Culture of Tamilşe Çar Beylik

In addition to resilience and adaptability, the Tamilşic people hold in high regard the values of honesty, honor, respect and family.



Honesty is viewed as a two-way binding contract, in writing only slightly moreso than in word. Sworn oaths on oneself’s honor is viewed as noble and upright should one succeed, and disgraceful should one fail to hold up their end. Oaths that invoke one’s household god or goddess are recognized as a wager in the presence of and under judgement of the family and the god of one’s family, and are given a much greater degree of seriousness. Should one succeed, though it is traditional to believe that one brings honor to one’s family, it is generally frowned upon to seek personal benefit even if one succeeds within this kind of oath. Should one fail, dishonor is laid upon the family, particularly the one that failed their oath. These tend to be reserved for higher-importance oaths. Sworn oaths that invoke “the gods as witness” are reserved for momentous oaths that pit one’s entire honor against their promise. Those who take these oaths for trivial matters or those who fail are seen as disgraceful and may be shunned by society for their failures whether in honor or deed. Those who trivialize oaths are seen as dishonest and not worthy of loyalty in return, for they do not honor their word, and in turn should not be honored.



Family is viewed as a fluid concept where a family group is considered more broadly “those who are family”, where the specific operative word are that is used within Tamilşic translates most closely to “embody and uphold”, “realize”, or “make true”. Kinship within any family is voluntary, where anyone who is not bound to another in marriage or service may move between families and dwell among them. Should they agree to follow the values of the family in perpetuity and should the family head accept him or her, the person becomes family. Because of the fluidity of the concept of Tamilşic “family”, the concept of family is often referred to as the “household”.

Marriage, as it is an oath between one consenting male and one consenting female, is considered final until death of either spouse. Bloodline families mean more in this context than household-family dynamics, as it is unlawful for anyone to lay with or otherwise marry someone with any “order” of kinship (relations across generations), or anyone no less than three “degrees” of kinship (lateral relationship; Ex: sibling = 1, first cousin = 2, second cousin = 3) within a family, or someone with more than 12 years of age difference outside of family. A married couple must dwell in the same household, and it is customary that when each forms their new family, they will either choose a deity from either of their family’s deities or seek guidance from a leader of their people to name them a new god.

Though generally the head of the family is customarily the “most honorable male”, should there be any female considered more honorable, she would be considered the most honorable of her family. Each family governs itself differently, the adults of each family usually have a word in deciding who is the most honorable.

Bondsmanship is a state of indebted service by which one is legally enslaved by another, usually by an arranged contract in a familial or higher oath, and legally requiring a neutral third party witness. One cannot be forced or coerced into bondsmanship, with the exception of captives of war and a number of laws exist to protect the bonded person from cruelties.



Honor and respect likewise play into the iconography of the threshold of one’s home. Like many cultures, the right hand is viewed with honor and the left with dishonor. A genuine offer of a left hand in a handshake is considered an insult. For thresholds of structures, the philosophy is built into the design. From the outside, the hinge of the door must be on the right side so that even if one enters using their left hand to open the door (ideally they use their right hand instead), then it is still easier to use their right hand while leaving.

The customs of the household are customarily written on the left-side, or latchpost, which include rules that one must obey once inside. These could be as simple as “Remove your shoes before entering” to “Leave all rumors at the door”. It is ideal that one lists as little as possible on this post, as including too many rules is viewed as impugning the honor of those who do not dwell within. Including nothing will give the impression that one is content to leave one’s household in a state of disorder.

On the right post of the door, or the hingepost is inscribed the values of the household; usually a short saying or maxim that customarily must be incanted to the inscription of the deity at the top of the threshold (the household’s patron god/matron goddess) before entering the home. The goal of this phrase is to grant favor from the god or goddess should one enter, and the phrase might be value statements like “Speak no lies.” or “Carry no grudges.” to encourage honesty and goodwill respectively, or statements of kinship such as “We are family.” Except in the case of obvious emergency, it is viewed as dishonorable to not speak this incantation with a bow before touching the door. It is expected that one hold true to these values if possible, while in the house. Should one have their protests, they should knock on the threshold of the house to request those they wish to speak with outside.

Likewise, the inside side of the threshold is also viewed with importance. On the hingepost is either written nothing or courteous reminders of any kind, whether it be a reminder to remember to check for all one’s belongings before leaving, wishing them safe travels, or even as simple as reminding one to laugh at least once each day. On the hingepost is inscribed the values of the household that the household expects one to carry with them as they leave. These statements are viewed as the most important of all the statements inscribed on the threshold, because they are a statement upon which one’s honor rests most critically while traversing through the threshold, but they are also viewed as a reflection of a family’s honor. Should a household inscribe an unreasonable or hateful oath on the inside hingepost, they bear greater dishonor than anyone who refuses to honor it, for they are viewed as those who wish to entrap others with dishonor. Anyone who agrees may say the incantation with a bow and depart. Anyone who disagrees may bow wordlessly before departing. Anyone who disagrees more strongly may leave the house without acknowledging it. If this continues to occur with multiple people, dishonor falls on the family.



Any oath or saying that one is customarily required or encouraged to say that breaks one’s oaths to another, or an oath that is recognized as evil, hurtful, or forsaking of one’s family is recognized as an entrapment or an “oath invoking betrayal” and is viewed as dishonorable. Likewise, an oath that asks too little is viewed as a triviality, and is not viewed through a lens of dishonor, but rather disappointment. The sacredness of oaths requires a balance between the two, with the oath being possible, but challenging the spirit of the one who partakes in the holy ceremony.