Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book) - Revision history

CARAAMON: moved Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth, The (book) to Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book)

2011-09-20T18:25:59Z

moved Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth, The (book) to Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book)

← Older revision	Revision as of 13:25, 20 September 2011
(No difference)

CARAAMON at 04:48, 29 April 2009

2009-04-29T04:48:05Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:48, 28 April 2009
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	I am called Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin, wife to Nharthol,		I am called [[Sahhri]] ner'hhs'Tladin, wife to [[Nharthol]],
	Speaker of Sraan Indakar these twenty-five years. I		Speaker of [[Sraan Indakar]] these twenty-five years. I
	here retell the way of my first son's wedding to		here retell the way of my first son's wedding to
	Shhneri aar'Lanth of Sraan Rasha, may Hav'roth shade		[[Shhneri]] aar'Lanth of [[Sraan Rasha]], may [[Hav'roth]] shade
	them always.		them always.

	It was, of course, a grand affair. Shhneri is the		It was, of course, a grand affair. Shhneri is the
	daughter of Rasha's First Shaman, equal in rank to my		daughter of Rasha's First Shaman, equal in rank to my
	Rothnar, who at this time is second only to his		[[Rothnar]], who at this time is second only to his
	father. Their union, therefore, bespoke an		father. Their union, therefore, bespoke an
	extravaganza of the first rank.		extravaganza of the first rank.

	An army of ang'hhrantin -- clothweavers of the first		An army of [[ang'hhrantin]] -- clothweavers of the first
	rank, set exclusively to the creation of ceremonial		rank, set exclusively to the creation of ceremonial
	material -- was first set to craft the traditional		material -- was first set to craft the traditional
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	in representation of her desire to join us. The		in representation of her desire to join us. The
	violet underrobe, chastely without embroidery, was of		violet underrobe, chastely without embroidery, was of
	the finest imported silk from Muspar'i.		the finest imported silk from [[Muspar'i]].

	Circling her forehead was a wreath of flowers --		Circling her forehead was a wreath of flowers --
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	As I said, the ribbons played a great part in the		As I said, the ribbons played a great part in the
	ceremony itself. Although any who have witnessed a		ceremony itself. Although any who have witnessed a
	traditional S'Kra wedding ceremony before will know		traditional [[race association is::S'Kra]] wedding ceremony before will know
	of the following, I will restate the way of it.		of the following, I will restate the way of it.

	The Indakar First Shaman, a wise old S'Kra by the		The Indakar First Shaman, a wise old S'Kra by the
	name of Hhkranis, bore her witness to the ceremony.		name of [[Hhkranis]], bore her witness to the ceremony.
	She called forth my son and his bride, bid them stand		She called forth my son and his bride, bid them stand
	together before her as they would in life, and asked		together before her as they would in life, and asked
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	but not yet joined -- three ribbons: the first in		but not yet joined -- three ribbons: the first in
	deep brown velvet for Hav'roth, the second in fluid		deep brown velvet for Hav'roth, the second in fluid
	gold silk for Peri'el, the third in slick black satin		gold silk for [[Peri'el]], the third in slick black satin
	for Ushnish. After the ribbons had been draped, she		for Ushnish. After the ribbons had been draped, she
	indicated that their hands should join, and they did		indicated that their hands should join, and they did
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	children.		children.

			{{cat\|Book}}[[page type is::book\| ]]
	[[Category:Book]]

CARAAMON: The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book) moved to Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth, The (book)

2009-01-28T19:16:08Z

The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book) moved to Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth, The (book)

← Older revision	Revision as of 14:16, 28 January 2009
(No difference)

Maintenance script: Book:HsntWRS moved to The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book)

2007-11-23T04:00:56Z

Book:HsntWRS moved to The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth (book)

← Older revision	Revision as of 23:00, 22 November 2007
(No difference)

Maintenance script at 15:34, 22 November 2007

2007-11-22T15:34:56Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 10:34, 22 November 2007
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	daughter, Shhneri. May you come to all glory, my		daughter, Shhneri. May you come to all glory, my
	children.		children.

			[[Category:Book]]

Maintenance script: New page: ==The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth == '''by Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin ''' I am called Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin, wife to Nharthol, Speaker of Sraan Indakar these tw...

2007-07-10T09:07:39Z

New page: ==The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth == '''by Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin ''' I am called Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin, wife to Nharthol, Speaker of Sraan Indakar these tw...

New page

==The Wedding of Rothnar ner'hhs'Tladin and Shhneri aar'Lanth ==
'''by Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin '''

I am called Sahhri ner'hhs'Tladin, wife to Nharthol,
Speaker of Sraan Indakar these twenty-five years. I
here retell the way of my first son's wedding to
Shhneri aar'Lanth of Sraan Rasha, may Hav'roth shade
them always.

It was, of course, a grand affair. Shhneri is the
daughter of Rasha's First Shaman, equal in rank to my
Rothnar, who at this time is second only to his
father. Their union, therefore, bespoke an
extravaganza of the first rank.

An army of ang'hhrantin -- clothweavers of the first
rank, set exclusively to the creation of ceremonial
material -- was first set to craft the traditional
garments. Strange, perhaps, that the most luxurious
items one will ever know may only be worn once! For,
alas, to wear one's marriage garb after the day of
joining brings terrible luck.

==The Bride's Attire ==

Shhneri's overrobe, in tribute to her Sraan, was to
be worked with a myriad of tiny flowers in the color
of her parents' and her own personal crest. Silver
clasps, worked into thunderbolts for Sraan Indakar,
ran down from the left shoulder, throat to mid-thigh,
in representation of her desire to join us. The
violet underrobe, chastely without embroidery, was of
the finest imported silk from Muspar'i.

Circling her forehead was a wreath of flowers --
miniature red roses (how daring! -- in my day she'd
have been shamed to scale-curling! For my wedding
I kept to truth's white chrysanthemum, amaranth for
love, and only a single golden hibiscus for beauty --
a much more proper bride was I) for passion, white
starflower for luck, tiny wood violets for homage to
Hav'roth, baby's breath for her fertility -- and
trailing from it a chain of braided silver. Twined
'round the chain was her principle item in the
ceremony -- a silk ribbon banded in her personal
colors of rose and gold.

From her waist, which was cinched with a belt of
hammered gold flowers in various sizes, to the
delicate wrapped calf's-leather of her white sandals,
she wore a draping skirt, split for ease of movement,
in heavy white silk brocade lined along split and hem
with gold piping. For the ceremony she would walk
proudly to the shaman, her twined ribbon chain held
across her palms. Cascading lightly from her waist
and ruffled over the belt was a mantle of silk so
thin it seemed to be crafted from a cloud. This is
the pel'hhsmur, the center of all she was and all she
sought to offer. It trailed gracefully behind her,
embroidered deeply with personal sigils she had
stitched every day for a week before the ceremony,
completely covering her tail as was proper. (While I
write this text in Common to give this record its
widest exposure, the full measure of the pel'hhsmur
cannot be adequately expressed in this language -- if
any.)

==The Groom's Attire ==

A high-collared vest so thickly embroidered with
billowing clouds that little of its silver-grey
material could be discerned topped my son's
billowing-sleeved shirt of white Muspar'i silk.
Heavy silver bracelets clasped his wrists, their
gleaming surfaces etched with flowers in tribute
to the clan of his bride-to-be. Ah, but he was a
vision -- great Hav'roth, my thanks to You be
unending for such a son!

White silk trews, unmarked to show humility, draped
gracefully down to his silvered sandals. A wide sash
of dark grey brocaded silk hugged his waist, clasped
with a ring of silver from which hung his scimitar,
polished to within an inch of its life and
resplendent in a newly made ivory scabbard, carved
near to filigree with branching lightning.

Like the bride, my son wore flowers of his choosing
-- silverbow for boldness, golden daffodils for
nobility, a single luxurious orchid for loyalty, and
white jasmine for unending love. The flowers were
wrapped carefully about the carved ivory scabbard,
his velvet ribbon of banded blue and silver twined
'round the scimitar's silver hilt, to be spread
across his palms for the procession. I must say that
when I saw this arrangement, tears came to my old
eyes.

Lastly, across his shoulders draped an elegant cloak
of royal blue silk, embroidered thickly with silver
-- it, as with the bride's overrobe, was a unique
work of art on its own.

==The Wedding Party ==

Nharthol and I would join Shhneri's parents before
the First Shaman of Sraan Indakar, dressed in our
personal colors and those crests of our clans, to
exchange gifts and blessings to express our goodwill
toward the union of our children. For Shhneri's
father, Nharthol had hand-crafted a beautiful
Shaman's staff -- black ironwood inlaid with gold.
Nharthol himself was presented with a flaring cloak,
dramatic and imposing, in deep blue shot through with
cloth-of-silver.

After the fathers exchanged their gifts and armclasps
of goodwill, I stepped forth to offer my gift to
Shhneri's mother. I am well aware that those of
Sraan Rasha are inordinately fond of a peculiar form
of jewelry often carved into flowers woven through
with braided chain. For her I had a truly stunning
tail drape of golden chain shaped to resemble the
cascades of a river, interspersed with lilies. Each
link was unique, and it was indeed very beautiful --
I hoped she would accept it, as a gift for the tail,
of course, implies a certain closeness she would have
a right to reject. Imagine my elation to find that
she had prepared a similar gift for me! A tail drape
of perfect larkspur, frozen in time and braided with
blued silver. I did dearly wish this to be a close
union, and the gifts boded well for such.

==The Ceremony ==

As I said, the ribbons played a great part in the
ceremony itself. Although any who have witnessed a
traditional S'Kra wedding ceremony before will know
of the following, I will restate the way of it.

The Indakar First Shaman, a wise old S'Kra by the
name of Hhkranis, bore her witness to the ceremony.
She called forth my son and his bride, bid them stand
together before her as they would in life, and asked
for their hands. These they provided, and, following
ritual, she draped across the two hands -- together,
but not yet joined -- three ribbons: the first in
deep brown velvet for Hav'roth, the second in fluid
gold silk for Peri'el, the third in slick black satin
for Ushnish. After the ribbons had been draped, she
indicated that their hands should join, and they did
so, clasping the ribbons between them. "Let the
future be as now," said she, "with the strength of
Hav'roth upholding you, entwining you, binding you."

With their opposite hands the two offered up their
own ribbons, slipping them from their delicate
chains. In turn, the two twined their ribbons around
their clasped hands, speaking words they had chosen
for just this moment. They did not, of course,
bother endearing themselves nor offering flowery,
profuse promises -- such is inherent in their
presence itself, and need not be stated. To do so --
in public no less -- would bring much shame upon them
and upon their sacred love. Merely, rather, they
spoke of what had brought them together, and what was
first in their minds this day.

It was then that Hhkranis offered her blessing.
While this is not implicit in every ceremony, my son
and his bride wished it so. Foods were prepared
for the ceremonial ingestion of what aspects the two
wished their union to achieve: the eyes of a rare
fish for wisdom, water from a deep underground
spring for newness, tzgaa'hhsigen -- often merely
called the 'fruit of the earth', it is a crisp water-
holding fruit, not over-sweet, with a thin reddish
skin-- for divine approval, the heart of a desert
stag for courage. This completed, the ceremony moved
on.

Though all the clans may have their differences, from
clan-taking rites to the simple rituals upon waking
in the morning, we all adopt this aspect of the
binding. Without these words, and a shaman to
witness them, a Sraan will not accept a couple as
married. They are simple, but powerful:

''My life is yours, your death is mine, in Hav'roth's
will for eternity.''

True love between two S'Kra is one of the most
powerful forces known to us, and as such is not
discussed lightly or often. Khozh! -- Those thin-
skinned races who bandy about their amorous affairs
in song and daily prattling do not know what it truly
is to feel this force upon one's very being. Perhaps
I should pity them for this lack, but it is a grand
irony indeed that they think our people cold.

==The Clan-Taking ==

Every clan accomplishes this in a different manner,
and I can only retell the customs of Sraan Indakar --
I have, however, heard that T'Lar practices the
barbaric custom of its Clan Speaker holding a knife
over the tail of the S'Kra in question! They say
that this is to establish trust, but for my part I
could not say.

For Shhneri's clan-taking, Nharthol called forth the
Indakar elders and they formed a semicircle around
the young bride. First, Nharthol, placing aside
his role as father of the groom, asked who brought
forth the petitioner. Rothnar stepped forward into
the circle with her and declared that he had.

Nhartol then asked who would accept her, and I
stepped forth into the circle and placed my hand on
her shoulder. "I will accept her," I said. Nharthol
then asked who would turn her aside -- we did not
expect that anyone would speak, but were nonetheless
relieved when no one did. One objection from among
the clan would bar her from being accepted into
Indakar, now or ever.

Nhartol declared that Indakar would accept her, so
then asked who would give her. Shhneri's parents
stepped forward and nodded without speaking -- they
would give their daughter to Sraan Indakar.
Shhneri's father declared that he, as Shaman, would
speak for Rasha in the giving, and Nhartol accepted
this.

The elders then asked Shhneri a series of questions,
one each. Would she accept the judgement of the
elders and the Speaker of Sraan Indakar? Would she
uphold the clan name and honor, in battle and in
peace? Would she hold the children of Indakar as her
own, and the elders as her parents?

In the end, Nharthol solemnly stepped to Shhneri and
took her hand, lifting it palm up and placing a
medallion engraved with the crest of Indakar in it.
Closing her fingers over the top of the cold metal,
he declared her sister, and they embraced. Tears
shone in many eyes, and it was done.

==The Celebration ==

A banquet began the celebration following my son's
marriage. Prepared in their honor, it offered the
finest examples of the couple's preferences in
rare, exquisite delicacies: freshly prepared Indakar
nectar, its flavor such to bloom on the tongue and
shake the mind into revelry; a young yeehar roast
spitted across a great bonfire and flavored with
spices from around all Elanthia; delicate
pokeke'pahamin, a multi-layered confection made from
alternating spreads of fruit, the finest pokeke
bread, and mild meats; smoked nehelyvhh fish, their
tiny and delicious forms arrayed around a veritable
mountain of luscious jungle fruits bartered from a
T'Lar forager. It was grand indeed, but the best was
yet to come.

Because my son and daughter-in-law were of equal
rank, they were entitled to the rarest of
performances: not one, but a pair of dancers of the
first gamant'hhshhth-- the first house of sarhhtha--
being present for the ensuing celebration.

I must clarify. Sarhhtha dancing, being among our
most cherished rituals, is -- with only one exception
-- always appreciated with one's full attention
upon a single dancer. To become distracted, or to
attempt to split one's attention between two dancers,
would be to insult the art itself. Traditionally,
the family of the bride or groom which holds lower
status in their clan carries the honor of providing
the dancer. Now you may see the exception; my son
and daughter-in-law, being equal in their clans, were
permitted the coordinated performance of two dancers,
one provided by each family.

Such a performance is rarely seen in the span of a
single lifetime, and I would discredit it with my
inferior account here. Know that it was a sight
not to be forgotten -- and perhaps the tale shall be
committed to text, another time.

This text I dedicate to my son, Rothnar, and my new
daughter, Shhneri. May you come to all glory, my
children.