Lore:Death/Khajiit

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Khajiit Beliefs and Customs

Khajiit Afterlife

After the Riddle'Thar was revealed to the Khajiit by the prophet Rid-Thar-ri'Datta during the Second Era, this cosmic order will set a guideline by which to live rather than to embody a single entity. Depending on the actions during their lives, their fate differ between "true cats" and "bent cats". A true cat hunts without rest for the Right Trail, trying one after another of the endless paths of Jone and Jode, but it is easy for a cat to grow bored and abandon the chase. And this is why the Moon clergy inspires the kittens, sharing stories of the oldest times, nudging them back to the true way; and also must rebuke the naughty cats, swatting the ones who stray upon their flanks until they return to the paths the Moons weave. At the end of a life guided by the Riddle'Thar lies Llesw'er, also known as the Sands Behind the Stars, a paradise where sugar forms the dunes and the joyous Moonlight Chorus sounds. When a Khajiit dies, it is Khenarthi who guides their soul either to Azurah for judgment, or to Llesw'er, the Sands Behind the Stars.

The Dark Behind the World

A true cat may stumble, may lose his way and come upon the temptations of a darker dance led by Lorkhaj, the Moon Beast. The Moon clergy states that Fadomai gave birth to Lorkhaj, the last of her litter, in the Great Darkness, so the Heart of Lorkhaj was filled with the Great Darkness, giving her consciousness and a name and it was Namiira. Later, Lorkhaj tricked his siblings so that they were forced into this new place with Nirni. And many of Fadomai's children escaped and became the stars, while others died to make Nirni's path stable. And the survivors stayed and punished Lorkhaj, said to be turned into a third moon, the "Dark Moon" which governs the fate of the dro-m'Athra, as Jone and Jode govern the fate of the Khajiit.

When true cats die, their souls are lifted by Khenarthi and flown to the Sands Behind the Stars, to play and prey until the Next Pounce. A dro-m'Athra can twist out a bent cat's soul, and send it through the cracks directly to the Darks, a ritual known as the Bent Dance. Khajiit are protected by the Ways of Jone (killing the lost cats) and Jode (bathing them in moonlight) from falling into the Bent Dance. Also, when bent cats die, their souls are dragged down by Namiira into the Dark Behind the World, to serve the Heart of Lorkhaj, the Frightful Heart, "until their tails are straight".

Khajiit Funerary Customs

A desecrated Anequine cairn

Khajiit bury all their dead, often in coffins, where the dead rest with their most precious possessions or other relics. Most of these burials are protected, at least, in name, by the Moon clergy. Commonly, families are buried together underground, so their spirits can rest in afterlife. Anequine Khajiit are often buried with only a small cairn of stones. The desert will preserve their bodies for hundreds of years without further preparation. On the other hand, Pellitinian Khajiit bury their deceased underground, marked with a gravestone, and like their northern cousins, without further rites. The humid climate of southern Elsweyr will rot their bodies rapidly. City Khajiit prefer to bury their dead in catacombs or graveyards. Certain noble or wealthy Khajiit may have a monumental tomb constructed, where their corpses and most valuable artifacts will rest. A general custom for Khajiit is to plant Waning Lilies at holy sites in remembrance of beloved family members that have died.

Almost none of the Khajiit are anointed with Arkay's Blessing due to their particular beliefs and the emphasis of the soul over the body. Khajiit show moderate indifference to graves being uncovered and corpses being disturbed. It is indeed true that in the port of Senchal, one may purchase anything one desires, including the bodies of the recently deceased. Because of this, necromancy is especially easy to practice in Elsweyr.