Post by Silmaneero on Jan 2, 2010 1:55:26 GMT -5
Na'vi
Major physical characteristics:
- Smooth, iridescent, cyan hued skin
- Long, prehensile tail
- Large, cat-like eyes
- Feline ears
- Four-fingered hands
- Proportionately small skull with high cheekbones and a protruding snout
- Bioluminescent markings for identification and mood display**
- Average height is 3 meters (9'8") for males, with females slightly smaller
**-A complex pattern of iridescent dots and lines, perfectly symmetrical, runs over the body, seemingly following the lines of the nervous or circulatory system. These are bioluminescent chromatophores, and they glow in the dark like fireflies. The Na'vi can communicate with these, and in fact they are constantly shifting and changing color to indicate mood and emotion, without conscious control.
The native humanoids of the moon Pandora, the Na'vi are the first sentient beings besides humans themselves to be discovered in the universe. These beings are highly in tune with the moon on which they live; though essentially Neolithic, they have developed a vibrant, sophisticated culture based on a profound spiritual connection with Pandora, with one another, and with the all encompassing spirit that they know as Eywa.
For Na'vi, the world, their life, is balance. It can be found in all things, and they respect this above all else, honoring it in mind, body, and spirit. Pandora meets the needs of all of her inhabitants, and the Na'vi respect her life-sustaining bounty. They are socially organized to maintain such a balance, which is evident in tribal distribution and geographic location. Populations of all life forms are in such dynamic equilibrium that concepts like overpopulation, poverty, or homelessness are unintelligible.
This interconnectedness is celebrated in many ways, though song, dance, or craft. It is also clearly evident in the day to day clan life of every Na'vi, no matter their tribe. Family and friendship are paramount, to the point that Na'vi will sleep together in communal beds, and any Na'vi who spends too much time by himself is considered to be in great distress. Such perceived distress will be met with warm compassion by the Na'vi's clan as they seek to soothe a worried soul and bring him back within the fold.
Perhaps the single greatest icon of a Na'vi's connection with nature is their queue, a remarkably intricate system of neural tendrils that is housed within the rather ostentatious braid that all members of the people sport. The importance of this queue cannot be overstated; not only does it let the Na'vi connect and bond with animals that are vital to the prosperity and survival of the clan, but it allows them to connect with the moon itself, and thus the collective wisdom of all Pandoran life.
The queue is also vital to Na'vi mating practices. When an appropriate mate has been chosen, an act that can take many years, the two Na'vi will connect their queues. This will create an emotional bond that lasts a lifetime, though the connection does not in and of itself lead to reproduction, in spite of the profoundly erotic and spiritual nature of the bond. Once the queues are connected, the newly bonded Na'vi may kiss and caress one another, but this first interaction never leads to a definitive sex act. Rather, the two Na'vi fall into a deep slumber, queues still connected, where it is said that Eywa may show them brief glimpses of their future together. While they sleep, the Na'vi also undergo a subtle physical change, wherein the now mated pair will gain a slight resemblance to one another. This is what allows other Na'vi to immediately recognize a mated pair.
Should Eywa, for whatever reason, reject a mating, it is said that the emotions and feelings normally produced are reversed. The two Na'vi will part ways upon waking, each free to pursue their lives as normal, each knowing that they were not destined for the other.
As a whole, the Na'vi are considered a strictly heterosexual race. Balance is maintained by having a mate of the opposite sex, which allows for reproduction. Since Na'vi are similar to humans in terms of consciousness and intelligence, however, it would be unwise to assume that all members of the race are purely heterosexual beings. Likely, such confusing and conflicting emotions are mistaken as simply being a particularly strong closeness to another brother or sister of the clan; they cannot conceive of being in love with or sexually attracted to a Na'vi of the same gender because it appears to defy every law of nature and balance.
Because of this lack of understanding, however, there is also a lack of bigotry or stigma attached to such relationships. The Na'vi would undoubtedly find it odd, perhaps even curious, but if Eywa were to will that two beings be together, who are they to disagree?
Peaceful by nature, the Na'vi clans generally stick to their own territories. The twining connections inherent on Pandora have severely limited any desire to wage war on one another... but not eliminated it entirely. Clans and tribes may occasionally combat one another, though such occurrences are rare, and never without sufficiently good reason.
The Na'vi embody a spiritual oneness that humanity lost millennia ago. In them, many humans see something they want to recapture terribly, even if they do not know why, plagued with a sense of longing they can put no words to. As the late Doctor Grace Augustine once said: "There are many dangers on Pandora, and one of the subtlest is that you may come to love it too much."
