> If, as I think most people
> accept, Humakti (in DP anyway) are ritually severed from their kith and
> kin
I can't accept this. According to Wyrms Footprints, Sarostip Cold-Eye "is a cousin of the present Malani king, and also chieftain of his own clan. However, everyone expects him to be the next king." He could be none of those three if he had been ritually severed (unless you accept, which I think most people would not, that an Orlanthi clan or tribe would readily embrace an outsider as ruler*).
It's more likely that Humakti go through a ritual which legally exempts their families from being subject to feud. This might even reduce the degree of kinship, from near-kin (in East Ralios, this is the group with legal responsibilities, as well as the right of inheritance) to far-kin. In other words, the ritual would turn you from a brother into a cousin. But you're still related, and still in the same clan. At the very least, a brief version of this ritual is used before a Humakti duel.
I'm sure there are clans like Greydog who take the severing a step further. But I think most are not so extreme. (I suppose it's possible that the Malani are unusual, and their Humakti are the only ones who don't sever kinship, but I have an easier time believing that some Humakti are fanatical than that some Humakti are wussies.)
It would be a bad thing from society's point of view if people could simply excuse themselves from societal responsibilities. (I would expect a Humakti to be *more*, lot less, likely to avenge his birth-brother. Nor would I expect society to say, "Oh, your brother was killed by a Humakti. I guess that's too bad, unless you want to attack the whole Temple.") Legally, a severed Humakti would be a stranger [KoS.244], and thus be one of the Seven Dangers that a clan protects against [KoS.248].
Mark Smylie wrote
> I would actually
> tend to think that there were relatively few true Humakti Heros or
> heroquesters
Several people have proposed that Humakt (or Humath, or Humkt) was one of the Lightbringers in Ralian mythology. (I haven't made up my mind, but it's not at all unreasonable, especially because I think no Ralian Humathi severs his kinship ties. If it's not true in East Ralios, it's probably true in Lankst.)
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