Holy Shrines Covenant
The Holy Shrines Covenant (Anisoran: Convenzione Santuari Sacri; Lusavanic: Տաճարներ Սրբեր Ուխտ; Tačarner Srber Uxt), officially the Orkanan Covenant of the Holy Shrines of Anaria Minor, is a historic set of legal and moral frameworks under which the Anisoran Empire and later the Anisoran Regency acts as the protector of all Orkanan shrines, and by extension all Orkanan peoples, of Anaria Minor. The Covenant is today a set of legal responsibilities, some recognised by international treaty, though the status of protector of Orkanans has been claimed by both Anisora, Casella and numerous independent Toverines for centuries. The Covenant's principle aim is to ensure Orkanan shrines and their devotees under Izhaic rule are protected, providing Anisora certain rights and justifications for intervention if Orkanan rights and shrines are threatened.
The precepts of the Covenant as they stand today were formalised in the Treaty of Asola in 7552, at the end of the Pan Anarian War. The Treaty’s articles on Orkanan protection played a major role in establishing a sustainable peace in Anaria Minor after decades of fighting between Orkanan and Izhaic forces. It provided reassurances to the Anisoran Empire that the newly established Izhaic-majority states, such as Tavonia, would be committed to upholding Orkanan minority rights and preserving their shrines, and that Anisora and/or certain Toverines would be legally recognised as their protector in those states.
However, some Izhaic states consider the Covenant a mere pretence. For example, Anat Tahan, home to the supreme Izhaic religious authority, criticises the Covenant as providing the Ansiorans with a "blank cheque" for intervening in Anaria Minor, which, according to XXX, "fundamentally undermines the stability of the post-War status-quo". The Covenant has been invoked numerous times throughout the last few centuries by both the Casellans and more recently the Anisorans. In some cases, such as with the XXX War, the Covenant was used as a casus belli, and as such many worry that it will in fact increase, not diminish, the chances of war in Anaria Minor.
Under the Holy Shrines Covenant, the Emperor of the Anisorans, as the supreme religious leader of the Anisoran Orkanan congregations and stifts, nominally claims leadership of all non-affiliated interventionist stifts, and even some sockens, in non-Anisoran Anaria Minor. As a consequence, the Emperor of the Anisorans bears the title 'Protector of the Holy Shrines', meaning those of Anaria Minor. In reality, this claim carries varying degrees of weight and significance depending on the Orkanan community in question, and the rise of the Anisoran Regency has further complicated this issue given the Regent now assumes this role and status. A number of non-territorial stifts, such as Dantrina Stift, officially accept the Anisoran emperor as their Lord, while others, such as Torvanat Stift, do not. A small number of other Orkanan groups, including Pashtvar Stift, maintain unofficial allegiance to the emperor, but due to the prevailing political conditions are forbidden by their Izhaic rulers from associating with the Anisoran congregations. In such cases a precarious balance exists, where as long as the stift in question does not openly associate with the Anisoran religious leader, they will not be persecuted, which in turn means that the Anisoran emperor will not be compelled to attempt to defend them.