The Twofold Way is a major religion of Selt. It is the state religion of the Murinal Empire and some of its tributaries, and is practiced by many people throughout the rest of the Southern Continent, not all of them ethnic Murinalis. Despite a lack of institutional interest in organized proselytism, the religion has followed Murinali traders plying the Middlesea, and it is also widely practiced among Heghom's Murinali minority, though many ethnic Murinalis have converted to the Solar Religion.

Practitioners of the orthodox Twofold Way are typically called Chutu (from Murinali Shrūtu, ['ʈʂuː.tu], "faithful [ones]," singular Shrūt). In Heghom, practitioners are also often described as Murinalis, but that is not correct as it confuses the dominant nationality of the Murinal Empire with its state religion. The Empire has long pursued a policy of religious toleration, and accordingly, there are many people of Murinali extraction who are not Chutu, especially overseas, and also many Chutu who are not Murinali.

Origins and History

Beliefs

The Chutu are monolatrous ditheists. They believe in two mighty gods, Makhi Dhrana ("God of Good") and Makh Ena ("God of Evil".) Makhi Dhrana is a benevolent deity, and is the entity toward whom the prayers and supplications of the Chutu are ultimately directed. Though they believe they are free to respectfully petition the Good God's various Kōnetu ("Helpers", i.e. subsidiary gods, angels or celestial administrators) directly, their actual worship is directed only toward Makhi Dhrana. In particular, they do not worship Makh Ena, and the religion actively abhors the Evil God. Both gods hatched from a common cosmic egg, which arose spontaneously within the "weave of the Universe."

Neither of the two gods is considered omnipotent or omniscient, and prayers are thought to often be necessary to bring the attention of the Good God towards human problems. Both are equally powerful and struggle for supremacy, explaining the vicissitudes of fate and fortune. After aeons of struggle, they agreed to collaborate to create humanity, explaining the profound capacity of the human race for both good and evil, as well as their moral capacity to choose between them. In the eschatological scenario of the Twofold Way (Bandārat, "judgement"), the preponderance of Good or Evil among humans will tip the balance of cosmic power to either Makhi Dhrana or Makh Ena and determine the final disposition of the universe.

The Chutu do not believe that Makhi Dhrana requires human worship or belief, only good moral conduct and the cultivation of certain virtues. The Twofold Way is not generally a missionary religion, but there have been exceptions, and it does readily accept converts. The "good" required to support Makhi Dhrana in the cosmological struggle is not equivalent to the practices of the Twofold Way, though they are considered the best and most effective means of supporting the side of cosmic Good over Evil. After a successful Bandārat, human souls will be rewarded or punished in proportion to their individual virtue.

The Chutu believe in reincarnation. The process of reincarnation will end at Bandārat; after that point, righteous souls, which will regain the memories of all their past lives, will live together with Makhi Dhrana and the Benevolent Kōnetu forever. As the Twofold Way does not teach true immortality of the soul, the souls of the evil will then be destroyed. A person's morality is considered to be largely determined by the character of their soul, and so Chutu are not concerned by the possibility that they will be punished heavily for the misdeeds of past incarnations despite their present meritorious conduct; rather, their present good conduct is thought of as proof that their soul is mostly a virtuous soul (which can expect an ultimate reward.)

Symbols

The principle symbol of the Twofold Way is an isoscales triangle pointing upward, with a hemicircle at the top. It represents an altar-tower. The symbol is rarely used religiously in the Murinal Empire; it is more a symbol used by cartographers (to mark religious sites) and minority Chutu communities when needed for identification (e.g. on signs and to identify food suppliers conforming with Chutu dietary practices.)

Places of Worship

The faithful of the Twofold Way attend religious services at their Temples. Chutu temples consist of an outer, open-air sacred precincts, and an inner altar-tower (Ori Makh, "god tower"). Usually, they are built over a cave, which are abundant in the Karst topography of Great Murinia. The sacred precincts are often provided with awnings, to protect worshipers from inclement whether, and paved with stone or tile. The Ori Makh has an altar at the top, at which burnt offerings are made. The altar is surrounded by a walkway, from which the Nrebetu may address the worshipers.

God Towers are often beautifully decorated with precious metals and intricate stone carvings. Higher is considered better, or at least more prestigious, the Ori Makhi Masrephā ("Imperial God Tower") in Murinabaq is almost 100m tall. Tall God Towers are often tiered, with multiple Nrebetu speaking from the lower tiers where they can be heard intelligibly by the worshipers, and another conducting the sacrifice at the top. An elevated walkway connects most Ori Makh with the priest-house, another feature of the temple, because contact with the ground might transmit ritual impurity to the officiants.

Sacrifices are usually of precious aromatic spices, often bought from the temple trust; this is lucrative for the trust. Animals are not sacrificed.

A temple's trust (Qaphi Makh, "divine trust") is responsible for local charitable activity to benefit ill or impoverished Chutu, the expenses of the clergy, maintenance of the facilities, and administration of properties and enterprises donated to the temple. Temples have sometimes been responsible for the provision of holy warriors to the Imperial military, but this is no longer done.

Clergy

Priest, Nrebet

Holy Writings

Ethics and Practices

Vegetarianism is considered obligatory, although the Twofold Way considers mostly-sessile aquatic animals to be "plants" for this purpose, and they feature in the diet of coastal regions. Fermented beverages are permitted, but the consumption of distilled spirits is considered forbidden. Fasting is obligatory during certain holidays; at other times it is an optional meritorious act.