Archive:Xhiuist Cannibalism

Xhiuist Funerary Cannibalism is a practice that occurs all of the time in Orthodox Xhiuism, and to a lesser degree in other sects. It always occurs after death, and religiously has two purposes:

• To remove the body, which serves as a physical shell, trapping the soul.

• To respect the Rule of Nature, and not waste the body, nor energy of the deceased.

Origins

Pre-Xhiuist Southern Xhovians partook in the practice of funerary cannibalism under the assumption it would allow them access to the same ancestral afterlife as the one that they ate. Under Xhiuism, the method was codified and meaning ascribed to the ancient practice.

Practice

The ritual must be commenced within 3 days of death. If this is impossible, common practice is decapitation and then either cremation, donation of the body, or use of the body in fertilizer or animal feed.

The body is taken to the local temple, where 4 attendants remove the clothing, and bathe the body in the temple's pool of holy water, cleansing the body inside and out. Once sufficiently clean, the body is placed on the altar beneath the boughs of the temple tree, and preparatory procedures begin. The body is cut open from the navel to the sternum, using a specially prepared ritual blade. The pancreas, colon, and both small and large intestines are cut out and removed, with the organs being ground into fertilizer for the temple tree. In the cavity thus created, a collection of purifying herbs, and the birth flowers of the deceased are placed, and burned.

Next, the head is cut off, and sent to another mortician to prepare. From the now cleaned cavity, attendants reach in and remove the kidneys, liver, lungs, and heart. These begin the cooking process,

(TO BE CONTINUED)