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Sonam

Airbender 

Sonam was an Air Nomad and the abbot of the Northern Air Temple during the adolescence of Avatar Yangchen.[1]

History

As the Northern Air Temple was located close to the shang city of Bin-Er, Sonam and the monks started to provide aid to the suffering citizens who left the city without having obtained proper exit passes from the corrupt control office. The villages under the protection of the Northern Air Temple became a refuge for the people of Bin-Er, and the hospital of the main village was twice as big as it should have been, as it had to treat the injuries of the people who made the dangerous trek.[1]

Sonam met with Avatar Yangchen at the temple before she was due to make an official visit to Bin-Er, warning her about the "city of spies". When the Avatar returned from her first meeting with the shangs, she met Sonam in the large village hospital just as Kavik arrived. While hovering above a woman whose stubborn fever would not break, he observed Yangchen starting to heal the woman. The abbot voiced his disapproval of Yangchen having Kavik around, as it would mean bringing her spies into the temple. Yangchen told him that they were not officially on temple grounds, and that Kavik had not started spying for her, and was therefore simply her guest. Sonam was not convinced that this was any better, and warned her how the leaders of the other nations may react if they knew that she was launching operations from the temples. As Yangchen's healing efforts continued, Sonam warned her that she might not wake easily, and suggested she move on. Yangchen refused, as she was so close to being healed, and Kavik helped cover her body with water, Sonam dabbing away his sweat from the strenuous effort. Her fever broke, and Yangchen informed the woman that she had been found on the trails to Bin-Er and taken close to the temple, but his face turned pale when she asked about her son, telling Yangchen that she was alone when she had been found.[1] Afterward, Sonam sent another team to search for the woman's child.[2] He later came to the Avatar's quarters, and remembered to inform Yangchen that the search party had found the son of the woman she healed in the hospital, and that he was alive and well. Sonam beamed brightly, as the Avatar had never given up on the woman, and offered to take her to see mother and child in the village. Yangchen agreed, but said she would do so the following day, as she needed to sleep and find her strength.[3]

After Yangchen dealt with the Unanimity project in Bin-Er, she had the Northern Air Temple provide aid, while the combustionbenders Yingsu, Xiaoyun, and Thapa were confined to hamlets around the temple that could only be reached with a flying mount. Zongdu Henshe confined to a room in the temple. Sonam voiced his strong disappointment and resentment to Yangchen for having made jailers of the monks.[3] While at the hamlet that Thapa was confined to, the abbot was appalled when he heard Yangchen suggest that they may be kept at the temple for several seasons, informing Yangchen that it was not only an abhorrent task, but that the monks may be corrupted by the experience of holding domination over another human being.[3][4]

Upon Thapa breaking out of his cell within the temple chaos ensued. It resulted in a landslide endangering the village near the temple, Sonam was informed by Akuudan and Tayagum of what happened and ordered by Yangchen to prepare a perimeter around the temple to protect everyone.[4] Many monks who were guarding the captive combustionbenders were also severely and critically injured, they were taken to the village hospital after the attack was contained. The crisis led Sonam to ultimately banish Yangchen from the Northern Air Temple upon blaming her for these incidents, which Yangchen accepted.[5]

Physical description

Sonam was a mustached old man who was naturally bald, though had white remnants of hair around his head. He had wrinkles around his eyes.[1]

Appearances

Chronicles of the Avatar

The Dawn of Yangchen

  • 115. "The Northern Air Temple"
  • 139. "Honored Guests"

The Legacy of Yangchen

  • 210. "Gravity"
  • 213. "Mitigation"

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Yee, F. C. (author). (July 19, 2022). Chapter Fifteen, "The Northern Air Temple". The Dawn of Yangchen. Amulet Books.
  2. ↑ Yee, F. C. (author). (July 19, 2022). Chapter Sixteen, "Making Ready". The Dawn of Yangchen. Amulet Books.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Yee, F. C. (author). (July 19, 2022). Chapter Thirty-Nine, "Honored Guests". The Dawn of Yangchen. Amulet Books.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Yee, F. C. (author). (July 18, 2023). Chapter Ten, "Gravity". The Legacy of Yangchen. Amulet Books.
  5. ↑ Yee, F. C. (author). (July 18, 2023). Chapter Thirteen, "Mitigation". The Legacy of Yangchen. Amulet Books.