Asanii

One of the foundational races of the Alliance, the Asanii are among the Pelted segregated from the original engineered experiments during the Exodus.

Pronunciation

Say 'AH sah nee'.

Description

Taller (averaging 5'9" and often taller) individuals, feline in seeming, with housecat-like ears, plantigrade stance and five fingers and toes, with nails. Patterns tend to more uniform housecat styles, unlike their sister-feline races, the Karaka'a and Harat-Shar.

Religion

On Asanao, religion and politics are freely intermixed. Only one major religion is present on the planet -- the worship of the Niiana. Niiana is the balance between male and female, the harmony (think yin-yang). Nii is the female and Ana is the male. The worship of the Niiana can be separated into two priesthoods so distinct they are almost (but not quite) separate relgions. The Nii is represented by the sun. Nii priestesses must be women; they wear a white or beige robe with thick gold jewelry, all emblazoned with a stylized sun. The Nii is considered to be the parts of the personality that are strong, not subtle. Their temples are extremely reminiscent of Aztec architecture or ziggurats, and are usually an orange-yellow, or orange-brown in color. Temples worshipping the Nii are almost always large, and without exception very tall. The Ana, representing the subtle traits in a personality, is represented by the moon, and only males are accepted as priests. Temples of Ana are also tall, as the temples of Nii are, but usually are smooth and curved, and of dark-blue or gray-blue stone. Priests usually wear dark blue or gray garments with silver jewelry, understated, stamped with the moon. The President of Asanao always has three counselors; one is an elected official, and the other two are the High Priest and High Priestess of Niiana. Both have great power within the government; in the Senate they count as 10% of the people. Thus, if the Senate is currently 100 people large, then the High Priestess counts as 10 people and the High Priest counts as 10 people.

Notable Characters

• Laelkii Takara Lifeweave
• Svetlana Karishenikov