The Tale of Sívorí

Today is the Holy Day of Sívorí, Goddess of Stars, the wisest goddess of all. She invented writing, speech, dance, music, science, arts, etc. etc. etc. She also controls time, so let's all give four cheers for Sívorí!

Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!





Each and every evening, Sívorí coaxes Her brother Néhété, God of Smoke and Darkness, out from the Underworld to push back the haze of daytime and let Her stars shine for all to see. While Néhété and all the world watch, Sívorí dances to music of Her own creation, causing the stars to spin in the sky, the planets and comets to skirt to and fro, and every particle in the universe to keep to its function. To change a planet’s direction or modify time itself, Sívorí merely varies Her dance in the slightest manner. The universe is under Her absolute control.

Long before human beings were created, Sorosotuzho, God of the Atmosphere, was King of the Gods and Ruler of the Universe, and that was how Sívorí wanted it to be. Sorosotuzho took the fame and glory, strutting about the universe and being completely ineffectual, while Sívorí kept dancing and actually controlled everything in existence.

Every night while She danced, Sívorí would have lengthy conversations with Her brother, Néhété. He would ask the most imaginative questions, such as why do trees grow up instead of down, and Sívorí would give patient and rational answers, for She is the most wise of all the gods. If, for some reason, She did not immediately know the answer to a question, Sívorí would consider the subject until She did know the answer. It was in this manner that Sívorí invented dance, music, song, painting, science, astronomy, writing, and speech itself. When Sorosotuzho needed to make a pronouncement to all the universe, He would ask Sívorí to do it, for She had infinite control of words and their understanding.

When Sívorí invented writing, it was so She could share Her expansive knowledge with others. The most pressing issue was the fact that souls were arriving at the Underworld to be judged for the afterlife, without knowing the slightest bit about how they should have lived their lives to achieve favorable reincarnation. Sívorí then sat down and penned the Book of the Dead, which explains in great detail that every being in the universe should treat each other with respect, help himself by providing for his fellow beings, and help others by providing for himself. She further included information on what to expect in the Underworld: penetrating questions by Néhété, concise judgment by Sívorí, and a pleasant afterlife and high-quality reincarnation for those whose souls deserve it -- or a painful, lengthy afterlife and a lowly reincarnation for those whose soul deserve that. Sívorí would continue dancing in the heavens while She sat in judgment in the Underworld, for She is a magnificent goddess Who can be everywhere at once, if it so pleases Her.

At a certain point in Sorosotuzho’s reign, when all was good, calm, and peaceful in the universe, His wild son Korutuzho, God of Agriculture, challenged Sorosotuzho for the title of King of the Gods. Sívorí did not mind Who held the title so long as She remained in control, but She did loathe the chaos and upheaval that would follow a regime change.

Korutuzho drew His sword and pointed it at Sorosotuzho’s chest. Sorosotuzho rose from His throne and drew His own sword. The two gods exchanged blows, sparks flying from Their clashing blades. Korutuzho drew blood first, with a vicious strike to His father’s upper arm. Sorosotuzho retreated a few steps from His son; Sívorí dashed to Sorosotuzho and healed His wound with a pass of Her hand. The King of the Gods then lunged at His son, resuming the fight. Next to draw blood was Sorosotuzho, with a precision stab to Korutuzho’s thigh. The challenger backed away from His father; Sívorí dashed to Korutuzho’s side and healed His wound with a pass of Her hand. She did not want Korutuzho to die, either, for that would upset the balance nearly as much as the dethroning of Sorosotuzho.

The battle raged on for years, neither god gaining the upper hand because Sívorí would heal all injuries. The fight had to end, however, for it was causing as much instability in the universe as a change in kings could ever do. Watching the fight, it was quite apparent to the goddess that Korutuzho was by far the stronger swordsman. Without Her interference, Sorosotuzho would lose. Thus Sívorí sized up Korutuzho, deemed Him to be as good a god as His father, and let Him win.

Upon gaining the throne, Korutuzho claimed as His own the sun, taking it from Sorosotuzho, and the sun’s innermost planet, taking it from Sívorí. She let it go willingly, for She still controlled its movement despite Korutuzho’s essence intertwined with the stellar body. Furthermore, Korutuzho took the moon from Sorosotuzho and gave it to His sister Ríhíví, Goddess of Hot Springs; the star of evening and morning, brightest in the sky, He took from Sívorí and gave to His wife Rana, Goddess of Clouds; He took the red planet from Sívorí and gave it to Rana’s brother Rékaré, God of Rock; and the bright, slow planet Sozho took from Sívorí and gave to His own brother Zhaké, God of Rivers. The only planet still associated with Sívorí directly was the outermost planet, the keeper of time. None of these changes upset Sívorí; She kept dancing and the universe kept turning.

Adding to Her Book of the Dead, Sívorí recorded all the new information on the gods and Their planets. She described how best to worship each god and wrote down all knowledge of Them. Every god provided suggestions; Sívorí organized the information and documented everything.

Throughout it all, Sívorí continued to dance the universe in motion. She and Her brother continued to judge souls upon entrance to the Underworld. She continued to coax Néhété to hide Korutuzho’s light and let Her stars shine through. Néhété continued to ask questions and Sívorí continued to answer all and invent wondrous new things. Korutuzho was King of the Gods and Ruler of the Universe, and that was how Sívorí wanted it to be. Korutuzho took the fame and glory, strutting about the universe and being completely ineffectual, while Sívorí kept dancing and actually controlled everything in existence.

At a certain point in Korutuzho’s reign, when all was good, calm, and peaceful in the universe, His wild son Sozho, High God of Air, challenged Korutuzho for the title of King of the Gods. Once again, Sívorí did not mind Who held the title so long as She remained in control, but She did loathe the chaos and upheaval that would follow a change of regime.

Sozho drew His sword and pointed it at Korutuzho’s chest. Korutuzho rose from His throne and drew His own sword. The two gods exchanged blows, sparks flying from Their clashing blades. Sozho drew first blood, with a vicious strike to His father’s upper arm. Korutuzho retreated a few steps; Sívorí dashed to the king and healed His wound with a pass of Her hand. Korutuzho then lunged at His son, resuming the fight, and soon drew blood Himself with a precision stab to Sozho’s thigh. The challenger backed away from His father; Sívorí dashed to Sozho’s side and healed His wound with a pass of Her hand. She did not want Sozho to die, either, for that would upset the balance of the universe nearly as much as the dethroning of Korutuzho.

The battle raged on for years, neither god gaining the upper hand because Sívorí would heal all injuries. The fight had to end, however, for it was causing as much instability as a change in kings could ever do. Watching the fight, it was quite apparent to the goddess that Sozho was the stronger swordsman. Without Her interference, Korutuzho would lose. Thus Sívorí sized up Sozho, deemed Him to be as good a god as His father, and let Him win.

Upon gaining the throne, Sozho claimed as His own the sun, taking it from Korutuzho, and the bright, slow planet, taking it from Zhaké. Furthermore, Sozho took the moon from Ríhíví and the brightest planet from Rana and gave them to His wife Nuvíní, High Goddess of Earth; Sozho took the sun’s innermost planet from His father and granted it to His brother Pétíso, God of Death; the red planet He took from Rékaré and gave it to His brother Voro, God of Hearth Fire; and the outermost planet He took from Sívorí and gave to His brother Vasataté, God of Oceans. Sívorí was now left with nothing but the stars in Her name, but this did not upset Sívorí; She kept dancing and the universe kept turning.

Sívorí updated the Book of the Dead, recording all the new information on the gods and Their planets. Every god provided suggestions; Sívorí organized the information and documented everything.

In the Underworld, Pétíso attained the role of judge of the dead, superseding Sívorí and Néhété. Unlike Sozho, however, Pétíso still relied heavily upon the deposed elder gods’ advice. Néhété continued to question souls upon their arrival to the Underworld; Sívorí continued to dispense sage counsel for Pétíso to absorb and incorporate into His own decisions.

Throughout it all, Sívorí continued to dance the universe in motion. She continued to coax Néhété out from the Underworld to hide Sozho’s light and let Her stars shine through. Néhété continued to ask questions and Sívorí continued to answer all and invent wondrous new things. Sozho was King of the Gods and Ruler of the Universe, and that was how Sívorí wanted it to be. Sozho took the fame and glory, strutting about the universe and being completely ineffectual, while Sívorí kept dancing and actually controlled everything in existence.

At a certain point in Sozho’s reign, when all was good, calm, and peaceful in the universe, Pétíso’s wild son Huro, God of Thunder, challenged Sozho for the title of King of the Gods. Sívorí did not mind Who held the title, but She did loathe the chaos and upheaval this battle would generate.

Huro hefted His hammer and pointed it at Sozho’s chest. Sozho rose from His throne and drew His sword. The two gods exchanged strikes, dodging each other’s slashing weapons. Huro connected first, with a vicious hit that broke His uncle’s upper arm. Sozho retreated a few steps from His nephew; Sívorí dashed to Sozho and healed His injury with a pass of Her hand. The King of the Gods then lunged at His nephew, resuming the fight with a precision stab to Huro’s thigh. The challenger backed away from His uncle; Sívorí dashed to Huro’s side and healed His wound with a pass of Her hand. She did not want Huro to die, either, for that would upset the balance nearly as much as the dethroning of Sozho.

The battle raged on for days, neither god gaining the upper hand because Sívorí would heal all injuries. The fight had to end, however, for it would cause as much instability in the universe as a change in kings could ever do. Watching the fight, it was quite apparent to the goddess that Sozho was by far the stronger combatant. Without Her interference, Huro would lose. Sívorí sized up Huro, deemed Him to be unfit to rule, and thus let Sozho win, retaining the throne.

After deposing the young upstart, Sozho was ecstatic in His show of power, but Sívorí reminded Him Who actually controlled the universe and suggested to the king that perhaps He should delegate some responsibilities to appease the younger generation. Sozho acquiesced, granting the sun to His son Píríuso, God of the Sun, and the bright, slow planet to Rakazhazhíní, Goddess of Clean Air. Furthermore, Sozho had His wife Nuvíní give the moon to Sozho’s daughter Tarénara, Goddess of Hunting, and the star of evening and morning, brightest in the sky, to Their daughter Vuzhí, Goddess of Life. As consolation for failing to wrest the throne from Sozho, Pétíso gave the sun’s innermost planet to His son Huro. Meanwhile, Voro gave His red planet to His high god Zhíanoso, High God of Fire, Who after a few years delegated it to His daughter Rívorí, Goddess of Wildfire. Similarly, Vasataté gave the furthest planet to His high goddess Kérasa, High Goddess of Water, Who after a few years delegated it to Her grandson Zhaké. Thus the planets are now named in accordance with their ownership.

Sívorí updated the Book of the Dead, documenting all the new information on the gods and Their planets.

Throughout it all, She continues to coax Néhété from the Underworld to hide Píríuso’s light and let Her stars shine through. Sívorí and Néhété continue to aid Pétíso’s judgment of the dead. Néhété continues to ask questions and Sívorí continues to answer all and invent wondrous new things. Sozho is King of the Gods and Ruler of the Universe, and that is how Sívorí wants it to be. Sozho has the fame and glory, while Sívorí keeps dancing the universe in motion, in control of all.