Bajoran
The Bajoran people are deeply spiritual, and have a long, rich heritage. They are characteristically humanoid, and the one thing that physically sets them apart is a folded ridge of bone at the top of the nose. Their culture revolves around art and religion (they worship The Prophets - the aliens that live in the only known stable wormhole in existence).
Bajor
Bajor
is a class-M planet in the Alpha Quadrant, coreward from the UFP. Bajor's
plentiful natural resources were the motivating factor behind the
sixty-year-long Occupation by the Cardassian Empire; the Cardassians had
exhausted the resources of their own homeworld and pillaged resources from the
Bajorans in order to continue the expansion of their empire. The oceans on Bajor
carry a greener cast than those of Earth; while this is not explained in detail,
it is likely that this is merely due to a benign chemical variance in the water
itself. Bajor has several moons, the fifth of which is a planetoid, Jeraddo,
which was at one time a Class-M world. In 2369, shortly after the end of the
Cardassian occupation, Bajor's Provisional Government made the decision to tap
Jeraddo's molten core as an energy source for Bajor. This decision, while
necessary due to a lack of viable energy sources on the war-torn planet, had
devastating consequences for the planetoid as a whole; the act of turning
Jeraddo into an energy source made life there impossible due to the toxic gases
released during the procedure. Colonists from that moon were accordingly
evacuated to Bajor or other Bajoran colonies. There is some dispute in canon
over the number of moons that Bajor has; Jerrado is mentioned as the fifth moon
of Bajor, but other references place the number of Bajoran moons at only three.
The text which establishes Bajor's moons at three also establishes Bajoran
system's contents: 14 planets, of which at least two are class-M planets. Bajor
is one, while the other, Bajor VIII, has six colonies.
Notable places
Bestri Woods: A place in Dakhur Province often used as a hiding place by Resistance Fighters.
Dahkur Province: Geographical subdivision of the planet Bajor. Dahkur was the home province of Kira Nerys. Resistance members used the mountainous terrain of Dahkur to their advantage in hiding from the Cardassians during the occupation.
Fire Caves: Where the Pah-wraiths (adversaries of the Prophets) are imprisoned.
Jalanda: Large city on the planet Bajor. Home of the Jalanda Forum, a center for the performing arts which was damaged during the Occupation.
Kendra Valley: Site of an infamous massacre of Bajoran Resistance members by Cardassian Forces. Kai Opaka's son and 42 other Bajorans were killed (though more may have been present, it is not clear if all present were killed) because someone informed the Cardassians of the location of their encampment.
Undalar: Noted for its spectacular cliffs.
Denorios Belt: Location of the Bajoran Wormhole, discovered in 2369. The
Denorios Belt is a charged plasma field in the Bajor system where at least five
of the mystical Bajoran Orbs (called The Tears of the Prophets by Bajorans) were
discovered. Bajoran religious beliefs hold that the home of the Prophets, the
Celestial Temple, is in the Denorios Belt and most Bajorans believe the wormhole
to be the manifestation of this temple in the corporeal world. The Denorios Belt
also contains numerous tachyon eddies, believed to have propelled ancient
Bajoran solar-sail vessels across interstellar distances at warp speeds to
Cardassia.
Religion
The
Bajorans are a deeply spiritual people. They credit their religion as the only
thing that saved them during Cardassian rule. In the Bajoran
religion, the Prophets are spiritual entities who provide wisdom and guidance to
the Bajoran people. Bajoran tradition holds that the Prophets were responsible
for the nine Orbs that served as sources of wisdom for the people of Bajor. Kai
Taluno, a 22nd century Bajoran religious leader first discovered the Bajoran
wormhole before its proper discovery in 2269. A ship carrying Kai Taluno was
damaged in the Denorios Belt. There, he claimed the heavens opened up and almost
swallowed his ship. Bajoran religious faith holds that the phenomenon was the
Celestial Temple, home of the Bajoran Prophets. Many Bajorans believe that
the alien beings first encountered in the Bajoran wormhole by Commander Benjamin
Sisko in 2369 were in fact the Prophets. These lifeforms found the concept of
linear time to be totally alien, and Sisko attempted to help them understand the
importance of linear existence to Bajorans and humans. Ironically, although
Sisko did not believe in the Bajoran religion, his role in making contact with
these lifeforms made him their prophesied Emissary, a role that Sisko did not
relish, although he respected their beliefs. The Celestial Temple is a region of
space where the spiritual Prophets reside. As some Bajorans believe the
Celestial Temple is actually the Bajoran wormhole, and thus feel the wormhole to
be sacred. Bajoran tradition holds that the Temple is the source of the nine
Orbs sent by the Prophets to help teach the Bajoran people how to lead their
lives.
The "pagh" is a person's spiritual life-force, from which one gains strength and courage. Bajorans believe their pagh is replenished by the Prophets who reside in the Celestial Temple. A "pagh'tem'far" is a sacred vision.
The Bajoran "Sacred Texts" are the religious writings of the Bajoran faith. They include the prophecies of Trakor, a Bajoran from the ancient time, who encountered the Orb of Change 3,000 years ago (calculating as at 2370s) and wrote several based on his visions. Trakor's Third Prophecy predicted, 'When the river wakes, stirred once more to Janir's side, three vipers will return to their nest in the sky.' Trakor added, 'When the vipers try to peer through the temple gates, a sword will appear in the heavens, the temple will burn, and the gates will be cast open.' This prophesy apparently came to pass in 2371, when three silithium-laden comet fragments ignited within the Bajoran wormhole (also known as the Celestial Temple), causing the wormhole to remain slightly open, shortly after the Qui'al Dam restored water to Janir city. Trakor's Fourth Prophecy predicted that the Emissary would face a fiery trial and that he would be forced to make a difficult decision. Zocal's Third Prophecy was an ancient text written by Zocal after an encounter with an Orb. His third prophecy stated that only someone touched by the Prophets could find the ruins of the sacred lost city of B'hala, and this prophecy was fulfilled when the Emissary, touched by pagh'tem'far, did precisely this.
The "Prylar" is the title of a Bajoran monk. A "Vedek" is the title given to a Bajoran religious leader who was a member of the powerful Vedek Assembly. The Vedek Assembly, an influential congress of 112 Bajoran spiritual leaders, has considerable political influence. The supreme spiritual leader, with the title Kai, is elected from among the Vedek Assembly.
Traditional Bajoran beliefs hold that the soul of the dead is far more important than the physical remains. The Bajoran death chant, the funeral ritual, ("praying the duranja/duranya")was reputed to be over two hours long. The duranja was a Bajoran ceremonial lamp for the dead, being a one-metre-high ornate candleholder in which a flame was kept continually lit in memory of a recently deceased loved one. Ritual prayers were said over the lamp, entreating the Prophets to guide the deceased into heaven.
Bajoran Holy Days
The Days of Atonement
The Gratitude Festival is an annual Bajoran celebration of great importance to the Bajoran people. During the holiday, participants write down their problems on Renewal Scrolls, then place them to be burned in a special brazier so that their troubles can symbolically turn to ashes. Bateret leaves are traditionally burned like incense during the festival. The celebration is also called the Peldor Festival, and has been celebrated as far back as 20,000 years ago. During this holiday, "peldor joi" is the greeting used in celebration of the Bajoran Gratitude Festival.
The Bajoran Time of Cleansing is a ritual in which the participants abstain from worldly pleasures.
Ha'mara is the Bajoran holiday held on the anniversary of the Emissary's arrival. During Ha'mara the Bajoran people show their gratitude to the Prophets for sending the Emissary to them, by fasting and celebrating the Festival of Lights.
History
50,000
years ago: Ancient Bajoran culture flourishes. The Bajorans are a peaceful
people with many architects, artists, musicians, builders and philosophers among
the populace.
25,000 years ago: Bajor boasts an advanced civilization that already follows most of the beliefs and festivals that will become important to the people over the coming centuries.
20,000 years ago: The Bajoran city of B'hala disappears. The question of its whereabouts will baffle Bajoran scientists and archaeologists for 20 millennia.
10,000 years ago: An Orb is retrieved from space, changing Bajoran theology forever. From now on, once every 1,000 years another orb appears near the Denorios Belt until, but eh 24th century, nine have been retrieved. This helps define the concept of the Orbs as Tears of the Prophets, namely as gift from the godlike Prophets who live in the Celestial Temple. The idea of a divine life force (pagh), given to the Bajorans from the Orbs, also develops at this time. Clerics holding the ranks of kai, vedek, prylar and monk become the official keepers of the Sacred Texts. They also guard the Kosst Amojan, a book of evil which is kept hidden for many years because it outlines the methods of the Pah-wraiths who are the false prophets who were cast out of the Celestial Temple. Also first prophesied at this time is the coming of an Emissary who will unite Bajor after a time of crisis.
3,000 years ago: Trakor encounters the Orb of Change and is inspired to write a sacred text based on his vision.
1,500 years ago: The Bajorans are exploring space using solar sailing ships by this time. Evidence found at archaeological digs on Cardassia in 2371 confirm this. The solar sailing ships use tachyon eddies to propel them to velocities greater than the speed of light (long before humanity discovers electricity).
2172: The acclaimed poet Akorem Laan disappears when his solar sailing ship hits an ion storm. He is rescued by the Prophets and kept in the Bajoran wormhole for 200 years, but is eventually returned to his own time with his memories of the ordeal removed. Bajorans remember him as one of their finest poets.
2309: Bajor suffers serious internal difficulties and is offered help by the Cardassians who, however, are actually looking to Bajor to replenish their dwindling mineral supplies.
2328: The Cardassians have by now forcibly occupied Bajor, beginning a reign of oppression that will last for the next 41 years. Much of Bajor is systematically poisoned and stripped of its raw materials and all but one of the sacred Orbs removed. The deeply spiritual Bajoran people have to abandon their divisive caste system, the D'jarra, and many form resistance cells to oppose the Cardassians, led by freedom fights such as Shakaar Edon and Lenaris Holem. Over the next four decades, over 10 million Bajorans die in harsh labour and internment camps such as Gallitep. The Bajorans launch a resistance campaign that includes terrorism, guerilla warfare, and passive resistance. This just makes their occupiers angrier and more brutal.
2366:The Cardassians start to realize that the occupation is increasingly unviable especially as a treaty with the United Federation of Planets has just been signed.
2369: The Bajoran resistance movement succeeds in finally driving the Cardassians from Bajor Cardassians still maintain it was internal policy that made them leave. Bajor had already been stripped of its precious resources, however, and it was probably a combination of all of these factors (plus external pressure by the Federation) that made them give up Bajor as a viable client power. Many incarcerated underground members are freed. The Bajoran provisional government approaches Starfleet and asks them to establish a Federation presence in the Bajor system, following the withdrawal of the Cardassian occupying forces.
Physical Characteristics
The Bajorans are distinctly humanoid, with the primary differentiation being the bony ridge that dominates the upper portion of their noses.
Names
Bajorans have their family-names precede their given names. Some example Bajoran names are provided below:
Family Names: Kira, Wynn, Dakin, Tahlandi, Havaris, Ro
Male Names: Kusto, Rann,
Jerrod
Female Names: Jiasha, Nua, Nerys, Laren
Proverbs
"The land and the people are one."
"Walk in the path of the Prophets."
