Death stalks the steppes and valleys, the mountains and fields of the world. It always has and it always will; even the dragons are not immune to the grim reaper's scythe.
In Sharoban the traditions of death have grown up from many different sources and cultures. A hodge-podge of customs have been meshed together based on old wives tales, folklore, family ritual and the teachings of the Church. These bear small resemblance to what came east with the Six and their followers or to the cultures that they found and slowly absorbed into the city; though here and there a custom that can be pinned down to a definite point of origin can be seen. For instance the tradition of gathering snowdrops to mourn the dead has its origins in the Jorvin Empire and is reputed to have been brought by them from their island home, whilst the tradition of keeping a small fire burning in the room where one keeps the dead to keep them warm comes from the Salva tribe whose lands lie south of Sharoban. Customs and rituals can vary from quarter to quarter or even from street to street. Despite this, there are a few traditions that carry across the entire city.
The first of these is the death bed. Every home, even the poorest, will have a bed set aside for the sick and dying. In larger homes this is set aside in a private room, whilst in poorer houses it will be a pallet that is taken down and laid before the fire. It is considered most unlucky to die in your marriage bed, to the extent that when that happens the bed will be burned to rid the house of ill fortune. As the deathbed has a specific purpose of sheltering the dying, it does not attract bad luck.
It is believed too that the soul of the dead person cannot move on to until they have been buried, or cremated, or torn apart by animals (as the city has communities that believe all these varieties of funeral to be correct). As a result wills and legacies cannot be discussed before the funeral, to show love and respect to the departed. It is also seen as not only rude but unlucky to speak ill of the dead, and it may result in their ghost haunting the naysayer and refusing to enter the afterlife.
Funerals happen during the day, preferably on days with good weather. Practicality means that a rain storm or strong winds won't delay a funeral unless burial would be dangerous, but most people hope for sunshine and cool breezes because that is the best weather to ensure their safe journey to the underworld. It's believed that Mycra will guide them safely to the Shadow Fields where they can rest awhile before being reborn.
In Winter the ground is too hard to bury the dead, bodies are stacked in cool cellars and warded; spontaneous outbreaks of 'rising', where the dead walk, are not unknown though they are thankfully uncommon. The other threat to the dead in this season is scavengers both four-footed and two-footed. The Keep makes sure that guards and even Wind Strikers check on the dead, to ensure that nothing untoward happens to them.
Other kinds of funeral go ahead as usual in the winter and the shanty towns find they get extra custom from families who want them to take their dead relatives out to the steppes for the hawks and wolves. The pyres are kept well stocked and burn almost constantly when the winter is hard. Callously, some families 'miraculously' discover that relatives who had wanted to be buried had last minute changes of heart and actually opted to cremation. Whilst this practice is disapproved of there is little that can be done to prevent families doing it and physikers actively support the burning of the dead as it promotes public health.
Before most people reach the stage of being buried, they grow old. The old are respected in the city, mostly because to grow old in Sharoban is to be tough as nails and snake canny. In the extended families, they rule the roost, often deciding what their children and grandchildren will do without dissent. This is particularly true of Grandmothers, who prosper in the city's matriarchal culture. This is mitigated by the fact that there is no retirement, the elderly are expected to keep working unless they become too infirm to. At which point they either enter the care of their families or if their relations cannot care for them, they enter the temple's almshouse or are forced to live on the streets. At which point they die very quickly.
The city does provide some perks for the elderly, however. No public house may charge them for drinks and they may use public fountains with impunity. Many vendors sell food more cheaply to the old as a mark of respect and the gangs, in general, leave them alone.
Next week; superstitions.
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