yakara

the second of the Vid'Oshi's "three icons"

The yakara is a large oversized steel bracelet worn by Vid'Oshi men. It is one of the three icons, the three public symbols that a person worships Adhi’Kosh. The yakara represents the infinite oneness of Adhi’Kosh as well as a metaphorical link in the chain of all Vid'Oshi. In the modern era, since the Yoshnu uprising, after which all Vid'Oshi were forbidden to carry weapons or wear armour, the yakara has become a more deliberate symbol of defiance and the stubborn defence of their faith.

History

As one of the three icons, the yakara is a foundational symbol of the martyrdom of the great Vid'Oshi prophet,Narak Si Oshi.

Significance

To any member of the Vid'Oshi the yakara is crucial their day to their spiritual life and sense of identity. Along with the requirement to always wear legged trousers of some form and the cleanly shaved scalp, the heavy metal bracelet is one of the three obvious sign that someone belongs to the heretic cult. It is the prized posession of any worshipper of Adhi’Kosh, and to lose it would be an almost unforgivable blasphemy. Although crucially, after centuries of repression and persectution, to have one's yakara stolen or taken by a jhuu'giaan is a sign of honor and often a rite of passage.

"That a man adorns himself in jewellery is right and proper, but that the Vid'Oshi should craft jewellery from steel instead of gold seems somehow like an insult. The unclean mah'jaato crafters seem determined to mock the good and decent followers of Giaan'lun with everything they do."

- Anonymous jewellery merchant overheard in Segaar Khin marcket (789AS)

Item type

Religious / Ritualistic

Raw materials & Components

There are many variations of yakara, but the majority are a simple steel etched with a short passage from the lost Vid'Oshi devotional text. For those few who can afford it, some of the bracelets have small non-precious but polished stones set into them.