Chongbai
Chongbai (崇拜) also called Worship of the Deep is the ethnic religion of Daxia and is practiced by a majority of the Daxian people. A polytheistic religion, the Chongbai pantheon is composed of dozens of gods and hundreds of minor deities and aspects of nature. Aspects of Chongbai have influenced the cosmovision of Daxians and their sense of special destiny; Daxian racialist theories are deeply enmeshed with Chongbai religious doctrines. The Emperors were considered to be the heads of the Chongbai religious hierarchy thanks to their special connections to the divine, in their absence the Custodian of the Grand Temple of Diqiu and Grand Hierophant is considered the seniormost and preeminent religious figure. Out of favor after the end of dynastic rule, Chongbai has begun to see a revival in its popularity during the last two decades as resistance and agitation against 'foreign' religions is on the rise.
Mythos
In the Chongbai mythos of creation, the creator of the earth is Diqiu who is God of the Underworld. Diqiu built a barren world at first and shaped all of the other gods in his Furnace of Creation, his children were then to fill the world with their own creations; they would be given a domain in accordance with their nature. The first of Diqiu's children to emerge from the Underworld was Tian who looked above him and saw nothingness, which displeased him. Tian began exhaling air for many days until he had created the sky and the clouds; for this he was made God of the Sky. The second god to emerge was Suigon, he walked the earth and grew tired of the harshness of its surface on his feet. He took out a satchel filled with water from the underground and spilled it about him, thus he created the first oceans; for this he was made God of the Seas. The third god to emerge was Ziran who looked all around and saw nothing but bleak rock and tepid water. She cut locks from her hair, planted them in the hard ground and fed them water from the sea and blood from her hand, from this grew the first trees. Ziran the Goddess of Nature also known as the Gardener traveled all over, creating more greenery until the world was a paradise; she gave it the name of the Great Garden. Upon seeing the works of his children, Diqiu was pleased and as a reward he created all the creatures that fly in the air, that swim in the seas and that crawl on the ground to populate the world and domains of his children.
Deities
Beneficent Deities
Diqiu
God of the Underworld, creator of mankind and chief deity of the pantheon. Commonly represented as a bearded old man sitting in a cave.
Ziran
God of Nature, creator of the Great Garden and guardian of nature. In ancient times she was worshipped primarily by the Men of the hedge. Often depicted as a serpent with feathers.
Tian
God of the Sky, associated with dreams and prophecy. Depicted as a large cloud with lightning bolts coming out of it.
Suigon
God of the Sea, depicted as a large crab.
Mingje
God of Fortune, affects Luck and the use of Numerology.
Ruinous Powers
The Ruinous Powers were originally the dark traits of Diqiu's divine being, they took independent shape when they were expelled from his body.
Yeenog
God of Shadows and Strife, also called the Dark King, is chief deity of the Ruinous Powers
Jinya
God of Greed, responsible for the obsession of Daxians with money, is represented by a clay pot with a sinister grinning face.
Abotur
God of Tremors, responsible for earthquakes and seismic movements, is represented by a mountain with one eye.