Or this: a funeral club. Iroh is a steady member of the merchant's association for the district, and since he came back without the young man who had been helping him, a few months later, one of the other merchants approaches him.
"Do you have family in the city?" the man says, sipping his tea. He runs a tailor's shop, specializing in high-end custom robes. "It is a good idea for those of us who are alone."
Members to put their money in every month, and when they die, the club pays for the expenses of the funeral. Even if you are buried in the city (as opposed to being transported home), there is a grave site. The after-funeral dinner. Incense to burn, so that your ancestors know that you are on your way to join them. Small clay models to accompany you into the grave, so that you will have presents for your ancestors when you finally see them.
Iroh does not hold much stock with this: the Fire Nation teaches grave-fire purifies us all into ash and nothingness, but Iroh has seen too many burned bodies to have believed that for decades. This is, in fact, why he made them bury Iroh, rather than burn him. In the circles of power, this was counted as a sign of his madness.
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Date: 2010-09-21 11:17 pm (UTC)"Do you have family in the city?" the man says, sipping his tea. He runs a tailor's shop, specializing in high-end custom robes. "It is a good idea for those of us who are alone."
Members to put their money in every month, and when they die, the club pays for the expenses of the funeral. Even if you are buried in the city (as opposed to being transported home), there is a grave site. The after-funeral dinner. Incense to burn, so that your ancestors know that you are on your way to join them. Small clay models to accompany you into the grave, so that you will have presents for your ancestors when you finally see them.
Iroh does not hold much stock with this: the Fire Nation teaches grave-fire purifies us all into ash and nothingness, but Iroh has seen too many burned bodies to have believed that for decades. This is, in fact, why he made them bury Iroh, rather than burn him. In the circles of power, this was counted as a sign of his madness.