Air'riela Death

Air'riela Death
The ritual for the death of an Air'riela Gypsy

Beliefs:
It is the belief of the Air’riela Gypsies that when a member of their people has passed on that their days of traveling are not yet over. The bodies after death are considered to be an enclosure that the spirit must escape from. Like many things with the Air'riela, it is not done alone but with he help of those in the kumpania and the familiya of the deceased. Together, those who wish to honor the deceased gather to burn the body during the darkening to allow the spirit to be freed from the body to wander the stars in death as they did in life. It is considered an offense to keep a body from being burned or burying it. For this reason the Air'riela people will got to great lengths to find the bodies of their dead.

Gathering:
Time is given before a body is to be burnt for the familiya and friends to arrive to the location of the body. There is no set time allotted for the wait, however it is very rare that it lasts for over a month. In the case where the deceased persons immediate family, children, and spouse have not yet arrived, the ceremony will be delayed unless word that the family has no intentions of coming. This is distasteful in the eyes of the Air'riela.

The group that has the body of the deceased does not move prior to the ceremony unless another kumpania or close family member comes to relieve them of the body. In this instance, it is usually up to the group or person that has come to gather the body to either remain with the present kumpania or leave some sign as to where the body will be brought. This is considered highly rare and only done in extreme situations.

Preparation:
The Air’riela are very cautious with the bodies of the deceased, treating it almost as if it were a small child. Though the body is no longer in use they believe that to damage or move it around too violently will anger the soul that is still inside. These disturbances are believed to hinder the soul's entrance into the stars. Therefore it is not unheard of for the body to stay in the deceased's vardo in a bed while those who may also have shared the bed or vardo will find another place to sleep.

The bodies are kept well-preserved, looking as if alive with the use of makeup and other methods of preservation, because the gypsies are accomplished at making things appear a certain way, it often looks as if a body that has been left for a month is just someone sleeping.

Once those attending the ceremony have gathered, the body is brought outside and is placed above a large pyre built through the previous brightening. The body is left on top of the pyre all brightening while songs and stories are told that are either about the deceased or among their favorites when they were alive. The Air'riela are under the belief that this keeps the spirit calm and understanding after having remained in its body for so long. These stories are also told to help keep the transition from the human body to the stars much smoother.

The Burning:
When the first star is seen in the sky the music and songs stop and the area fills with silence. The relatives closest to the deceased are the ones who light the fire with torches. If the deceased is a parent, the children will bear the torches. If the deceased is that of a child, both parents will light the pyre. If there are no living parents, children, or spouse present at the ceremony, the duty falls to the closest relative present, excluding siblings. It is said that siblings are not permitted to light the fire because they were born of the same person and so it is viewed that part of them has died. For this reason, if a sibling lights the pyre it is perceived as the sibling wishing the soul bad luck in its transcendence to the stars.

No matter the circumstances, siblings are not permitted to light the pyre. In extremely rare cases where there are no other living relatives, the Baro will light the pyre regardless of whether or not a sibling is present. It should be noted that distant cousins would be chosen before the duty passes to the Baro and thus is very unlikely to happen.

The moment that the flame reaches the body the songs and music start once again and people dance around the fire. It is said that watching the smoke long enough will reveal the soul ascending into the stars to begin its new journey. The fire is left burning through the next brightening until the first star is sighted in the sky the next darkening. The fire is never put out by water, but is left to burn out on it’s own accord.

It would be considered a great offense if the fire were to burn out before the next darkening, however it is never to be relit. Instead the members that are gathered will remain silent and continue to be that way until the darkening comes in which one final song would be played in memory of the person and a dance which all would be expected to participate in.

Though throwing water on the fire is considered offensive, condemning the doer to bad luck for the rest of their life, it is considered a very good omen if rain strikes the fire so long as the fire does not die. It is believed that with the rain all four elements are working together in order for the soul to rise to the stars. Putting water on the fire is offensive because it forces the elements to work together.

The punishment for ending the fire prematurely is a tattoo that symbolizes bad luck and dishonor somewhere that will be seen at nearly all times.

Former Possessions:
The gypsies do not have a declaration such as a will that dictates to whom their former possessions will go it. It is not uncommon, however, for the gypsy to leave items for their close friends and family. These are often a single items that hold meaning to the receiver opposed to everything that they own being given away. Once the items that have been designated to the selected people are given, the Baro of the Kumpania will converse with the spouse of the deceased (if one exists) and between them they will decided who in the kumpania could use the remaining items.

Under certain circumstances an item will be put in the fire and burned with the recently deceased. These are usually reserved for people who have died under unnatural circumstances, such as someone dying to protect another gypsy or the kumpana, someone dying when they are looking for another gypsy that is lost or in trouble, or in the death of a child. These items are extremely personal to the deceased, something that they would have used often.

Observations:
Unless there is a good reason, there is never more than one funeral pyre on the same brightening. Exceptions of this rule are battle victims, spouses, siblings, victims of disease, and other such unfortunate circumstances. This is because they consider the brightening to be about the journey of one person, the ceremony a telling of their story. If those who have died were very close or died under the same circumstances, it is often acceptable to have the deceased share a pyre. In some cases this results in a two brightening long ceremony though it is not often.

During the burning nobody sleeps inside of a vardo, but outside. It is said that this is so the spirit does not feel that it has been forgotten. While there is no punishment for sleeping in the vardo, it is considered to be akin to spitting on the face of those who are dead. An enemy of the dead may do this.