Summit Shrine

A summit shrine is a small shrine erected on a mountain top in order to honor a specific god or saint - usually but not always Moranna. Given the remote locations of mountaintops, erecting these shrines is often a significant challenge. But as mountaineering techniques have improved over the last century, they are becoming more and more common and are often maintained by nearby villagers as a point of civic pride. Quite often both experienced mountaineers and the young, fit, and unmarried people of a village attempt to bring a sacrifice to the shrine on important holy days. A failure to do so (whether because of inclement weather or because of accidents during the climb) is seen as a bad omen.

A variant are pass shrines, which are erected at important mountain passes. Thanks to the spread of railroads (which more commonly tunnel beneath mountains rather than try to climb over the passes), these have become less common, but are still honored by travelers who find themselves in these areas.