Notes #1:
Understanding Mora and the creation of the universe
The story of Vse, Neb, Ditya and Mora is one of the most universally known tales told throughout Monster society, and yet that truth is becoming less and less for every new generation. You'll remember in our introductory chapter that we labeled these tales under a mythos, that's because those who might have followed them in the past now consider these stories to be myths in the present. It is our understanding that before Mewmen arrival, religions dedicated to Mora and her notable children were quite prominent and influential all across Mewni. When the Mewmen kingdoms came to power however, Monster traditions fell to the wayside in favor of more combat based societies, efficient in survival tactics necessary for inhabiting regions where Mewmens could be avoided such as The Forest of Certain Death and others. As a result, the belief in Mora and the other deities of the universe is little to none on the modern Monster, yet the story of Mewnis creation can still be found, deeply rooted in the landscape and architect of it's ancient people. In some remote communities, those few who still believe in the old ways pass their teachings on to their children, in this way the tradition still persists in modern day even if in small amounts.
Early Mewmen accounts tell of many instances of observed Monster culture, including the worship of the various Monster gods. One of the more interesting stories pertaining to Mora worship comes from the account of an anonymous farmer who was supposedly part of the first generation of Mewmen settlers to be born on Mewni. His story is documented in the official History of Mewni book series from 4th edition onwards, while the original source is currently held in the Firefly library historical achieves. In one of the entries, the Mewmen describes an afternoon with his hunting party, while tracking a wild boar they stumble across a group of Monster cultists performing a ceremony.
"And der, into the tree line we sees the creatures walk toward the fase of the cliffs.
In der posesion bascts of fruts an' ugly statues carvd into rocs, a horror fild figure 's painted in reds and yelloes on the fase of the cliffs, no doubt with blood and piss from der dead.
We watch from the brush as dey led their yong to the alter, defromed smiles on der fases, I tod Emel et takin the yongin wold be easyer den the boar.
He say we com bach when the beasts wer gon an take the fruts.
He ot chewd out by the men when the food wer gon with the beasts."
The ritual that this passage describes is most likely one of the local yearly tributes to Mora. Unlike some of the other deities, whose holidays for worship happened only once a year, it was encouraged to make offerings to Mora regularly, and that only offerings made by hand could please her. This meant that art such as sculptures and paintings were acceptable as well as grown food but not meat, as the kill would have had to come from Mora herself. Mora, to the Monsters of old, was considered the all mother of Mewni; a divine benevolent being who brought them into life, and eventually led them into death. She was the bringer of justice to those who'd been wronged and the creator of guilt in the hearts of the wicked. Some believed she could turn invisible at a moments notice, and that she communicated by shape shifting her tale to appear less intimidating towards her subjects. The previous myth about her birth and the creation of the universe sets the groundwork for many of the moral values of the ancient Monster people, some of which are still influential to this day. The struggle between Vse, Ditya, and eventually Mora against the rest of their family is a cautionary tale about the division of family and the importance of remaining loyal to your kin in the face of change and danger; Likewise, Monster society has a very large emphasis on kinship and brotherhood.
To gather more information on this topic, we had the chance to interview long time monster expert, Yvgeny Bulgolyubov who has now been retired for almost 4 years to his estate in the Western Mewni Swamp lands, where he lives with his son Dimitri. While visiting, we were able to meet one of Bulgolyubovs daughters: Anastasia Bulgolyubov, who was able to further elaborate on the mindset of the ancient Monsters we were researching. She says:
"In the days of old, it was common for a warrior to purposely lose a battle if his family fought on the other side, as it was considered taboo for a Monster to go against their family, even if their beliefs and actions were seen as condemnable to others."
This mindset offered much in the way of close bonds between members of the same community, but it also lead to obvious problems regarding outsiders. Yvgeny went on to add that part of the reason why it was difficult to truly unite the Monster people under a single government was due to a lack of genuine desire to be associated with the other races. We found evidence of this in our research practically concerning an event called The Invasion of the Eagles (which will be explained in much more detail in it's own chapter), where trade between conquered cities and villages proved near impossible, especially between those who had had a previous history of conflict between them.
Of course, not every culture saw Mora in the same light or even recognized her as the true god of creation. During a visit to the Monster community of Buldur we received many differing opinions of the creation story from different types of Monsters, some of which held no mention of Mora or her children. One example, was the story of a group of plant Monsters known as the Plandai, who once resided near what is now the kingdom of Farrman. They believed that the world was a seed in the ground and that they were stalks of roots that would one day breach the surface of the sky and become mighty trees. They saw the other Monsters as parasites that would come to soil the seeds in the fertile ground unless driven away which they almost always were, without the Plandai ever having to leave the dirt. Unfortunately however, some years after the establishing of Farrman, the Plandai suffered a great drought that all but killed off most of the population. Those who survived did so by emerging from the ground in search of new water sources, an act that was considered forbidden by old Plandai law. Today you can still find very few Plandai either roaming the land or staying put in one plot of soil, as they still exist but are very rare to find on Mewni.
Other cultures that did recognize Mora as the creator did so in different ways and interpretations. Sometimes she was a loving mother figure to all creatures, other times she played favorites and renounced certain children who had become the enemy of who ever her chosen people were at the time. Depictions also varied from place to place, with every Monster seeing Mora in their own image while also using her image to enforce their own separate laws. Unfortunately, the true importance of Mora and her chosen children is far too expansive to be explained here in this chapter, though it is important to note that every Monster reacts to Mora differently. According to several written journals (taken from the Firefly library archives) In the past, successful travelers and merchants were able to move across Monster dense areas in relative safety thanks to their knowledge of Mora. One such merchant being one Maino Elderflower, who was able to traverse hostile monster territories from around 250 a.M., to his death in 282 a.M. In letters to his wife he describes the way in which he was able to make his fortune in Mewni with little resistance.
"Twas the morning I forced to leave you my beloved. My hired campaigns and I had hardly left the sights of her majesties palace when a foul odor assaulted our senses to near blindness. I was but a small child, traveling with my fathers' caravan, when last I encountered such a scent. My campaigns were equally disjointed and seemed to know my thoughts before I could voice them.
"Monsters," one said.
After thorough searching we came across the corpse of a particularly grotesque looking Mud Dweller with a Mewmen dagger firmly seethed into his chest. My love, it is my strongest wish that you are never forced to face such atrocities, for the stench is far more consuming on the living then on the dead.
After searching the body we continued our way till nightfall. Having found ourselves in the darkness of the Spiderbite forest, all was still and quiet, save for the chirps of the yellow silk spider hatchlings hidden in the brush. I was looking through our recently acquired loot when a halt was sounded from outside of my cart. The men were stopped by a group of them, carrying around their big clubs and demanding we pay a toll tax for safe passage. The beasts outnumbered us significantly, baring their teeth and stomping their feet as though they would kill us at any moment. I had stepped out of the carriage when they called, not realizing the key to my salvation was still clenched firmly in my fist; a crudely made amulet in the shape of a serpent with a ruby embedded firmly in the center. The object caught the attention of the creatures and a whisper broke out amongst them as their leader addressed me.
"Where did you get that?" he asked in a broken Mewnish, baring his frightening teeth in an attempt of intimidation. I lied and told him it was a gift, which in his small mindedness seemed to agree with. They reduced the price of passage and let us go without further incident, I asked one of my own to remember their faces so we might report the encounter when we reached the Spiderbite Kingdom.
I must say, this jewel though poorly crafted does gives off a certain air of eloquence. Perhaps its use will pay off further in the coming weeks. Not to worry my darling, I intend to shower you in far more exquisite jewels upon my return along with even more riches fit for the queen herself.
Too all I give my love, Maino Elderflower."
The medallion described in this text could refer to a commonly made trinket often used in worship of Mora called an Amulet of Mora, which was said to allow the mothers guidance to reach those who would wear it. From what few amulets we could find, each appears to be made from a wide range of materials such as stone, copper, and even pure gold, the common trend being a depiction of a horned dragon carrying a ruby with its tail, mouth, chest, or tongue. It's likely that Maino's success in trading across the dangerous terrain was due to a still prominent belief in Mora from the surrounding Monsters population at the time, who probably mistook his carrying an Amulet of Mora as being confirmation of his faith. This worked for many who could find these trinkets up until 290 a.M, 8 years after Elderflowers death where popularity of Mora began to wane due to a severe plague that swept the region and killed a majority of the monster population. As the writers and researchers of this book we would advise the reader against attempting such practices on their own.
Ditya, otherwise known as the star child, was the mother of Mora and the youngest daughter of the original deities of the universe. Sources vary on her relation to Mora as well as Vse and their final interaction together before Mora's creation. In the interpretation we used, Ditya took the form of a large blue egg that was sired by Vse and used as a tool for his revenge. In other versions she was a separate but equal being to Vse and Neb, who brought Mora into life only after Vse took her on as a second spouse. Interestingly enough, this version also tells of Ditya and Vse poking holes in the body of Neb to spy on Mora as she destroyed the families of the betrayers, alluding to her established creation of the stars.
No matter which version is referenced (because there are many), a common theme as far as Ditya is concerned is her motherhood of Mora and her relation to the stars. The Monsters of old didn't hold much prevalence with the concept of immortality, despite many a modern Septarian claiming to be such.
"Yes, there are those who can regenerate lost body parts as well as heal expectantly quick from otherwise fatal wounds," Says Yvgeny, sitting at a small table across from us and Ms. Anastasia, while Dimitri prepares a lunch. "Just as there are those who can live for a longer amount of time compared to others. But as any follower of Mora would tell you, the all mother is a being of both life and death. That very fact was proof enough for them that nothing lasts forever and that everything eventually dies," their deities were no exception. Without going too off topic, there is much to debate on whether or not Ditya is actually dead or alive, and indeed most would say that she is dead, but others would argue that part of her still lives even though her body is scattered amongst the cosmos. These theories both hold prevalence within the different regions of Mewni, with some even speculating Mora as a reincarnation of her mother.
Whichever the prescribed theory, the importance of Ditya in the larger mythos usually ends with the birth of Mora and the stars, which are seen more as a gift from Vse then from Ditya herself.
Vse, like Mora, is recognized as a creator deity, though he is commonly honored for his role in the afterlife and as the guardian of heaven more then anything based off his earlier work. To the ancient Monsters, death wasn't so much an end to life but merely a right of passage to another stage of life, similar to a child coming of age. It was believed that Mora, who was also a being of death, would allow souls to travel with her into heaven where Vse would test them on whether or not they were worthy enough to stay.
Sources vary on what this test actually implies, but unlike many other religions in Mewni that emphasized on a life well lived on the mortal plane having an effect on the life hereafter, it is made very clear within the Monster mythos that deeds committed in this world will have little influence on how the soul will live in the next. Alternatively, they give attention to matters of skill and durability acquired through life rather then moral standing, this leads many to speculate a sort of physical test, though again there likely isn't a true answer.
A warm thank you to the Bulgolyubov clan, the village of Baldur, and to the Firefly Library Historical Society for contributing to this story.