Kiinda (Keen-dah)

Overview

Kiinda was a spiritual and philosophical concept in the Kinorian religion. Among the living, Kiinda referred to a state of being, where a Kinorian had achieved a philosophical unity of mind, body, and spirit. Additionally, the Kiinda could refer to the collective soul of the Kinorian people, with Kinorian passing into the Kiinda upon their death. Differing from the ancient Kinorians' belief in a literal afterlife, the metaphysical Kiinda was best described as an oversoul, a collective state of being for all Kinorian souls upon death. To be part of it, a Kinorian was required to not only understand their culture as defined by the Resol'nare, but truly live out its ideals in their lives. Kinorians who did not live by the Resol'nare were considered to be dar'kiinda—soulless, someone who was ignorant of their heritage and thus had no place in the Kinorian afterlife. The state of being dar'kiinda was regarded as a fate worse than death in the Kinorian community.

Tenets of Faith

The Resol'nare, or Six Actions when translated from Kindo'a into Common, were the central tenets of Kinorian life. They consisted of wearing covering armor, speaking the language, defending oneself and family, raising your children as Kinorians, contributing to the clan's welfare, and when called upon by the Kind'amora, rallying to their cause. Tradition dictated that anyone who wished to be considered Kinorian were to abide by these guidelines and live these actions daily. Kinorians whom did not follow the Resol'nare were considered to be dar'kiinda—someone who was ignorant of their Kinorian heritage and bereft of their Kinorian soul. The status of dar'kiinda was widely feared within Kinorian society due to the belief it meant they were soulless and had no place in the Kiinda, the Kinorian afterlife. Before and during the Second Calamity, any and all non-Kinorians were considered dar'kiinda and soulless from birth, until they joined the Kinorians and lived by the Resol'nare. Groups of captured individuals would often be forcibly inducted into Kinorian culture, and made to swear by the Resol'nare with or without their consent under the threat of death. Such zealotry faded over time as the Kinorians became a less religious and more secular society.

Worship

The Kinorian belief in the collective afterlife of the Kiinda was of notable influence to their burial practices. Though the Kinorians typically preferred cremation, when burying the fallen in large numbers, Kinorians would dig large, mass graves in which to lay their dead to rest. Though many species considered the prospect of unmarked mass graves horrid, Kinorians believed that the body was merely a tool for doing deeds and passing on knowledge, and once the soul had gone to the Kiinda, what happened to the body was ultimately irrelevant. Burying their people together in mass graves mirrored the collective consciousness every Kinorian was believed to share in the Kiinda after death.

Type

Religious, Other