Daily Ritual

The Daily Ritual is one of a series of cultic rituals performed for the statue of the god by temple priests each day. Performed in the morning after the first light of dawn, it's complemented by similar but more abbreviated rituals in the afternoon and evening. The Shirerithians believe that the gods themselves have established the correct form of the rituals, and along with the celebration of annual festivals, these acts are considered imperative for securing the continuing beneficence of the divinities.

Motivating the ritual is the desire to satisfy and placate the god(s) through the protection, nourishment, and service of his or her cult statue.

In theory, the Kaiser, who holds the role of highest representative of all the gods' cults in Shireroth, performed the Daily Ritual to the gods each day at Shirekeep in one of the temples. In reality, the Kaiser is often not present at the ceremony and is replaced by the High Priest of Cedrism, who acts in his behalf.

The ceremony

The performance of the Daily Ritual begins in the early morning, with the entrance of a purified priest into the sanctuary. He lits a torch and burns incense, illuminating and cleansing the darkest, most sacred space of the temple. Next, he approaches the shrine holding the cult statue of one of the gods (which is often Mors, Yuuurgh or Sakat). The seal securing the doors is broken, the bolts pulled back, and the door to the shrine opened, revealing the image of the god. The priest then knelt before the god, kissing the ground before the statue. After raising himself, he chanted greetings and praises to the god, while offering precious spices and oils to the statue.

He removes the figure from the shrine, cleaning and purifying the image before ornamenting it in fresh linen, oils and cosmetics. After being purified a second time, the god’s statue is returned to the shrine. The priest then invites the god to inhabit his statue, and offers him the heart, entrails and blood of a sacrifice for sustenance. After chanting additional hymns, the priest closes the doors of the shrine, reseals it, and removes the offal presented to the god. Finally, the priest sweeps away his own footprints, extinguishes the torch, and exits the sanctuary.

Exceptions

In case that Sakat is worshipped, a Soloralist cleric joins the Daily Ritual.