Qerd

The Monkey is often seen as another incarnation of La'eba and is the god of merriment and of debauchery. Qerd rules the bright edge between joy and ruin. In street tales his gold eyes promise jokes, jackpots, and trouble in equal measure. Children learn a proverb at harvest feasts: “Qerd opens the door; you decide how far to walk.”

Devotees of Qerd—jesters in bells or masked dancers with painted tails—serve as licensed misrule: they tell truths kings cannot hear from courtiers, break stiff moments with laughter, and lead rites that “loosen the knot” of fear. Offerings are simple: sweet fruit, new music, fermented drink, and forgiveness given freely.

His myths swing between blessing and caution. He steals a magistrate’s seal to erase a famine tax; he also bets away a baron’s sobriety and must spend a year sweeping kitchens to teach the cost of excess. Yet even the least devout keep one night for La’eba’s Monkey—lanterns, drums, masks—because a society that cannot laugh soon breaks.