Tashalatora is a kalashtar martial art, typically translated as “The Path of Shadows” and it is a true martial art, practiced both as a form of meditation and self-defense. The Path of Shadows is widely dispersed among the empathetic kalashtar. As a Tashalatora monk, you could be tied to a particular monastery, either in Khorvaire or Adar. There’s a well-established monastery in Sharn, and its members help to defend the local kalashtar from the schemes of the Dreaming Dark. Some Tashalatora monks are rumored to channel ki so precisely they can infuse allies with their lifeforce to embolden their attacks or magically transfer injuries to their own flesh, concentrating to mystically regenerate healing the wounds.
Tashalatora monks follow the Way of the Open Hand or the Way of Empathy (Xanathar’s Lost Notes). The “shadow” of the title refers to walking through the darkness of the world in pursuit of the light that lies ahead, not to the use of shadow magics. There are many backgrounds that can fit this path. As a hermit, you may have just left an Adaran monastery after a decade of contemplative isolation or a vision of a threat posed by the Dreaming Dark drew you out to oppose it. On the other hand, you could have been taught the path by a kalashtar mentor, regardless of your own race or background. An urchin could have been taken in by an elderly mentor and taught the path to help you control your anger. A folk hero might be determined to use such gifts to battle crime in the alleys of Sharn or to protect the innocent from tyranny.