RolePlay onLine RPoL Logo

, welcome to Game of Thrones: To Rule the Kingdoms (southern campaign)

13:29, 6th May 2024 (GMT+0)

Religion & Faith.

Posted by CaladinFor group 0
Caladin
GM, 1383 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 16:20
  • msg #1

Religion & Faith


This thread is to post terms and information related to the Religions and Faiths of the setting, this information is only player knowledge not common knowledge for the characters. The people, places, and information is a reference to go back to if you should forget as we play.

I hold the player to be honest about what their character knowns and remember you can always roll a skill to ask a question.

Please check and read the bottom of each post as this thread will be “Edited" as we play and new posts will only happen with a new chapters in the storyline.


This message was last edited by the GM at 00:39, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Caladin
GM, 1384 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 16:21
  • msg #2

Re: Religion & Faith


Almost all inhabitants of Westeros are religious in one way or another. The Faith, the worship of the Seven, is by far the most common religion, but those who live in the North still revere the nameless and countless gods of the First Men, lodged in their godswoods. Other faiths are of minor importance in Westeros, though some are outposts of religions that are very strong in other lands.

Westeros has relatively few significant religions. They are listed below in this post and appears in order of most common in Westeros:

The Faith of the Seven, the dominant religion in the Seven Kingdoms, is built around symbology of the number seven, the seven facets of the one god. Its many institutions and priesthood structure closely mirrors the way Christianity operated in the Middle Ages.

The Old Gods, tied to the earth, are the gods of the forest, mountains and streams. They are nameless deities worshiped by the Northern population of Westeros, symbolized by weirwood trees. They are the oldest religion in Westeros, worshipped by the magical children of the forest before the First Men came to the continent and later adopted the religion.

The Drowned God and The Storm God are the gods of the ironborn. The Drowned God is a harsh deity and his religion is a harsh one, favouring reaving and plundering in its name. Children are initiated into the faith by being drowned in sea water and resuscitated.

R'hllor, the Lord of Light, is a foreign faith from Essos and is little known in Westeros, though it has gained support in recent times. It holds a very black-and-white view of the world, with R'hllor being the one true god and the rest being demons that must be destroyed. Worship of fire is a key component.

The Mother Rhoyne is worshiped by the remnants of the Rhoynar practicing along the river Greenblood in Dorne. The religion has other, lesser gods as well, one of which is the Old Man of the River, a turtle god who fought the King Crab to gain dominion underwater.

The Lady of the Waves and the Lord of the Skies were worshiped on the Three Sisters prior to the Seven.

This message was last edited by the GM at 00:42, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Caladin
GM, 1385 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 16:22
  • msg #3

Re: Religion & Faith


The Faith of the Seven




The Faith of the Seven is the dominant religion of the Seven Kingdoms, and is often simply referred to as "the Faith. The only parts of Westeros where the Faith is not widespread are the North and the Iron Islands, where the practice of the old gods and of the Drowned God respectively are still strong. The gods of the Faith are sometimes known as the 'new gods' to differentiate them from the old gods.

The Faith of the Seven arose in the Hills of Andalos among the Andals. It is claimed that the Seven walked among the Hills of Andolos in human form. According to The Seven-Pointed Star: The Father brought down seven stars from heaven and placed them on the brow of Hugor of the Hill, the first king of the Andals, to form his crown and the Maid brought forth a girl supple as a willow with eyes like deep blue pools that became Hugor his first wife, the Mother made her fertile, who bore him forty-four mighty sons as foretold by the Crone. The Warrior gave each son strength of arms and the Smith wrought each a suit of iron plate.

Beliefs

The Seven are the Crone, the Smith, the Mother, the Father, the Maiden, the Warrior, and the Stranger. The Crone, Mother, and Maiden are female, the Smith, Father, and Warrior male, and the Stranger both and neither. Each has a broadly defined area of concern.

The Faith worships the Seven, a single deity with seven aspects or faces, each representing a different virtue. While most people, nobles and smallfolk alike, treat them as seven gods, the doctrine of the Faith is they are seven aspects of a single god. Worshipers pray to specific aspects of the Seven for help and guidance depending on their need.

    These aspects are:
  • Father:
    or the Father Above, representing judgment & watching over rulership. He is depicted as a bearded man who carries scales, and is prayed to for justice.
  • Mother:
    or the Mother Above, representing motherhood and nurturing, watching over parental love. She is prayed to for fertility or compassion, and is depicted as smiling with love, embodying the concept of mercy.
  • Warrior:
    representing strength in battle & watches over valor and combat. He is prayed to for courage and victory. He carries a sword.
  • Maiden:
    representing joy and chastity, watching over innocence, and youth. She is usually prayed to to protect a maiden's virtue.
  • Smith:
    representing & watches over creation—particularly through crafts and labor. He is usually prayed to when work needs to be done, for strength. He carries a hammer.
  • Crone:
    representing wisdom & watches over discernment. She carries a lantern and is prayed to for guidance.
  • Stranger. An exception to the other aspects, the Stranger represents & watches over death and the unknown. Worshipers rarely seek favor from the Stranger, but outcasts sometimes associate themselves with this god.


Practices

The Faith of the Seven is the official religion of the Seven Kingdoms and is heavily integrated into its laws and culture. The Faith has a great many moral teachings. It frowns on gambling, preaches against bastardy, and curses things like incest and kinslaying.

One of the central holy texts of the Faith is The Seven-Pointed Star, which is divided into gospel-like sections, such as the Maiden's Book, also called The Book of the Maiden. Presumably, each of the Seven has his or her own book. "The Song of the Seven" is a song of worship for all of the Seven except the Stranger. "Maiden, Mother, and Crone" is a song about the females of the Seven. Another religious text is The Book of Holy Prayer.

During trials by combat, the Seven are expected to intervene on the side of the just combatant. In order to become a knight, a squire must spend a nightlong vigil in a sept and become anointed in the name of the Seven. For this reason, there are few knights in areas where the Faith is not kept, such as the North. There are only a few northern houses who follow the Seven, focused around the city of White Harbor and its ruling family, the Manderlys.

The number seven is considered holy to the Faith. It holds that there are seven hells as well as seven faces. The seven wanderers in the sky are considered as sacred, and even grace is taught to have seven aspects. The number seven is used to invest rituals or objects with a holy significance. Adherents of the Faith use seven-pointed stars, crystal prisms, and rainbows as icons of the religion. Rites of worship heavily involve the use of light and crystals to represent the seven-in-one god.

Worship of the Seven takes place in a seven-walled building called a 'sept', and every sept houses representational art portraying each of the seven aspects. The decoration of the sept depends on the wealth of those who support it. A simple village sept may merely have carved masks or simple charcoal drawings on a walls, while in wealthy septs like the Grand Sept of Baelor in King’s Landing has stained-glass windows, mosaics, fine statues inlaid with precious metals and stones, and gilded surfaces.

Private worship consists mainly in saying prayers and lighting candles before the altars of the images of the seven aspects. The Stranger rarely has more than a handful of candles, while in times of war, the Mother and Warrior stand behind rank upon rank of lights. Public worship includes devotional hymns and an address. The Seven also feature in many popular songs, which treat them with varying levels of respect. Ceremonies are lead by the highest ranking male member of the clergy, and hymns are normally sung. In the naming of a child, seven oils are used to anoint the infant. Weddings are conducted standing between the altars of the Father and the Mother. Rites of worship held in rich areas and during special occasions can feature embellishments such as choirs of seventy-seven septas.

Clergy

Priests in the Faith of the Seven are known as the godsworn: "septons" if male, "septas" if female. In some places, they live together in institutions known as septries, but a poor village might rely on a wandering septon to come and lead the services and hear confession every few weeks. Septons and septas are celibate and are generally expected to also be chaste. The distribution of virtue and vice is about the same among septons as it is among all other people, so there are saints and villains among them, but most are just people. Some education is necessary to become a septon, and most of them are literate, some being great scholars - most of the legends of the distant past of Westeros were written down by septons. On the other hand, a village priest might only know the necessary prayers, and being illiterate, know them only by heart. However, this rote memorization is still more education than most baseborn receive. They are the primary servants of the Seven, serving in a capacity similar to priests and priestesses of other religions. The septons and septas follow a system of vows, in serving the various orders devoted to aspect of the Seven.

Leadership

The Faith is ruled by a council of the highest ranking septons and septas, called the Most Devout. The Most Devout are led by the High Septon, who dwells at the Great Sept in the city of King's Landing. The Most Devout, are responsible for electing a new High Septon when the current one dies. Whilst the High Septon is usually elected from among the Most Devout, this is not a requirement, as non-members of the Most Devout have been raised to the office in the past. On election, the High Septon renounces his name, which can make history somewhat confusing. The election is largely free; even the king can exert little more than subtle pressure. The Faith has strong enough roots among the population and nobility that not even the royal family can directly challenge it. Perhaps, fortunately, the militant branches of the Faith were suppressed centuries ago by Maegor the Cruel, so it has no warriors and must rely on moral authority alone.

Septons

Male clergy of the Faith are called septons, and there are various orders of devotion amongst them, each concentrating their devotion on one aspect of the Seven. For example, there are septons sworn the Smith, and they wear small metal hammers on a thong around their necks. Monastic orders of septons can live in septries (plural of septry), self-sustaining enclaves of sworn brothers who are called "brown brothers". Septons without a sept wander the countryside ministering to the smallfolk in exchange for food and shelter. They are sometimes disparaged as "begging brothers", and they wear a small metal bowl around their necks. The figurehead of the Faith is known as the High Septon.

Septas

Female clergy are called septas, and there are various orders of devotion amongst them. There are orders of septas, called white, grey or blue septas, but it is unrevealed to which aspect of the deity each of them is devoted. There are convents of septas called "motherhouses", including a large one in Oldtown and another in Bechester. Septas often serve as governesses in the households of the high nobility. A trial of a woman conducted by the Faith will have septas sitting among the seven judges. High-ranking septas are counted as members of the Most Devout, revealing that they have a voice in the selection of a High Septon.

History

More than six thousand years ago, the Faith was brought to Westeros by the Andals who invaded from Essos. The Andal invaders, some of whom wore the seven-pointed star of their gods painted or carved into their flesh, began to supplanted the local worship of the old gods with their new gods. The city of Oldtown became the center of the Faith, and the Starry Sept in the city served as the seat of the High Septon for a thousand years until the Targaryens came.

When Aegon the Conqueror, invaded Westeros, he adopted the Seven and gained support of the High Septon, who proclaimed that the Faith Militant would not offer resistance to the Targaryen invasion. However, that changed upon Aegon's death and the passing of the Iron Throne to his son Aenys I Targaryen. The Faith withdrew their allegiance and the Militant orders supported those lords who opposed the Targaryens.

The resulting civil war raged through the reigns of Aenys I and Maegor the Cruel and into the start of the reign of Jaehaerys I. Maegor's brutal repression of the Faith caused tens of thousands of deaths. Eventually, Jaehaerys offered peace to the Faith and House Targaryen's unwavering defense and support in return for the militant orders disbanding to which they agreed. Jaehaerys I appointed Septon Barth the Hand of the King and had forty years of peace and prosperity.

The High Septon and the Most Devout moved the center of the faith to the new capital of King's Landing. Upon the death of King Daeron I, Baelor I, the septon king, assumed the Iron Throne and built the Great Sept atop Visenya's hill. Baelor decided not to re-arm the faith, as he was a man of peace who believed the only weapon the faithful should have is prayer. During his reign he had a stonemason named as the High Septon, a man that could carve stonework so beautifully that Baelor believed him to be the Smith in human form. While a fantastic stonecarver, the new High Septon could not read, write or recite any prayers. Baelor has recently raised a boy of eight years to High Septon, who Baelor claimed worked miracles.

This message was last edited by the GM at 14:50, Mon 23 Feb 2015.
Caladin
GM, 1386 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 16:23
  • msg #4

Re: Religion & Faith


The Old Gods




The Old Gods of the Forest are a collection of countless and nameless spirits and deities of nature, which are worshiped by many people of the North and small numbers elsewhere in Westeros. The Old Gods which were named so by the followers of the Seven ("new gods") that replaced them in most of Westeros.

It is the old religion of Westeros, supplanted by the Faith of the Seven which was brought to the continent by the Andals and is now the dominant faith of the continent. Though the two religions have coexisted for more than six thousand years, there is still tension between the most devout adherents of the two faiths, where it is still practiced by northmen, crannogmen and free folk from beyond the Wall.

Beliefs

The old gods appear to be a sort of animistic religion. The religion believes in innumerable and unnamed nature gods, the spirits of each tree, each rock, and each stream.

The faith of the Old Gods is personal and less structured than other religions, though some basic social violations are proscribed by it, such as incest, kinslaying, bastardy, and slavery are considered offensive to the gods. It also upholds the laws of hospitality sacred.

Practices

Worshipers of the Old Gods do not have elaborate ceremonies, no holy texts, no hierarchies of priests, or large structures of worship like followers of the Faith of the Seven. Instead they practice quiet contemplation in godswoods, small areas of forest which have been enclosed within a castle's walls. Worship in a godswood is centered on heart trees, which are great weirwood trees with a face carved into the bark. Weirwoods are considered sacred in the religion, and heart trees are the closest thing to a "shrine" that it possesses. Oaths and promises sworn in front of a heart tree are considered binding.

There few rites that go with the worship of the old gods. It is a folk-religion, passed from generation to generation. The closest thing to a ritual seen is prayer before the heart tree in a godswood, holy groves contained within castles throughout the Seven Kingdoms, and often the only places where living weirwoods still remain until one goes north of the Wall. It is said that the sigh of the wind and the rustle of leaves are the old gods speaking back to worshippers. The children of the forest believe that the weirwood trees were the gods and when they die they become part of the godhood.

Common Prayer & Weirwoods

Weirwood trees with faces carved into them, called heart trees, are considered sacred. Weirwoods are the great trees at the heart of a godswood. Whitebarked, they are carved with faces that stand out red. The faces were carved into the weirwoods by the children of the forest. It is said the old gods look out of these faces and that the children of the forest could do the same, but their meaning or purpose is not completely understood by humans. Weirwoods also grow wild, and they are still treated as somewhat holy even when they are not carved. Sometimes, people claim the face in the godswood weeps when tragedy is approaching, but few believe such stories.

Prayer, oaths, and marriages are often performed in the presence of a heart tree. Once all noble houses had a godswood with a heart tree in its centre, but many families that no longer follow the old gods have converted their godswoods into secular gardens. It is said that the old gods only have power where the heart tree faces can see, and since the destruction of most of the heart trees in the south they have no power there. Not all godswoods have a weirwood, but those without feel incomplete. A godswood may lose its weirwood to damage, and some, such as the godswood in the Eyrie, are in places that make it impossible to grow the tree.

Clergy

There are no priests, but the greenseers of the children are seen as shamans of a kind, and are said to be able to talk with all beasts and birds, and to see through the eyes of their carved weirwoods and posses strong magic.

History

The Old Gods were originally worshiped by the Children of the Forest, the non-human original inhabitants of Westeros, for thousands of years before first recorded history and the arrival of the First Men from the east twelve thousand years ago. It was the Children of the Forest who carved the faces into weirwood trees.

The First Men warred with the children, and cut down the weirwoods where they found them. The Children and their shamans, the greenseers, successfully fought the First Men to a standstill and they signed a Pact of mutual peace and cooperation. It gave the deep forests to the children, but all other land in Westeros to the First Men, who promised never to cut down the sacred weirwood trees again. Over the succeeding four thousand years, the First Men came to worship the Old Gods as well.

Then came the war against the White Walkers in The Long Night eight thousand years ago, the Children began to gradually declined throughout Westeros. Worship of the old gods remained across Westeros until the Andal Invasion, who brought the Seven with them from Essos.

The worship of the Old Gods was able to withstand great force and pressure of the First Men in Westeros until the invasion of the Andals six thousand years ago, who brought the Faith of the Seven with them from the east. The Andals slaughtered the Children of the Forest, viewing their magic as an abomination before the Seven. The Andals cut down the weirwood trees in the south, which were sacred to the Old Gods. The Faith supplanted the worship of the Old Gods in most lands south of The Neck, but it remained strong in the North, where the First Men were able to halt the Andals' advance. After centuries of religious wars and strife, the two religions settled into an uneasy coexistence.

The wildlings also worship the Old Gods, like their distant cousins in the North. Even in the lands of House Stark, there are a few followers of the Faith of the Seven, often southern noblewomen who come to the north to secure marriage alliances. Beyond the Wall, however, the Old Gods are the only gods.

This message was last edited by the GM at 00:52, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Caladin
GM, 1390 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Thu 11 Sep 2014
at 21:11
  • msg #5

Re: Religion & Faith


Drowned God




The Drowned God, also known as He Who Dwells Beneath the Waves, is a harsh deity said to dwell beneath the sea, a deity worshiped solely by the Ironmen (ironborn) of the Iron Islands in Westeros. The Iron Islands is one of the few regions in Westeros not abiding by the main religion of the Seven Kingdoms, the Faith of the Seven.

The Drowned God's domain is the ocean. The religion of the Drowned God is old, dating back to before the Andal invasion. The Andal invaders of the Iron Islands converted to the local religion rather than supplant it with the Seven as they did in the South.

The Drowned God himself is believed to have brought flame from the sea and sailed the world with fire and sword.

Beliefs

The belief system of the Drowned God justifies and supports the Ironmen's naval and their way of life through a piracy culture. They believe that the Drowned God created them to rape, reave, and carve out kingdoms and to make their names known in fire, blood, steel, and song. Much of the religion centers around maritime skills and seafaring ability. It is not simply praiseworthy to kill enemies in battle, it is considered a pious act. A youth in the Iron Islands is not considered a man until he has killed his first enemy. The religion also encourages paying the "iron price" instead of the "gold price" -- that is, it is better not to pay or treat for possessions, but to take them by force from the hands of dead enemies.

While to outsiders the Drowned God religion seems like a thinly veiled justification for pillaging and plundering, the ironborn themselves take their religion very seriously, and actually have a fairly well developed cosmology and belief system surrounding it.

Within this belief system, the Drowned God is locked in an age-old struggle against the Storm God, the Drowned God's eternal enemy. It is said the two deities have been in conflict for over a millennia and the sea roils in anger when they engage in battle. The Drowned God's halls are located beneath the ocean, while the Storm God lives in a castle in the sky with his thunderclouds. The Storm God is constantly trying to send storms to dash ironborn ships against rocks to their ruin. However, much like the Drowned God, no one aside from the ironborn believe in the Storm God.

Due to their belief, the ironborn do not fear drowning in the sea. "Godly" ironborn, that is fearless raiders, who drown are believed to be taken to the Drowned God's watery halls to feast on fish and his every want satisfied by mermaids for eternity. Thus, whenever a man dies, ironborn say that the Drowned God is in need of a strong oarsman, and the refrain "What is dead may never die" is used.

Practices

Resurrection figures prominently in the religion, in the form of being revived from drowning and in the prayers and rituals. The Drowned God itself is said to have drowned in the sea, for the sake of the ironborn, but returned to life "harder and stronger". However, drowning is also employed and the traditional method of execution and a method of sacrificing enemies to the Drowned God, but it is also considered a holy act, and the most faithful have no fear of it.

The Drowned God religion has several basic social rules against incest, kinslaying, and bastardy. It also upholds the laws of hospitality, which hold sacred the good behavior of a guest and host towards each other.

Baptism Rite
From birth they commit their bodies to the sea and join their god when they die. Newborns are "drowned" shortly after birth, being submerged into or anointed with saltwater. This is done as part of rites of the god, committing their bodies to the sea, so when they die they may find the Drowned God's halls.

Both the method of execution and the newborn rite are referred to as being "given to the Drowned God".

The Anointment Ritual (blessing ceremony)
The priest has a person kneel. Using his skin of sea water, he pours a stream of it upon the person's head. As he does this he intones:

Priest: "Let <person> your servant be born again from the sea, as you were. Bless him with salt, bless him with stone, bless him with steel."
Response: "What is dead may never die."
Priest: "What is dead may never die, but rises again, harder and stronger."

Priests of the Drowned God also bless new ships, speaking invocations and pouring sea water over prows. "Lord God who drowned for us" is part of the litany of the Drowned God's priests.

If one person begins this prayer, others are usually expected to join in. The prayer involves clutching the right hand in a fist over the heart.

Offering to the Drowned God
In the Iron Islands, it is common to offer (execute) criminals by laying them on their back on the beach at low tide, with their arms and legs chained to four stakes, so they can see their death slowly creeping toward them a few inches at a time as the tide comes in.

Clergy

Clergymen, called 'Drowned Men', are drowned a second time in earnest and brought back to life with a crude form of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Not all men are successfully revived, however. Drowned Men wear roughspun robes of mottled green, grey, and blue the colors of the Drowned God. They carry driftwood cudgels to use in battle, and skins of saltwater to perform ritual anointments and occasionally drink from to strengthen their faith.

Common Prayer Exchanged
Followers: "What is dead may never die"
Response: "But rises again, harder and stronger".

While priests of the Drowned God must not shed the blood of ironborn, they have no such reservation about other methods such as drowning.

History

The Seven are gods of weakness and defeat, pretty chains that the First Men kindly put on after the Andals crushed them, except in the Iron Islands. Since the Dawn Age, the Ironborn have followed the Drowned God, who plucked fire from the sea and made them to reave and sack and write their names in blood and song.

When the Andals landed on the Iron Islands, they found a god who was Father, Warrior, and Stranger, who took Mother, Maiden, and Crone when he would, and held the Smith in thrall. His priests are Drowned Men, who are clothed and armed by the sea itself. They consecrate their people to the Drowned God through their most sacred right, the Drowning, and ask the God to raise them from the sea as he was: harder and stronger.

The ironborn do not fear the bloodiest battle or the roughest waves, for the Drowned God taught them long ago that what is dead may never die. When an Ironborn falls, they say that the Drowned God needed a strong oarsman and took him down to feed in the God's watery halls, attended by mermaids.

But even in death an ironborn is a warrior. They fight against the Storm God, who holds a castle in the clouds and sends the winds to lure the ironborn off course or wreck their ships. It is said that the Grey King waged war against the Storm God for a thousand years. with the Drowned God's help, he slew the great Sea Dragon Nagga and used her bones for his hall. After his death, the Storm God tried to wash away any memory of this terrible foe, but his songs fill the ironborn's halls to this day.

It was the Storm God who first blew the Andals to the Iron Islands to subdue the Ironborn and turn them from their faith. They conquered and killed their king, but in time they forsook their septs for the shore and their fat Septons for the Drowned Men. The Andals came to them as conquerors, but in the end they drowned.

The ironborn are of the sea, as their god made them, and given to it as their god taught them. They do not fear the Storm God's winds or his waves. But others should, for they bring the ironborn to them.

Unlike the Faith of the Seven or the worship of the Lord of Light, the Drowned God religion is somewhat sexist: Ironborn men are expected to raid, plunder, kill, and command ships, but it is frowned upon for ironborn women to do any of these things. While the Faith of the Seven and R'hllor have female priests (and the Old Gods of the Forest simply have no priests), the Drowned God's priesthood is all-male.

It is thus considered quite unacceptable for a woman, to command her own ship and led men on raids. Further, a woman would have to work even harder and be a very capable commander to earn the respect of such men. She would also be a very devout and pious follower of the Drowned God, which is somewhat unorthodox for a woman in this culture.




This message was last edited by the GM at 00:54, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Caladin
GM, 1395 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Mon 15 Sep 2014
at 21:36
  • msg #6

Re: Religion & Faith


R'hllor




R'hllor, alternatively known as the Lord of Light and the Red God, as well as the Heart of Fire and the God of Flame and Shadow, is a deity widely worshiped in the continent of Essos. The Lord of Light has been described as a "fire god" and its clergy "fire priests", or 'red priest' as worship of the Lord of Light centers around fire and light.

R'hllor is a popular deity in the continent of Essos, worshiped extensively in several of the Free Cities. The symbol of the Lord of Light is a fiery heart. The Temple of the Lord of Light in Volantis is larger than the Great Sept of Baelor. There are several different major religions in Essos, but unlike in Westeros few are very widespread, instead each nation or city possessing numerous local religions. However, the Lord of Light religion is probably the most widespread religion in Essos, with worship spanning from the Free Cities in the west to Asshai in the distant east. It isn't the majority religion in every city, and it is a small minority in Braavos, but it is still present there. Nonetheless, it is in a plurality in many regions, and in the southern Free Cities such as Myr, Lys, and Volantis it is certainly the majority religion.

The religion is led by the "Red Priests", though both men and women can join the priesthood. Worship of the Lord of Light is almost unheard of in Westeros.

Unlike the religions of the Old Gods in the North or the Drowned God of the Iron Islands, the faith of the Lord of Light is stated to possess several holy texts, similar to the Faith of the Seven.

Beliefs

The religion of the Lord of Light is centered on belief in the existence of a single, all-powerful god. R'hllor is the god of fire, which provides light, heat, and life, and struggles against darkness, cold, and death, represented by an opposing deity, the Great Other.

Due to the dualistic worldview of this religion, its more fanatical followers believe the Lord of Light is the "one true god", and all other gods from other religions - The Old Gods of the Forest, the Faith of the Seven, the Drowned God, etc. - are demons and false idols that must be cast down and burned.

The Lord of Light's worship involves the idolization of fire and light. Shadows are important too, as they are "created by light". The religion is very focused on prophecy, and on ecstatic visions that are received through communion with the flames.

The followers of the Lord of Light also believe in the coming of a chosen warrior to combat the coming darkness, The Prince That Was Promised, who is prophesied to be reborn "amidst smoke and salt" and wield the sword Lightbringer.

Practices

Most of the worship practices of the Lord of Light involve fire. This can range from simple bonfires, to some extreme cases advocating human sacrifice by immolation.

In temples of the Lord of Light, Red Priests conduct bonfires and sing prayers each night, beseeching the Lord of Light, R'hllor to bring back the dawn. Followers often gaze into flames in an effort to receive visions of the future. It is believed that R'hllor will occasionally answer the prayers of his followers by granting visions and abilities such as raising the dead. The priests of R'hllor also seem to be able to evoke fire with their bare hands and be able to control it to attack enemies or simply to impress common people. Some rites performed by the red priests include sacrificial immolation. According to many red priests, R’hllor speaks to his chosen ones through blessed fire, in a language of ash and cinder and twisting flame that only a god can truly grasp.

Trials by combat are an accepted practice in the R'hllor faith; prayers before the combat ask R'hllor to give strength to the just party.

The common prayer of the followers of the Lord of Light uses the line "The night is dark and full of terrors", followed by the response line, "Lord, cast your light upon us." When interacting with each other, Red Priests tend to speak High Valyrian and greet each other with the traditional Valyrian exchange valar morghulis/valar dohaeris, although this has more to do with the cultural background of most Red Priests than the religion itself.

Clergy

The Clergy of the R'hllor religion are called "Fire Priests", or 'Red Priest', due to the loose, crimson robes they wear. Red priests may be male or female. In the east, they are a common sight, where the faith of R'hllor's influence is more widespread and children are sometimes given to temples of R'hllor to be raised into the priesthood. The temples, often called "Red Temples", also buy children as slaves who are known as Slaves of R'hllor and raise them as priests, temple prostitutes, or warriors. The warriors that protect the greater temples are called the Fiery Hand.

History

The worship of R'hllor is a religious tradition on the continent of Essos, and has not gained much popularity in Westeros.

Like other types of magic, the magic of R'hllor seems to have faded after the last dragons died.




This message was last edited by the GM at 00:55, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Caladin
GM, 1396 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Mon 15 Sep 2014
at 21:36
  • msg #7

Re: Religion & Faith


Mother Rhoyne




Mother Rhoyne is the primary and chief goddess of the Rhoynar and the personification of the river Rhoyne itself. Her waters nourished the Rhoynar since the dawn of days. She is also known as Mother River.

The Rhoynar practiced a number of customs that differ from mainstream Andal culture. They practice equal primogeniture, granting inheritances to the eldest child regardless of gender. They also tolerated homosexuality. Due to their origin in city-states, the Rhoynar titled their rulers Princes and Princesses. Their influence made these customs standard in Dorne as well.

Some aspects of Rhoynish customs have been abandoned in favor of Dorne's Andal culture. Many of the original Rhoynar's that worshiped these river-themed nature gods have abandoned their beliefs, and adopted the Faith of the Seven in Westeros. As some other descendants of the Rhoynar did not assimilate and continue to practice the traditions of their ancestors. Called the "Orphans of the Greenblood", these individuals live on rafts along the river Greenblood in Dorne and consider themselves orphaned from their Mother Rhoyne as they continue to worship their Rhoynish gods from across the narrow sea.

Beliefs

The "Orphans of the Greenblood" still mourn the loss of their distant homeland and so continue to practice the traditions of their river-faring ancestors.

They consider themselves to be “orphans” as they are of the Rhoynar and have been orphaned from her, their “Mother”, the river Rhoyne which in their faith also holds a divine status, therefore they also identify the river as "Mother Rhoyne."

Practices

Mother Rhoyne is more about a way of life. The 'orphans' live on rafts along the river Greenblood. It is said that when they first came to Dorne they built their smaller boats from the burned carcasses of the ships they used to cross the narrow sea.

The orphans of the Greenblood pole their boats up and down the river and its tributaries, fishing, picking fruits, and doing whatever work is required. They go to Planky Town to trade with the carracks, cogs, and galleys from across the narrow sea. Some have been known to sell cloth and spices up and down the Greenblood.

They dance and sing on the river, and are also said to have great knowledge of the healing arts, able to cure warts and produce the best midwives.

Clergy

There is no clear priest or priestess of their faith, but it is the responsibly of all that call themselves 'orphans’ to preach and maintain the stories and traditions of their ancestors.

History

The orphan boats are pole boats. They have hardly any draft to speak of and are painted and carved. They have low roofs and wide beams. The Young Dragon disparaged them as “hovels built on rafts,” but that is hardly a fair assessment, all but the poorest orphan boats are wonderfully carved and painted.

The pole boat that ambushes Princess Arianne and her companions when they reach the Greenblood is painted in shades of green, with a curved wooden tiller shaped like a mermaid, and fish faces peering through her rails. Poles and ropes and jars of olive oil clutter her decks and iron lanterns swing fore and aft.

This message was last edited by the GM at 00:58, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Caladin
GM, 1397 posts
"Live Free Die Well"
Mon 15 Sep 2014
at 21:37
  • msg #8

Re: Religion & Faith


The Lady of the Waves




The Lady of the Waves was a goddess of old worshiped by First Men on the Three Sisters. Sacred storms were the result of the Lady mating with the Lord of the Skies.

Worship of the Lady of the Waves ended with the arrival of the Andals and the Faith of the Seven. There are rumormes that some Sistermen still practice the faith in secert.

This message was last edited by the GM at 00:59, Sat 20 Sept 2014.
Sign In