From its beginnings as an small, informal gathering of a few believers, the religion of Bajor has grown into a massive and structured system. **Bajor's religion is in the hands of the Vedeks, high-ranking officials roughly analogous to the Cardinals in the Terran religion Catholicism.

The approximately one hundred Vedeks from all over Bajor make up the Vedek Assembly, the council which is responsible for acting upon all matters related to religion on Bajor.** While the Assembly has no real power beyond the religion itself, it has a tremendous amount of influence in Bajor's new Provisional Government.

**The leader of the Vedek Assembly, and the spiritual leader of all of Bajor is the Kai. The Kai is selected by the Assembly from among its ranks.** Tradition holds that the Assembly select the Vedek for this position who is elected by all Bajora in a worldwide vote called the Choosing, but there is no rule that prohibits them from ignoring the Choosing and appointing someone else instead.

The Kai who is selected will serve for his or her lifetime, unless he or she is removed by special vote of the Assembly. The vestments of each Kai are unique, and are designed prior to the Choosing by members of the Order of the Soul.

Just beneath the Kai in power are the High Vedeks. These are the Vedeks who are the leaders of the nine religious orders (see RELIGIOUS ORDERS, below). They have only a few powers beyond those of ordinary Vedeks, one of which is that they offer the first blessings upon the newly-appointed Kai. The Kai is often one of the nine High Vedeks, although this is not required. The rest of the Vedeks come next in the pyramid of power. Aside from their duties as Assembly members, the Vedeks also serve Bajor in other fashions. Some lead services in monestaries around Bajor. Others are teachers. Some even serve in the civilian government. It is up to the individual Vedek (in consultation with the whole Assembly and the leaders of his order) to determine how he or she will use this position of power and influence to best serve the Prophets and Bajor.

**Beneath the Vedeks are the Prylars, or monks.** These are the thousands of ordained members of Bajor's religion, similar to Terran priests. Prylars tend shrines, preach to the faithful, bury the dead, and perform similar holy duties, as assigned by the Vedek Assembly.

They may also have administrative tasks, aiding the Vedek Assembly or the Kai in their duties. **The rules which govern the dress of monks and Vedeks vary from order to order.** The traditional vestments of a Vedek are colorful layered robes of a heavy material, and a multi-tiered hat. Only the most structurally orthodox orders (i.e., the Order of the Tear, the Order of the Heart, or the Order of the Blood) require their members to wear the hat, and several orders have foregone the use of the heavy, elaborate robes in favor of lighter, looser, simpler garments.

The vestments of monks tend to be more uniform; nearly all orders require their Prylars to wear loose robes and tight hoods over their heads. Still, there is variation in the exact style of these garments. Behavioral rules also vary from order to order. While orthodox orders require their members to observe complicated rituals and vows, progressive orders allow their members much freedom.

One rule which is common among the religious of other planets, celibacy, has never been a part of the code of even the most conservative order. It is considered quite normal for a Vedek or Prylar to be sexually active; **the late Vedek Bareil was intimately involved with the Bajoran Liason Officer on Deep Space Nine, and even the revered Kai Opaka bore a son.**

[This section is a fairly simple breakdown of the various positions within the Bajoran religion. Most of it comes right from the show. The notion that the Assembly doesn't have to follow the results of the Choosing when selecting a Kai is to explain how Minister Jaro was going to, "Instruct the Vedek Assembly to elect [Vedek Winn] Kai," after being sworn into office ("The Siege"), although "The Collaborator" later established the process to be a free election.

The idea that each Kai wears unique vestments that are designed prior to the election explains why Kai Winn's robes look totally different from Kai Opaka's, but are identical to the robes "Kai" Bareil saw on himself in his Orb-dreams.

The High Vedeks are my own invention, and are explained in the next section. I base the assumption that every order has its own dress and behavior code on the fact that we have seen several flavors of Vedek vestments: Bareil's loose pink robe, Winn's heavy red robe and Sydney Opera House hat, and Yarka's heavy blue robe with no hat.

There seems to be a single type of garment for the monks, though, so I assume it's one of the few things about which the orders agree. I'm not postulating a totally different dress code for each order, since, by my reckoning, the High Vedeks of several orders have worn the same vestments.

The problem of celibacy has been a topic of discussion among fans for quite a while. While some people have tried to explain its existence by saying that Bareil and Kira's love was not physical or something like that, I think it's obvious that physical love is not a no-no for Vedeks. If it were, Winn would surely have used Bareil's relationship with Kira against him, and Bareil would've been more discreet about it.]

BORHYAS: The Bajorans believe that if an individual dies before completing some important task, he is not allowed to rest. His ghost, or borhya, remains in the physical world until it completes this task.**

DEATH CHANT: A prayer which is recited upon the death of a Bajora.** It is a prayer to the Prophets asking for the protection and rest of the soul of the deceased. **It is over two hours long.**

DURANYA: A lamp for the dead. This is a small burning brazier which hangs on a large and elaborate stand. Bajora light these lamps and chant special chants before them.** This represents the idea that the deceased is still fondly remembered in the hearts of the chanters.

GRATITUDE FESTIVAL: A three-day-long festival in which Bajora are encouraged to forget their troubles and thank the Prophets for the good they have been given.**

MONESTARY, THE: The center of the Bajoran religion, the meeting place of the Vedek Assembly, and the home of the Orbs. It is located on a hill in the Capitol City of Bajor.**

PAGH: The Bajoran concept of the essence of being. The pagh is said to exist in the earlobe of every individual, and can be explored by grasping the earlobe and squeezing. This ritual is performed by Vedeks of the more orthodox spiritual orders when meeting with others.**

A great Terran hero once said, "Some people think the future means the end of history. Well, we haven't run out of history quite yet." In the past few years Bajor has undergone massive changes, from the end of war with Cardassia to the discovery of the Celestial Temple and the great frontier beyond.** As Bajor moves into the galactic community, history shows no sign of running out. As a Vedek might say, only the Prophets know what changes, what history, tomorrow may bring. Only one thing is certain. As long as there is a Bajor, as long as there are Bajora, there will be a great religion that unites them. [Yes, those are the words of the late, great Captain James Tiberius Kirk, from the end of Star Trek VI.]

I hope you've enjoyed this guide to the Bajoran religion. But no matter how you felt about it, I hope you'll let me know. Please E-mail your opinions to Dev F (DevF@aol.com). I welcome any constructive comments you might have, especially if you can update me on some point of the religion that I've missed. Walk with the Prophets, and long live Deep Space Nine!

I have always been fascinated by the bits of information we have received about the religion of Bajor over the past three seasons of Deep Space Nine. Using that information as a basis, I have constructed this guide. Most of this guide is pure conjecture. Even so, I have tried hard to conform to the established continuity, to present a view of the religion that is, at the time of this writing, entirely possible.

To avoid potential conflict, I haven't made up anything that's not at least partially backed up by information from the show. (That is, I haven't made up names of religious leaders or dates of specific occurrances.) After each section, if necessary, I will include a paragraph or two explaining how or why I have formulated certain details or created certain systems.

Canon material (material that has been clearly established on the series) will be marked off with stars **like this**. I had hoped to be able to write this guide from the perspective of a Bajoran religious person, but I found that some of the information that I wished to include (such as theories regarding the wormhole entities/Prophets) would not have sounded genuine coming from a believer. Therefore, I have written it instead from the point of view of an outsider, a scholar who has studied the religion without becoming personally involved in it. While that make make for dryer reading, it does allow me to include some things I wouldn't have been able to otherwise.

(Note: You may notice my use of the term "Bajora" when referring to the Bajoran people. This was established in "Ensign Ro", but has since fallen into disuse. I use it simply because I think it sounds better.

For hundreds of thousands of years the planet Bajor has been an interestellar center of knowledge. It has been home to the greatest thinkers and the most talented artists of all time since before most other species had evolved opposable thumbs. But the most remarkable facet of Bajoran culture has only been around for a short ten thousand years. This facet has united a torn world, has allowed the Bajora to survive and thrive in spite of terrible obstacles. This facet is known, simply, as the religion of Bajor. This paper is a survey of the most important aspects of this religion. It is my attempt to bring to you an understanding of this remarkable phenomenon. Read well, that you may come to appreciate this great faith as much as I do.

**Over the past ten millennia strange objects have periodically appeared in the sky over the planet Bajor. These objects are colored light/energy vortexes which maintain an hourglass shape.**

The first of these objects was discovered floating down to earth from high in the heavens ten thousand years ago. Those who found it quickly discovered its power. Anyone who came into close contact with the object found himself confronting mysterious and confusing visions. Those who used it saw scenes they had never seen before, but that were astonishingly insightful. They told them things about themselves that they didn't even know, or didn't know they knew.

Word of this "Orb of Wisdom" quickly spread across the planet. It was examined by the best scientists on Bajor, but none of them could determine the source of its power. Others believed they knew the source: it was a gift from the gods. These believers took possession of the Orb of Wisdom. They used it day after day, learning more about it, and more about themselves.

Ancient stories of divine overseers were reborn in the minds of a people who had grown too cynical for such things. The Cult of Wisdom grew in numbers and influence. Within a thousand years it had spread to small groups of believers that stretched over the entire planet, becoming a small but visible part of Bajoran society.

A thousand years after the Orb of Wisdom appeared, an astronomer had turned his telescope towards the Denorios Belt, a mysterious area of space at the edge of his solar system. There he saw a strange hourglass-shaped object. He charted its movement over the next month, until it finally entered the atmosphere of Bajor.

The followers of the Cult of Wisdom were ecstatic. The gods had sent another sign, another guide. They found its landing place, and discovered to their surprise that this Orb was entirely different from the first. The visions it revealed were not like the visions the Orb of Wisdom has given them. This Orb revealed hidden truths about the PAST, not the present.

This "Orb of Truth" became as honored as the Orb of Wisdom, and the Cult of Widom became the Cult of the Orbs.

About a thousand years later the Cult of the Orbs received a message from an alien vessel in orbit of Bajor. The interstellar mechants aboard this vessel claimed to seen a strange blue light suddenly appear out of nowhere in the Denorios Belt. They pulled it aboard and discovered that it was another of the Orbs. They sold it to the cult for a substantial fee. When the cult members activated this Orb, they discovered more than they had ever hoped. This new Orb showed similarly strange scenes. But these scenes did not tell users of their past, or of their present. These scenes told users of their future.

The reaction was immediate and intense. More and more Bajora flocked to this religion whose gods could see not only into Bajora's hearts, but into Bajora's tomorrow. It did not take long for the Cult to become one of the major religions of the world. It was then that the gods of Bajor received a name, the Prophets.

It began informally, as a description of the fantastic power about which all Bajor was abuzz. Over the years the Cult leaders themselves began to use it, until it was their only name. The Cult of the Orbs was now the Church of the Prophets, and the Orbs became the Ear, the Eye, and the Hand of the Prophet. But this was not the end.

Over the next seven thousand years six more Orbs appeared, and they continued to shape the Church, and all of Bajor. With the increased popularity brought about by the Orb of Change came some degree of stagnation. Rules became rigid, and strict conformity was the rule. Church members were expected to obey complicated rituals, to isolate themselves from nonbelievers, to win the world for the Prophets, by force if necessary. For a time it seemed that Inquisitions and Holy Wars would destroy Bajor.

Then, over a period of several millennia, three more Orbs were discovered. These new Orbs were a puzzlement to the Bajora, as they confronted users with a fantasy world, a scene drawn entirely from their own minds. These Orbs turned the Church's members inward, forcing them to confront their own feelings, dreams, and expectations. The absolutes of the past seemed petty when considered in light of the inner being of the faithful.

As the religion focused less on rules and regulations and more on self-examination and introspection, the fighting and the religious tribunals faded away. As people were encouraged to, "Look for solutions from within," instead of being forced to convert undert threat of damnation, the Church grew even larger.

Within six thousand years of the appearance of the first orb, the Church of the Prophets had become the largest religion on the planet. But with its new permissiveness and massive size came corruption and dischord. Contrary philosophies within the Church became commonplace. Moral decay became a major problem as the believers grew more and more self-centered and hedonistic.

In looking within for solutions, the Bajora had forgotten the need to look around them as well. The Church prayed to the Prophets for guidance, and were answered by the appearance of three more vessels of their wisdom. These Orbs forced a confrontation with concrete physical truth in the future, present, and past. No longer were Bajorans allowed to consider only themselves when deciding spiritual and moral matters. A new moral foundation firmly rooted in physical reality was created, and a balance was restored.

Thus was the religion of Bajor reborn. Anchored by the Tear, the Blood, and the Breath of the Prophet, uplifted by the Heart, the Soul, and the Mind of the Prophet, and centered in the Ear, the Eye, and the Hand of the Prophet, the Church of the Prophets became the Church of Bajor. All other religions faded into oblivion as all Bajor was united in its belief in the Orbs and the Prophets who had sent them.

[This section is mostly conjecture, my attempt to show how a religion grew up from the discovery of the Orbs. I base it on the assumption that the religion started small, and gradually grew larger over the centuries.

The idea that the Orb of Wisdom was the first Orb to be discovered arose from an examination of the powers of all nine Orbs as I see them (see THE ORBS). It seemed to me the most natural choice for first contact, as its power is impressive enough to start a small religion, but not stunning enough to start a massive, sudden change like a prophetic Orb might. (It also seems likely that the Grand Nagus would obtain the Orb that meant the most to the Bajoran people ("Prophet Motive"), so as to guarantee the greatest profit.)

Since the Bajora did not have spaceflight abilities until about 800 years before DS9 takes place ("Explorers"), I'm assuming that most of the Orbs had to have actually decended into the atmosphere of Bajor to be found. Thus, I have taken the line from "Emissary" which states that many of the Orbs were found in the Denorios Belt to mean that they were just SIGHTED there and later collected in the atmosphere.

The throwaway line about aliens bringing one of the Orbs to Bajor from out in space is just to express my belief that even though Bajor had no spaceflight ability until this millennium, they attracted visitors from other planets to their world long before then. It helps to explain how they could have, "Brought art and architecture to the galaxy," (Minister Jaro, "The Circle") without achieving interstellar space travel, and it is backed up by Vedek Bareil's speech at the end of "In the Hands of the Prophets".]