Aerta

Spheres of Influence: Goddess of Cultivation and Harvest, of Wisdom, and of Combat

Epithets: The Wise, The Warrior, The Conqueror

Common Domains: Life, Knowledge, Nature, Order, War

Aerta gave many gifts to the people of Aardia, including language and writing. Even the world itself is named for her; easterners call the goddess ‘Aardia’. She also gave mortals the knowledge to cultivate plants and domesticate animals and is strongly associated with grain and with grasslands for herding. In most places she is associated with construction of buildings and with culture. With civilizations come both trade and war, and Aerta is associated with the strategy and planning those require. The warriors of Saffa worship Aerta before battle.

Although associated with the tilling and taming of fertile land, Aerta is not seen as a mother goddess or associated with reproductive fertility. She is fierce and logical.

Related Demigods & Intermediaries

Necatia: The minor deity, Necatia, who the Urek associate with Aerta, is goddess of bees, wasps, honey, fertility, and new beginnings. Necatia is worshipped during the spring equinox festival, Grenna, along with Aerta, Ptomir, and Pashan. 

Marka: Former Gamaal cultures – the Nawabe, Bowok, Maal, and Dahlgar – worship Marka, depicted as a six-legged horse, as a fertility goddess under Aerta’s domain.

Festivals & Worship

Grenna: The great Sowing festival in honor of Pashan, Ptomir, Aerta, and Necatia takes place on the day preceding the Sowing equinox.

Karpa: The festival of the Reaping equinox is a celebration of abundance and is a fortuitous time for planting root vegetables. 

Ta-Uma and Ta-Navar: Nawabe herders are some of Aerta’s most devoted followers, celebrating her on their own holidays of Ta-Uma and Ta-Navar.

Offerings: Offerings are made when planting or harvesting, before deals and trades are made, before battle, and before contests of strategy or physical skill.

Flora and Fauna

Flora: Grasses and grains (especially corn, barley, rye, and wheat), hops, nuts, seeds and seedpods, roots and root vegetables.

Fauna: Aurochs, horses, sheep, goats, burros, worms, beetles, grubs, bees, wasps, and ants.

Devotees

• The paired warriors of Saffa and the Meliors, their healing counterparts 
• Ma-Abi’s merchants and bankers: She is worshipped here as goddess of planning and investment. 
• The Nawabe worship Aerta as goddess of the grasslands that their herds graze.
• The Bowok people worship Erda, their name for Aerta.