Values

Values

The Boheme peoples generally speaking believe the following to be their highest values as a race:

• Nature

• Spirituality

• Creativity

• Connection These fundamental values pervade all aspects of their culture, philosophical beliefs and ways of life.

Nature

The Boheme peoples love nature. Specifically they they are particularly enamoured with the ancient Terran kingdoms (classification of living organisms) of the Plantae, Protista, Fungi, Monera and Animalia. That being said they are a profoundly curious people and therefore they love discovering new organisms and life forms that exist in different parts of the galaxy.

Bohemia: the Sacred Natural Reserve of ancient Gaelic Ireland

The planet of Bohemia itself was terraformed specifically with the intention to recreate the environmental conditions and biome of the island of Ireland from ancient Earth. Therefore only flora and fauna found in Ireland prior to the 17th Century AD (Terran calendar system) are found in the wilderness of the planet of Bohemia. The Boheme have extremely strict import laws and stringent customs processes to ensure that the sacrosanct environment remains pristine and unaffected by the introduction of foreign flora or fauna.

The Boheme view their planet as a Sacred Natural Reserve of ancient Gaelic Ireland. Whilst every possible attempt to prevent the wilderness from being exposed to any foreign organisms (whether from being imported in from off-planet or contamination from a specimen in one of their laboratories or agricultural fields) sometimes accidents happen. In these instances, the Boheme have a backup contingency plan to deal with such incidents. They have designed tiny flying insect-like robots that fly around the forests and monitor for any foreign organisms (whether multi-cellular or uni-cellular) and viruses. If detected they will alert other larger flying robots that will come and eliminate or neutralise the threat if possible and report back to the Park Rangers as to the degree of the threat and the extent of any damage that was caused (if applicable).

Natural Studies

Whilst the Boheme have extremely strict rules for protecting the sanctity of their planet's wilderness, the various Universities do, however, have extremely large botanical collections that house every organism from the kingdoms of the Plantae, Protista, Fungi and Monera that they have genetic records of, as well as non-Terran botanical collections that were discovered by their MUD human ancestors after leaving Earth.

The Boheme are renowned as having some of the best Botanists and Bio-Geneticists in the Galaxy whilst the university studies offered in botany, biology, genetics, biochemical pharmacology, bio-engineering, ethnobotany and agricultural bio-technology are considered to be of the highest standard. Within their vast subterranean laboratories the Boheme scientists experiment with many different organisms using advanced genetic modification processes and environmental manipulation coupled with intuitive psycho-research. It is here that they develop and fine tune most of the agricultural products, ornamental plants and psychotropic botanicals that Bohemia has become famous for. For obvious reasons, in order to protect the natural wilderness, these facilities are extremely secure and have multiple safe guards to prevent leakage from the facilities.

Living and Working Environments

The Boheme try to create living and working environments that integrate elements of the natural environment into their design. Many work, living and other public environments have green walls on the inside as well as many plants growing in plant beds, in pots or in glass receptacles as terrariums. These spaces often also have central water fountains with several small pools of water interspersed throughout the space. The Boheme do not typically have different kinds of animal pets and many prefer the companionship of plants and fungi to that of animals. The exception to this are dogs. Almost every extended family unit has at least one or two dogs. The only legal dog breeds that can be pets are the nine indigenous dog breeds of ancient Ireland. These include: the Irish Wolfhound, the Kerry Beagle, the Irish Water Spaniel, the Irish Red Setter, the Irish Red & White Setter, the Irish Terrier, the Irish Glen of Imaal Terrier, the Irish Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier and the Kerry Blue Terrier.

Hiking, Camping and Nature Activities

The Boheme peoples regularly participate in hiking and camping and it is not uncommon for several family units to go out together for a day or several days if camping. Because of the abundance of different birds in the Bohemian wilderness many enjoy the hobby of bird watching.

Spirituality

The Bohemian spirituality is heavily influenced by the ancient Terran Celtic religion and belief systems. The Celtic religions were fundamentally pagan religions worshipping supernatural forces in the natural world and much of this reverence for the natural world (such as mountains, rivers, rock formations, the moon, the sun, the seasons etc) has been passed on to the Bohemian peoples. That being said, they are less naive and superstitious due to their deep understanding of science. They are not so much religious as they are spiritual. Whilst they have no priests they do have Druids.

Druids

Druids are those individuals who have dedicated themselves full time to spiritual practice and who act as both the repositories for sacred wisdom as well as the conduits for said wisdom. The Druids have a deep connection with the natural world and are in tune with its movements, its rhythms and its cycles. They lead and guide the Boheme on the matters and observances relating the various sacred festivals and celebrations. They also serve the plant medicines to those who wish to partake during the celebratory periods. They have a profound love and connection for all of the flora and fauna of the planet as well as a deep respect for the supernatural forces of the universe, however, they fundamentally believe that the manifest world is a glorious mystery to be revered and worshipped and not to be understood or decrypted. The Druids also act as spiritual teachers and guides and work extensively with people in a therapeutic format using plant medicines as a medium for shifting consciousness and healing psychological traumas.

They mostly prefer living on the ground in the forest and can be found living in small collectives scattered through the natural wilderness. That being said, at any given time a large number of Druids will be found in Danu or Nemed. This is part of their service to the Boheme. Every Druid must volunteer some of their time to walk amongst the people and make themselves available for support, healing or guidance. They typically only board airborne ships when they absolutely must preferring the land. They also practice and teach a very simple meditative practice involving breath focus and awareness as well as a functional movement practice which mimics many animal movements.

Creativity

The Boheme are an extremely creative people and creative expression forms the lifeblood of their culture. Much of their Free Time is spent engaging in some form of creative expression. It also pervades much of their socialisation activities and customs. It also serves to connect the community as is seen in their cultural practices of music playing, singing, dancing and story-telling during the numerous festivals they have. Some common examples of creative expression are seen in the following areas:

• Music

• Dancing

• Arts

• Theatre and Story-Telling

• Craft Whilst most would associate creative expression with the aforementioned activities and practices, the Boheme penchant for creative expression is also distinctly seen in their scientific and engineering endeavours, which in many ways is why they produce such brilliant scientists and engineers.

Connection

Festivals

The Boheme have a number of festivals all of which are of ancient Celtic pagan origin. Just like their pagan ancestors, the Boheme hold eight seasonal festivals a year marking the transition of one season to the next as well as the two equinoxes and two solstices. These 3 day long festivals are considered National Holidays for all citizens (except for randomly selected skeleton staff in certain critical Work Roles). These include the following:

• Samhain: celebration of the new year and the start of winter

• Yule: celebration of the winter solstice

• Imbolc: celebration of the start of spring

• Eostre: celebration of the spring equinox

• Bealtaine: celebration of the start of summer

• Litha: celebration of the summer solstice

• Lughnasadh: celebration of the start of autumn

• Mabon: celebration of the autumn equinox

The various seasonal festivals differ slightly in the manner in which they are celebrated, however, for the most part they involve a massive party that runs for three full days. The festivals are often filled with dancing, music, drinking of alcohol, orgiastic lovemaking and an abundance of organic psychedelics. They are periods of extreme disinhibition and release. The Boheme also celebrate the new and full moon each month therefore there are typically parties and small festivals being held across the planet on the nights of the new and full moons. These parties are not as full blown as the seasonal festivals, however, they still involve many of the same elements such as dancing, music, drinking of alcohol and use of organic psychedelics. The Boheme also celebrate the following two festivals, each of which runs for an entire month:

• Tailteann Games: 4th month of the year. Festival of sporting games.

• Ceilidh: 9th month of the year. Festivals of the arts (music, dancing, story-telling, theatre) Some argue that the periods of Shabbat exist to balance the excesses of the frequent festivals as the Shabbat periods are dedicated to celebrating the inner spirit and serve to nurture and cultivate a state of calm stillness and equilibrium.