Locales/The Spring of Arliman

Arliman is a holy place located in the middle of the Desert of Bleached White Bones. Well actually, it resembles a hot springs resort more than a holy place. A sparkling oasis in the middle of the harsh desert, complete with lavish baths, fountains, and gorgeous maidens bathing.

Its actual purpose is to act as a location for the annual purification ceremony, in which the holy peoples (note: All women) cleanse their bodies and, presumably, their souls so that they can perform the work of God for another year.

In reality, the young priestesses and other holy women look forward to the time of purification because it offers them a chance to unwind, relax and forget their troubles for a short period of time. This is probably why the purification rituals remain shrouded in mystery still to this day... After all, why would the holy people want to let their little health spa secret out?

Another reason Arliman is not well known to those outside the religious circles is that there are several large pillars in the desert surrounding the oasis. They act as a warning of danger (possibly as a warning of the wrath of God) for those who trespass beyond the markers. Being naturally superstitious, most people will not disobey God, thus the Spring remains shrouded in myth.

Portions of this page originally belonged to The Wanderers' Guide to El-Hazard: The Magnificent world, co-authored by Jason Bertovich (Makoto) and Aaron Ziegler (Spanner). The original page is no longer available on-line.