Bosmer Variety in Green Pact Interpretation.

Zinitrad here, still working on the High Rock history around schoolwork, had a quick thing I wanted to talk about this morning.

One thing I see people doing frequently that I don't at all agree with is making generalizations about the way Bosmer treat their religious taboos. Bosmer are not a people to follow rules strictly- if there is a loophole to be found, or unclear wording, some portion of Bosmer will leap to exploit it or explore it, even with religion. This is part of what gives Bosmer their reputation of having no respect for law or authority; the moment the authority slips up in a statement, a dozen bosmer have lept onto it and exploited it.

When it comes to the Green Pact, there are only a few tenants that are absolutely universal: Do not manipulate plants (no agriculture), do not pluck fruit or vegetation yourself, do not cut wood yourself, and consume what is killed.

Everything else after this varies immensely, and is different within the bosmer's hundreds of tribes and their dozens of religious sects.

When it comes to consumption of plants and use of wood, it varies immensely, ranging from very liberal and loose interpretation of the Green Pact tenants to absolutism and even rejection of those that disagree with their approach.

Regarding the use of plant products for food or other purposes (rope, clothing), the only agreement is for Bosmer to not practice agriculture within the Valenwood- Some bosmer believe the Green Pact does not apply to plants outside of the Valenwood, and ignore all of the rules when visiting other provinces. Some Bosmer believe that the green pact allows one to use food and other products harvested and manufactured by non green pact individuals, and as such wear clothing imported from outside of the province even if its made out of things like flax, and consuming foreign fruits and drinks without guilt. Some further believe that it is permissable to utilize materials that haven't been harvested but rather gathered after they've fallen naturally, consuming fruits that fall from the trees and branches that have broken off from their tree. Others even believe that it is allowed to handle raw materials as long as they are harvested by non-green pacters, brewing alcohol and making dye out of plants gathered together on foreign farms. Other's believe that using plants regardless of source should be forbidden to the Bosmer. Of them some are accepting of the choices other Bosmer have made, respecting their interpretation, and others are spiteful, viewing the workarounds as dishonest and even malevolent towards Y'ffre, and bar their villages and communities to those who would workaround the rules, sometimes even being hostile. A rare few of these believe that the rules should even apply to outsiders who intrude upon the valenwood, and are known to be violent to those outsiders who consume fruit or use plant products in their presence.

Woodcutting and the use of lumber for construction and tools is similar. Once again there are bosmer who feel that whatever rules they follow only apply to the valenwood, and that the trees of places like colovia hold no sacred importance. Many city Bosmer and Bosmer outside of Valenwood believe it is completely fine to reside/use (in the case of boats and wagons) in the things produced using wood made by outsiders and use the tools constructed of wood by outsiders. There are also plenty of Bosmer craftsmen who use wood gathered by outsiders like colovians and practice carpentry and tool making with them, and like before with food there are ones who as well feel comfortable harvesting the wood from a tree limb that has fallen to the ground on its own accord, or harvesting the wood from a tree that has collapsed and died. Some Bosmer additionally see no problem in allowing outsiders to harvest wood within their lands (with the exception of certain sacred trees), and there is more than one logging company in valenwood managed and ran by a Bosmer, employing foreigners to chop trees for him/her. But once again there are those who abstain from these things entirely, opting instead to live in structures entirely built from gathered stone, leather and bone, and even living wood warped by magic and song. Some of these bosmer find individuals like those who hire others to chop wood to be reprehensible, and there are even further some of these individuals who even find the warping of trees to be too intrusive, opting to live entirely in caves, on the unaltered branches of massive trees, or simply on the ground without shelter.

Cannibalism and the need to consume what you kill is debatable as well, with vast differences in belief regarding the acceptability of preserving the meat long term, and whether you absolutely have to partake in the consumption. Some tribes believe the meat has to be consumed as soon as possible in respect of the thing killed, while others engage in practices such as smoking and salting or preservation in containers magically kept cold, so that the meat can be preserved for consumption in small parts over time. Then there's the absolutism of eat what you kill, with some tribes seeing it as simply 'someone must eat what you kill', and others seeing it as 'you must partake in what you kill. Bosmer in the previous category are often those that share the store of meat collectively as a tribe, or those who sell and trade their excess of meat to foreigners or surrounding tribals. Other tribes demand that you at least must have part of the meal, and even if it is shared, you absolutely must consume part, as the one who made the kill. Some tribes extend what shall be cannibalized or otherwise eaten past simply what is killed, harvesting those Bosmer who die of old age for their skin, bones, organs, and meat.

The bosmer we meet outside of Valenwood are likely those who believe the rules of the green pact don't apply where they are, or who are on the more lenient side of green pact interpretation- It's acceptable to use wood and other plant products if they're produced by non-green pacters, to use constructions made with wood if it was constructed by non-green pacters, and that things killed do not necessarily have to be consumed by the one who did the killing, as long as someone consumes it. The ones who are more strict can likely only be found in Valenwood- it'd be very difficult to abide by many of the rules absolutely in foreign societies.

The point of all this is that there are very few rules that apply universally to the Bosmer, and if there is ever any question about 'does every tribe do this?' the most likely answer is: No, there's probably at least one who does something entirely different. Bosmer are diverse and (forgive me for making generalizations myself :P) have been shown to embrace diversity and differences, being slow to react as a people to any sense of social or cultural preservation and on many occasions doing little to resist the cultural incursion and settlement by groups like the altmer or the colovians.

In summary: Don't assume all Bosmer follow the green pact the same way, or even that the majority follow it strictly.