Zemi

The zemi are cultural artifacts related to all of the archipelago’s residents. They are physical items that contain spirits—usually of ancestors or disquieted undead trapped in the mortal world for one reason or another, usually relating to their cause of death.

The Coquían create zemi through a mixture of songlike prayer to Maketaori, and the creation of the physical object the spirit is to be placed in. The coquían most often use bone (of the deceased), hardwood, or stone in order to create zemi, sometimes in the form of a spirit, and sometimes in an abstract form of a guardian that might protect the family who keeps it. Whether or not they are effective as protective charms remains to be seen, but what is known is this: the spirit trapped in the zemi, so long as it is appreciated and treated with respect, will do no harm to those who worship it. If treated with disrespect or forgotten about, a zemi might do serious harm to a family in its fury at being neglected, requiring a coquían to be brought in to exorcise the spirit within.

Manufacturing process

Create Zemi Ritual 2

You attempt to draw a restless spirit into a specially crafted container, where it can rest or serve as a guardian as long as it is treated with respect.