Aijuno is a traditional Thanati holiday celebrated during the spring Equinox, a time when night and day are equal. To Thanati, it is the luckiest day of the year: new beginnings, fresh starts, cool, beautiful weather, and the earth's energy all in balance. Because it's the luckiest day of the year, it's also the best day to get matched up and married!
In the smaller villages, the local matchmakers have their work cut out for them and are busy as bees with all their appointments!
In the big cities, there are mass celebrations and mass weddings and elaborate parades. There is feasting and dancing and gift-giving as people hope to attract that special someone. And as the cities are so populous that their many matchmakers could never hope to give everyone individual attention on that day (they are often snatched up by many wealthy hopefuls that day!), matchmakers instead conduct a special mass matchmaking ceremony.
Names are written on strips of parchment and placed in two sacred jars, one for men, one for women. The matchmaker then draws a name from each jar, who are then officially a match and expected to wed for a year and a day. If after a year and a day they have not grown to love each other and make it work, the marriage is considered null and void with no consequences to either person. However, as it is considered a very lucky day, and believed that it is fate itself that is choosing those names, folks would be genuinely surprised if a couple choose to end the union at the end of that year and a day.
After the choosing ceremony, couples are married in a mass wedding and more celebrations and feasting commence!
Some traditionalists hate this holiday. But it's quite popular among the younger generation.
Though this holiday is mostly focused on heterosexual couples, as mainstream Thanatos is largely homophobic, in the big cities things can be a little more relaxed. This is actually a good holiday for same-sex couples because if a couple sneaks into a mass wedding and is married in it, their relationship is considered just as valid as the rest for that year and a day since they received Inima's blessing. However, if they're caught before hand, there may be consequences. Thanatos is experiencing a lot of social change, however, and the differences between the new generation and older generations are pretty big, so there is a push to fight back against the traditionalists that forbid homosexuality. This holiday can be a great place to take a stand.
All in all, it is a day where lots of booze is flowing and people are in good spirits so a lot of things tend to be more relaxed. Even foreigners can wind up getting caught up in the whirlwind.
ANYWAY! ALL THAT SAID!
I AM THROWING THIS EVENT UP AS A THING THAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW IN THANATOS! 8D
I'll be posting some threads to get things rolling, but feel free to start your own, too! WHOO FOR MATCHMAKING SHENANIGANS! If you think it'd be fun, I could even post up a matchmaking thread and we can just mash characters together at random and see what hilarity comes of it!
http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23515.msg351208#msg351208
Group thread is up! 8D Hop on in! And again, also feel free to make your own threads, too!
I will be throwing Hayate (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23391.new#new) and Jirou (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=18984.0) into this event. 8D Godspeed to whatever characters end up with either of them.
>_> And probably gonna make some more I've been meaning to join. >_>
SIGN UP HERE TO HAVE YOUR PAIRING RANDOMLY GENERATED! (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23516.new#new)
Bumpity bump! We'll be pairing people up soon, so get your characters entered! >8D
Just a Harmless Holiday (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23580.0) is a part of this event! (:
Just to help keep track of things.
Unspoken Vows (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23583.0) is for Rajko and Sanshi.
It Was Fate (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23596.msg352235#msg352235) For Hakon and Kallaballawallayenasifaren
It's time for another Good Idea/Bad Idea! (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23593.0) for Song and Ritousaey
So that just happened. (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23586.0) for Jirou and Elysia
Screw Traditions (http://www.spiritsoftheearth.net/smf/index.php?topic=23599.new#new) Here's Kyoko and Varduk!