Juru

The term Juru may also refer to:
a) Short for The Great Forest of Juru in the center of Teel
b) Natives from the old Juru Tribe (Undying)

The Juru Tribes

The Juru are an ethnic group that is predominantly native to the peninsula of Teel, although foreigners are welcome to most of the affiliated tribes if they prove themselves as worthy. At least 12 different tribes and houses belong to the group, moreover there are several unregistered eremites living across the peninsula who consider themselves as Juru.

1. Etymology

The Undying simply referred to themselves as people or humans before the arrival of the Settlers in Teel. A common term to define them as an ethnical group came up in the first decade of the new calendar. The Juru named themselves after the Great Forest of Juru, which they consider as their most important cultural and spiritual hub. Juru originally means life or existance in the old language of the natives.

2. Origins and classifications

Old members of the Juru tribes have inhabited the peninsula for at least 10.000 years. Their traditions and values remained relatively stable in virtue of the wide diversification of the different houses. Before the Stranding and the beginning of the modern calendar, Juru people were exclusively native immortals. It remains unclear where the old Juru people originally came from, because they claim to have no memory of their tender years, either because they do not know or because they do not want to tell.
The modern definition of Juru includes people who adapted the traditional teelean lifestyle, although not every tribe accepts outsiders with foreign origins. Most Jurus also consider the procedure of Athem extraction as a reason for the expulsion of the group. Nevertheless, the term is not exclusively restricted to a certain heritage or to the possession of immortality.

3. History

There is no record of the actual number of Undying on the peninsula. Most of the villages and houses are self-sufficient and the majority of tribes refrain from communicating with foreigners, though some tribes are more liberal than others in this point. One of the few exceptions to this isolating conduct is the Shenbuu Festival, where traders from every region in the country come together to exchange goods and ideas.
The Stranding
The Stranding of the Sunbeam marks the beginning of the modern era in Teel. People from Alkor and Mizar found the shipwreck in the Vermillion Clouds after the first Indi Hitwave of the new calendar flooded the country for days. 134 survivors from Harkom were accepted as members of the society, naturally not without influence: Concepts like death and proceation were seen as typical animalistic traits before the Settlers raised their families on the peninsula. Beyond that, the Settlers brought new technologies and approaches to utilize the things nature offers to them, which lead to social division inbetween the old Juru houses. Therefore, some of the Undying supported this modern way of life and chose to conduce the foundation of the Free City of Teel .

The discovery of the Athem
After the false killing of Fulso in the year 44 AS, the Alchemist's Guild was founded and the research on Athem intensified. The first successful extraction of Roa in Wave 18/79 AS opened up new possibilities for the Undying and lead to the further division of several Juru houses. Ever since, Juru people can obtain fertility by giving up their Roa. Unfortunately, the procedure also means to forfeit immortality, which became clear in the first half of the 90s. Today, Athem is used by the majority of tribes to enhance spiritual powers and to affect the natural environment with magic.

4. Language

The universal language in Teel has always been a Creole language with influences from every teelean community. Regional dialects are present, but the administrative language is at least comprehensible in the majority of Juru tribes. Some hardliner traditionalists tend to stay with archaic terms from the old Juru language, if they have been replaced by modern terms due to the cultural and linguistic influence from the Settlers.

5. Culture

Narrations and tales are central cultural elements in every Juru house. The Juru prefer to see science as magic and have their own fantastic explanations for the wonders of nature. They have preserved their oral culture over thousands of years, which lead to a significantly great number of mythical stories. Most of the stories contain elements from the real world and have a didactic purpose, covering the genesis, the moral code and the laws of nature. The fictional lore is widely accepted, which makes it unnessecary for traditionalists to look beyond the fantastic and seek for scientific explanations or to practice investigative historical research.
Most influential fictions:

• The myth of Gendal 
• The myths of Mofta
• The tales about the White Maned Moonfolk 

The Shenbuu Festival
The first Shenbuu Festival paralleled Wave 52/12 AS and was initiated by the new citizens of the Free City of Teel as an alternative to the ritual shenbu hunt of the Juru. Despite their favor for hunting and eating meat, the traditional tribes accepted this cultural shift and stopped hunting shenbuu after the seasonal Wave. The Shenbu Festival soon ascended to the most important event for traditional and modern oriented tribes.

Hammer
Used for nearly every task in the daily life of the ancient gatherers and hunters, the hammer is the most important tool and likewise a central cultural symbol for the Juru. Even hardliner traditionalists and naturalists show a sense of materialistic thinking when it comes to their hammer tool, which can be found in every Juru household for utility or at least as a sign of good luck.

6. Juru Houses

Since the Undying do not have any biological family relations, their houses are ordered by common values and friendships. 30 great Juru houses are part of the lawkeeper council that is seen as an official representation of the tribes, though the council had never made a public statement or revealed the members, time, or place of their meetings.