Editing Nobledark Imperium Imperial Society and Culture (section)

=== Priestesses of Isha ===

The Discipleship of Isha is the most unifying force among the craftworlds and Exodites, as each of them — bar Dorhai and other warmongering malcontents — are under their nurturing influence. This is not to say that the Priestesses are themselves a unified force — indeed no they are not — but rather that they work to inspire some minimal unity in others. Temples are present on every craftworld, Exodite colony, and even in most of the larger Eldar enclaves on predominantly other-xeno worlds — including predominantly human worlds.

The gutter media of the Imperium insists on depicting these temples as places of carnal excess and licentiousness; there’s an entire movie genre based on it on some worlds, full of light-hearted innuendos and harmless-if-slightly-titillating shenanigans. They depict the Temples of Isha as places of light-hearted revelry and some degree of irreverent fun. This is usually quite far from the truth. Typically they never include the dying.

The Temples of Isha All-Mother are, among other things, the hospitals of the craftworlds. Eldar usually right themselves and heal on their own, if given enough time and somewhere safe and quiet. But for those times the pain is too much and the wounds too deep, there is always the Disciples of the All-Mother. Missing limbs, sucking chest wounds, infection, and innumerable other afflictions and maladies are brought to the temples; to the soft light, the fragrant smell of leaves, and gentle hands. For some, for far too many — though, if truth be told, any number equalling or greater than one is too many — nothing can be done beyond rendering the comfort of the dying. Hold them close and sing songs of soothing summers past and springtimes yet to come, as their souls join the Infinity Circuit where their pains can’t follow them.

The All-Mother’s blessings on her priesthood are potent and there is much they can heal — but only on her children. Many believe that with the birth of the Impossible Child the strict divide between man and Eldar will fade away, and that the strange magics of healing will work on humans as they mingle with the Eldar. Maybe they will, who can say?

The fertility aspect of the Disciples is not as exciting as bawdy tales make it out to be — with maybe the exception of the Saim-Hann branches of the following. On Exodite worlds, particularly, the locals are more interested in the effects the Disciples have on the land than what it has on themselves. The rituals of procreation are typically preceded by at least one, often more than one, local day/s of fasting, prayer, and meditation. Real fasting. If the rituals take days, you had better have had a nourishing meal beforehand because this is not going to be pleasant for you. And maybe that’s the point. It is not unknown for inexperienced Eldar to pass out from hunger, then have to start again. 

Following the fasting is a meal of fruit and leaf-vegetables. Each item of food has some symbolic value or mention in some scripture. Scriptures are recited over the ritual meal. Scriptures of the old days in innocent times, when all was new and vibrant and the gods walked among their progeny and found them full of joy and the cause of joy.

Then is the typically extremely unpleasant cleansing and bathing. The skin of the entire body is covered in ashes and cinders. Then the supplicant must walk through fire, and after is washed in a mixture of saltwater and herbs administered by an abrasive brush.

Finally the supplicant is permitted to engage in sexual activities with a member of the temple for the purpose of procreation. They are not typically permitted to choose who with.

The exact details of the proceedings vary between temples as there isn’t a very strict hierarchy. In theory, each priestess is an authority unto themselves, with only Macha-Isha — the High Priestess and Avatar of the All-Mother — above them. Priestesses typically congregate with like-minded members of their vocation for practical concerns and the most senior priestesses takes control as needed, though nothing is written down anywhere formally stating that the senior priestesses have a right to dictate the practice of their faith, beyond the wisdom of their years.

Typically, each priestess has acolytes that she will train up in her own image, to share her philosophies and interpretations of the scriptures. The training is demanding, as each acolyte must know — in great detail and surety — the workings of the Eldar form, how to protect the Eldar body from all that could ail it, and repair it when protections fail. There are no priests or male acolytes; though there are adherents who are valued assistants in the arts of healing, they are not ordained in any way. The security of the temples is typically the jurisdiction of the Aspect Warriors of Khaine; by his own offer, as the nearest he could manage to an apology for killing uncountable numbers of Isha’s children in centuries past.

The only exception to the above is Saim-Hann, whose priestesses offer themselves in reward to those of greatest in accomplishment and whose rituals are few and lax. The temples of more respectable craftworlds look down on them, but Macha-Isha has inspected them and approved of their practices.

Exodite priestesses, in contrast, are less preoccupied with birth rates. The Exodites live in harder and more resource-poor environments than the Craftworlds, and don't age very much either. Every new mouth to feed is not a successor as is with humans, but is instead competition in times of poverty and little.

Due to the Exodites' low birth rate and long lifespan, marriages are rare occasions. Exodite priestesses would be the ones conducting those very auspicious events, preferably under the wraith-tree/s or by the standing stones if the colony is too remote. The exact nature of the ceremony varies from priestess to priestess, as they don't have any sort of standardization.

Exodite Priestesses don't typically own more than they can carry. Beyond the clothes on their back, often their worldly possessions consist of a backpack full of herbs and long-lasting emergency food, bandages, needle and thread, and maybe some clean undergarments. They often have a sturdy stick to lean on, often adorned with paint or tokens, but other than for leaning on their sticks hold no great significance. Typically, the priestesses will stay with and look after the local populace, and are looked after by them in return. It is considered a great honour to have one stay in your home.

When two Exodite priestesses meet, they exchange traditional pleasantries and tell each other where they intend to travel so that they can avoid one another. They are not gregarious, at least not with their own kind. Typically, you will never see more than two — a Priestess and an Acolyte — in any given place unless it's a special occasion. They might meet up for solstice and equinox celebrations, they might not. People dedicated to Isha tend to live closer to the upper end of the Eldar's natural life expectancy, and her chosen are no exception to this. And many of them are very, very old indeed, old and knowledgeable. They tend not to mix well with their Craftworlder equivalents, seeing them as soft and foolish women.