From: tuff@ellis.uchicago.edu (Geoff Tuffli)
Subject: ARTICLE: Ohs Ritual
Reply-To: tuff@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Date: Thu, 23 Jul 1992 23:42:18 GMT

Lorm/Shaav/Nerassh'tan/Lakar    tuff@ellis.uchicago.edu        [ O H S ]


RITUAL IN THE OHS EMPIRE:
________________________


The Ohs Empire as a whole is very proud of its own history,
accomplishments, and civilization. To a certain extent, to a citizen
of the Empire, anyone outside the Empire is a "barbarian", and worthy
of little or no respect. This is true even for the commoners, who, at
least in principle, consider the life of a peasant within the Empire
better to living "like a barbarian".

The Empire has a long history, over 3000 years of varying stability
covering over half a dozen dynasties (whether or not one counts the
contraversial "Kapati Dynasty"...) In this time, a number of elaborate
rituals have grown up and around various institutions and and
ceremonies. Much of this is embodied in certain strict linguistic
forms of response. This is true of all the Empire, though less so
outside of the five Great Houses and more so in the House of the
Unicorn, or the House of the Xund.

Ritual can for practical purposes in describing the Empire be broken
up into three levels of formality and three categories of forms. The
levels of formality are: High, Mid and Low. The categories of forms
are: Gestural, Speech and Dress.

Every situation that requires a specific response or one of a set of
responses has a version or level for each of these. In general, the
stricter or more exacting requirements increase as one increases the
level of formality.


GREETINGS:
When greeting someone for the first time.

Low-Gestural (to a superior or equal):
	nod slightly, closing your eyes as you do so
Low-Gestural (to an inferior):
	nod slightly
Low-Speech:
1st person:	"Karn ham'la-shadu sor anish"
		(May our souls flow as one)
2nd person:	"Hami, tomi oi lamanish, sshasish"
		(I am pleased that you give me this)
	
Mid-Gestural (to a superior or equal):
	bow your head, closing your eyes as you do so
Mid-Gestural (to an inferior):
	bow your head
Mid-Speech:
1st person:	"Hami [House or Family name if have one]"
		(I am of the House/Family of [name])
		"Karn ham'la-shadu sor anichayulikash"
		(May our souls [attain] calmness [together])
2nd person:	"Hami, [House/Family], tomi oi lamanish, sshasish"
		(I, of family [House/Family], am pleased that you
			offer me this)
1st person:	"Ham'la-lamani ebaish"
		(My gift/offering is nothing)
2nd person:	"Tom'la-lamani kabalsh"
		(Your gift is everything)
    [each bows their head again, closing eyes if to equal or superior]
Mid-Dress:
	House colors, if of a house, should be worn and in plain
evidence. Insignia, if any, should also be worn on the left breast and
right thigh.
	
High-Gestural (to a superior):
	bow your head, closing your eyes as you do so, also bring your
	hands, palms inwards, and raise them to your shoulders,
	touching them with the tips of your fingers
High-Gestural (to an equal):
	bow your head, closing your eyes as you do so, also bring your
	hands, palms inwards, and touch their tips in front of you
High-Gestural (to an inferior):
	bow your head, bringing your hands to your shoulders, then as
	you raise your head, holding your hands briefly out, palms
	upwards
High-Speech:
3rd person:	"Hami tomi-sham oi jhasi lamanish"
		(I offer this person to you)
1st person:	"Hami ai jhasi manaish"
		(I take that person)
		"Ai manaraputai na?"
		(Who is that person?)
3rd person:	"Oi jhasi [full name]"
		(This person is [full name])
[turns to person just introduced and repeats ritual with other person]
3rd person:	"Hami tomi-sham oi jhasi lamanish"
		(I offer this person to you)
2nd person:	"Hami ai jhasi manaish"
		(I take that person)
		"Ai manaraputai na?"
		(Who is that person?)
3rd person:	"Oi jhasi [full name]"
		(This person is [full name])
[looks upwards, bringing both hands together into a double fist]
		"Tok oi jhasi, Ahara Ohsi-sham, shakash"
		(These people are now unmasked to Ahara Ohsi, the patron
			 goddess of the Ohs Empire)
High-Dress:
	Full House colors must be in evidence with insignia in the
proper places (left breast and right thigh) and a white belt (no
buckle, tied) must be worn.


When greeting someone already met.

Low-Gestural:
	nod slightly
Low-Speech:
1st person:	"Sshasi"
		(I am glad)
2nd person:	"Shaka"
		(I am unmasked)

Mid-Gestural:
	bow head
Mid-Speech:
1st person:	"Hami sshasi"
		(I am glad)
2nd person:	"Ham'la-shadu shaka, pa hami sshasi"
		(My soul is bare before you, and I am glad)

High-Gestural:
	bow head
High Speech:
1st person:	"Chan tomi ssashi, hami chayulikal"
		(If you are glad, than I am at peace w/ myself)
2nd person:	"Hami, hami tomi dardanish, ssashi"
		(I, in seeing you, am glad)
1st person:	"Hami pa tomi shaka-kot uenish"
		(You and I move together unmasked)


FAREWELLS:
Farewell until next time.

Low-Gestural:
	place fingertips upon forehead
Low-Speech:
1st person:	"Karn"
		(Later)
2nd person:	"Karn"
		(Later)

Mid-Gestural:
	place fingertips upon forehead and bow head as do so
Mid-Speech:
1st person:	"Tok uenish"
		(I go now)
2nd person:	"Hami chayulika"
		(I am sad)

High-Gestural:
	place fingertips of both hands on forehead and bow head
High-Speech:
1st person:	"Tok uenish, hami shash"
		(I go now, masked)
2nd person:	"Hami, tomi uenish, chayulika"
		(I, that you go, am saddened)


Farewell forever:

Gestural:
	hold their head between your hands
Speech:
1st person:	"Tom'la-lamani ebai"
		(Your gift is as nothing)

[or]

Gestural:
	close eyes
Speech:
1st person:	"Ham'la-shadu esatsish"
		(My soul sickens)
2nd person:	"Ham'la shadu ebai"
		(My soul is as nothing)


GIVING GIFTS:
Giving gifts in the Ohs Empire is an extremely delicate and
significant act for both giver and receiver. No matter what, the
giving of a gift is a formal affair, and is never undertaken lightly
for any reason, for the mere act of giving a gift, or of receiving
one, is fraught with implications.

Giving a gift represents a placement of extreme faith and trust in
the receiver. It is considered in many ways to be a complete unmasking
of the soul, or rather, an expression of one's own deepest feelings.

The giving of gifts is always accompanied by one of a certain series
of gestures; which of these gestures is used in a particular
circumstance being largely an issue of personal taste or occassionally
regional divisions. The most common is the passing of your hand in
front of your face from your forehead to your chin. Another relatively
common variation involves the giving party to place the palm of their
right hand over the right side of their face, close their eyes, and
bow their head. Finally, a much-less used form involves the giver
placing their ring and middle fingers lightly on their closed eyes.

The receiver has two options when a gift is offered up to them. They
can respond by saying, "Tamani", or "It is accepted". Alternatively,
the receiver can remain silent until the giver withdraws the gift by
saying, "Tok yundi, shaduhami gaba", or "My soul this day is dead",
or, occassionally, simply, "Shaduhami gaba", or "My soul is dead". To
give an impression of the magnitude of gift-giving, the refusal of a
gift statistically results in suicide of the rejected party 10% of the
time. This is not to say that this happens very often at all, rather,
it demonstrates both the rarity and magnitude of even the simplest
gift.

The basic forms involved in the offering of a gift are as follows:

	"Hami shadu shakash"   (My soul is unmasked)
		Note: Used between intimates

	"Tomi-sham oi lamanish"   (To you, I give this)

	"Ani shadulabai zelatish"   (May the river of souls be bridged)

	"Ham'la-yomak tom'za"   (My blood is yours)
		Note: Popular among the House of the Dragon

	"Ham'la-kohn tom'za. Ham'la-karei tom'za. Ham'la-sha tom'za.
		Ham'la-yomak tom'za"   (My home is yours. My tongue
		is yours. My body is yours. My blood is yours)
		Note: This is an offering of fealty to a lord
		Linguistic Note: "sha" or "mask" can also mean "body"
			This is because of the way the Ohs look at
			reality and the material world, as a mask over
			the shadu, or soul


Also of great importance is the gift itself. Often this has symbolic
meaning, often personal symbolic meaning between the gift-giver and
gift-taker. There are, however, a few things that have fairly
standardized symbolic meanings.

A single stem of grass: this is not given in the standard manner,
	but is usually left as a message. It is only a "gift" in
	the sense that it is a warning that another course of action
	might be preferable. It is a severe threat. Very often, it
	is left in such a manner that the receiver does not tech-
	nically know who sent it.
A shaft of wood a foot long, elaborately engraved: this is the
	birthright of every child in theory, and for every year the
	child attains, another engraving is done. On the child's
	17th birthday they receive it and are allowed to take it in
	hand for the first time in their life. The rod itself is
	called a person's "bakep" or "shadu panalati" (soul-rod or
	soul-stick).
Kepi stones: kepi stones are a very common type of smoothed river-
	stone rarely larger than a person's fist. They are faintly
	green in color. Kepi stones are given in groups, the number
	given indicating the degree of attachment. Giving one,
	(called a gift of sor-kepi) means very little, other than
	that you to not wish to be the person's enemy. Giving two,
	(called a gift of hak-kepi) is a proposition of moderate
	friendship. Giving three, (called a gift of be-kepi) is
	an expression of a sturdy or lasting friendship (though not
	necessarily one of any depth.) Giving four, (called a gift
	of nem-kepi) is an expression of deep friendship or lasting
	affection and commitment. Giving five, (called a gift of
	pajhni-kepi) is an expression of love to an intimate. It
	should be noted that you can give the same number of stones
	to the same person more than once.

Gifts can also be given expressfully to mock a person or make fun of
them. Telling the difference between a gift sincerely meant and a gift
meant as mockery is very obvious to the parties involved, but may be
obscure to an onlooker who is not aware of the specifics of the
situation, the people involved, and such forth.


CEREMONIAL RITUAL:
Ceremonial ritual is a major aspect of life within the Ohs Empire. Not
only are ceremonies present for all major events in a person's life,
but also for public celebrations, mournings, pseudo-religious
observances, and many other aspects.

WIthin the general category of ceremonial ritual their are two
sub-categories. The first pertains to ceremonies that are performed at
specific time intervals, like every year. The second pertains to
ceremonies like coronations, marriages, deaths, births, and one-time
only days of celebration (which is a common way to reward someone who
has done significant service to the Empire.)

Marriage:
The ceremony of marriage is an extremely lengthy and drawn-out affair
in the Ohs Empire, particularly among the noble Houses and, to a
lesser extent, the more powerful non-noble families within the
cultural bounds of the Empire.

One aspect of culture in the Ohs Empire is the native insularity of
the various Houses - since any child born from parents of two
different Houses is not only automatically considered a bastard, but
also unable to claim either House, this has resulted in marriages for
the purpose of cementing alliances between the Great Houses simply
being a impossiblity. Within each House, however, clan-intermarriage
is acceptible, even the norm. Even within the strictest Houses,
marriage is rarely seen as a means of economic tool and never, or very
nearly never, as a political tool.

Marriage itself is not a singular aspect, and can be divided into at
least three (or in the case of some Houses, more) distinct periods of
time, each involving their own ceremony and ritual.

	EBAI-SHAM-SOR (From Nothing to First):
This period can best be compared to the courtship rituals of our own
world and cultures. While it has no specific beginning, it is often
marked by the giving of the pajhni-kepi stones. In ancient times, the
Ebai-Sham-Sor ended with the birth of the couple's first child, though
in modern usage this is not necessarily the case. In any case, the
Ebai-Sham-Sor ends when one (not the one who gave the pajhni-kepi
stones is such occured) gives their partner a shai'lialai flower. At
that point, the couple stays together for the next three days, neither
one speaking. At the end of this, the Ebai-Sham-Sor is considered to
have ended.

	SOR-SHAM-HAK (From First to Second):
This period traditionally lasted until the couple's first child
reached one year of age, but in has come to last until one year
following the end of Ebai-Sham-Sor, regardless of the presence of a
child. During this time, either party is free to leave without stain
to their name. In such a case, the party who wishes to back out gives
instead of the normal pajhni-kepi stones the stones painted red to the
one they wish to part with. In fact, this particular ritual is
sometimes used in other stages to signify the breaking of a
relationship, though it is an established tradition in this stage and
an importation in other stages.

	HAK-SHAM-BE (From Second to Third):
At this point, a ritual is performed, either in a garden or,
occassionally, in the wilderness. The ritual itself is called the
"Shakashi" or "Unmasking", and involves only the couple in question
and a single observer who dons a pure white mask (much like that that
the famous mavradi dancers wear). The observer says nothing and is
allowed to do nothing - they are merely the witness, some scholars
believing that the observer (called the "Dardanizo") is supposed to
represent either Ahara Ohsi or the sentient universe itself. The
couple is dressed in an elaborate series of robes and sashes, the
sashes being red for the man, yellow for the woman, and the robes
white with certain ritual symbols drawn in black in various places.
These outfits are called "Ormbai", and cannot be borrowed - you must
have one made especially for you, or, as occassionally happens, you
can have one gifted to you, though this not while the original wearer
is still alive.


Death:
The importance of death to the Ohs cannot be underestimated. While the
particularities of each House often serve to lend tinges or colorings
to the attitudes of the various peoples of the Empire, to all, death
is an extremely important aspect of one's existence.

While the rituals themselves vary immensely, death is seen as a
barrier to break through, a challenge to cross. The perception of
suicides, then, is often one of fearful admiration, for no matter how
powerful a tarn is, the tarn is still alive, and one who has committed
suicide has passed a barrier that no living tarn has done.

The Ohs do not believe in an afterlife of the sorts commonly
portrayed. They do believe in a completely different existence on a
completely different plane, not better, nor worse, simply completely
unknown. They also believe (rightly) that occassionally souls are
reincarnated, though the Ohs believe very strongly that every such
reincarnation is the deliberate action of a god, and is done for
purposes which will affect the entire Empire, even the entire world.

Those who are proved to be reincarnated are treated with a tremendous
amount of respect, even awe, and though they can hold no normal
political or military position, such is the respect afforded to them
that a request from one is sometimes considered reason enough to
betray one's own lord. Such cases of reincarnations that can be proved
(or are even recognized) are extremely rare, and very difficult to
determine. One who is reincarnated is given the title: "Gabaka" or, in
the case of the one reincarnated having been extremely well-known in
their earlier life, being called "Dagabaka", or "Great Deathless One"
or "Lord Deathless One".

The color of death to the Ohs is gloi-ithilyai, a very odd color made
in clothing by alternating the threads of black and purple threads,
then treating the entire cloth in a liquid mixture of the resin of a
plant called "kilyinanainmo" that grows in profusion along riverbanks
that has narrow, drooping leaves that glisten with a faint mettalic
tinge that rubs off on anything (and is actually somewhat poisonous,
though unless one were to take a bath in it every day for a decade,
there is little danger.)

One ritual that is in common with all the death rituals involves the
moment of death itself, after which a sash of gloi-ithilyai is brought
and wrapped like a blindfold around the dead person's eyes.




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