Skip to main content

Religion

The Hîsyêô people have a religion, as all cultures do, with varying degrees of belief. Some people find comfort in a theistic view of the universe and this religion can provide that in a way that is humanist, wordly, and re-imagined into something wholy new. Others might see this religion as an allegory of the human condition and that is also a valid interpretation. Whether or not you are interested in the religion itself, you can see its influence across various expressions and cultural scripts that you will hear when interacting with Hîsyêô speakers.

Humanism & Respect

Above all, the Hîsyêô religion is one of human empowerment to do good things in the world. There is a great respect for all religions as they are primarily given to us by our upbringing which is the power of family and society. While this religion doesn't reflect the one acquired from anyone's upbringing, please provide the same respect to all those who have chosen to participate in Hîsyêô religious activity.

This faith, centered on the Liberator Collective, believes the universe was freed from a primordial tyranny of absolute order by a pantheon of anarchist gods who act as guides, not rulers. Adherents strive to build egalitarian communities, practice mutual aid, and actively resist the lingering fragments of hierarchy and control, known as the "Shards of the First Law." Upon death, spirits are not judged but join a collective spiritual existence called the Great Weave, where they can remain in community with all who have ever lived or they may even choose to be born anew into the world.

Terminology​

doî lûok Thread

yogô kobût lôc Shard

fûtsûn kut onô The First Law

lexetko êto Great Weave

kon isbulyol yê yogô kobût lôc Shattering

Gods​

Tîengûun​

(from the Chinese diety, 天公 tiāngōng)

ôtsôtot Tîengûun xe li ôtsôtot yê zomî Tîengûun, the God of Society

The First Law was a unity of force, not of will. Tîengûun's contribution to the Shattering was the introduction of Consensus. They whispered the first question into the minds of sapient beings: "What do we want to do together?" This simple idea—that disparate parts could voluntarily align their interests for a common goal—was a logical paradox that The First Law could not compute. Tîengûun offered the vision of a society not as a pyramid, but as a network. Their sacred tools are the ledger of mutual debts of a family or worker council (the "budget"), the circle of a consensus meeting (the "plan"), and the storage of goods to prepare for new projects (the "investment"). To follow Tîengûun is to engage in the hard, rewarding work of collective planning and resource management for the good of all. Learn more about Tîengûun here.

ônî hobîyô: ¿zik li mutyu onô? Facilitator: Who is the center?

môî: wutun onô li mutyu onô. All: The circle is the center.

ônî hobîyô: ¿zik yûnyoû kon hûkun? Facilitator: Who holds the power?

môî: zûngô onô fos môtsilê. All: The hands that are woven.

ônî hobîyô: ¿zik li môtîfô nûs? Facilitator: What is our purpose?

môî: xe môtsilê môî doî bêsu mût bolce sunbûlno. All: To weave all different threads into the perfect fabric.

Unonsî​

(from the Akan diety, Anansi)

ôtsôtot Unonsî xe li ôtsôtot yê kuûnmê Unonsî, the God of Technology

The First Law dictated that every object had only one purpose: to be a part of the whole. Unonsî’s act of rebellion was to look at a piece of flint and see fire. A rock could also be for resting on. A river could carry goods and messages downstream. They introduced Potentiality. Unonsî shattered the Law’s rigid definitions by creating the first tool, an act that gave sapient beings the power to reshape their reality. They warn that technology, when touched by a Shard of the Law, can become a tool of control (surveillance, weaponry), but in the hands of the free, it is the lever with which a world can be moved. Learn more about Unonsî here. Learn more about Unonsî here.

folo môtô kôs dumoko hoî dûuncît, (zûngô mût wîk) The spark ignites the mind, (Hand to head)

zûngô bôsol yôn (zûngô mût lozîdô) The hand shapes the tool, (Hand to heart)

û yôn bi nêôs bôsol nucoto. (zûngô dî but mût nucoto) The tool reshapes the world. (Hand opens to the world)

tifûlci ûn kon xîûfû, (dûî zûngô mût wîk) Innovation and maintenance,

kon yûnyoû fîmôsyôs yê môî kuûnmê, (dûî zûngô mût lozîdô) Shared ownership of all technology,

kônên sumon oxon xokôn kûngîyo yê umo kon wêloi. (dûî zûngô dî but mût nucoto) Equal opportunity for every worker council.

lûcku ôfo mût nûs kûu cûdo fôlnî yê êto eswen, (kûu ogolol lûcku dês dêko hoî fôhon kûu cîhun) May this lever bring us greater freedom, (Grab an invisible lever in front of you and pull)

hôn xe cînlî zîwit, hôn xe wêîlun bi ozûul cî. (bi dûî kûu ogolol lûcku dês dêko hoî fôhon kûu cîhun) to experience life and act any which way. (Twice grab an invisible lever in front of you and pull)

Suluswutî​

(from the Hindu deity, सरस्वती sárasvatī)

ôtsôtot Suluswutî xe li ôtsôtot yê kon bêûdo Suluswutî, the God of Learning

The First Law was a single, inarguable "truth." There was no need for learning, as everything was already known and fixed. Suluswutî introduced the first Question: "Why?" This simple, corrosive query introduced doubt and curiosity into a universe of certainty. It was a crack in the foundation of absolute authority. Suluswutî does not provide answers. Instead, they offer the tools of critical thinking, the scientific method, and the courage to speak truth to power. To honor Suluswutî is to teach, to learn, to investigate, and to amplify the voices of the silenced. They are the patron of the investigative journalist, the free school, and the endless pursuit of knowledge, not for control, but for liberation. Learn more about Suluswutî here.

dûuncît noyo kûu li lîbû lîtô Let my mind be a blank page,

fos ondo oxon xe dôstoc oxon yôk xe hûkun cî. Ready to receive, not to command.

û ôîtun noyo kûu li sôlû colot Let my voice be a smart question,

xe li êo kônbo ôlê sokofû yê zomî cî. That shakes the foundation of society.

noyo kûu yosten yôk zuwobû kônyêc Let me not seek a final answer,

lêkin sôlû yê xôn eswen cî. But a better question.

noyo kûu helgo yôk lolû yê dîzel Let me not worship the words of others,

lêkin hokîkî fos bi montûksol bi kon bêûdo yosten cî. But the truth revealed by reason and study.

wûôt kôî li kutin môcîbo; The journey can be unrelenting,

neîgin kon sôlû noyo kûu li môtô sônsûs cî. Let my curiosity be an eternal flame.

Îfêstôs​

(from the Greek diety, Ἥφαιστος Hḗphaistos)

ôtsôtot Îfêstôs xe li ôtsôtot yê kon conwêbo Îfêstôs, the God of Manufacturing

Under The First Law, nothing could be built or unmade outside of the First Law's program. Îfêstôs’s contribution was the gift of Labor. They showed sapient beings how to take a stone and shape it, to take wood and join it, to take clay and fire it. They showed that our worlds were not finished products, but raw materials. Îfêstôs embodies the dignity of work and the power of the creator. They despise the Shard-influenced idea of wage slavery and the hoarding of the means of production. Their ethos is that those who build should be the ones who own and manage, and that the purpose of industry is to create for need and for beauty, not for profit. Learn more about Îfêstôs here.

Said before beginning a project, or in admiration of a completed work. Each line is fourteen syllables or seven metrical feet.

îbûwê bê'ûdo êo. nomû yundô'û. The stone teaches. The wood guides.

ûlôgun hûsku fos hoî lîmîen li môtô.— The metal remembers the fire inside.

ôfo oxon yôk munî—yodo umo solwôc. This is not for money, or a lord.

lêkin mût nûs li yôûlî dên yogô kobût lôc. Instead, it benefits us against shards.

tô zûngô sînêxîs—tô gûêyû în dîyondê With steady hand and a focused eye,

bi mêdûson yê cizî nûs dî cên dî ofînê. By our own labor, we intensify.

Dimîtu​

(from the Greek diety, Δημήτηρ Demeter)

ôtsôtot Dimîtu xe li ôtsôtot yê bunxin bûmî Dimîtu, the God of Nature

The First Law’s "nature" was a perfectly manicured, sterile garden where nothing ever died or was out of place. Dimîtu’s rebellion was to introduce Symbiosis and Decay. They coaxed the first seed to sprout, die, and become soil for the next, creating a messy, chaotic, and vibrant cycle. This interdependence—the bee and the flower, the wolf and the elk—was anathema to the Law's singularity of being. Dimîtu teaches that humanity is a part of nature. They guide sapient beings in permaculture, in sustainable land use, and in understanding that a healthy community is a diverse ecosystem. To be influenced by a Shard is to see land as property to be owned; to walk with Dimîtu is to see it as an ecosystem to be respected and collaborated with. Learn more about Dimîtu here.

oûdî dî lôzîc gos; û lôzîc gos dî tolên gos. The seed becomes the shoot, the shoot becomes the stalk.

tolên gos dî kûôxi; kûôxi dî côûfon. The stalk becomes the fruit, the fruit becomes the meal.

û côûfon dî solîlo nûs; solîlo nûs dî gêkô. The meal becomes our body, our body becomes the soil.

gêkô dî oûdî. The soil becomes the seed.

nûs yûnyoû yôk bûmî onô; bûmî onô yûnyoû nûs. We do not own this land; we are owned by it.

nûs li kut kukwon yê cûnfû hofîn muîlô êto onô. We are one part of the great, messy, beautiful cycle.

kûu helgo mîstu nênko fos ni bi ûtok li kon nîôk. Praise the rot, for it is also growth.

Bostet​

(from the Egyptian diety, bꜣstt Bastet)

ôtsôtot Bostet xe li ôtsôtot yê hondon Bostet, the God of Family

The First Law knew no individuals, only components. There was no love, grief, or care. Bostet’s revolutionary act was Empathy. They were the first to feel a pang of sorrow when a part of the whole was damaged, the first to feel a surge of warmth in communal presence. They introduced the concept of the chosen family—the bond of affinity and care that goes beyond mere function or blood and grows with time spent together. Bostet is the patron of the caregiver, the medic, the parent, and the grief counselor. They teach that a society’s strength is measured by how it cares for its most vulnerable and how it honors its dead. They represent the foundational practice of mutual aid, borne from genuine love. They are the quiet guardian of life's most vulnerable thresholds, the steady presence at every birth and every death, reminding all that no one has to cross those lines alone. Learn more about Bostet here.

hoî fos li kon tônkô, û noyo kûu li cîgîlsu cî Where there is pain, let me be the treatment.

hoî fos li kon ôsôlê, û noyo kûu li zûngô sînêxîs cî. Where there is fear, let me be the steady hand.

hoî fos li kon cunyû, û noyo kûu li foko tût yoûtî yê môtô cî. Where there is cold, let me be the warmth of a fire.

solîlo li dibo oxon kîso yê wîlûwo êto; A body is a vessel for a precious story,

ni kûu li êo istihol lon fos ni li gîk li zîwit li cok cî. Let it be honored in its arriving, in its living, and in its departing.

doî lûok noyo kûu li êo fonmot ôlê kûmun yê lexetko êto Let my thread fill a gap in the Great Weave,

xe li êo tût yoûtî ôlê zizime uklo cî. That warms the next generation.

Kulîôbî​

ôtsôtot Kulîôbî xe li ôtsôtot yê foko sunyotnî Kulîôbî, the God of Entertainment (from the Greek deity, Κᾰλλῐόπη Kăllĭópē)

Life under The First Law was utterly without joy. Its purpose was function, not feeling. Kulîôbî’s rebellion was the first Laugh. It was a spontaneous, useless, and beautiful eruption of noise that served no purpose and followed no rule. This was followed by the first song, the first game, the first story told for its own sake. Kulîôbî shattered the Law’s grim utility with the power of Play. They teach that art, sport, and celebration are not frivolous distractions, but the very purpose of a liberated life. To be touched by a Shard is to turn art into a commodity and play into a spectacle; to dance with Kulîôbî is to celebrate freedom itself. Learn more about Kulîôbî here.

(ônî sôlû) ¿zik li kon ubôlni? (Caller) What is the act of defiance?

(ônî zuwobû) li ôîtun yê êto fûnlôk et dês yôn ze. (Responders) A useless, joyful noise!

(ônî sôlû) ¿zik li leknek dên kûyô êto? (Caller) What is the weapon against despair?

(ônî zuwobû) li kontol fos sûn lozîdô kôs ze. (Responders) A song made from the heart!

(ônî sôlû) ¿zik li môtîfô yê fôlnî nûs? (Caller) What is the purpose of our freedom?

(ônî zuwobû) xe li cifulo mût kûon kut yê lono ze. (Responders) To dance until the dawn!

(môî) bînê konwo kûu dî oltû eswen ûn nocîdo cizî nîmû hoî zomo êto umo ze. (All) So let the rhythm get louder, and lose yourself in the crowd!

Wicnû​

ôtsôtot Wicnû xe li ôtsôtot yê ûsowo Wicnû, the God of Balance (from the Hindu diety, विष्णु Vishnu).

When the First Law was shattered, the raw force of the impact created not just the Shards (the impulse to dominate), but also Echoes (the pain, trauma, and misunderstanding that resulted from the violence of the Shattering). Wicnû was the first to realize that these Echoes would cause sapient beings to harm one another, mistaking the Echo of the First Law's violence for their own or another's malice. Wicnû's gift was Mediation. The painstaking, patient act of bringing harmed and harmer together to see the full spectrum of the conflict and to collaboratively find a path to healing the rupture in the community's fabric. To engage with Wicnû is to have the courage to face those you have harmed, or who have harmed you, and to build justice together. Learn more about Wicnû here.

mût noyo kûu mônîso yogô kobût lôc xe hoî gûêyû noyo. Show me the shard in my own eye.

 Let me see the echo of the Law in my anger.

 Let me listen not to answer, but to understand.

 There is the harm, plain to see.

 There is the need, deep below.

 May we find the path not to punishment,

 But to the mending of the weave.

Xôcibîlî​

(from the Aztec diety, Xōchipilli)

ôtsôtot Xôcibîlî xe li ôtsôtot yê hofîn Xôcibîlî, the God of Beauty

The First Law's greatest tyranny was its erasure of the individual; all were components, none were persons. Xôcibîlî was the first flicker of self-awareness, the first being to think "I am." This thought was the ultimate heresy to the First Law's fascist mandate. Xôcibîlî’s act of liberation was to safeguard the concept of the unique personality. They champion the "flaws," quirks, and idiosyncrasies that the First Law would have smoothed away. While Bostet offers communal care, Xôcibîlî offers the tools for self-care and the courage to define one's own identity, free from the coercion of both the Shards and the expectations of the group. They are the patron of the difficult, lonely, and absolutely essential work of becoming a sovereign individual, without whom a free society is impossible. Learn more about Xôcibîlî here.

noyo li nôkso cosnî noyo, toswîl ni. I am my own map, and I am drawing it.

noyo li fûtsûn cosnî noyo, cukto ni I am my own law, and I am writing it.

û dî gonzîl noyo li yôk foût; ni li ostok yê fos li noyo û. My quirks are not flaws; they are a sign of who I am.

kon tîkêl noyo li yûnyoû noyo hôn xe fisun. My reflection is my own to know.

 I will not be folded, filed, or flattened.

 My path is not for others to walk.

Hûlicîn​

(from the Chinese deity, 狐狸精 húlijīng)

ôtsôtot Hûlicîn xe li ôtsôtot yê hoôs Hûlicîn, the God of Entropy

Hûlicîn was the very first anomaly. They were the initial, inexplicable Friction within the perfect machine of The First Law that allowed the other nine consciousnesses to spark. They are not intentionally "good" or "bad"; they are simply an agent of change. Hûlicîn wanders the world, and their footfalls disrupt patterns. They might topple a carefully planned Tîengûun budget with an unexpected shortage, forcing a more innovative solution. They might lead a follower of Suluswutî to a forgotten truth by pure chance. The Shards of the Law promote rigid, predictable control, making Hûlicîn their natural enemy. They are the patron of those who leave home without a destination, of the artists who embrace mistakes, and of the rebels who understand that sometimes the most powerful plan is to have no plan at all. They are the divine embodiment of the interesting path, and they promise nothing at the end of it but the journey itself. Learn more about Hûlicîn here.

nôkso li hûdul; tîton li kon momokî. The map is a lie, the path is a surprise.

kûu helgo kon zîgîl xe li êo dês doknû ôlê kon dêko nêos. Praise the fall that reveals a new view.

kûu helgo zinkon în besol xe buswen êo tîton nêos. Praise the locked door that forces a new way.

noyo wêko wowoê noyo hoî fos li yôk kon belêxu tîton. I place my foot where there is no trail.

noyo onkûol hoôs nênko fos ni li motûo yê môî uyo nêos. I embrace the chaos, for it is the parent of all new things.

wûôt kûu li foko sunyotnî lôtfen. May the journey be interesting.

Daily Practices​

Practitioners of the religion have a special place in their home for personal spiritual activities. This can include meditation, chants, prayer, singing, reading scripture, and more. They perform this activity once or twice a day. Usually after waking up, mid-day, after coming home from work or before bed. Practitioners can direct these activities towards any, all, or some of the gods.

Additionaly, chants and prayers are said before, during and after group activities depending on a multitude of different scenarios. For example, a prayer to Wicnû during a heated argument or a chant to Hûlicîn and Bostet before heading out on a family adventure.

Month Names​

The Hîsyêô calendar allows the usage of numbered months or there is a set of religious names. They are made up of the ten gods for the months and they are organized in alphabetical order. The seond to last month is reserved for celeberating the Great Weave and then the final month is for planning.

wuto Îfêstôs January

wuto Unonsî February

wuto Hûlicîn March

wuto Kulîôbî April

wuto Tîengûun May

wuto Suluswutî June

wuto Xôcibîlî July

wuto Dimîtu August

wuto Bostet September

wuto Wicnû October

wuto Lexetko November (lit. Weave Month)

wuto Yôcno December (lit. Plan Month)

Holidays​

caution

This content is not yet finished. Reach out if you have any suggestions for holidays.

wuto Îfêstôs (January)​

wuto Unonsî (February)​

wuto Hûlicîn (March)​

wuto Kulîôbî (April)​

wuto Tîengûun (May)​

wuto Suluswutî (June)​

wuto Xôcibîlî (July)​

mûêsî mûlû yê foko bêûdo lûok​

In 2025, on July 10th, this holiday is celebrated in honor of spiritual teachers.

kôndodû yê doho cizî​

Great personal sacrifices are commemorated during this festival starting on July 20th.

kôndodû yê fûnlôk zonûbî​

The Southern Joy Festival is held on July 25th and celebrates the middle of winter for the southern hemisphere (although the true solstive is earlier in the month)

wuto Dimîtu (August)​

wuto Bostet (September)​

wuto Wicnû (October)​

wuto Lexetko (November)​

wuto Yôcno (December)​

kôndodû yê fûnlôk sôltûstik​

The Northern Joy festival is held on December 25th and celebrates the middle of winter for the northern hemisphere (although the true solstive is earlier in the month)