What Is Vaes Dothrak in ‘Game of Thrones’?

In the Game of Thrones premiere, Daenerys is threatened to be sent to Vaes Dothrak. She went there once before, in Season 1, as shown in the YouTube clip above. What is Vaes Dothrak? And what does it mean for Dany’s future? These are potential spoilers, based on information from the books, theories, and earlier episodes in the series.

Here’s what you need to know.


All the Widows of Khals Are Sent to Vaes Dothrak

Vaes Dothrak translates to “City of Riders” and is the only permanent city of the nomadic Dothraki. But it’s mostly empty except for the permanent residents: slaves and “dosh Khaleen,” who are the widows of deceased khals. All widows of deceased Dothraki khals are sent there. Here’s a scene, from an upcoming episode of Game of Thrones, featuring Vaes Dothrak. It doesn’t have any spoilers, but if you don’t want to see anything ahead of time, skip past the video:

Dosh Khaleen aren’t slaves and they have a distinguished role in the Dothraki culture, thought to have prophetic power and wisdom. But they are also forbidden from ever leaving the city.


Daenerys’ Brother Was Killed in Vaes Dothrak

According to this Vaes Dothrak wiki, it’s forbidden to shed blood in Vaes Dothrak. The “khalasars” gather here to trade, but they aren’t allowed to fight. Khal Drogo got around this when he killed Viserys Targaryen because he didn’t shed blood. He poured molten gold on Viserys’ head instead.

Since Dany is a freer of slaves, one theory is that she will also free the slaves of Vaes Dothrak, just as she has done everywhere else.