General Description:

Manannan MacLyr is god of the sea, of rivers, and of storms over water. He is a lawgiver, the guardian of the Golden Apples, and dwells on the blessed isle of Tir Tairngaire. He is a powerful magician, bearing many magical items, most notably the sword Retaliator, which never misses its target, a magic chariot which travels over water as readily as over land, a goblet of truth, a cloak of mists that lends invisibility, and a ship which does not need sails called "Wavesweeper." He is the Prophet, the Aider of Heroes, and walks among men, the deity most likely by far to do so. His colors are those of the sea - blue, green, grey -his emblem the triskelion and the hawthorn his token plant.

Lay Members:

Membership and initiation: "All who know the sea" are welcome in the faith, in the old fashion. This is fairly broadly interpreted, as such things go, and can include landsmen in maritime occupations or even those merely resident in port cities. Dedications are not strictly necessary to be accepted into a congregation, as long as one follows accepted custom and knows one's place.

Strictures: Several sayings from the Yellow Book of Lecan are taken (and heavily interpreted, come to that) as rules for life which lay members must follow:

1) The Sea and Her bounties are to be cherished as a maiden bride, not to be used as a dockside slattern.

This is widely interpreted to mean that nautical life is to be treated respectfully. The sea is not to be polluted, nor fish or shellfish taken wastefully.

2) Hold to your tiemates, for bare is back without brother.

One's fellow congregants are as kin and must be supported in time of need or trial. Those in the nautical trades should be respected, never disparaged for their work.

3) A strong captain gives orders without fear or hesitation; a wise one knows the measure of her crew.

Sea life is strongly hierarchical (as the faith, in fact, is not), and obeying one's lawful superiors is a must. Conversely, those superiors have a positive and heavy duty to treat those under them well and respectfully, and the breach of one pact must lead to the breach of another.

4) I lecture not my fellow gods, nor should the shanteyman lecture the ship's smith, nor the navigator lecture the chirurgeon.

Congregants shouldn't put on superior airs, even if a captain over a newly pressed sailor, and should respect one another's skill and knowledge. The "Custom of the Sea" is as binding a code as any other, however much unwritten.

Priests:

Requirements: Almost without exception, priests of Manannan are retired (often crippled or maimed, as to that) mariners, and no one may be considered for clerical status who does not "know the sea, and can reef and steer." Few are younger than middle-aged. Acolytes must demonstrate piety to a senior priest's satisfaction, and must have a respectable command of literacy and law. Surprisingly, given the magical orientations of the faith, prospective clerics do not need any connection with the god-head, and "lay" clerics are more prevalent than in any other faith.

Strictures: Priests must be familiar with the Yellow Book of Lecan, the compilation of sacred texts and prophecies of the faith; as a geas, they must harm no seabirds for any reason whatsoever. Once per year, for a week to a month, even priests long-retired from the sea must take to the ocean once more in some capacity, to commemorate the Walking, the time when Manannan walked Celduin as a mortal man to taste of mortal joys and sorrows. Beyond that, the hallmarks of the faith are in service to one's flock and as a teacher; cloistered and secluded monastics are alien.

Priests are expected to sing (whether or not they are actually any good at it) and most are required to spend a term as a junior cleric in the position of a temple's Anamchara, or sacred singer before receiving their own parishes.

Avatars:

Tefnut of the Dew, Princess of the Lower Air and Enki of the Rivers, a water spirit who "dwells between raindrops," are two avatars in service to the Lord of the Wave; little is known about them, and they receive no independent worship.

There are many great saints and heroes, to which parishes are often dedicated, however, most prominently the hero-magician Math.

Temples:

There is no standardized temple form, save that the following elements are present in any Manannan church: a statue of Manannan behind a large iron cauldron, a belltower and a widow's walk.

It is a custom for the seating to be circular or semi-circular, so that the congregation faces one another rather than a patriarchal figure. There often is no altar; the statue and cauldron serve as the locus for service. Water basins are provided for each seat, whether as foot pools or tin troughs attached to the back of pews; a strong preference is for flowing water, so they tend to be interconnected.

Orders of Service:

Dedication: Dedications are only performed when the postulant is old enough to take "an adult's way" and help with the work. S/he receives a blessing from the priest on a rainy day, and then climbs to the widow's walk of the temple, where s/he disrobes and lets the rain pour over the bare body. The postulant, after a time, puts clothes back on without drying off, and comes before the fire in the sanctuary to meditate.

Marriage: Banns are recited in the church for the three Waterdays before the wedding, to invoke the God's favor and in the names of the Three Realms. The day before a wedding is symbolized by ritual kidnapping, as friends of both the bride and groom attempt to make off with the other until a token "ransom" is paid to the chief attendants of the couple. It is considered unsporting to lock oneself away, to use one's friends as a bodyguard or to run "further than the cast of three spears."

The ceremony is quite simple, taking place no later than the hour after dawn. The couple (who must both wear sheer white linen gowns and nothing beneath, to much raucous teasing) is blessed by the priest, given a drink of sacred mead, and recite vows they make up on the spot. Hand in hand, they then jump over a broom and are pronounced wed by the priest before being given three hours alone.

When they return, dressed in appropriate finery, the rest of the day is devoted to the wedding feast, as a great celebration of the newly wedded- and bedded couple, filled with jests, games, stories and song. As the couple leaves the wedding feast, a cake of shortbread is broken over their heads, that hunger and privation never have a hold on them. It is considered lucky for one's own future marriage prospects to secure some of the crumbs from the ground.

Weekly Ritual: Known as Crossing the Waters, this may be done without a consecrated priest, if one is not available. The rite is performed before a statue of Manannan, before which is a large iron cauldron of water, and next to is which a cup with liquor in it and a broad oyster or other clamshell. The celebrant fills the shell with water from the cauldron, holding it skyward, and chants,

Herein lie the waves of the sea, the cloak of mists, the moving waters of the ford. Between my hands, the power to pass between worlds.

The congregation enters, each bearing a flower or a twist of hawthorn or other plant, if available, or a twist of straw if not. The celebrant bars their way with a harpoon or trident (called, in the faith's tradition, the Moralltach), with the words,

Beyond nine green-necked waves you shall not go, without the aid of strong Gods.

The congregation answers in unison,

We come with the blessings and aid of Manannan, Gatekeeper, Lord of Mists, to do him honor and pay him tribute.

The celebrant answers "Then may the King of Tir Tairngaire keep you safe in your journey," and steps aside, dabbing a spot of water with his thumb from the shell onto the foreheads of each congregant in turn, assisted by the Anamchara and any acolytes. The congregation takes their place in the pews, and sits quietly, slowly and quietly chanting the invocation from Acknowledging The Mists (see below) while taking each others' hands to reinforce their encircled and conjoined community, while meditating on their week.

After a few minutes, the celebrant raises the goblet, saying "May the Eternal Sea surround us, may the Sacred Sky watch over us, may the Blessed Earth support us." He then pours out some of the cup into the cauldron, as sacrifice to Manannan. After that, he, the Anamchara and the acolytes cense the sanctuary, while the Anamchara sings,

"We call to thee Manannan, Lord of Mists, Wave-rider! Blessed Manannan, it is by your hand we have come here. Come to us to receive our sacrifices. We bring together the waters of the sacred rivers of {the locality}, into the Well of Wisdom which resides at the center of all worlds:"

The congregants all responds in chanting, "We invoke thee, {name of local river}," naming all the principal rivers of the area in turn.

"On the day of Midsummer, the people of the Blessed Isles go to the top of the highest hill to pay toll to the king of their island, Manannan mac Lyr, Lord of the Waves, Son of Nine Mothers. On this day, we come before Manannan as well, to give tribute and sacrifice in honor of him who keeps the Gates between the worlds. Bring forth your offerings to the well, and meditate upon He who makes possible all your journeys between the worlds."

Offerings are placed at the cauldron. If the rite is by the seashore the flowers are cast into the sea, a libation into the waters is poured for Manannan amidst chanting and singing led by the Anamchara. Finally the celebrant speaks, raising his hands from behind the cauldron,

"Here before you is the Well of Wisdom. Keep its memory with you in your heart as you return to the world of mortals. Manannan a Thiarna, accept our offerings and bless us through this year as we depart from your blessed realm"

The congregants wash their hands in a basin by the outer door as they take their leave.

Last Rites: Funerals, when time and the exigencies of the sea permit, are held at twilight. The altar is prepared with a bowl of fruit as offering, and boughs of evergreen to symbolize eternity. The celebrant holds a broad cup of mead or other liquor, and all who arrive take a small sip in honor of the beloved dead. The celebrant smudges the area with juniper or hawthorn smoke (or other incense, if need be), as a honeycomb and a salt lick both are passed around and tasted, with the words:

This is the sweetness of life, and the bitterness we feel in parting.

Next the celebrant lights paired candles, saying,

Manannan, Lord of Mist,
Hear our prayer and open the Spiraled Gate.
Manannan, Great Navigator, steer us,
If it please you, spread your mist-cloak
and bear away {name} to Tir Tairngaire.

The Anamchara of the congregation then sings,

You're going home tonight to the house of Winter,
To the house of Autumn and Spring and Summer -
You're going home tonight on the music of poets,
White Gods await you on Tir Tairngaire's shores -
Manannan, Sea-guide, with you in sleep,
Vasha the Healer with you in sleep,
All other spirits with you in sleep.

Sleep of seven victories on you,
Sleep of seven moons upon you,
Sleep of seven deep-sleeps on you.

After every line, the congregation responds with: Sleep, O sleep without any sorrow.

Afterwards, the celebrant raises his hands, saying, as he touches the fruit,

This is the altar for {name}, your beloved dead. These are offerings for {name}. Call upon {him/her} this night, and sit vigil with {him/her}. Light a candle for {him/her}, and call {him/her} home.

The congregation may then come up and pay respects, after which the celebrant dismisses the gathering to a feast in the dead's honor.

Minor Devotions: The tossing of flowers, twists of vegetables or plants, or even cameos or scrimshaws of ship carvings into the sea is commonplace to propitiate for safe return.

Acknowledging The Mists: The morning devotion held before dawn, as the mists of the morning are still upon the land and sea, are done with the following actions and words:

Bend down and touch the ground, and say - "I stand firmly upon the land."
Stand up and hold your arms out to the sides - "The sea surrounds me."
Bring your arms over your head and finally say - "The sky spreads itself above me."
Bring your hands down over your heart and say - "I acknowledge the Three Realms."

Prayers:

"I acknowledge the shroud of the mists,
The mists that protect the otherworld,
the otherworld where the Well of Wisdom lies,
the Well of Wisdom that contains all knowledge,
knowledge, which is the key to our lives,
our lives that are in service to the Gods,
The Gods that live in the otherworld,
The otherworld that is protected by the mists,
I acknowledge the shroud of the mists."

"Manannan MacLyr, Lord of the Mist, Ruler of Tir Tairngaire, Keeper of the double gate of the otherworld. I am here seeking knowledge of the mists and the otherworlds. I come bringing sacrifices for the water spirits. I come in complete awareness and in harmony with the Three Realms. Watch over me as I travel the mists, keep me from harm as I travel here in the in between. Grant me, oh Manannan, the gift of knowledge from the well which is Yours to protect, from which the five rivers flow, into which the coins of knowledge drop, into which swim the strands of knowledge."

"Suns-dappled Shining One,
Wind-kissed Enchanter,
Gray-eyed Instructor,
Salt-bearded Mariner ..."

Hierarchy:

Local: Local parishes enjoy great autonomy, as the authority of regional bishops and Windmasters (archepiscopal rank) are weaker than in most faiths.

Orders: Almost uniquely in Celduin religious practice, the religion of Manannan maintains no officially sanctioned ecclesiastical order, beyond local abbeys devoted to one saint or another. Some cathedrals maintain local orders (such as, for example, Warwik City's Knights of the Blue Wave), but these are unsanctioned by the Primate and tend to be ephemeral as Windmasters come and go.

Primacy: The Primate of Manannan resides, curiously enough, in the inland city of Drakanium; this is, however, theologically justified by the legend that it was in that spot that Manannan first leapt into the deadly Void towards the end of Godstime, and summoned the mighty Roglaroon as the first river to follow him. It is a common jest that Manannan and Ratri (whose Matriarch is in the port city of Warwik) should trade Seats for greater comfort.

Ecclesiastical Calendar:

Services are held on Oreara, the fourth day of the week.

Vasalach 8: Sea Gift: The sea is propitiated on this day. Celebrated by fishers, sailors, and devotees of Manannan.

Oranor 9: Lughnasath: Old Sun (in Seliseni), the suns are propitiated in this day as the second of the Three Realms. A popular day for marriage celebrations. Interestingly enough, the Seliseni word for the holiday is singular, not plural. No historical or mythological basis for the omission is known, but many theories exist.

Brascar 4: Imbolg: High Holy day of Manannan. Bardic, folksinging, and storytelling competitions to honor the gods are held, and numerous sacrifices are made on the sea and at rivers and lakes. A common offering involves throwing a javelin into the water.

Oiomure 13: Solityne: a day of silence and contemplation. Resolutions are taken this day for the coming year. A traditional day for the ceasing of deep sea travel for the winter.

What do they think of ... ?

Arawn: From the forests comes our life; we should respect them for that. Yet they revel in disunity, their ties to community are slight and they're obsessed with death. It's best we don't much interact.

Mitra: If the Lord of the Suns were less concerned with taking up the mantle of His father Indara and imposing "Good" upon the world, His folk would see all the hurts of the world and do something about mending them ... including those hurts they cause themselves in their endless crusades. We wish no self-appointed Emperors of Light asserting dominion over us.

Ratri: Some without discretion would think we were opposites, but that is not true. Ratri's folk feed our people and we them; we believe in a community united in service and so do they. It's not right they turn a blind eye to thievery, but our harmonies with the Queen of Darkness are far more numerous than our differences. We can dwell without the Earth Folk no more than the steersman and the navigator could exist without the other.

Upuaut: Fire and water do not mix, they say. It's true.

Varuna: The Moon Lord cherishes the upland waters from which we derive our life, and, truly, is His codes and rules all that different from ours? They just write it down instead of holding it in their hearts and memories, as we do. The only real error of the Folk of the Three Moons is in searching within themselves to the exclusion of finding that same enlightenment amongst family, neighbors and comrades. They'll learn; we can teach them.

Vasha: There is much to learn from the Rainbow Lady, and Her message of peace is one the world should follow. Pity it doesn't, and pity that Vasha's lore doesn't much extend where libraries can't be built. Still, they do many good works, and we should aid where we are aided.

Set: They believe in community, alright ... one of tyranny, and don't bet that we're not in their plans. The Mitraites and Arawnians are wrong in much, but not in this. One day, the Children of Llyr will raise battle sails, and we're gifted with foreknowledge to see our target. Make your boarding pikes ready.

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