Driven into hiding hundreds of years ago, the Kinnaree believe themselves to be the secret keepers of Thailand and the protectors of its Dharma. This bloodline of social monsters uses a combination of perfected bodies, poise and insight to hide among the Kindred of Thailand, waiting for their chanceto strike at their prey — namely any demon, monster or god who has outlived her purpose.
As protectors of these traditions in the Free Land of the Thai, they preserve the Hindu and older folk practices that predate Buddhism. Having an earthy and ancient form of Crúac, they tend to be Acolytes though their western cousins rarely accept them. In many European Acolyte traditions, a Kindred is a “maiden” only up until the point where she kills for the first time. The Kinnaree consider themselves immortal virgins in the service of their Patron Demoness no matter how often they kill, and this sets them apart from Western Acolytes and often makes it difficult for them to find a place within their covens.
History and Culture: Scholars tell the story of Banna, a thousand armed demon and devotee of Shiva who earned the gift of invulnerability from his patron for his dedication and penance. The stories say that the All Mother created a virgin avatar to destroy this menacing Asura once and for all. A girl slew the greatest demon of the age because it was her Dharma to do so. The Ramakien tells the story of Ravan, with his thousand heads, who was also a devotee of Shiva, and also gained from him virtual invulnerability. The Ramakien goes on to say that his sister, an Asura with long terrible nails, caused a war between her brother and the greatest king the Thais ever knew that ultimately ended in Ravan’s utter defeat.
History and mythology treats these as dissimilar myths with no root connection. The Kinnaree, secret defenders of Thailand, know the truth. There is no difference. The virgin avatar was able to destroy the Asura Banna because she knew his secret flaws. Shurpanakha, the long nailed demon, manipulated her brother into a war he could not win in an act of revenge for her husband’s death earlier on. What’s more, to the Kinnaree, this virgin slayer and the demoness were one and the same.
The secret cult of Acolyte-like witches in Thailand worships Shurpanakha as a local and powerful Asura. However, the Daeva of the Kinnaree see themselves as direct descendents of the Asura’s blood and claim their history starts where she fades from legend. In the Kindred version of the story, Shurpanakha was a tragic victim whose Dharma largely involved the destruction of her own kind. A child, she was created from the soil by the All Mother and in child-like stumbling, fell in love and married. Still not quite a woman she was unknown to her husband’s marital bed and when her brother murdered him, she was left heart broken and vengeful.
After her husband’s murder, she went to the Himmapan woods and preformed great and bloody penance to Durga. Being so young, and with penance so horrible, Durga looked at the girl with pity and restored the parts of her face she had slashed away and mended the skin she had burned in sacrifice. Durga asked the girl why she would show such devotion, and the child simply responded that she wanted to know what her fate was so that she could fulfill it with joy instead of sorrow. Durga was impressed and not only explained to the girl her duty, but granted her a gift to aid her in her quest.
For Shurpanakha, her Dharma was simple: all things must come to an end, even gods and demons. Because she was of the latter and gifted by one of the former, it was for her to know the Asura and the Devi — and when they grew bloated and stagnant with age, she was to destroy them. Her gift was the Embrace without a sire. The Kinnaree do not assume their patron and imagined founder was the first Daeva, just the most important one.
Kinnaree is a name taken from the Sukhothai half-bird women of the Himmapan forest. They were said to have protected and succored Shurpanakha after she received Durga’s blessing. They hold to two ideals: that the traditions of Thailand must be maintained or the greatest and most evil of the Asura will return from Hell and destroy the world, and that lesser earthbound Asura who have forgotten their place in the celestial order must be slain. All things must come to an end for the Wheel to turn and Kindred and other demons are no exception. This puts them into direct opposition with the Kindred monks of the Sakadagami order, though ancient agreements between the Kinnaree and the founder of the order prevent it from devolving into an all out war.
These Fawn, a Thai word for dance, have spent the last thousand years infiltrating and manipulating all levels of Thai culture, including the ritual dances so important to national holidays. In fact, the bloodline draws many childer from the traditional dancers, since the Kinnaree believe that an expert dancer physically experiences the history of the people of the land. A special secret telling of the Ramakien presents Shurpanakha as the puppeteer and true hero of the story, and only the greatest of these dancers are invited to dance it.
In the 12th century, when the Kingdom of Sukhothai was first established, the kings started sporting events around a marital practice called Muay Boran. This would later evolve into the brutal fighting form called Muay Thai. Among themselves, the Kinnaree claim that it was due to their influence with the King and the monks of the time that so many of the maneuvers are named for events from the Hindu Thai epic, the Ramakien. The brutal and athletic nature of Muay Thai appealed to the dancers among the Fawn and many of them took on its study, though mostly in secret.
The Masquerade is only loosely observed in much of Thailand, and this has been the case as far back as any elder can remember. Most humans live with the knowledge that the Asura and Devi of legend might exist, though few can report actual interactions with them. Still, erring on the side of prudence is always wise, and the citizens practice many folk rituals to appease or keep the old monsters at bay. Most Thai boys wear phra phrim, a protective amulet made using special recipes and spells, from an early age. While older mortal Buddhist monks make most phra phrim, the Kinnaree’s subversive hand is found in the fact that most recipes include the burnt ash of a temple’s oldest scrolls. After all, all things must become ash. In more rural areas, farther from the organized temples of the Sakadagami, devotees of Shurpanakha interact with the farmers and villagers. Here, the Kinnaree might even openly lead, largely recognized as priests and revered demons. Gaining good Karma by “making merit” is an old Buddhist tradition in Thailand, and often families invite monks into their homes and feed them as a way of helping everyone along the path to peace. In a dark and bloody version of this tradition, some rural households open their doors at night in an elaborate ceremony where the demons are invited to drink their fill in exchange for blessings in the season to come. Due to the rarity of this belief, these nights of “making black merit” rarely end in death. That would be wasteful.
Contrary to belief outside of the Sakadagami, the acolytes and their Kinnaree leaders are not strictly female. In fact, the worshipers of the old Hindu gods and especially those of Shurpanakha welcome male Kindred as a necessary balance. Many seasonal celebrations need male participants and in fact many older drama-dances were once composed of all male dancers. While that is rarely true today, male Kinnaree are granted many boons, including first feeding rights. In some rural areas, people believe that being fed upon by a male Asura is a part of fertility superstitions that might predate Hinduism. Outsiders analyzing the beliefs of the Kinnaree might see a direct conflict in concepts like preserving the magic and culture of the distant past, and destroying old monsters to make room for new life. This paradox, however, is not one the Kinnaree consider.
Story Hooks
- The Anand family has just moved to Miami in order to send their son to medical school. They bring with them traditional food, rituals, beliefs and great-grandmother in a box. Grandmother is over a hundred years old and has her own ideas about how to do things. First things first, though, and that’s to create a new generation of devotees to Shurpanakha.
- Some rare pieces of Thais Hindu art are on display at the museum where court is held. The pieces on display, however, are stolen, and a coterie of Thai Kindred come to court to demand them back.
- A young cult of Shurpanakha, quickly disenchanted by the agreement between their elders and the elders of the Sakadagami, pack up and leave Thailand to come to the States — with the full intention of fulfilling their Dharma.
Reputation: Because they are social chameleons like their parent clan, it is possible that more Kindred know a Kinnaree than know of the bloodline. This is as true in Thailand as it is in the rest of the world, thanks to the need for extra secrecy among the Sakadagami controlled court.
They are not openly known among the Invictus, as any Fawn among them would be there in secret in order to destroy wayward Asura. To the Carthian Movement in and around Southeast Asia and in American communities with a large Thai population, the Kinnaree are valuable allies if not easy converts. To the small sect of Islamic Lancea Sanctum in the area, the concepts of being demonic are similar, but damnation and ignorance in the face of local religion have lead to active disputes with this bloodline and the Acolytes around them.
Concepts: Seasonal dancer, Mauy Thai instructor, Carthian infiltrator, flagellant, elder hunter, monster hunter, long-nailed monster in the woods, overly curious historian, half Thai Army brat, second generation family defender