The Harvest's End Festival

An annual festival held at the end of the summer, as the days begin to grow colder and shorter; marking the final major harvest of the year, and the start of winter. Celebrated throughout the lands of The Kingdom of Vallanna and The Kingdom of Ashalla, but especially so in rural communities for whom working the fields is a major part of their lives.

Execution

There are few formal rites associated with the Harvest's End Festival, and each celebrating settlement will have their own variations upon the theme. In general however, most will begin with a series of blessings by the local priesthood (led by any priests of Chauntea), thanking the gods for their patronage and praying for a safe winter, followed by a bountiful harvest in the year to come.

The religious ceremonies out of the way, the bulk of the festival is then primarily a series of entertainments for those who attend. Many will have a focus on food, in line with the theme of the final harvest of the year and the hope for more to come. This may take the form of eating and drinking contests, prized food competitions between farmers and growers, and specialty seasonal offerings by local chefs and cooks.
Local musicians perform; there is much singing and dancing to partake in; stories are told to younger attendees; fortunes are told, and many other various and sundry entertainments are available.

Participants

The festival is, especially in rural communities, a major event of the social calendar, and typically an entire community will take part in the festivities. Opening blessings will be led by the local priesthood, although as the festival is agricultural in nature, priests of Chauntea will usually take precedence; Chauntea's domain being that of cultivation and farming.
If a community does not have their own representitive of Chautea's faith, it is not unheard of for requests to be sent to neighbouring settlements for one to attend.

Observance

The Harvest's End Festival takes place on the first day of the tenth month of each year, as the summer comes to a definite close, the nights begin to draw in, and the prime growing season is over.

While celebrated throughout the lands, the festival enjoys a much larger prominence in rural agricultural communities for whom the farming and harvesting of crops plays a more immediate and major role in their lives. It is the beginning of a time of rest for those who work the land, but also a marking of the harder days which are soon to come; a chance to socialise with their communities and to share in the fruits of their labour before the cold nights and short days of winter overtake the land.