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AABN:  18759
Title: The Trifold Goddess

While worship of the High Pantheon is widespread across the world, not all
the gods are known in all lands. The peculiar phenomena of triads of gods
and goddess can be found in remote parts of the world. Murlocks have been
known to worship Xandar, with Shadowfax and Draak as secondary deities.
Likewise, some Aztecs have adopted the worship of Dentin with the same
Elemental Brothers as his agents. Another triad, once prominent in the
southern deserts, featured Dentin as Creator, Wyvren as the Preserver and
Talos as the Destroyer. One of the most distinct and ancient triads of
goddesses is the Trifold Goddess of Islaine, Byung and Schlyne. They were
known as the Three Ladies.

Under this triad, each goddess represents a part of the life cycle of a
woman, with Islaine as the Maiden, Byung as the Mother and Schlyne as the
Crone. Here, Islaine is presented as a fierce, proud, virgin warrior,
unconquered and unbowing. As a warrior, she protects her faithful by
slaying her enemies. Byung is shown as both a harlot and a mother,
providing pleasure and nurturing as needed. She is a fertile figure,
creating new life. She is sometimes depicted feeding her children with her
own blood. Schlyne represents old age - shorn of the vigor of youth and
pleasures of her feminity, she has nonetheless grown shrewd and cunning. As
the Crone, Schlyne no longer creates life. Just as an aged wise woman can
promote healing of injuries and disease, so can Schlyne choose between life
and death.

There is a clear hierarchy within the Trifold Goddess: the Maiden kills,
the Mother begets life, but the Crone can choose between the two. They also
represent stages of consciousness: Islaine as life, Byung as undeath and
Schlyne as true death of the body and a purely spiritual existence.

Scholars have pointed out some degree of masculine bias in the roles of the
Trifold Goddess, in particular that of the Mother. She provides pleasure to
men, then bears children, all the while feeding and providing for them
both. She is no longer permitted to be a warrior, as that role was only
taken by virgins and not women proven to be fertile. There is some debate
as whether Nuriel, the long dead goddess of pleasure, may have been the
original Mother figure of the cult. She would have been replaced by Byung
some time after her demise. This would account for the emphasis on
fertility rites found in the rituals relating to the Mother, which do not
make nearly as much sense with an undead vampire goddess.

Typical worship of the Trifold Goddess involved rites of passage for young
women competing on behalf of her Maiden aspect, chiefly footraces and
contests of strength in the spring and early summer. These would be
performed in front of assemblies, with participants often sky-clad.
Cloudberry wine would be served at the conclusion. This ceremony preceded
the spring planting and was known as "the Tilling".

Mother worship encompassed marriage ceremonies, midwifery and, during
Summer Solstice celebrations, sacred prostitution. Young men would offer
spruce beer and their "first seed" to the Mother, with mature women acting
a proxies. This act, called "the Blooming", was supposed to ensure a
bountiful harvest, for which the Mother was responsible.

The Crone was invoked when adminstering medicine or peforming death rites.
She was also called upon when the fields were gleaned and burnt after the
final harvest, a ritual refered to as "the Reaping". She was rarely spoken
of otherwise, except around the time of the Winter Solstice, when offerings
of birch beer would be placed on her few altars near cemeteries.

The cult of the Trifold Goddess was found in isolated regions of the Dunn
Hurr. Scholars believe it may have come to humans from the traditions of
the High Aalfs of Faerie. Few can be found that practice the faith now, and
the religion may be extinct.

Curiously, a demonic cult has been documented amongst some drow tribes that
follows a similar pattern. Here, the insect demon Carahade is the Maiden,
her progenitor Anichith is the Mother and the chaos demon Verreshe is the
Crone. Sometimes, Carahade is replaced with the Pierced One, depicted as a
drow maiden with her vulva held shut with hooks to preserve her virginity.
This particular form of worship is quite uncommon, but some scholars
believe it may reflect an older tradition descended from the drow's Fell
Aalf ancestors.