“But it’s an honor, Shiva! Don’t think of it as your life ending, but your afterlife beginning!”
“I just can’t believe that I was chosen. I’m only 14. I have my whole life ahead of me!”
It was sundown on our holy day when the knock came on our door. My father answered it and was in awe of the procession before him. The high priest and priestess had come to declare that I was going to be the female sacrificed this year. It truly was an honor to be chosen in our culture. All sacrificial lambs are held in the highest regard and worshipped every week at our community gathering. Since the beginning of time, every spring season starts with the sacrifice of two teenagers, a boy and a girl, both virgins. We do this to appease our gods of fertility and prosperity. It’s always worked. The Hali people have been a prosperous nation with a strong, bustling agricultural city center. In the center of the plaza is the towering holy temple, where the new lambs are sacrificed each year, and those long gone are worshipped.
It would happen quickly. Tomorrow at sunrise the preparation team would arrive. A master sculpter would come to make a bust of my likeness to be displayed in the temple for all time. The virgin’s ladies, as they are called, would bring the clothing I would be wearing for ceremony. They would do my make up, and my hair, or at least, what was left of my hair. I would have 2 days to accept my fate and say goodbye to my family and friends. It was the beginning of the end.
The gong at the holy temple had been struck three times. The priest and priestess left my home after blessing me with the grace of the god Yanoo, that he would take my soul swiftly and on to the eternal bliss of my afterlife. I collapsed on the floor as they walked out, sobbing in my mother’s arms. Why me? Why now? I had just found Manli, and he and I were planning our life together. How was I going to tell him? I would be forbidden from speaking with any male other than relatives from now on.
I awoke in the middle of the night in my bed. I felt numb. A great sadness washed over me. I thought of escaping. This would only bring my family great shame. I had to accept my fate as the sacrifice. I had to prepare myself. I lay in bed thinking about what was to come. What would the next life bring? Would I spend it with my true soul mate? Would I finally know love? My mind finally came back to reality. What happened at the clandestine ceremony the day before the procession would bring the sacrificial virgins to the stone altar?
Morning came quickly and with it the virgin’s ladies. They escorted me to the chambers below the holy temple where my preparation would begin. I stood in the middle of a great room with a bathing pool in the center. Two ladies lifted my arms and began to pull my clothes off. My shirt was gently pulled over my head and my tiny breasts grazed the hem. My nipples were hard, both from the cold, and from the intimate touch of the ladies. My skirt was slowly pulled down and I was guided over to the bathing pool naked. The ladies began to wash me with aromatic soaps and oils. I was to have glistening skin for the sacrifice. One of the ladies guided me to a wooden plank laid across the pool. I lay on the plank and they began to remove all of my womanly hair. A virgin was to be the cleanest of clean. When the bathing was all done I was dressed in a long white robe and taken to a chair on the other side of the room. I would receive the traditional haircut given to all sacrificial lambs. I always loved my hair, but now half of it would be gone. Only a small strip from my forehead to the nape of my neck would remain. It would be adorned in flowers on the morning of the sacrifice.
When the haircut was over I was led back to my home to sit with my family until sacrifice time came. I had been instructed by the head virgin’s lady to regain my composure and be proud of my status. I spent the evening recalling my fondest moments with my family. Although it’s not permitted for lambs to consume alcohol prior to the sacrifice, my father allowed me to share his. I fell asleep knowing that although my life was short it was good.
The next morning I woke with a trembling fear and dread of the day. I had accepted the fact that I was to die, but would it hurt? And what were they going to do to me before? I was instructed to dress in the white robe only. The ladies arrived to escort me out of my home for the last time. They covered me I n a long white veil and held my arms as we walked out the door. I was taken to the preparation chamber once again and had my hair styled and makeup applied. The ladies dressed me in the ceremonial clothing. I stood there in front of the team and tried to keep breathing. It was going to happen today, at sundown. I was going to die at the hands of the high priest.
The procession began with the traditional sacrificial feast carried to the city center. The entire city lined the streets for the sacrificial procession. The male lamb and I were slowly driven in elegant carts to the holy temple. The citizens looked on in pride. They knew that the great sacrifice would mean another bountiful year. The male and female were not allowed to see each other. We were driven in separate carts, covered so we couldn’t be seen. After an hour, we arrived at the temple and were escorted inside by the priest and priestess. We were each blindfolded and taken to another chamber. It smelled of sweet roses and aromatic incense. I was guided to a soft, plush bed and instructed to lay down. I heard the virgin’s gentlemen instructing the male to do the same. I felt him close to me and could smell the aroma of his cologne. The priest and priestess now stood at our sides. They removed each of our blindfolds so we could see each other. I began to tremble as I recognized the deep brown eyes of Manli. He was to be the male sacrificed alongside me. I was both in ecstasy and horror at the notion. The high priest spoke, “You may have come here as virgins today, but you will leave as man and wife. You see, the sacrifice works best if the lambs have given themselves to each other in an act of fertility. Manli and Shiva, you are now, under my holy decree, husband and wife. Please take these next 3 hours and share your marital bed. Make your city proud. We are counting on you.”
After the door was shut, Manli and I wasted no time in becoming intimate. It wasn’t completely new to us. We had done almost everything except the most intimate of all acts, when two become one. It was easy to give myself to him. I lay back as he made his way down my neck and kissed both of my breasts. I spread my legs, knowing that he was ready to enter. He trembled in pleasure as he guided himself in. We writhed in pleasure together until we both had erupted with the utmost of ecstasy. Afterwards I lay in his arms, smelling his aroma, taking in every last detail of his face.
We spent the next 2 hours making love as husband and wife. Our sadness at our impending sacrifice had been replaced by exhaustion and pleasure. We were still gazing deep into each other’s eyes when there was a knock on the door. The high priest and priestess entered. “It’s time.” Our respective teams approach our lavish bed and bring us to our feet. We are dressed in our ceremonial clothing and escorted out of the chamber. I try to savor every moment with my new husband before we are taken outside to the bottom of the stairs to the stone altar. The drums begin to beat. We are led up the stairs, side by side, towards the altar. The virgins ladies and gentlemen gather all around the great altar as we stand in front of the priest and priestess. The drums suddenly stop and the air is completely silent. “We are here to honor the god Yanoo so that he may bring us a bounty this year. The virgins Shiva and Manli will now willingly give their lives to ensure the continued prosperity of our community.” A lady takes each of my arms and pulls me over to lay down on the altar. I resist, as a natural survival instinct, but I know it will do no good. I watch in horror as the same is happening to Manli at my side. We lay side by side on the great stone altar. Each of my arms are stretched above my head and held in place by a lady. My legs are straightened and restrained by the tight grip of two more ladies. I see the priest and priestess go to the sacred tabernacle and retrieve the blades. They begin to chant in unison our holy prayer. As they approach us with the holy blades in their hands, the other virgin’s attendants remove my clothing to bear my chest. Manli’s traditional plate of decorative armor is also removed, revealing his chest. I watch his chest rise and fall quickly as panic sets in. I feel my right hand pulled to the right. Manli grasps my hand. The priest and priestess allow us to hold our hands together in comfort in our final moments. I turn my head and gaze into Manli’s eyes. We don’t blink, just stare deep into each other.
The hot piercing of the knife comes to my chest quickly. The blade goes deep into my chest, almost hitting the sacrificial altar. I scream in pain and begin to writhe. I try to comfort Manli in his agony but it does no good. Our chests are being sliced open and our ribs cracked to get at our hearts. My vision begins to fade. My ears are ringing. All I can focus on is the pain. But I grip Manli’s hand as tight as I can. We die within moments of each other, in agony, and in peace. We have served our people well.

Epilogue: Notes from the high priest for the town record.
At sundown on holy day our two virgins were sacrificed. The female expired first, but her heart beat for 25 seconds outside of her body. The male died moments later, and his heart lasted almost 30 seconds. This is a good sign. The virgin’s attendants cleaned and arranged their lifeless bodies upon the altar with flowers covering their gaping chest wounds. The female’s eyes were fixed partly open in death’s gaze, glossy and distant. She looked peaceful and beautiful. The male died with a firm set to his jaw, his eyes wide open with bravery. The traditional plugs were placed so there would be no leakage of fluids during the 2 days of viewing on the altar.
The two days of reflective worship are complete. The people of the town were allowed to view the bodies of the sacrifices. The bodies were carefully carried down the stairs of the temple. The people once again lined the streets for the funeral procession. Our traditional hymns of worship and reverence were sang. The two were stripped of all their clothing and earthly possessions. They were buried in a shallow grave, side by side, only the dirt of mother earth surrounding them. The burial team covered their cold bodies in soil, and planted the traditional tree to be their headstone. Their sacrifice guarantees they will live on and on in the history of our people.

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