User blog:Doctor Ibrahim/The Pah Miiraad

(Note: This is a summary of the ideals of Tirush, an OC of mine.)  The Pah Miiraad 

 The Pah Miiraad (often shortened to simply “Miiraad”, roughly translated into common as “The Four Ways or, directly translated, “The Complete Path”) is an ancient philosophy that was once the major belief structure of the Rach Itmen clan of Copper Wyverns of ancient days. Once seen as the way to mastery of the primal, spiritual and physical self in the clan's way of life, it has since fallen into obscurity, practiced only by a very few individuals. Because it required the eschewing of most indulgences and requires a simple way of living, most Copper Wyverns have since abandoned it in favor of more modern, material pursuits. While it does not confer power by itself, as an applied philosophy it allows the vast power inherent to Copper Wyverns to manifest in myriad ways. Alternately, it can be followed by anyone who wishes to better themselves, although it has proven to be especially beneficial to all Draconid races due to its origins in Draconic language.

 History: 

 Copper Wyverns have had a relationship with humans since prehistory. Unique to the cold northern territories of the continent of Horovorad, in ancient times they were massive-bodied passerine Draconids who were tamed and used as mounts for the Itmen, a peoples who remained isolated from the advances of civilization through the centuries. When the Copper Wyverns suddenly found themselves turned into Mamono when the Maou rose to power, they were in a unique position. Far more powerful than most Draconids, the Copper Wyverns took to calling themselves the Rach and adapted their own lifestyle and requirements for taking human partners.

 Before the change, the Rach were relatively few and far between, being supremely powerful Wyverns with few peers. They were not kept and bred as a tame animal, as their requirements were too high to be practically kept in large numbers. After the change, their physical requirements did as well, and the Rach banded together in small flocks and remained in their human forms to better interact with their human neighbors, the Itmen, with whom they had been connected since time immemorial. Thus, the two peoples of the Rach and the Itmen formed their own society.

 The human forms of the Rach allowed them to interact with the clan at large, but with so many more of them around, it was not practical to turn into their primal forms for long periods of time. They discovered that if they remained in their human forms for too long, they lost a great deal of their abilities. Their primal forms were smaller, their fire was weaker or nonexistent, their scales became soft and lost their luster. To combat this, the Rach developed a martial art philosophy that focused their bodies and kept their primal forms strong while not allowing them to succumb to base instincts or worldly distractions.

 Using the vocal traditions of the Itmen, the Rach developed their own language that incorporated the vocal magic they already knew as Draconids. Rather than using the word magic crudely and directly, the phrases practiced by the Rach were poetic mantras that followed the traditions of the Itmen medicine chants, designed to focus the mind and direct the heart by reinforcing beliefs. Named the Pah Miiraad, or the True Path or the Four Ways, the philosophy allowed the Rach to retain their abilities as true Copper Wyverns while simultaneously giving them the peace of mind that came from discipline and a simple life. This allowed the Rach Itmen to exist in peace for hundreds of years, relatively untouched by outside influences.

 Several decades ago, when the continental War of Ascension between Etrugia and Nilhasse began to spread and the nations of the continent succumbed to the war in one capacity or another, the call for mercenaries went out on a larger and larger scale. The Rach Itmen, always having lent others their fighting prowess over time for one reason or another, found themselves increasingly wrapped up in the affairs of war after several years. The clan split, most of them deciding to become permanent soldiers of fortune for Etrugia, while the remainder left to find another territory where they would remain undisturbed. Time and the pursuit of coin drove the old ways from the Rach quickly, and they eventually lost most of what used to set them apart from most other Wyverns.

 As the old clan spread out, the Etrugian army decided that the remaining Rach who still followed the Miiraad was too much of an asset to leave unclaimed. They set about capturing or killing the remaining Rach and their families, forcing them into servitude with magic and the threat of harm on their loved ones. Most of them chose death, and while the cost to the Etrugian Dragon Hunters was high, the few remaining Rach were slain or driven into hiding.

 At present, only a handful of practitioners of the Pah Miiraad still exist. Copper Wyverns can be found, but they are otherwise a subset of Wyvern with some larger-than-normal abilities to breathe fire, nothing like the followers of the Old Ways. Many of them now live in civilized areas, no different than most other Mamono, and younger ones have only a vague idea of what the Pah Miiraad even was. Still, when the war passes, there is the possibility that there will be a resurgence in the philosophy.

 Tenets and Ideals: 

 The Four Ways refers to the four main Tenets of the Miiraad philosophy: North, South, East, and West. North and South are major disciplines, while East and West are minor disciplines. East is a minor discipline of South, while West is a minor discipline of North. The ideas represented by the Tenets are as follows:

 North: Dominance, Power, Fighting.

 South: Respect/Fear, Peace, Humility.

 East: Others, Spirit, Nature.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> West: Self, Body, Health.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> North---Symbolically represented as the most dominant Tenet for most Rach. Bravery, and the ability to persevere, is presented here. It applies mostly to battle, but if practiced properly and with clear thinking, can apply to long-term goals as well. The most versatile ideal is Dominance, which is the ability to take charge of a given situation, and not allow it to control you. This is the first ideal overlooked by early practitioners, as they face failure and see it as a weakness and don't know how to apply it.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> Dominance also applies to being the primary matriarch of the family; while subservient to the male, it presents the practitioner as the primary defender of the family. Dominance also represents perseverance in any situation, whether it be a battle (short term) or overcoming a problem (long term.) When the ways of the Rach slipped into modernity, North was associated only with Power, and so lost its primary function as the means to be the keystone for all other Tenets.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> South---Represented, when practiced properly, as the most practical Tenet, and the one that should be held in highest regard. It is also the most difficult to truly master. This is difficult in early practitioners, as they associate the ideal of Fear as being cowardly. In fact, Fear in its most base form, is completely different---Respect. Respect for a strong foe, respect for your family and spouse, respect for your elders, respect for your forebears. It leads to the second idea, Peace, which is having Respect for your place in the world. This is honed through the ideal of Humility which, when applied, keeps all of North in check, and keeps Respect from being Fear.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> South also has an extremely important function: that of release after a fight. South requires that during a battle, North is the dominant Tenet, and the focus of Dominance keeps Fear in check. After the battle is won, North is released, and South takes over, Peace allowing the previously held Fear to be released. When victory has been achieved, life is sweeter and more precious, and Humility and Peace allow sadness and Fear to temporarily take over, so that they are not held back and bottled up to inhibit North when the time comes again.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> East---The Tenet of charity and the well-being of others, kept healthy by South, and its subset, Humility. A vital Tenet for the young and mothers, it is required that East is practiced early and often so that it may guide the development of South, which in turn checks North. This makes it difficult to understand, as young who do not learn the Tenet have an imbalance that is hard to adjust later in life.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> Spirituality can also be seen as the academic side of Miiraad, as the practice is decidedly spiritual and inwardly-turned. This may seem like it counters the selflessness that East promotes, but it in fact is the recognition of spiritual well-being that is required for Miiraad to be properly followed in the first place. The recognition of Nature as the bastion that allows the Spirit to remain strong is equally important, as it separates one from the distractions of the material world and keeps West in check by recognizing that there is much more to the world than the self.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> West---The Tenet that requires one to conduct sound practices that allow the distractions of the body to be minimal. Health is recognized as a keystone of personal happiness through which all other things follow, namely the ability to survive. The ideal of Body doesn't represent strength---North does---as much as it represents the need to understand and respect the limits of the body and how to push them without harm. It in turn allows Health to prosper, and the two mutually command a balance.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> Self is entirely different, and doesn't necessarily mean the physical body, although that is a part of it. Self is the introspection that is required to understand one's flaws, and how they can throw everything off-balance. It is recognized that the ideal of Self will follow though with the proper teaching of the other Tenets, but some adherents cautioned against this, understanding that introspection can lack in anyone.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> Songs, Poems and Mantras: 

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> Each Tenet represents both physical and esoteric aspects of the Rach's way of life. In theory, it could be followed by others besides Copper Wyverns, but the ancient magic inherent in their breeding allows only them to take full advantage of the ideas it presents. The way the Rach utilized and unified their teachings is by developing phrases that outline the philosophies while using the ancient Dragon tongue, the Tenets themselves ideas that are represented by words. Each word holds no power in and of itself, but rather, the practice that it represents. Simply speaking the word will have no effect, no more than writing a note will produce music. It is the practice of the philosophies that allow the practitioner to focus their mind. The magic resides in the body, and is focused by the practice of the philosophy. The mantras, or “poems,” are focal points for the mind of the practitioner, much how a staff is a focal point for a Mage and cannot be used by anyone else.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> An early practitioner of Miiraad will physically speak the words as they are conducting the act that they seek to commit. This can be done for many things, and not just combat---not every Copper Wyvern is a fighter, although they are inherently good at fighting. Thus, a Rach who has taken a position as a nursemaid in the clan will have a set of songs and poems that focus on the South and the East. These allow her to vocalize her inherent warmth that soothes the young and the stricken, allowing for command over the ability to heal. These songs are unique in that they may utilize the same set of words repeatedly, but are sung with varying tones that differ, like a normal song. In this way, the words themselves do not necessarily tell a story as much as they reinforce an idea.

<p class="P2 Standard paragraph" style="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px;position:relative;font-family:"TimesNewRoman";font-size:10.5pt;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;line-height:normal;widows:1;"> Rach that are fighters may have a set of mantras they practice every morning, in the manner of a prayer, that allows them to focus their mind and body to be ready for the day. Rach warriors of old had battle chants that they would rhythmically recite, their words resounding like thunder that struck over and over, its effect terrifying to their foes before being set upon by the Primal forms of the Copper Wyverns and their mounted warriors. But well-practiced adherents of the Pah Miiraad do not vocalize their mantras, but keep them inside, which sets them apart from other Draconids. The most powerful Miiraadak have the mantras they practice running through their mind constantly, like a heartbeat, and cannot stop them any more than they can stop breathing. These mantras allow them to use their powers at will and for any length of time, insomuch as the limits of their bodies will permit.

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