"The Great Bear. Ursun. Father to the Motherland. Our god of strength."
Ursun, god of bears and strength
Ursun, also known as the "Great Bear", "Father Bear", or "Father of Bears"[2a] is the god of bears, strength, fatherhood and the wilderness,[2a][3] and the patron god of the Tzardom of Kislev. Ursun's worship was first introduced to Kislev by the Gospodars, but bears were such a major part of Kislevite life that the religion was accepted almost instantly by the Ungols as well. Bears continue to be a vital part of Kislevite culture to this day, and the religion is now inseparable from Kislevite society.[2a]
Worship of Ursun is not a state religion as the worship of Sigmar in the Empire is, but the fate of Kislev is linked in many of the minds of its people to the fortunes and favour of Father Bear. The Cult of Ursun is the main religious organisation that mandates the worship of Ursun in Kislev.[2a]
Tenets[]
A depiction of the Great Bear in the Book of Fate.
Father Bear is a fierce, patriarchal figure, unyielding and unforgiving when it comes to the strictures he lays upon his mortal worshippers while also demanding his followers fend for themselves. He favours deeds above words, and highly favours those who demonstrate the strength and courage of his bearkin. Those who are cowardly, weak, or who hunt in a disrespectful fashion receive no blessings and may instead be punished outright.[2a] Ursun is a wild god who venerates nature, a deity inconsistent in his justice, brutal in his anger,[2a] merciless in times of war, but not truly vicious.[3]
Ursun is a god of bears first, then Men. He is relatively indifferent to the plight of Humans but is aloof rather than unfeeling. He permits the hunting of his children out of compassion for Humanity, under the strict condition it is done respectfully and with the awareness that it is a privilege, not a right. So long as the bear was not killed ostentatiously or ceremoniously, Ursun does not take insult or view as disrespect the wearing of bearskins by Kislevites.[2a]
Appearance[]
"Those in the South -- the ones with hands as soft as Empire-men -- believe him to be a brown cave bear with golden teeth, and golden claws, with a jewelled crown upon his brow. Typical of the Gospodars...for they see wealth and comfort even in their deity. But I have seen Ursun, I know his true form. he came to me first as a burly man with grey in his beard...but then he changed, turned into a gigantic bear of the poles -- white as the snow he protects -- with a crown of ice, not jewels..."
- —Boyar Mazur[3]
Ursun is usually depicted as a giant, brown cave bear, sometimes wearing a golden crown and often with golden teeth or golden claws. These indicate not only that Ursun is king of the beasts but the high value of bears as well, since on the oblast, a slain bear will provide great wealth to an entire stanitsa.[2a] Occasionally, Ursun is depicted as a large, burly man with grey streaks in his wild hair. He wears a loincloth and carries nothing but a spear.[2a]
Offspring[]
"The gods are great, but only a fool would trust them with his life."
Genealogical tree of the line of Beorg Bearstruck, supposedly a direct descendant of the Great Bear.
Beorg Bearstruck descends directly from Ursun, who is the direct ancestor to over 15 generations of Bear-stricken and could be an ancestor of the Kislevite Tzar Boris Ursa.[1a]
Additionally, Ruprecht of Bearmark, the former Elector Count of Talabecland, also claimed descent from Boris Bearstruck.[1a]
Videos[]
Sources[]
- 1: Warhammer Armies: Dogs of War (5th Edition)
- 1a: pp. 50-51
- 2: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Realm of the Ice Queen (RPG)
- 3:Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game)
Gallery[]
