Michael Morris
First Post
"The end which comes once and comes to all is always at hand - prepare." - Matachan saying.
Much ado is made over the whether or not one will have peace or torment after they die, or in the cases of some of the evil sects of Telensitary, whether one receives torment or gets to inflict it. Hence placating the gods almost always has death in mind anyway.
This said, funerals are for the living and not the dead. It is in these ceremonies that we remember the ones we loved and lost. Funerals serve the necessary function of allowing the living to find closure. As for the dead, they too need closure – an unburied or mistreated member of the deceased can come back to haunt the living in Telzoa, and some care is taken in Telzoan tradition to placate the dead.
If one knows they are going to die they will seek the counsel of a priest of their patron god so that they might confess their sins before dying. If this is not possible a Matachan priest can take such a confession, any priest is preferable to none and at the very least someone should be there. Telzoans hate to die alone.
When someone dies in a character's presence they are expected to know and to say the decorum or last rite.
Delce de decorum trist
Delce de decorum delenerum torum
Translated this Liternanin phrase means "All are born hence, all are fated to die someday."
The preparation of the body for burial takes only a few hours and if a priest is involved it will include castings of bless and gentle repose. The rich often have elaborate costumes prepared for their death, and the body is cleaned for its journey, but left undressed. Naked we enter the world, so too do the Telzoans deliver the bodies of the dead to their rest.
Burial ceremonies begin at dawn when the body is set out for visitation. The friends and relatives of the deceased remain on the premises. Two hours before nightfall the body is taken to the local temple and the Incardra is performed by the priests of Matacha. During this ceremony the body lies just before the altar and the immediate children of the deceased form a semicircle around the casket. They are arranged from eldest to youngest from the right to the left of the body if it were to stand and face them. If the parents or spouse of the deceased survive they stand on the rightmost hand before the children, although this is a rare occurrence, it is not unheard of. Behind them in a second row are any grandchildren. In the third circle come all other relatives, and these relatives make a full circle around body and altar if there enough of them. They are arranged starting directly in front of the altar and progress clockwise around the body in this order – siblings, uncles & aunts, cousins. A fourth ring is composed of all other friends to the deceased – in the case of royal or high noble funerals this ring will be arranged by pecking order and a fifth ring will be formed of the non nobles present.
There will be one or two presiding priests – the first is always of Matacha. The second is determined by whether or not the deceased had a patron god (most do). In this case the god of the priest will be the same as the patron.
The Matachan priest begins the Incardra by repeating the decorum. The second priest then recounts the deeds of the deceased, and this may take around a half hour. The Matachan priest then calls out to the spirit to behold those who have come to bid them farewell. Each person present then says their last words to the priest and concludes with, “I, [Name] bid thee farewell.” It is customary to keep this last farewell under a minute or so, depending on how many folk must say their last farewell. In the case of very large ceremonies only the inner two circles perform this process. After each person says their farewell they turn away from body, and light a candle.
When all have turned away the Matachan priest opens a copy of the Ruandi Nombren and sets it upon the altar, and then enters the name of the deceased into the book. He says what he writes aloud. The song of the Ruandi Nombren is sung afterward, and when this song is completed the Matachan priest slams the book shut. With this cue all present snuff their candle, and hold the wick as long as they can even if it burns them.
All present bow their head as eight “Death Speakers” enter the ceremony room (or grounds) from behind the altar. They close and take up the casket, and deliver it to the burial grounds. After they leave the survivors are free to go. Some accompany the body to it’s burial grounds. In some areas the body is cremated on the spot.
Much ado is made over the whether or not one will have peace or torment after they die, or in the cases of some of the evil sects of Telensitary, whether one receives torment or gets to inflict it. Hence placating the gods almost always has death in mind anyway.
This said, funerals are for the living and not the dead. It is in these ceremonies that we remember the ones we loved and lost. Funerals serve the necessary function of allowing the living to find closure. As for the dead, they too need closure – an unburied or mistreated member of the deceased can come back to haunt the living in Telzoa, and some care is taken in Telzoan tradition to placate the dead.
If one knows they are going to die they will seek the counsel of a priest of their patron god so that they might confess their sins before dying. If this is not possible a Matachan priest can take such a confession, any priest is preferable to none and at the very least someone should be there. Telzoans hate to die alone.
When someone dies in a character's presence they are expected to know and to say the decorum or last rite.
Delce de decorum trist
Delce de decorum delenerum torum
Translated this Liternanin phrase means "All are born hence, all are fated to die someday."
The preparation of the body for burial takes only a few hours and if a priest is involved it will include castings of bless and gentle repose. The rich often have elaborate costumes prepared for their death, and the body is cleaned for its journey, but left undressed. Naked we enter the world, so too do the Telzoans deliver the bodies of the dead to their rest.
Burial ceremonies begin at dawn when the body is set out for visitation. The friends and relatives of the deceased remain on the premises. Two hours before nightfall the body is taken to the local temple and the Incardra is performed by the priests of Matacha. During this ceremony the body lies just before the altar and the immediate children of the deceased form a semicircle around the casket. They are arranged from eldest to youngest from the right to the left of the body if it were to stand and face them. If the parents or spouse of the deceased survive they stand on the rightmost hand before the children, although this is a rare occurrence, it is not unheard of. Behind them in a second row are any grandchildren. In the third circle come all other relatives, and these relatives make a full circle around body and altar if there enough of them. They are arranged starting directly in front of the altar and progress clockwise around the body in this order – siblings, uncles & aunts, cousins. A fourth ring is composed of all other friends to the deceased – in the case of royal or high noble funerals this ring will be arranged by pecking order and a fifth ring will be formed of the non nobles present.
There will be one or two presiding priests – the first is always of Matacha. The second is determined by whether or not the deceased had a patron god (most do). In this case the god of the priest will be the same as the patron.
The Matachan priest begins the Incardra by repeating the decorum. The second priest then recounts the deeds of the deceased, and this may take around a half hour. The Matachan priest then calls out to the spirit to behold those who have come to bid them farewell. Each person present then says their last words to the priest and concludes with, “I, [Name] bid thee farewell.” It is customary to keep this last farewell under a minute or so, depending on how many folk must say their last farewell. In the case of very large ceremonies only the inner two circles perform this process. After each person says their farewell they turn away from body, and light a candle.
When all have turned away the Matachan priest opens a copy of the Ruandi Nombren and sets it upon the altar, and then enters the name of the deceased into the book. He says what he writes aloud. The song of the Ruandi Nombren is sung afterward, and when this song is completed the Matachan priest slams the book shut. With this cue all present snuff their candle, and hold the wick as long as they can even if it burns them.
All present bow their head as eight “Death Speakers” enter the ceremony room (or grounds) from behind the altar. They close and take up the casket, and deliver it to the burial grounds. After they leave the survivors are free to go. Some accompany the body to it’s burial grounds. In some areas the body is cremated on the spot.
