Grinding Fire

Grinding Fire is a traditional mostly practiced by mercenaries who venture across Elotia to, supposedly, repel bad luck (and monsters) from their journies by bringing the attention of "good godlings" to their travels. By grinding fire, the mercenaries claim that those godlings observe the power of the people and allow them to draw a very small amount of the godlings own power, out of respect for their strength.
Grinding fire has become less common in recent eochs, though this is largely due to the more public appearance of several elder godlings who have stated that the tradition does nothing except, perhaps, repel kwinda.

History

It is unclear when exactly the tradition of grinding fire began, or why it is not only mainly practiced among mercenaries. Some scholars think that grinding fire arose based on specific instructions given to a group of people by a particular godling, who may have said that they would bestow their "blessing" for anyone who did so on a journey, while other scholars think that it's a corrupted tradition based on paying homage to Tdska through subjecting elements preferred by other godlings to the power that Tdska valued most.
What is clear is that the tradition predates Anwer by several hundred eochs. There are archival records in Phesunlay speaking of grinding fire as a tradition that was carried out when Phesunlay itself was founded (though the tradition has fallen out of favour there). Oral traditions among the descendants of the Afregne speak of a somewhat similar tradition, known as braðnis, wherein rocks encased in ice are melted in fires, though the purpose of this tradition is to demonstrate the strength and resilience of the fire (and to demonstrate the resolve of those making the fire by not flinching when the rock explodes).

Execution

Grinding fire is a somewhat simple tradition and can be carried out with little preparation. The tradition is intended to be possible in nearly any location by any member of the group. The only condition of the tradition, aside from the primary actions, is that everyone should be silent while it is carried out, that only one person and one hand of that person should be used, and that the fire should have been burning for at least 30 minutes before it is enacted.
To enact grinding fire, a member of the group must collect a handful of rocks (size is not important though it cannot be just a few large rocks) and hold them aloft, closed in one hand. They then need to slam their hand into the ground, opening their hand as they hit the ground while trying to keep all the rocks in their hand. After re-collecting all the rocks (still using only the one hand), they then blow on their closed hand before casting the rocks into the fire. After the rocks are in the fire, all activity can and should resume as normal.
It is considered improper or bad luck to lose any of the rocks during this process (lose meaning that a collected rock didn't make it into the fire) or for there to be any loud noises during the event. If the fire burns out within 30 minutes of the ritual, that is considered a very ill omen. However, if the fire changes colour when the rocks are cast in, this is considered very good luck. As such, some people try to collect small bits of sand or other debris when they toss the rocks in, hoping to collect a small bit of something that will effect the flame colour (though this is frowned upon, if caught).

Components and tools

The only components needed for this tradition are a handful of rocks, a well-burning fire, and one person.