Frost Bear Heart

Jhartablodt - rite of passage

Consuming the heart of a Frost Bear is the most fundamental part of the Issbondi rite of passage from childhood to adulthood, known as the Jhartablodt.
To be considered an adult among the Issbondi tribes, one must have passed the arduous task of singlehandedly tracking, stalking and slaying the formidable Frost Bear .
The young tribes folk who set out on this quest are referred to as seekers. This title is in reference to their seeking of their prey, their seeking of the path to adulthood, and their seeking to show their worthiness to be a part of their tribe.
When a seeker puts down their Frost Bear, they immediately take their Sláturníf and remove the bear's heart. In a private and personal ritual, the seeker consumes the heart. It is said that this act is accompanied by visions. Whether these visions are of the future, or of the past, or something all together different, depends on which Issbondi one talks with, and how willing they are to share such personal matters. Needless to say, most Issbondi remain aggressively silent upon the subject
After slaying the beast, and consuming its heart, each seeker is expected to process the Frost Bear corpse and bring it back to their tribe to be cooked for a celebration of their entrance into the ranks of adulthood. During this celebration the seeker will put aside their milk-name, given to them by their mother in the first few hours of their life, and declare to their tribe their blood-name, revealed to them by their ancestors at the moment they consumed the Frost Bear's heart.

Components and tools

Each seeker is normally equipped with a longbow, and either an axe or a sword. They also carry a ritual skinning knife, known in the Issbondi dialect as the Sláturníf. This knife is usually given to the seeker by their parent. A successful seeker will have a new Sláturníf blade forged and use a bone from the Frost Bear to carve the hilt from.

Observance

After a Issbondi youth has survived 20 summers, they are expected to perform their Jhartablodt. The participants set out in early Autina. Those that survive usually return by late Rissona

It is for this tradition alone that the Issbondi barbarians are not a significant threat to the stability of the Frostryme Duchy

— Loremaster Rovert Ornald 

Primary Related Location

Bitter North

Related Ethnicities

• Issbondi