本莎芭 Beshaba
厄运少女 The Maid of Misfortune,灾厄女士 Lady Doom,黑贝丝 Black Bess
本莎芭是泰摩拉的对立面,在日常生活中和她更仁慈的“姐姐”一起被反复提起。她被认为是一个残忍和反复无常的女神,必须以相反的方式安抚她,以避免引起她的注意和兴趣。
当一个人被厄运困扰时,本莎芭的名字就会被提起。这种厄运可能是轻微的,比如被踩到脚趾或撞坏了车轮,或是像生病和不小心坠落悬崖的灾难。当某人正在做的事情中,好运气不起作用,但坏运气可能起作用时,她的名字也会被提起以抵消她的注意。例如,骰骰子时会祈求泰摩拉,因为他们想要一点好运。但在穿过摇摇欲坠的桥梁时,人们会希望本莎芭让桥保持原样。
为了避免厄运,人们通过将拇指叠在一起,单手或双手展开(模仿圣徽的角)以此模仿本莎芭的圣徽,同样的姿势举到头部表示敬礼;当指着某人时,“角”表示对那个人的不好。
许多德鲁伊敬奉作为第一结社一员的本莎芭。他们穿着被火烤黑并浸有血的鹿角跳舞,以此安抚她。据这些德鲁伊说,她的圣徽是鹿角,因为当本莎芭被首次崇拜时,人类还只是猎人。同时人们认为她会给猎人带来不幸,比如被牡鹿顶死。
尽管大多数人害怕本莎芭可能出现在任意场合(甚至精神中),但她总是在开幕式和正式典礼中被正式提及,例如婚礼、加冕仪式、运动会、军事演习和孩子们的命名仪式。如果她没有被邀请到这些活动中,可能会感觉自己受到了侮辱,并向参与的所有人施加厄运。
本莎芭神殿几乎不存在,然而对于农村居民而言,在路旁的意外事故或谋杀地点立上一根柱子并挂上鹿角十分常见。在城市里,鹿角难以找到,凶杀案和意外事故也更为普遍,流行的方法是在附近的墙上用木炭画出本莎芭的黑鹿角,留下圣徽直到天气将其擦除。这些“神殿”,无论形式如何,均向其他人发出这不幸之处的警告。
在人们频繁希望避免厄运之处存在着更为正式的本莎芭神殿。这些地方往往有挂有发黑鹿角的,涂红的柱子或石头。或者是系有红发黑鹿角的,红色三角形牌匾。这两种神殿都有石制或青铜制的碗,可以将硬币投入其中,或是有燔祭。塞尔的红袍法师通常将这样的神殿立在他们的礼堂外,以防止不幸的错误。
很少有人敢于侍奉本莎芭,罕见的不幸少女的牧师都是些深受厄运折磨的人。他们试图告诫世人命有贵贱,或是将贱命强加于人。
劇透 - :
BESHABA
The Maid ofMisfortune, Lady Doom, Black Bess
Beshaba is the counterpoint to Tymora and is just as frequently acknowledged in daily life as is her more be- nevolent "sister." She is seen as a cruel and capricious goddess who must be propitiated to avoid attracting her attention and interest in a negative way.
Beshaba's name is invoked when someone is beset by bad luck-which could be as minor as stubbing a toe or breaking a wagon wheel, or as catastrophic as slipping and accidentally falling off a cliff. It is also invoked to ward off her attentions when someone is doing some- thing in which good luck wouldn't play a part but bad luck might. For example, someone rolling dice would invoke Tymora because they want random chance to fall in their favor, but someone about to cross a rickety bridge would ask Beshaba to keep the bridge intact.
Folk make the symbol of Beshaba by folding in their thumbs and extending their fingers on one or both hands (mimicking the horns of her holy symbol) to ward off misfortune. The same gesture raised to the head signifies a salute; when pointed at someone, the "horns" indicate ill favor directed toward that individual.
Many druids worship Beshaba as one of the First Circle. They propitiate her with dances while wearing fire-blackened antlers dipped in blood. According to these druids, her holy symbol is the horns of a stag because when Beshaba was first worshiped, humans were simple hunter-gatherers and she was believed to bring misfortune to hunters, such as being gored by a stag.
Although most people tremble in fear at the prospect of Beshaba's attendance at any event (even in spirit), Beshaba is almost always invoked and welcomed formally in the opening speeches or ceremonies of formal functions such as marriages and coronations, contests of sport or martial prowess, and at the naming ceremonies of children. If she isn't invited to such an event, she might take offense and wreak misfortune on those involved.
Temples to Beshaba are virtually unknown. It's common, however, for rural folk to erect a post and mount antlers on it at the site of some roadside accident or murder. In cities, where antlers are hard to come by and murders and accidents more prevalent, the fashion is to draw the black antlers of Beshaba with charcoal on a nearby wall, leaving the symbol on display until weather scours it away. These "shrines," in either form, serve as warnings to others about places of ill fortune
More formal shrines to Beshaba exist in places where folk frequently hope to ward off misfortune. These sites tend to be posts or stones painted red with blackened antlers attached to them, or a red, triangular wall- mounted plaque with attached antlers. Both types have a stone or bronze bowl where coins can be tossed or burnt offerings made. The Red Wizards of Thay commonly erect such shrines outside their ritual chambers to guard against unfortunate mistakes.
Few dare to take Beshaba as a patron. The rare clerics of the Maid of Misfortune are those who have been deeply affected by great misfortunes and who seek to warn others of the essential unfairness of life- or to inflict that unfairness upon them.