66 lines
5.7 KiB
Plaintext
66 lines
5.7 KiB
Plaintext
# Ranks in the actual Hierarchy as well, Hierarch, the 9 Ennearchs.
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# The Councillors can actually be of any Meadowlark rank, but theoretical minimum is Renunciate.
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#
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# Above the Practicants are the Master Practicants and the
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The Hierarchy is structured along two axes: Meadowlark and Political power.
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Simplest is the Hierarch, who sits atop both theoretically.
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The next, who usually handle the actual administration of the Hierarchy and actually serve on the Council, are the 9 Ennearchs.
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Both the Hierarch and the Ennearchs have complementary powers.
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It is the Hierarch who speaks for the entire Hierarchy proper, which is why the political interference from the Republic was aimed directly at the top.
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The Hierarch can nominally appoint Ennearchs.
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The Ennearchs are essentially the 9 seniormost members of the Council, in typical times.
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When an Ennearch dies, the Flocks who have sworn to him or her nominate a replacement, and it would be a shock and surprise for the Hierarch to not accept that nomination.
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A Flock swears to an Ennearch in particular.
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Each Ennearch has a virtue they espouse, and a Flock can be arranged around any one of them.
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(Theoretically, a Flock could claim to embody all virtues, and swear to the Hierarch, but it would be seen as a wildly arrogant move).
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The Ennearch must officially accept the charter of a Flock.
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This is usually very simple, and is typically a prerequisite for actual FLock formation ceremonies.
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The Ennearch is expected then to represent the Flocks they bring to the Meadowlark.
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In actuality, they are typically not particularly representative of anything at all.
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The Ennearchs all sit on the Council.
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The Council appoints a Hierarch at an appointed time when necessary, which is usually done by a small committee of powerful Councillors, potentially but not always including some or all of the Ennearchs.
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The Council also handles the day-to-day administration of the Hierarchy, usually by delegating roles elsewhere.
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The Hierarch does not typically sit on the Council.
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The Council numbers about 20-30 typically, including the Ennearchs.
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Fewer Master Practicants than expected are on it; Master Practicants have lots of skill, but not necessarily the power to even control their own schedules, because they are valuable resources in the eyes of the Council.
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A Master Practicant is, at least to some, just a tool for turning Adepts into Renunciates and actually adding bodies to the Hierarchy.
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Being a Practicant on the Council is a far higher position in the Hierarchy in practical terms than being an Anendyte off of the Council.
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The Meadowlark structure is as follows, from lowest to highest:
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Initiate - anyone who has joined the Hierarchy proper (typically it's not uncommon for Flock members to spend time as an Initiate, before leaving the Hierarchy)
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Adept - any Initiate who has shown actual capability with the Meadowlark, being able to hear or use it at all (Again, not entirely uncommon, but significantly filtered from the total Initiate pool)
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Renunciate - An Adept who swears oaths, relinquishes the right to own property (although the Republic will eventually have to reckon with the legality of that), and binds themself to the Hierarchy.
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No special skill is needed. You could, theoretically, on the same day show up as an Initiate, show some skill and be declared an Adept (without much fuss or ceremony) and then swear your oaths and become a Renunciate.
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Such haste would likely be rejected by whichever Master Practicant was actually petitioned to witness the vows.
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Practicant - In some sense a Practicant represents a trained Renunciate.
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A Master Practicant must declare the Renunciate's training over (and almost always the Master Practicant teaching the Renunciate).
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At this stage, the Practicant is no longer bound to a particular Anendyte, and is given far more freedom within the Hierarchy.
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Someone who can be trusted to use the Applied Meadowlark in public (although the Republic is not entirely kind to this interpretation).
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Traditionally this would require reaching the higher levels of the Meadowlark, even the unyielding meadowlark, but nowadays Practicants are basically able to just about create soil from rock, slowly.
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Typically, unless someone has a particular interest in scholarship or in pedagogy, or just interest in the actual applied meadowlark, this is where people stop in their Meadowlark training.
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Auroklos is a Practicant, although one of moderate skill.
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Sarla is a very, very skilled Practicant, and is on the cusp of being a very young Anendyte.
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Blue-sashed black robes.
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Anendyte / Master Practicant - Capable of / allowed to teach the Meadowlark to Adepts, and necessary to witness vows for Adepts to become Renunciates.
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The Ennearchs will bring the petition of a skilled Practicant to the Hierarch for evaluation, with the Hierarch's approval, a Practicant becomes an Anendyte.
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Often this requires great skill, along with a long experience.
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In practice, a Practicant will already have begun aiding Renunciates, even if not formally teaching them.
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In the current times, the skill required will almost certainly involve being able to grow plants with some ease.
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There are not many Anendytes, only usually 15-20 in the whole Hierarchy.
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Green robes.
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Telaugur - Very rare, requires reaching the highest Meadowlarks at least on occasion.
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If you can command insects, and the wind and the rain, then you are a Telaugur.
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There is no formal process for attaining this rank.
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The last Telaugurs were imprisoned and killed during the Suppression three Presidents ago.
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Caprina has the knowledge and skill to be a Telaugur, but not the will to teach or any desire to be part of the Hierarchy.
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Elders often have an advantage in reaching higher meadowlarks, because of their closer connection to the Fifth Race.
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