Thinking Medieval: Filial Piety and Family Honor in Scarterra
This is part of my "Thinking Medieval" series
Scarterra lore pulls from every historical culture on Earth but it admittedly leans heavily towards Western Civilization because that is my primary frame of reference.
Filial Piety is often more associated with Eastern Civilization than Western Civilization but family honor is certainly important in Western Civilization. Days of remembrance for the honored dead are pretty universal across all cultures and eras in Earth history and certainly are present in Scarterra in a myriad of forms.
Family shrines are certainly something more associated with non-Western cultures, but they are very present in Scarterra.
It is a relatively uncommon occurance, but it is established fact that spirits of the honored dead can tangible act up on the material world and that the spirits of the honored dead have more power the more they are remembered and honored which gives an additional incentive to honoring the dead besides the cultural reasons.
Spirit loas are pretty rare but it is well known that they are disproportionately likely to be born into families that prioritize ancestral piety which can also incentivize filial piety, though in some case this can be a disincentive given the superstitions and mixed reception spirit loas receive.
Spirit loas are powerful mediums between the living and the dead, but the honored dead do not require spirit loas to interact with living people. Specifiic rituals allow living people to talk to the dead without a spirit loa. These rituals are much easier in shrines to the dead or during holidays dedicated to the the dead.
Under limited situations, the honored dead can act on their own volition to impact the living world. This similar to what ghosts can do though less powerful though at the same time, the honored dead can work small miracles without exposing themselves to exorcists or necromancers and ghosts make themselves at least slightly vulnerable when they use their powers. Whenever a burglar or home invader suffers an unlikely accident, many believe this is the family's ancestors defending their descendants dwelling.
Components and tools
Memorial customs differ greatly from culture to culture in Scarterra but every culture has them.
Many families opt to keep a personal family shrine in or near their homes. Sometimes a village will create a public shrine for the entire local population to honor their dead in the same place.
Kalazotz often carve the names of their honored dead on memorial stelae, at least if they have a set territory. Which segues into nomadic or non-materialistic Scarterrans. Those that can't or won't maintain a permanent physical shrine rely on oral stories and songs to remember their deceased loved ones and ancestors.
Participants
Levels of filial piety differ greatly from culture to culture, family to family and person to person. It is impossible to predict what a particularly person or group's views on ancestor worship are unless they tell you, but the best way to make an educated guess is to look at their religious biases.
Among the priesthoods, very few people fail to honor the the honored dead but some prioritize it more than others.
In general the followers of the "chaotic" gods (Maylar, Nami, and Zarthus focus on stories and songs. The followers of the "lawful" gods (Khemra, Hallisan, and Phidas) tend to focus on formal rituals and are more likely to use physical shrines or tokens. The "neutral" deities (Mera, Korus, and Greymoria tend to be more focused on the living and the dead, often putting lots of weight on days of remembrance but seldom giving the dead much though on non-holiday days.
One would guess that the "evil" gods (Maylar, Greymoria, and Phidas) would be less prone to honoring thier dead given that they condone the creation and use of undead to some extant but if anything this means that they understand the need to honor the dead more because they know the risks involved. At least they will respect their own honored dead, they are unlikely to respect their enemies' dead.
Observance
Scarterrans who prioritize filial piety often visit their family shrine or have a remembrance every week.
On the opposite extreme, some Scarterrans only really focus on the honored dead at funerals.
Typically, most Scarterrans put a lot of weight in funerals and observe two, three, or four days of remembrance each year.
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