Rite of Motherhood
The title of Clan Mother is hereditary, passing from mother to daughter. When a Clan Mother reaches a point in her life when she feels it is time to relinquish her daily duties and enter the Council of Crones, she passes the title to one of her daughters (usually the first born). Each of the five clans of Navaravu has their own Rite of Motherhood ceremony to mark this transition.
VARAVU CLAN
The Varavu Clan of ocean water holds their Rite of Motherhood on the shore of the Great Sea at sunset when the moons are full. The Varavu Clan Mother and all of her daughters gather together with the four other Clan Mothers and the Council of Crones and wade out into the sea until they are about knee deep while the people of Varavu watch from the shore. The current Clan Mother fills the family blessing bowl with sea water and stands beside the new Clan Mother, both of them facing the shore. One by one each member of the Council of Crones followed by the other four Clan Mothers and then the sisters of the new Clan Mother approach, dip their fingers in the water and annoint the new Clan Mother, blessing her heart. The current Clan Mother then passes the family blessing bowl to her daughter and does the same. The new Clan Mother speaks her oath to live in service to the people of her clan, protect the ocean water, preserve the harmony between all of the clans and ensure the continuation of her family lineage. She then turns and pours the remaining water from the family blessing bowl back into the sea and returns to face her mother who places a crown of sea shells on her daughter's head. The mother then goes to stand with the Council of Crones as her daughter, the new Clan Mother, stands with the other four Clan Mothers. Everyone rejoices as the ceremony is now complete. There are picnics on the beach and the celebrations go on into the night.SAHANAVU CLAN
The Sahanavu Clan of running water holds their Rite of Motherhood ceremony in the royal barge floating on the waters of Lavarhonda Blossom Canal just after dark when the moons are full. The Sahanavu Clan Mother and all of her daughters gather together with the four other Clan Mothers and the Council of Crones in the barge while the people of Sahanavu watch from the shores and docks along the canal. The current Clan Mother fills the family blessing bowl with canal water from the port side of the barge and stands beside the new Clan Mother at the front of the barge. One by one each member of the Council of Crones followed by the other four Clan Mothers and then the sisters of the new Clan Mother approach, dip their fingers in the water and annoint the new Clan Mother, blessing her heart. The current Clan Mother then passes the family blessing bowl to her daughter and does the same. The new Clan Mother speaks her oath to live in service to the people of her clan, protect the running water, preserve the harmony between all of the clans and ensure the continuation of her family lineage. She then pours the remaining water from the family blessing bowl back into the canal on the starboard side of the barge and returns to her mother who places a crown of lavarhonda blossoms on her daughter's head. The mother then goes to stand with the Council of Crones as her daughter, the new Clan Mother, stands with the other four Clan Mothers. Everyone rejoices as the ceremony is now complete and celebrations go on into the night.LAHANAVU CLAN
The Lahanavu Clan of still water holds their Rite of Motherhood ceremony in the waters of Mirror View Pond just after dark when the moons are full. The Lahanavu Clan Mother and all of her daughters gather together with the four other Clan Mothers and the Council of Crones in the water, forming a circle around the new Clan Mother who is floating on the surface, while the people of Lahanavu watch from the shores surrounding the pond. The current Clan Mother fills the family blessing bowl with pond water and stands next to the new Clan Mother. One by one each member of the Council of Crones followed by the other four Clan Mothers and then the sisters of the new Clan Mother dip their fingers in the water and annoint the new Clan Mother, blessing her heart and then the current Clan Mother does the same. The new Clan Mother then stands and her mother passes the family blessing bowl to her. The new Clan Mother speaks her oath to live in service to the people of her clan, protect the still water, preserve the harmony between all of the clans and ensure the continuation of her family lineage. She then leaves the circle of women, pours the remaining water from the family blessing bowl back into the pond and returns to her mother who places a crown of lisia flowers on her daughter's head. The mother then goes to stand with the Council of Crones as her daughter, the new Clan Mother, stands with the other four Clan Mothers. Everyone rejoices as the ceremony is now complete and celebrations go on into the night.ZIRAVU CLAN
The Ziravu Clan of frozen water holds their Rite of Motherhood ceremony on the perpetually frozen Lake Ziranu just after dark when the moons are full. The Ziravu Clan Mother and all of her daughters gather together with the four other Clan Mothers and the Council of Crones at the center of the lake while the people of Ziravu watch from the shores. The current Clan Mother fills the family blessing bowl with snow and stands beside the new Clan Mother. One by one each member of the Council of Crones followed by the other four Clan Mothers and then the sisters of the new Clan Mother approach, scoop up a bit of snow with their fingers and annoint the new Clan Mother, blessing her heart. The current Clan Mother then passes the family blessing bowl to her daughter and does the same. The new Clan Mother speaks her oath to live in service to the people of her clan, protect the frozen water, preserve the harmony between all of the clans and ensure the continuation of her family lineage. She then tosses the remaining snow from the family blessing bowl up into the air, letting it shower down onto the assembled women, and returns to her mother who places a crown of niralana berries on her daughter's head. The mother then goes to stand with the Council of Crones as her daughter, the new Clan Mother, stands with the other four Clan Mothers. Everyone rejoices as the ceremony is now complete and celebrations go on into the night.ZIZANAVU CLAN
The Zizanavu Clan of atmospheric water holds their Rite of Motherhood ceremony at Dew Drop Meadow just after dawn on the morning after the moons are full. The Zizanavu Clan Mother and all of her daughters gather together with the four other Clan Mothers and the Council of Crones in the center of the meadow while the people of Zizanavu surround them to watch. The current Clan Mother holds the family blessing bowl, which she and the sisters of the new Clan Mother have filled with dew collected earlier that morning, and stands beside the new Clan Mother. One by one each member of the Council of Crones followed by the other four Clan Mothers and then the sisters of the new Clan Mother approach, dip their fingers in the dew and annoint the new Clan Mother, blessing her heart. The current Clan Mother then passes the family blessing bowl to her daughter and does the same. The new Clan Mother speaks her oath to live in service to the people of her clan, protect the atmospheric water, preserve the harmony between all of the clans and ensure the continuation of her family lineage. She then tosses the remaining dew from the family blessing bowl up into the air, letting it shower down onto the assembled women, and returns to her mother who places a crown of baby zirana blossoms on her daughter's head. The mother then goes to stand with the Council of Crones as her daughter, the new Clan Mother, stands with the other four Clan Mothers. Everyone rejoices as the ceremony is now complete and celebrations go on throughout the day and into the night.
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