |
| Other names | Kogorokugoai (Dread of Ai) |
| Written name |
    (Standard Kai) |
| Affiliation | Ando |
| Adherents | Andamites |
| Gender | Female |
Andam (Kai: 
) is a deity of death, destruction, and the underworld in Ramvokist and Ainist mythology. She is traditionally viewed as a vujut bushin of Ando, one of the Four Goddesses, although she is considered a major deity in her own right, and is sometimes characterized as a demon or even a devil. In Ramvokism, Andam is a deity who is not worshipped in the traditional sense, but rather respected or feared due to her association with death and the afterlife. According to mainstream Ramvokism, she is one of the few deities of whom direct prayer or intercession to is forbidden. Her proper name is also considered taboo among some Ramvokists, who instead use the epithet Kogorokugoai (the "Dread of Ai"). In Ainism, she is a malevolent being who encourages evil and leads believers astray from God. A minority sect within Ramvokism known as Andamism directly prays to and worships Andam as their chief deity.
Andam is viewed as the antithesis to life. In Ramvokism, Andam is not viewed as evil per se but rather, a necessary vehicle to carrying out the will of God. She is viewed as an essential part of the life-death cycle and has dominion over souls who have not been carried over into the next life or received eternal paradise in the Abode of Ai. In Ainism, Andam is genderless (though still referred to as female) and is an adversary to Ai and His creation as a demonic entity. She is portrayed as not a goddess but as the source of evil, death, suffering, and deceit. She tempts believers into falling into a sinful life that will separate them from Ai and ultimately cost them their salvation.
In the Motherly Codex, Andam is described as a "corruption" of Ando and is responsible for killing three of the other Four Goddesses. She is depicted as the "great and terrible mover" who moves time and set into motion the cosmological plan of Ai. In Ramvokism, suffering arises from contradiction and disbalance. She is viewed as the source of entropy and is depicted in one mythical tale as the one who "stirs the waves" of the world.
Similar to other Ramvokist deities, Andam has a number of associated vujut bushin of her own. The most prominent ones include Janaman (a face-shifting tigress), Kalamik (a two-headed, winged centipede), and Wyru (an emaciated witch with long, protruding digits).
Etymology
Iconography
Andam is often depicted as a featureless humanoid and described as an equally terrifying and mysterious being. She is referred to as a feminine entity similar to the Four Goddesses although Andam is only regarded as explicitly female in Ramvokist traditions. In Ainism, Andam is genderless although she is still referred to through feminine pronouns. Andam is conceptualized as the symbol of death itself, a natural and inevitable stage of life. in Ramvokism, Andam is the bearer of souls in the intermediate state between death and rebirth. In Ramvokist art and iconography, she is commonly depicted as a seated, shadowy figure who contains the souls or corpses of the deceased. When depicted in this form, she appears featureless aside from her sitting silhouette and her eyes. Idols in this form are usually in cast iron bronze or similarly dark material. Rarely, Andam is depicted in this form standing or crouching over, often atop a grave or ossuary, symbolizing her dominion over the dead.
