Ífulássió

General overview

In Tarrabaenian religion, promises of sacrifices or dedications are made to the gods in case a certain kind of favour is granted within a specific period of time. These are, for example, wishes for health, success in an undertaking or general well-being and prosperity. The wish and what is promised for its fulfilment is called a 'ossecrássió'. To formulate the Ossecrássió, a prayer is written on a piece of paper rolled up and sealed with a coloured ribbon called 'fula' (pl.: fulé), which lends its name to the ritual, since ífulássió means 'putting something into a band or ribbon'.

Aetiology and history

The ritual, while being old, can be traced back to a relatively exact point in time. A stone slab that was dated to the early days of settlement of Tarrabaenians in present day Tarrabaenia states the following:

The gods responded to our pleas
as we utilised the way of the ífulássió
devised by our ancestral fladismár
Argenteus Pacúius Meiátor, the august
who prayed to the sky on his peoples behalf
fifty lustrasióvés ago for the first time.

While the inscription cannot be dated exactly and the exact length of a lustrasió was subject to some change in the past and can be either five, six or seven years, it is likely that the ífulassió has its origins during the short lived Era of the Fire. This leads to the assumption, that the ífulassió was originally introduced in a time of need, probably when the peoples of northeastern Erana were pressed to migrate south. This migration period was either caused by the splitting of a group of Umoyaleyn or by the worsening climate caused by the Great Scorching initiated by the gods to punish the arrogance of the Asargam people.

Role in the present time

The fula used to bind the paper with the prayer written on it is considered sacred. It is spun and woven from flax by the Laralié, priestresses of Focalla. This college of priestresses is the most esteemed of all the female colleges. This in turn means, that ífulassió are inherently deeply important and respected due to their connection to these priestresses.

Ífulassió are widespread and employed by religious institutions, political agents and private people alike. Of course the outlay stated in the Ossecrássió depends strongly on the sponsor of the ífulassió and their respective wealth.

As often public buildings or pieces of art are dedicated for the fulfilment, the ífulássiónés are a motor to architectural and representative development in Tarrabaenias public spaces. This has lead to Tarrabaenias temples and sacred sites belonging to the most lavish and ostentatious in all of Samthô.