Cult of Gorakiki
originally published in Trollpak and Troll Gods
This document is Copyright © 1998 Issaries, Inc. It may be freely linked to, and one copy may be printed for personal use, but any other reproduction by photographic, electronic, or other methods of retrieval, is prohibited.
Table of Contents
Mythos and History
Gorakiki is the goddess of all insects. When Ga, the first land, appeared, Kropa gave birth to Gorakiki. Gorakiki, who was originally a servant goddess, thrived and spread her progeny far and wide, though she herself remained safely underground. When the sun died and thrust himself into cold reality, Gorakiki and her children fled to the surface. Once there, Gorakiki proclaimed her position as leader, not slave, and her children throve and grew prodigiously, eating and breeding everywhere.
Since prehistoric times, insects have prevailed in the world. This cult allows the domestication of insects and flourishes among trolls. Its strength may be seen in the fact that almost all trolls prefer insects as familiars.
Among other things, the cult promises worshipers that they will have insect food after death. Trolls view the afterlife as a mindless and memoryless existence in a gray empty plain, so this promise can be quite tempting.
Gorakiki is associated with the Runes of Beast and Darkness.
Major Subcults of Gorakiki
Unlike most cults, each of Gorakiki's worshipers belongs to one of many mutually exclusive sub-cults. The reaction between two sub-cults may well be hostile. Four important insect hsunchen cults are: Bee, Dragonfly, Locust, and Moth. Most important among trolls is, without doubt, Beetle, though many other subcults exist among trolls, as indicated below. The Wasp subcult is worshiped in Dragon Pass by the human Wasp Riders. Many other subcults are known; one student counted a total of twenty-four.
Known Subcults of Gorakiki
| gorakiki-bee
| gorakiki-earwig
| gorakiki-mantis
| gorakiki-silverfish
|
| gorakiki-beetle
| gorakiki-fly
| gorakiki-mayfly
| gorakiki-springtail
|
| gorakiki-bug
| gorakiki-honeydew
| gorakiki-moth
| gorakiki-stonefly
|
| gorakiki-caddisfly
| gorakiki-lacewing
| gorakiki-roach
| gorakiki-termite
|
| gorakiki-cicada
| gorakiki-locust
| gorakiki-sawfly
| gorakiki-walking stick
|
| gorakiki-dragonfly
| gorakiki-louse
| gorakiki-scorpionfly
| gorakiki-wasp
|
Other Notes
The usual mode of worshiping Gorakiki, the mode explained here, is not the only way. The Timinits, insect people of Jrustela and Pamaltela, also worship Gorakiki, but in a totally different manner -- as an ancestral beings, and they learn different skills. In some areas of Glorantha, Gorakiki is worshiped by humans in a propitiatory sense; an attempt to keep insects from devouring crops or infesting livestock.
The progeny of Gorakiki have spread so far and wide that her children have become attached to all sorts of strange groups, including Sky gods and even Chaos. Gorakiki has no real control over what her children do, and her adherents must often try to overlook the existence of insects tied to the cults of Malia, the Lightbringers (enemies to trolls), or other hostile gods.
See also:
Tales of the Night Hag
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