Rallah, maiden of the sun and moons, lady of dawn and dusk, patroness of the tribe of the Ral, and font of reason and enlightenment is one of the six original divine paragons who ruled over the landsmen. Venerated as divhi of the sun and moon, and associated with learning and enlightenment, the spirit, fire, and the life-giving aspects of the sun she is often thought of as patroness of the Ralstaans, of scholars, explorers, messengers, and martyrs.
Rallah, alongside her brother Irik, left the world voluntarily and ascended to the heavens, leaving her people to care for themselves though her bloodline persists in the most ancient noble houses of Ralstaa, including that of the High Kings. So completely has she entrusted the fate of the descendent of the Ral to themselves that she has allowed the spirits of their rulers to subsist in the world as spiritual guardians in her stead. The only way the Ralstaans believe that they can truly send a message to the enigmatic and alien ascended consciousness of Rallah is to sacrifice Temple Virgins who, in death, join Rallah in the sky as her daughters the suns that she sends to cross the sky and bring day to the land, and in death they carry missives to her in times of most dire need.
After the Ral fled the Isle of Men they were the first to settle, just north of the Bridge, as Rallah promised that she would keep watch for an opportunity to return to their ancient home. Quickly the Ral realized that they had claimed a perilous wilderness that even today they have scarcely begun to tame, but Rallah promised them that their hardships would make them stronger than their fellow men, and when their numbers were decimated when mountainous waves, rivers of liquid fire, and the predations of the horrific elementals that were spirit to the Starwood Rallah preached that they persist and master this hostile and tragic land.
Some Ralstaans felt that Rallah's ascent was a betrayal of their people after such trials. Worse still many Ralstaans believe that Irik tricked Rallah into leaving the world after his people lost faith in him, and hate the Irians for the supposed sins of their paragon.
Names
Rallah (Ralstaa); Reltar (Iria); Rina (Ghana); Sun Maiden (elsewhere)
Associations
The Sun; The Moons; Day and Night; Death and Rebirth; The Ral; Ralstaa; Insight and Enlightenment; Light and Fire; Sacrifice.
Depictions
Historical images of Rallah depict her as a handsome woman of middle years with a mane of red-gold hair and a regal and aloof bearing. Elegant horns extend from her brow, holding aloft a halo of red-gold flame above her head. She is generally depicted at the helm of some venture, be it standing at the prow of a boat as the Ral cross to Allornus, at the head of a crowd of followers delivering a rousing speech, or guiding settlers into the deep dark woods. Sometimes she carries an axe and hammer - both tools that are also weapons symbolizing her mastery of the savage new world where her people settled. Other times she is seen with a candle or torch, casting light into places of darkness.
Cults outside Ralstaa often depict their patroness as a figure of living light or flame sitting atop a massive volcano at the far eastern edge of the world, sending forth her daughters to light the world, before making their return through the underworld to her side. In this way each day is lit a different sun, with the exact number growing by the year as new daughters join the divhi.
Dogma
core beliefs, usually common across various faiths (if various)
Faiths
a list of major faiths devoted to Rallah
| The Earthly Divh, Patrons of the Landsmen | |
|---|---|
| Ghanda, Haederas, Irik, Malar, Nofus, Rallah |