TY Kora Tek & raiding from Pam Carlson on 1999-01-20 (Glorantha Digest Vol 06)

From: Pam Carlson <carlsonp_at_gonzo.wolfenet.com>
Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 21:26:31 -0800

I would offer another view of Ty Kora Tek and ancestor tracking among women in Sartarite society.

Ancestors

Women move among clans, so their clan doesn't necessarily contain their blood relatives. But I think Ernalda & Earth worship is largely organized at the tribal level. (At least it is among the Colymar). Therefore, if a woman marries within her tribe, her ancestors and kin are still more or less with her, as she still participates in the tribal worship of the Goddesses.

At the risk of making an overbroad statement, I think women who worship earth in general are more unified than the men and their "male" deities. The earth goddesses have much in common, and many myths of sisterhood and relatedness exist. Marrying foreign husbands (or at least unfathomable ones)is a common theme among many Gloranthan earth cultures. THerefore, just because a woman moves to a different clan, her ancestors or friendly spirits may still be contactable through Earth rituals.

TKT I suspect there are few full TKT priestesses, or even acolytes outside of the Shaker temple. The TKT role within a clan or tribe is probably filled by an older woman who knows some of the rituals. We (the SFC when playing Orlanthi) often use a model of one woman having many facets. There are few full priestesses of anything but Ernalda in Sartarite society, but there are some Ernaldans who know Arelia, TKT, or Maran Gor rituals.

We have used TKT rituals when decending into the underworld for Ernaldan ceremonies - particularly in female initiation. TKT spirits have appeared as guardians of Tula boundaries, and I suspect that TKT rituals are used to bind the spirits of dead ancestors into the earthen burms protecting small towns in Esrolia.

TKT is probably also the Ernaldan psychopomp, leading the spirits of women through the underworld to Ernalda's Secret Hearth. She may be terrifying to men because of her reigh over spirits and the dead, but she is probably viewed with more understanding by Ernaldans. TKT is simply the death aspect of Earth - without which, Earth is not complete.

Raiding

Think about it - who do you hate more.... people on the other side of town with a fancy car, or those idiots down the street who let their dogs run through your yard and have unruly teenagers who screech their cars around at all hours of the night?

Of course Orlanthi clans raid others within their tribe - especially if the tribal king is weak, or looking the other way. And for the reason above, long-standing and viscious feuds can develop between clans of the same tribe, due to proximity and complicated histories.

As Yosarian put it: "Why should I want to kill people I don't even know?"

Pam