Death Rituals and Cemetaries
In the northernmost reaches of Ethiea deep in the forests of Veila and Dredjen the deceased are cared for one last time by the family and loved ones. Last goodbyes are said and respect is given before the body is cremated and the ashes buried in a special grove with a seed. Families, close friends, or special groups are often buried together in the same grove. Those who knew the deceased in life can then go back and nurture the seed into a healthy tree, the sturdy and powerful plants a testament to their lingering bond. After a time, when the tree has grown large enough, a marker is placed on the trunk often containing their name, any family or group related crest, and a few words.
Just to the south in Kinsee and Dark Water Grove one will find that, despite their differences, the two rivaling species have extremely similar rituals for their dead. The kinpothieny and sinpothieny both display their dead for 24 hours, their achievements in life are celebrated and aggrandized as stories are told of their valor. After which the kinpothieny wrap the deceased in a white or gold burial shroud and a funeral procession carries them to the peak of the mountain that their home town is on and their body is laid to rest. The location is marked by the last weapons wielded by them, the tips being planted in the ground and a couple of feathers from their wings being tied to the handles. On the other hand, the sinpothieny will wrap the deceased in a black or gray shroud and only the family will carry the body to its finally resting place. The exact location of the gravesite is kept secret, allowing the departed to rest peacefully, undisturbed, in a shallow grave also marked by their weapons and feathers deep in the marshy forests.
On the other side of the gulf just south of the Barrans, the Frontiersman spend little time with their deceased. Quickly assembling those they can of the friends, family, and acquaintances and the tools and resources necessary for a pyre and party. They spend the day journeying out into the plains, setting up the pyre, and preparing a feast. Then as the sun sets on the day they died the pyre is lit, and until sunrise songs are sung along to beating drums, dances are preformed around the pyre, and food and drink are consumed as they mourn the loss of a life and celebrate the charished memories and experiences of the loved one. At daybreak the pyre is extinguished, and with one last ceremonial song, the ashes are gathered and released into the morning wind and light of a new day.
In the Fangor Mountains the dead are cared for by the younger and old family and friends, the body bring groomed and wrapped in a light garb. The young adults and middle aged family members and friends go out in to a specially selected section of the forest, not too far from the village or town, that is used as the community cemetery. It is the duty of the able-bodied members to select a good sized tree, typically near other family members already passed, and to hollow out a section of the trunk. The hollow is then lined with flowers, mosses, and other soft and colorful plants before the body is placed inside. Arranged to look as if sleeping and comfortable, the body is then left there to be visited and seen until the trunk grows back around seals the body inside. A symbol or phrase is etched into wood of the tree, scarring it so the deceased won't be disturbed accidentally or forgotten.
Large Cities - cremation; the bodies of those who have died in the last week are burned at the same time in a festival, the remains given to the family afterwards and they decided what to do with them
Funeral Beads - Made from the compressed ashes of the dead
Related Ethnicities
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