The Goddesses of Sea, Sky, and Soil

One of the major world religions follows the teachings of the Goddesses of Sea, Sky, and Soil–Cuan, Dearr, and Talamh. While the vast majority of worshippers focus on the words of one of these Goddesses, this is a single religion. The Goddesses are, depending on personal perspective, either one being in three aspects or three beings who have been hand-in-hand for eternity.

Cuan, Dearr, and Talamh created the Earth and the cosmos. Most believers do not hold them to be infallible: like the humans that Talamh created, they can be fickle, nasty, and wrong. For this reason, worship is often a cycle of asking and thanking. The uniting teaching of the religion is that the Goddesses try their best, and so should their followers. When they make mistakes, we should forgive them, and understand that we too are responsible for our wellbeing: they are, after all, Goddesses of everything, not just humans.

Cuan was the first-born. She brought with her the globe, a swirling thing of ocean and nought else. The fish brought her company for a short time, but watching them swim soon bored her. Quick-tempered as she was, she stomped her foot and called for her sister to join her.

Dearr obliged, eager to placate her sister. As she did, the night was dotted with stars, the sun bore a great hole in the sky, and birds began to swoop. Seeing that her fish were so quickly eaten up by her sister's creatures, Cuan stomped once more, wishing that her other sister would defend them.

Talamh joined her sisters with a smile. Her arrival spread swatches of earth across the surface of Cuan's seas, great trees erupting from the ground. She was able to calm Cuan and Dearr's dispute, and for a short while, the Three passed time in peace, watching their new world grow and bloom.

Soon enough, though, The Three were not content with one another. Talamh grew tired of Dearr's vanity; Dearr grew weary of Cuan's rage; Cuan grew bored with Talamh's jealousy. Talamh decided to create something new to distract them–beings made in their image, with their own flaws and talents, free to do as they might with the sea, sky, and soil.

This new creature pleased the Three. The humans, as they were soon called, would sometimes ask one of the Three for food or guidance or miracles. When she believed it to be right, the Goddess would return in kind. Some humans preferred to ask Cuan, others Dearr, and others Talamh, but those who received the greatest bounties were those who remembered that the Goddesses are Three.

– A recounting of the creation of mankind, according to a Soil-Blessed preacher.

Cuan is responsible for the seas, rivers, ponds, rain, and creatures of the waters. During droughts or floods, followers will gather together, asking Cuan for her help; when she deigns to give it, followers give thanks by bathing in natural waters and eating seafood. Cuan’s holy day varies by year and location, taking place on the day of the highest tides. Inspired by the unpredictability of the ocean, followers of Cuan appreciate the ups and downs of life alike, and have great respect for those who express their emotions freely.

She brought us rain, and far-flung sea,
Made rivers flow through verdant lea,
Let us feast on kelp and fish,
And answers every honest wish.

We wished for food when we had none,
You sent your creatures one by one.
We wished for dry when dams broke loose
And it was so, as went the truce.

Great Cuan, who gifted all that flows,
Waves which churn, great wind that blows,
We thank you as this flood dies down,
And praise you in your marine crown.

– Lyrics to a hymn often sang at celebrations of Cuan.

Dearr created and protects the sky, the cosmos, the ozone layer, the atmosphere, and the birds. Astronauts and pilots, believers or not, tend to ask Dearr for protection before flying. Dearr is celebrated on the Spring and Autumn equinoxes, when her two aspects, day and night, show themselves in equal amount. Followers thank Dearr for the beauty of the sun and stars, and tend to value aesthetic beauty and tranquility.

Sharing the word of Dearr requires great care. As we know, Dearr created each star in the sky, and your words must carry equal precision and beauty. You are to be a shining light for your congregation, Sky-Blessed one.

On Spring and Autumn equinoxes, this is of particular importance. Remember to honour the bright rays of her daytime sun and the subdued of her nighttime moon. Carry these aspects forward in your speech, and your congregation will follow. Go forth with patience and adoration.

– From 'Sky-Blessed and Scared: A Short Guide for New Preachers of Dearr'

It was Talamh who created the earth for the sky to surround and the seas to feed. She gifted the ground with fire and people. This gift is also a curse: followers of Talamh are well-aware that fire burns and people hurt. Talamh is celebrated on the winter solstice, when the heat she provides is most appreciated. Her followers value camaraderie and community above all else.

– A drawing by a child, made shortly after attending a winter solstice celebration of Talamh's gifts of fire and humanity. Three children hold hands behind a small fire. The text above them reads 'me and my friends at solstice.' The text to the right of them is a common saying used by believers: 'love and fire burn, and Talamh's children learn.'

When searching for answers, followers of the Goddesses do not tend to ask the deities directly. Instead, they consult their creations. Those who worship Cuan may use the tides to guide their choices–low tides advise care and patience, while high tides indicate action. Those who worship Dearr may instead read signs in the stars, or in the colour of the sky at night and in the morning. Those who worship Talamh might look for guidance in the entrails of animals.

A common, shared tradition begins by creating a face from something natural–a carved vegetable; carefully arranged bones; the shapes of clouds in the sky. Worshippers will then have a 'conversation' with this face, hoping that by asking questions or talking through a problem, the Goddesses' guidance will shape their thought process. Together, they might reach a solution¹⁾.

Reactions to the End, and in particular, the contagion, are varied between followers of each Goddess. Many believe that the sickness is a punishment from Talamh in response to humankind's pollution of the land in the name of greed. Of these, some have responded with anger, and others with bowed heads. Others see the contagion, and other natural disasters, as a result of simple chance; the Goddesses are imperfect. They are not omnipotent, and when things go wrong, they cannot be expected to fix it all.

These conflicts between believers have not yet resulted in a rupture. Perhaps this is simply because so few remain.

Talamh ought to be Goddess of the crackling fire, of the padded foot, of the fresh green leaf. We have made her Goddess of the razed ground, of the screaming cub, of the wilted stem. This plague is our punishment, and it is rightly deserved.

Ask for forgiveness, and it will be given. Challenge the Goddesses, and they will but intensify their onslaught. We must respect our Goddesses and their World, or we shall each of us die.

– Extract from a sermon given by Danom Geral, the Soil-Blessed

My children - the few of us who remain - we must not bow down to the fickle whims of Talamh. Cuan will aid us in our escape from the contagion, but only if we demonstrate our resilience and our disgust at Talamh's fitful onslaught. Do not blindly accept what is given to you.

– Extract from a sermon given by Boudica Campbell, the Sea-Blessed

My congregation has dissipated. Some have fled to Din Talin. Others have turned from Dearr's blessings. Most have died. Still, I devote myself to Dearr. I believe that the other survivors do, too. I suppose that our traditions, our communities and our festivals, are secondary to our true purpose: thanking Dearr, and her sisters, for the world they have given us to. I continue to thank her. This will not last forever.

– Extract from a diary entry written by Sangyup Kwon, the Sky-Blessed