====== Yih's Ring and Claravian Iconography ====== Yih has a ring. It has had some effect on yinrih culture. Winter days are darker and summer nights are brighter. The phrase "To chase the end of the ring" means to go on a fool's errand. Pascal's Commonthroat name translates to "ring light" which refers to light reflected off of the ring on summer nights. This ring has inspired Claravian iconography, which uses a golden arch behind the head of the saint depicted in the icon in a similar way to the use of the halo in Terran religious art. The arch spans the width of the picture, with the apex behind the saint's head. Some common attributes seen in icons: - Preachers are shown holding a large steadtree leaf with scripture written on it. - Steadtree hermits are shown perching in a tree. - Hearthkeepers are shown with an aspergillium wrapped in their tail, symbolizing their role as spiritual dam to their congregation. They will also be holding a wrench, symbolizing their duty to tend the star hearth. If they were a spacer, the wrench is held in the left rear paw. If not, it is held in the left forepaw. - Knights of the Sun will be wearing powered armor. - Missionaries will be pictured standing before a womb ship, encapsulated in an amnion, or holding a miniature model of a womb ship in the forepaws. - Mystics will have their eyes wide open, staring intensely up at the sky. - Farspeakers are shown holding a raw tailstone crystal. - Martyrs are shown with whatever killed them. Martyrdom //in odium fidei// is relatively rare, only really showing up after the War of Dissolution thanks to Firefly and the Partisans, so most well known martyr saints were killed while furthering the Bright Way's goal of fulfilling the Great Commandment. This includes the many, many deaths while trying to achieve spaceflight, as well as deaths related to other attempts at scientific advancement in the name of the Great Commandment, so expect to see lots of exploding rockets. - Saints known for their hospitality will be shown holding a steadtree fruit. - Rememberers of the Forgotten Dead (name WIP) are people who try to provide company for those who would otherwise die alone. They pay for their funeral expenses and see to it that their bones are displayed properly. They recite a litany of the names of the people they have so served on a regular basis, and encourage others around them to pray for the souls of the deceased. They also try to learn about the lives of the people they help, and act as "living obituaries", relating the deeds of the forgotten dead to any who will listen. Icons depicting such saints show them holding a skull or standing before a skull displayed in a reliquary. {{tag>religion}}