Gloranthan menses & pregnancy:
With few exceptions I believe that Gloranthan menses are once a Theyalan
season & that a pregnancy lasts about a year. I do NOT believe that all
women menstruate on the same day in a given season. I could easily be
convinced that menses are twice a season.
I believe that Tolat personally visits every Amazon on The Rapture, if they're (A) on Trowjang and (B) in bed, asleep. I also believe that these visits _only_ result in pregnancies if the Amazon in question desires it. It is certainly possible that part of the necessary preparation for a pregnancy is ritual sex with a captured male, in MOB fashion.
There are lots of strange pregnancy rules in Glorantha, and the general rule is, I believe, that those cultures which retain the most matriarchal ways also retain the most control over their pregnancies. Example:
THE BIRTHING SONG: Note: this is a Doraddi secret. Amongst the Doraddi, a woman _cannot_ become pregnant without performing the Birthing song. To do this, before sex the woman must drink some water and urinate, eating nothing more until after coitus, when she must chant the birthing song. If she cannot sing it, a female friend or relative can do so on her behalf, while she listens. Note: deaf-mute Doraddi women cannot become pregnant, for they can neither sing nor hear the song.
The birthing song is not 100% effective, and even when sung, sometimes no child results. However, if the ritual is not carried out, there is _no_ chance of pregnancy. This does not apply to magic pregnancy, such as with spirits, broos, or ogres.
There are ribald stories in which a woman coincidentally drinks and urinates before sex, and then hears _another_ women in a neighboring tent singing the Birthing Song, to her horror (and pregnancy). There are also tales in which a would-be grandmother connives to get her daughter pregnant by such means. Despite such tales, obviously the occurrence of unwanted pregnancies amongst the Doraddi is low.
Since the song is post-coital, if it is heard night after night from a particular tent, the inhabitants often find themselves the brunt of teasing. Couples who embarrass easily often sneak off into the night to try for pregnancy. Of course, such sneaking off can also be a source of fun at their expense.
Women who are very concerned about pregnancy usually eat a nut or piece of fruit just before the act to ensure safe sex (since eating between urination & sex prevents pregnancy).
Some lineages' women are reported to know special Birthing songs that ensure the birth of a daughter.
Ability to become pregnant without the Birthing Song is evidence that one of your ancestors was not truly human. (And yes, Fonritians & Veldang each have at least one non-human ancestor.)
Herd Men
Herd folk are able to impregnate human folk, but the offspring are non-intelligent. Herd men have beards, male-pattern baldness, andgo gray-haired with age. They are primarily, but not exclusively vegetarian; i.e, they'll supplement their diet with grubs, ants, frogs, etc. They can survive on grass alone, but not for too long. They prefer roots, seeds, leaves, and berries.
They have vocal cords, but not true speech. Their "vocabulary" is more limited than that of a (non-sapient) baboon.
They do not look very different from normal Praxians. Remember that the Morocanth frequently upgrade their breeding stock with human prisoners. Also remember that the Praxians themselves often take captives from other tribes, and interbreed with them. One of the Praxian laws, in fact, is that the child of a slave is not born into captivity, but is a member of the tribe. Thus all the Praxian tribes interbreed to some extent. There are exceptions, like the Impala folk, who rarely mate with their prisoners, for obvious reasons (no one wants their kids to be too big to ride their steeds).
> When you place an allied spirit into an animal what happens to
that
> animals spirit?
Pam Carlson answers: Another interpretation of an "allied spirit" is "awakened animal". Often an animal ally is simply a real animal made aware by the deity, and tied to the worshipper by spiritual means. I concur with Pam. This is actively supported even byold RQ - one of the reasons Shadow cats made dandy Orlanthi allied spirits is because they had a POW of 2d6+12!
End of The Glorantha Digest V5 #124
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