tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sat May 31 20:21:40 1997
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Re: SonchIy, Heghtay
nuQum Qov:
|mu'meyvam DISov: Heghtay, SonchIy. taymeyvam DellaH vay'? Paramount mu'
|rurlaw' SonchIy. tayvam muchta' *episode* 'e' vItul.
|
|SKI: Can anyone describe the Klingon death rituals for which we have vocabulary?
Welcome back Qov. As you may remember, it's dangerous to ask "anyone" for
information in this venue in case the (admittedly self-appointed) Ca'Non
Master of the Klingons is listening. {{;-) Can I assume this request is
research for a new story? (hint, hint!)
I'm posting what I have on the Sonchi Ceremony and various Klingon death
beliefs from two sources: MSN's ST: Continuum Klingon Database (apparently
based on Paramount's writer's guides) and my own notes (compiled from
various sources). To save time, I'm not going to edit all of this down into
a concise post but I'm sure you'll find whatever you're looking for here.
If you need any more info let me know and I'll search through my
voluminous, if somewhat disorganized, notes for you.
-- Voragh
______________________________________________________________________________
From MSN's ST: Continuum Klingon Database:
Sonchi
The Klingon death succession ceremony, and also the word of confirmation
used when all parties have challenged and confirmed the death of the
passed-on leader. It literally translates as "He is dead." (Reunion)
Death Wail
A particular type of Klingon ceremony which is performed immediately following
the death of a warrior. After a Klingon peers into a just-deceased brethren's
eyes and looks at death in the face, all Klingons who are present (although
even a lone warrior will also perform this ritual on the deceased, given the
opportunity) join in a tremendously loud and powerful howl skyward, which
lasts several seconds. According to Lieutenant Commander Data, the howling
signifies a traditional warning to the hereafter that "a Klingon warrior is
about to arrive!"
No ceremony attends the corpse afterwards, which is viewed as "just an
empty shell" and discarded in that manner. Although offworlders have heard
of the ceremony, the ritual was apparently first observed by outworlders
in the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D sickbay, circa stardate 41503 by
Captain Picard, Doctor Crusher and the medical staff after the death of a
Klingon renegade. Lieutenant Worf also howled skyward when he realized
K'Ehleyr was dead; their son Alexander -- a stranger to both death and the
ritual -- ran away. (Reference: Heart Of Glory)
Dirge, Klingon
Rather than the traditional death wail, a sacred funeral dirge is chanted
by Kor over the bodies of Kang and Koloth (no translation is provided):
"Ki-naH-naH, lo-maytoo;
"Ki-naH-naH, lo-maytaH;
"Ko-no-ma ... Ko-no-mayy ...
"No-no-ma ... Ko-no-MAAAYYY...."
(Blood Oath)
Klingons (extract)
Warriors and their families ... believe that death is an experience best
shared and view it as a joyful time for one who falls in the line of duty
and earns a place among the honored dead, celebrating the release of a dead
spirit rather than grieving over what they consider to be the empty shell
of the body. One of the most honorable deaths is a kamikaze-like suicide
that takes an enemy's life with it. Viewed through their Spartan
perspective, illness (especially terminal) is not honorable; one is not
supposed to faint, at least as an adult, a bias that leads to a lack of
both research and sympathy for such patients; usually cases of paralysis
such as Lieutenant Worf's are left to die--or to perform the ritual suicide
Hegh'bat. Of course, half-human Federation emissary, K'Ehleyr thought it
was just more "Klingon nonsense" and "dumb ideas about honor."
Sto-Vo-Kor
The afterlife of the Klingon honored dead, presided over by Kahless until
his return to the world of the living. (Rightful Heir)
Suicide, Klingon
Depressed at the fear of the unknown ailment and apparent inevitable death,
Lieutenant Worf prepared to kill himself with a boxed, ceremonial dagger,
kept on display with tall vials of liquid and an ornate round metal plate.
He held the knife tip to the plate and poured one of the liquids down the
blade. No translation or spelling is available on the Klingon he spoke,
although at least part of it meant roughly, "Alexander, I hope you will
forgive me," a reference to his son. (Night Terrors)
Gik'tal
A Klingon word meaning of or related to death; Lieutenant Worf named a
bogus blindfolded challenge after the word to teach young Bajoran Ensign
Sito a lesson in self-assertion. (Lower Decks)
Jat'yIn
Klingonese word for ghosts or spirits; literally, "the taking of the
living by the dead." (Power Play)
Klingon Defense Force (extract)
In the Klingon military structure, it is the duty of secondary officers to
assassinate those immediately ahead of them in the chain of command--
beginning with the first officer looking to his captain--if it becomes
apparent that a ranking warrior has become weak or unable to perform. This
practice, while apparently violent, is far from chaotic since Klingons view
such a transition as an "honorable retirement," allowing the deceased to go
with honor into Sto-Vo-Kor, the place of the dead. Hence, the tradition has
operated successfully for centuries.
Miscellanea from Voragh's notes:
Sonchi Ceremony The Klingon death succession ceremony and also the word
of confirmation used when all parties have challenged and confirmed the
death of the passed-on leader during the Rite of Succession. The Sonchi
formally confirmed the death of a leader before his successor could be
chosen, and involved the candidates for his position jabbing the body
with painstiks while issuing the oral challenge, qab jIH nagil ("Face me
if you dare"). After all had done so, an official observer announces,
Sonchi ("He is dead"). K'mpec's Sonchi ceremony took place aboard the
flagship Bortas after his murder in 2367. (Reunion)
Rite of Succession process whereby a new leader was chosen for the
Klingon High Council following the death of the previous leader. The
abbreviated modern rite first requires the Sonchi, in which the deceased
was formally certified to be truly dead. Next, the Arbiter of Succession
was required to select the challengers for leadership of the Council.
The two strongest challengers would then fight for the right to lead the
Council. Following the murder of K'mpec in 2367, Picard served Gowron's
Arbiter of Succession where he held a formal ja'chuq (part of the long-
abandoned ancient Rite, which was a much longer and far more intricate
ceremony). (Reunion)
Klingon Death Ritual A ceremony practiced by Klingons upon the death of a
comrade. This ritual has rarely been seen by offworlders. The eyes of
the fallen warrior are pried open, while the other warriors gather
around and let loose with a powerful howl that has been described not as
a wail of the dead, but as an exhaltation of the victorious. Klingon
belief holds that the howl is a warning for the dead to beware because a
warrior is about to arrive. (Heart of Glory) There is another, old
tradition some Klingons perform called ak'voh: when a warrior dies in
battle, his comrades stay with the body to keep away predators. That
allows the spirit to leave the body when it is time to make the long
journey to Sto'Vo'Kor. (The Ship)
In Klingon society, the death of a warrior is not mourned, especially
a warrior who has died honorably, as in battle or the line of duty. In
such cases, the survivors celebrate the freeing of the spirit. (The
Bonding, The Next Phase) A slow, agonizing death due to injuries
received in battle, though, "is no way for anyone to die" according to
Worf. One may, however, kill a fatally wounded comrade as it would be a
more honorable death than the one he's enduring. A wounded warrior must
be allowed to prepare for death, not given a false sense of hope for
recovery. O'Brien, in trying to keep up wounded Enrique Muniz' spirits
was viewed by Worf as "just another weak human afraid to face death."
(The Ship)
According to B'Elanna, "the Klingons believe in an afterlife" (cf.
Sto-Vo-Kor, the Black Fleet and Gre'thor) but they have no particular
burial ritual, "they just dispose of the corpse by the most efficient
means possible." Chakotay countered that some archaeological digs on the
Klingon homeworld indicate this may not have always been the case.
(Emanations) It is normally performed by the dead man's oldest son (if
present). (KCD novel) It is called Heghtay in tlhIngan Hol.
Religion (extract) In Klingon society, the death of a warrior is not
mourned, especially one who has died honorably, as in battle or the line
of duty. In such cases the survivors celebrate the freeing of the
spirit. (The Bonding, The Next Phase) The eyes of the fallen are pried
open, while the other warriors gather around and let loose with a
powerful howl that has been described not as a wail of the dead, but as
an exhaltation of the victorious. Klingon belief holds that the howl is
a warning for the dead to beware because a warrior is about to arrive.
This Heghbat, or Death Ritual has rarely been seen by offworlders.
(Heart of Glory) Once this is done, they consider the dead body merely
"an empty shell," to be treated accordingly. According to B'Elanna,
although "the Klingons believe in an afterlife," they have no particular
burial ritual. "They just dispose of the corpse by the most efficient
means possible." Chakotay countered that some archaeological digs on the
Klingon homeworld indicate this may not have always been the case.
(Emanations) One may perform the ancient tradition of ak'voh for a slain
comrade by watching over his body, protecting it from predators, so that
the spirit can escape on its way to Sto-Vo-Kor. (The Ship)
Klingons believe that warriors who die honorably join Kahless, who
awaits them in Sto-Vo-Kor, "the life beyond this life" (Rightful Heir),
which is separated from this life by the River of Blood, which must be
crossed (Sons of Mogh). The place where the dishonored Klingon dead go
is an underworld called Gre'thor which is guarded by Fek'lhr. (Devil's
Due, Sons of Mogh). [According The Star Trek: TNG Companion, Kang's
statement was kept in mind when Fek'lhr was introduced, and he was
therefore described as the gatekeeper of Gre'thor.] Klingons also
believe--or used to believe--in jat'yIn (spiritual possession). It
literally translates as "the taking of the living by the dead" (Power
Play).