Fiction:Paingler/Culture

''“Violence is not an unnatural thing. It is the normal state of being.”''

- Stone of Force Vol. 2

''“All life betrays itself and dies. To attempt to preserve one's life is pointless. Loyalty must be given to something greater than a single life.”''

- Stone of Force Vol. 4

Introduction
Welcome to the Imperial Codex!. This entry will provide detailed data on: Paingler culture.

The Core Values
Paingler culture is centered around a set of values that are called the Core Values. These values shape Paingler society and their pesonalities. From an early age, children are taught these values so that they grow to respect and develop from them. The Core Values are:


 * Honor: The Paingler idea of honor is perhaps the most radical of all values or influences upon the Paingler people. Their quest, both personal and collective, for honor has led them to become a warlike, aggressive warrior culture. To the Paingler, honor is a sense of merit and worth, a sense of the self, and a sense of standing or achievement. Honor, while historically earned through combat, can be earned in a myriad of ways in modern times. Honor is no longer restricted to combat; one can earn honor through academic means, proving oneself is a person of integrity and trustworthiness, and mastery or refinement in one's chosen skill and/or profession. Regardless, the Paingler still respect more militaristic stances, as military or law enforcement positions are viewed as honorable. To the Paingler, to have no honor is to lose oneself: a life without honor is not worth living.
 * Loyalty: Loyalty is important in Paingler to society, especially loyalty to one's people and to one's family. Individuals, when given orders, are expected to follow these orders to the letter. Family bonds are very strong and abandoning one's ancestry and family is viewed as extremely cowardly. In addition, marriages and relationships are often pairings for life, although divorce or seperation is accepted (and in most cases, a respectable end). Infidelity is frowned upon. Other disloyal acts, such as treason, are capital offenses that result in severe punishment.
 * Discipline: The Paingler are a very disciplined people, in both a physical and emotional sense, able to cast aside personal desire in face of the "larger picture". Individuals are expected to maintain physical, emotional and mental health, and to live accordingly to the rules, laws and regulations established by the Imperium. As with Loyalty, individuals are taught to follow orders to the letter. Going further, individuals are taught never to question an order being issued and to put the well being of the whole before the well being of the self. Those who pursue their own agendas or perform deeds solely out of self-interest are viewed upon as undisciplined, greedy, selfish and weak.
 * Respect: Historically, respect was given to warriors. In modern times, many individuals are given respect, from warriors, to mothers, to farmers, to artists. Children are taught the value of respect through a litany at a young age:

"Respect one's parents, for they are the ones who brought you into the world. Respect one's ancestry, for it is where you came from. Respect one's people, for they stand beside you, struggle with you, suffer with you and grow with you. Respect one's fellows, for they are your brothers and sisters. Respect one's leader, for he/she guides the people. Respect one's superiors, as they are of higher rank than you. Finally, respect one's enemies, as they test you. By respecting all others, one can find respect for the self."

Any individual that does not adhere to the Core Values is viewed upon as weak, undisciplined and worhtless. These individuals are dishonored and ostracized by society. Slaves are exempt from this rule, as they are already viewed upon as weak and nothing more than a possession.

Cuisine
The abundance of sea life on Nerophion has greatly impacted the Paingler diet and cuisine. The cusine features havey use of seafood; fish, oysters and crustaecean dishes are numerous and common. When the Paingler evolved onto land, they began to supplement their diets with fruits and seaweed, as both were just as numerous as seafood. In addition, the Paingler began to hunt other creatures and harvest them for food, such as the avian Tidewaders and the porcine Kurrac. Some Paingler find the taste of vegetables or fruits distasteful, so a nutrient paste was invented. This paste is a food supplement to a carnivorous diet, packed with minerals, nutrients and vitamins that are not present in meat.

In most Paingler dishes, the meat left is raw, only going through a cleaning process. When cooking seafood, the seafood is usually steamed, pan fried or made into a soup (commonly combined with other meats, fruits/vegetables and noodles). For cooking meat, the meat is typically cooked over an open flame and the methods of smoking or roasting are used to cook the meat.

Beverages are usually composed of water or fruit juices extracted from local fruits, though the Paingler do enjoy other imported beverages (such as milk). A Paingler delicacy is a type of fruit wine made from the fermentation of aquafruit.

Education and Career
Education and work are very important. Without a skill, one cannot be a productive member of society, and therefore, are a liability and a hinderance. Children receive basic education, learning both the spoken and written language as well as the ancient style of writing with characters/symbols, and instruction until the age of fifteen, the age of adulthood and sexual maturity. At fifteen, an individual can choose to take up a skill or join the military to further their education. It is not uncommon to find families devoted to a certain skill, such as carpentry or cooking, and a family's skill is often considered an heirloom or legacy to be passed down from generation to generation.

A career stems from a skill an individual has picked for him or herself. A career or job is different to a Paingler than it is to others; a Paingler is not motivated by personal gain and does not seek to earn the most money for his or her skill. Rather, a Paingler is taught to "do one's duty" and to provide for their people. As such, Paingler workers are paid the exact amount they require to provide for themselves and their families.

The Arts
The Paingler are not uncultured, simple barbarians. They respect and appreciate art as well as any other civilization. Paingler works of art, literature and music are noted for a certain severity, inherited from their creators.

Artwork and Sculptures
Portraits are not frequent within Paingler art (indeed, the only specimens of portraits are the portraits of the Emperors and the royal families). Instead, the Paingler turn to nature, themes and, perhaps unsurprisingly, warriorhood, for artistic inspiration. Paintings are usually panoramic scenes of nature from Nerophion or other worlds, depictations of battles (both modern and ancient) or an artistic depiction of love, honor, loss or heroism. Sculptures usually depict warriors in battle dress although pieces of abstract design and bizarre shapes are also fairly common.

Apart from paintings, Paingler artists also create works of calligraphy. These works of art use ancient Paingler characters and symbols to make a brief scene or statement.

Music
Paingler music lacks vocals of any kind, instead focusing on the sounds of the instrument. Using traditional instruments, the music is created to convey feeling, emotion and, quite frequently, tell a tale. Traditional instruments include wind instruments, such as horns and flutes, simple drums and stringed instruments. When the Paingler came into contact with outsiders, outside music made an impression on the Paingler, making Paingler musicians aware that their music is one of few that goes unedited or go through any electronic interferrance or process. As such, Paingler musicians refuse any editing or formatting of their music, as they believe it detracts from the effort and skill of the musician. This austerity is reflected by Paingler society, which appreciates their music for what it is.

Literature
Paingler literature is compairable to the literature of other peoples: they have books, tales, stories and poetry. Like other people, Paingler literature comes in a dazzling array of genres and styles. Paingler literature follows it's traditional roots: very rarely are Paingler literary works translated into other languages and the majority of Paingler authors use the ancient style of writing, utilizing characters rather than written word. Perhaps the most recognized and common aspect of Paingler literature is epic poetry, often centered around honor, duty and tragedy.

Architecture
Historically, the architecture was made out of wood and constructed upon platforms with "stilts". These stilts were made with the tides of Nerophion in mind; they elevated the building so that rising tides would not damage or destroy the building. As the Paingler became more technologoically advanced, so did their architecture. Buildings and homes are now constructed out of metals, rather than wood. In addition, the use of stilts on buildings has also declined, as buildings are no longer so easily destroyed by rising tides (indeed, the city of Kanjhe is properly fortified to withstand flooding). However, buildings stay true to their traditional heritage. Paingler buildings are tall and tower-like, consisting of many floors (it is uncommon to see a building that has fewer than a dozen floors), and dominate the skyline with their height. On the outside, the buildings resemble multi-tiered metal towers.

The tallest building on Nerophion is the Imperial Palace. The Palace is composed of three seperate buildings: the Palace itself, located within the height of the colossal tower. The Palace is home to the Emperor, the royal family and the Magistrate Council and their families. Connected at the base of the tower, is a rotunda building that juts out of the the tower's side. This rotunda houses the Magistrate Council Chamber. The Chamber are used when laws are being drafted, passed or rejected and to consider or greet any foreign diplomatic parties. The Emperor himself would be present within the Chamber, as it is the Emperor who has ultimate power alone (the magistrate council acts only as an advisory council to the Emperor). The area surrounding the Palace is known as the Palace Grounds. The Grounds are a wide expanse of parks, arboretums, greenhouses, fountains and private walkways.

Marriage
The Paingler practice marriage within their culture, called Naro-Tenai in their language (literally meaning a union). However, marriages must be arranged accordingly to caste system (for example, a Governing caste member may not marry an individual of lower caste status, but relationships, while generally frowned upon, are not forbidden). In addition to following the caste system, a marriage can be arranged by the families of the would-be bride and groom (same sex marriages are accepted in Paingler society). If a marriage is arranged by the families of the bride and groom, the bride then becomes a part of the groom's family. Not all marriages are arranged (in fact, the majority of marriages are not), but the spouses feel love and affection towards their families and towards each other in the form of obligation and duty.

Marriage ceremonies are very traditional. A marriage ceremony may only be performed at dawn. The entire family of both the bride and the groom are present. However, the ceremony is presided over by the father of the bride (or, in the case of a same sex marriage, the father of the spouse who proposed).

Funerals
Death is an ever present part of life, especially in times of war. As such, the Paingler respect death, rather than fear or hate it. Funerals are held for the dead (provided that the body was able to be recovered). These ceremonies, as with the marriage ceremony, are very traditional. Funeral ceremonies may only be performed at dusk, following ancient tradition.

Unlike other civilizations and cultures, the Paingler do not bury or burn their dead. Rather, they "return them to the sea". The corpse is wrapped in a vestment called a death shawl: a light, handspun robe of silks that was custom made and tailored for the deceased individual. Once the corpse is wrapped in it's death shawl, the body is then lowered into the ocean and left to drift away and sink. The entire family of the individual is present during this ceremony.

Religion
As a collective whole, the Paingler are not particularly a religious people. Those who choose to practice a religion are given the freedom to do so. The majority of religious Paingler choose to worship their ancient pantheon of gods, rather than Spode. These ancoent deities are very numerous and cover nearly every aspect of life (examples include a deity of nature, fertility and courage). The name of the Paingler language, Tun, comes from the name of their ancient god of knowledge, Akoh-Tun. The worship of Spode amongst the Paingler is relatively rare, but there is a small (albeit growing) minority of Spode-worshippers.