Blue Ajah Burial

[AddiBeth]

I remember discussing some traditions for burying Blue Sisters and/or their gaidin a year or two back, don't think anything ever came of it though.  Blame my background, but I'm a sucker for traditions, anyone else interested in possibly creating some new traditions?

[Arie]

Any way I can help.. I know Dee kept a ton of the Blue traditions and posted them on the Verge wiki.

[Jaydena]

I would be truly interested in seeing what you all come up with for this.

[Elyssa]

I'll look at the old whitetowerdiv boards and see what we came up with there.

[SerenaMorrigan]

This is what I have for this topic. I really like the idea that Cale had, although it looks like in New Spring they may have done something different.

 

    We could have a crematorium in the Sapphire Chambers, yeah! Remember our staffs are supposed to have belonged to Blue Sisters of the past, handed down through the generations. Perhaps the crematorium could be organized so that all of the women who have shared a staff are on the same shelf together. A bit morbid to think you would one day rest there with them, but... 

 

Any thoughts?

_________________

Cale

Blue Ajah

Cloud Dancer

     

 

oooh! That sounds good, Cale. Maybe the staffs of the Sisters that shared one(if not in use) Could be set near them, or hung above them or something. coooooooooooool.

_________________

Serena

     

 

I remember from A New Spring that the deceased Blue's body was cremated with weaves of Fire. It had been the will of that specific Blue (her name escapes me at the moment) to have her ashes scattered over the grounds of the Tower, so it seems kind of contradictory to have a completely different custom for that kind of thing. Personally, I kind of like the idea of scattering of ashes. But that's just me.

 

-Kieryn  

 

 

I'm still kind of a fan of it...I think. What do you guys think? There are also some other Traditions that I have saved as well. I was wondering if we can use the ones that Dee had made before for DM, but I dunno if we can do that per copyright?

What do you think?  ;D

 

[Arie]

I think that the memory of a Blue is passed down with each staff. As a story is woven into the staff to then pass on to the next.. perhaps a day of reflection on that Sister as the staff is being modified and the ashes scattered, or urns kept unless specified otherwise in the Chamber.

[SerenaMorrigan]

Ooh! That sounds good. I don't remember there being stories woven into the staffs, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen.  ;D  I think that each Sister added something to the staff as well. It's been awhile, though, so I'm not sure how that went...

[Arie]

Telcia's write up:

 

The History of the Staff Giving

The Staff was taken up by the Blue Ajah when during the Breaking and the Time of Madness each Sister walked the world alone. Her strength and determination the only thing that kept her going from day to day. The Staff was her tool for practical reasons, and it was a sign. To those Sisters who later became the Blue Ajah the Staff was a way to identify themselves to their contacts, protectors, allies, & fellow Sisters long before shawls were ever used. When the White Tower was built and the Ajah created, the Staffs were a long part of the Sister's history already. A symbol of their time cast adrift from their glory days in the Age of Legends... and a true sign of their ability to endure any trouble that may cross their paths.

 

As the Blue Ajah decided to take up this 'legacy' or 'tradition' (if you will) the first Blue Sisters took up plain staffs and added one single detail to it that was all their own. Their own mark to be left upon the world and their ajah forever. When the first Sisters began to pass from the world their staffs were kept and passed on to the next Sister to carry to always remember their story and the troubles they endured as well as the victories they enjoyed.

 

FAQ On Staffs

What About In Modern Times?

When a Blue Sister is raised she is given a staff. In the course of that Sister's life (as was done with the first sisters) she adds one thing to the staff that is all her own. And when she dies, the staff will be passed to the next Sister to be raised and in the course of the new Sister's life, she too will add something to the staff. Each staff is a legacy of the Sisters who came before you and your legacy to the Ajah when you pass on.

 

Why is this cool oocly?

Ideally on the website, soon, I'll have each staff's description recorded on a page so that when or if we ever decide to retire a character (or kill her off) that staff can then be passed to a new Sister.

 

Ideally, then (for example) if Espara were to die then her staff could go to a new Blue in play. During the giving ceremony the Blue Sisters might regale the new player with tales of Espara a'Dautry and what her legacy was and why the staff should mean something to her.

 

Of course, right now, we have to make up the history and look of each staff ourselves but one day we will definitely have enough that this won't always be necessary.

 

So how do we play this out?

OOCly (not icly) if you were the last Sister to be raised when another Sister is raised after you; you must imagine and write up the description and maybe even a story or two about a Sister(s) who held/used the staff you're writing about, in the past.

 

For example... Sarena was just raised. OOCLY I was raised right before her. Now I need to write up a description of a staff, a few stories about the sisters who held it, and then in the course of the raising party rp I get to give that to Sarena and tell her a bit about her new spiffy staff in front of everyone.

Now, in the course of Sarena's rps she'll eventually add something to the staff which makes it all her own (and report it to me so I can record that change on the website when I get that all online!)

 

Do you need to add something to the Staff at your raising party?

No. But you can if you want to. For some Sisters it will be highly personal and they'll add something at a pinnacle moment of their lives... for others they'll know right away what thing to add to the staff making it all their own.

 

What if a Sister dies before adding something to hers?

Any staff whose Sister died before she could add something bears her name etched into it in beautiful script.

 

What is the general feeling about the Staffs among the Blue Sisters?

While always a somber thing (as its a sign someone else is dead) the giving of the Staff is a symbol of hope for the future of the Ajah. A promise that no matter how bad things get, the wheel keeps turning and our Cause lives on even after our own lights have faded from the world and memory.

 

In some ways the Staff is more dear than the rings and shawls as they are an older tradition and one rooted in more of our history than the shawls or even the rings. Both shawls and rings came with the building of the Tower and the Staffs came LONG before that. In practical usage they make good weapons, they serve all normal purposes of a staff... but it's also a way for our Eyes and Ears to know us on sight without ageless faces or rings & shawls which other enemies could easily spot and understand the meaning of.

 

 

Up to you, i guess. :)

[SerenaMorrigan]

LOL

 

thank you! Awesome!

[Arie]

*is a fount of random WoT knowledge....*

[AddiBeth]

we should definitely do this after Nasty's death (murder)

[Arie]

actually... there will be no body, just a note stating she left.

 

 

 

:look

[AddiBeth]

lol... alrighty

 

what about Diona's eventual death?

[Arie]

Up to the Black Ajauh, I guess... if they leave a body...

 

but hell, sure! :D