Lore:Religions

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Religion is a common, but not universal, aspect of life in Tamriel and neighboring lands and planes. Religions usually center around a being of worship, and normally focus on one or several specific Aedra and Daedra. However, religions and cults sometimes focus on a demigod, saint, or even a mortal being (particularly their ancestors).

Many faiths are polytheist or henotheist, but there are examples of monotheist practices in Tamriel's history. The most notable one is the Alessian Order, which centered around a singular god known as The One. The divine beings of other religions became saints and spirits of the Order, to allow for easier sycretism and adoption of their faith structure.

Among the most prominent religions in Tamriel include various branches of faiths dedicated to the Divines, with the largest division in that faith centering around the Eight Divines and Nine Divines. However, many localities will have their own variant on this faith structure. For example, the Green Pact includes strict guidelines around diet and lifestyle, and involves numerous living beings as direct conduits. The Nordic Religion has Kyne as the head of their pantheon in the absence of the dead god Shor, and has gone through numerous religious upheavals surrounding Akatosh and Alduin. The Redguard Religion features a notable divide based off of political affiliation, with the Crowns practicing a more traditional variant of their religion from Yokuda, while the Forebears practices are more aligned with Tamrielic orthodoxies. Despite this, both factions still share multiple deities. The Breton Religion includes the Eight Divines alongside deities they inherited from their Aldmer and Nedic ancestors such as Sheor, Phynaster, Y'ffre and Magnus, as well as several other minor gods from the Illiac Bay region.

Daedric worship is the other most common religious practice in Tamriel. Many Daedric religious institutions are henotheist cults dedicated to a specific Daedric Prince, although there are faiths focused around lesser Daedra.

A particularly notable example of a religion comes from the Tribunal Temple of Morrowind. Their religious structure has switched between worshiping three Daedric Princes; Azura, Boethiah, and Mephala; for three living gods; Almalexia, Sotha Sil, and Vivec; before ultimately switching back to the Daedric Princes after the death/disappearance of their living gods. Their religious structure also incorporates a pantheon of saints, ancestor worship, and includes the four Testing Gods – the Daedric Princes Malacath, Mehrunes Dagon, Molag Bal, and Sheogorath – collectively known as the House of Troubles.

Khajiit Religion has evolved considerably over the years. Its most major adaption came from the Riddle'Thar Epiphany, an adaption of their traditional faith structure into its more modern form by the prophet Rid-Thar-ri'Datta.

Argonian Religion centers around worship of the Hist.

The Eight Pantheons

Brother Mikhael Karkuxor of the Imperial College provided a basic summation of the overall belief structure of the major regions of Tamriel into eight pantheons, with the exclusion of one covering Argonian beliefs due to issues with research in that area. These are:

CYRODIIL: Akatosh, Dibella, Arkay, Zenithar, Mara, Stendarr, Kynareth, Julianos, Shezarr, Tiber Septim, Morihaus, Reman

SKYRIM: Alduin, Dibella, Orkey, Tsun, Mara, Stuhn, Kyne, Jhunal, Shor, Ysmir, Herma-Mora, Mauloch

ALTMER: Auri-El, Trinimac, Magnus, Syrabane, Y'ffre, Xarxes, Mara, Stendarr, Lorkhan, Phynaster

BOSMER: Auri-El, Y'ffre, Arkay, Z'en, Xarxes, Baan Dar, Mara, Stendarr, Lorkhan, Herma-Mora, Jone, Jode

DUNMER: Almalexia, Vivec, Sotha Sil, Boethiah, Mephala, Azura, Lorkhan, Nerevar, Molag Bal, Malacath, Sheogorath, Mehrunes Dagon

YOKUDA: Satakal, Ruptga, Tu'whacca, Zeht, Morwha, Tava, Malooc, Diagna, Sep, HoonDing, Leki, Onsi

BRETONY: Akatosh, Magnus, Y'ffre, Dibella, Arkay, Zenithar, Mara, Stendarr, Kynareth, Julianos, Sheor, Phynaster

ELSWEYR: Alkosh, Khenarthi, Riddle'Thar, ja-Kha'jay, Mara, S'rendarr, Lorkhaj, Rajhin, Baan Dar, Azurah, Sheggorath

The Theology

One of the most important theological questions among the Tamrielic religions is the schism in the mortal's relationship to the divinity. Humans believe that they were created by the immortal forces, while the Aldmer claim descent from them. It is a distinction that colors the rest of their diverging mythologies. All Tamrielic religions begin the same. Men or Mer, things began with the dualism of Anu and Padomay, the Elven personifications of the primordial forces of stasis and change respectively.

Though the details vary with each culture and religion, all known legends of the beginning of existence speak of two entities who appeared in the Void and soon found themselves in conflict. Yokudan legends view these forces as Satak, the First Serpent, whose scales all worlds to ever be rested upon, and Akel, the Hungry Stomach that answered the call for help from these worlds.. Dunmer view Anu as Nothing, as Stasis demands nothing occur, while Sithis is the original creator, who sunders Nothing and allows existence. Khajiit refer to Anu as Ahnurr, who is a "littermate" to Fadomai.. Even the All-Maker worshipped by ancient Nords faced a twin force, the Adversary. Other dichotomies include Ak-El, Light and Dark, Good and Evil, Bird and Serpent, and Order and Chaos. Anuiel is the Everlasting Ineffable Light, while Sithis is the Corrupting Inexpressible Action. In the middle is the Gray Maybe (‘Nirn’ in the Ehlnofex).

In any case, from these two beings spring the et'Ada, or Original Spirits. To humans these et'Ada are the Gods and Demons; to the Aldmer, they are the Aedra and Daedra or 'Our Ancestors' and 'Not Our Ancestors'. All of the Tamrielic pantheons draw from these et’Ada, though divine membership often differs from culture to culture. However, like Anu and Padomay, every one of these pantheons contains the archetypes of the Dragon God and the Missing God.

The Time Dragon is universally understood as the First God after the twin forces, whose birth allowed other spirits to form and take names. Yokudan legends saw Satakal as a fusion of the dual forces Satak and Akel, caused by Satak shedding his first skin due to Akel's influence. Some Argonian tribes share the same view as the Yokudans with their Atakota (Atak and Kota). The Dunmer view the law of Time as the fusion of Stasis and Change as well, which they call "Static Change". Altmer view Auriel as the pure Soul of Anuiel, although the Psijic reject this view, claiming Auriel was born of Padomay's influence as well. Khajiit claim that Alkosh (or Akha), was born as the First Cat, child of Ahnurr and Fadomai.

The Missing God is universally understood as the dead Creator God of the Mortal Plane, whose demise involved a separation from his Divine Spark. Yokudan Legends view Sep as born from the remains of previous dead Satakal, and so he carries the Hunger of Akel within. Sep would then go on to instigate the creation of the Skin-Ball, an alternative to the Walkabout. Argonians view the Shadow of Atakota having been born shortly after Atakota. The Shadow taught Spirits many things, but in doing so taught them how to be temporary, and thus death. The Ayleids view Lorkhan as the Shadow of the Time God, who saw possibility within the Void, and sought to utilize it. The Dunmer view Lorkhan as the Son of Sithis, sent to destroy the universe and trick the Aedra, who had enslaved everything. They also view him as tied to the Psijic Endeavor, a means by which they may transcend the Gods that created them. Khajiit view Lorkhaj as the last son of Fadoami, who offered to make space for Nirni. Because he was born in the Great Darkness, his heart was filled with it. Altmer view Lorkhan as a spirit of Limitation, who offered the Gods a way to Self-Reflect and make a soul for Aurbis. The Altmer view this was a trick by Lorkhan, who created a realm far more of Sithis than Anu. Reachfolk view Lorkh as a a teacher, who created Nirn as a realm that taught through suffering. A key divide in views of Lorkhan is his motivation for making Nirn, and the differing goals of mortals. Many believe they should return to the Spirit Realm of before, and so Lorkhan is an evil deity who upsets this attempt at escape from the Prison of Nirn. Others hold the view that the Spirit Realm was already a prison, and through Nirn, Lorkhan offers an opportunity for true escape.

Imperial Religion

The Imperial Religion primary focuses on the Eight Divines, or the Eight and One which includes the ascended Talos. The Imperials have a lot of cults dedicated to various religions within Cyrodiil, but the Imperial Cult is the main religion of the Empire and traces its origins back to Saint Alessia's institution of worship of the Eight Divines as a synthesis between the Aldmer pantheon and the Nordic pantheon. Although known as the Imperial Cult in the provinces, strictly speaking this term refers the missionary arm of the religion, present in provinces such as Morrowind. As the main religion in Cyrodiil, it is more commonly known in that province simply as the Church or the Chapel. After the apotheosis of Tiber Septim, Imperials began to spread belief in the Nine Divines, incorporating worship of the Empire's god-hero Talos. However, the Third Empire was forced to sign the White-Gold Concordat in 4E 175, which outlawed Talos worship.

Each major city in Cyrodiil has a chapel devoted to one of the Nine Divines. Akatosh is represented in two cities: the Imperial City and Kvatch. In contrast to the other Nine Divines, Kynareth has no chapel in the great cities of Cyrodiil, but a shrine in the Wilderness. All traditional chapels contain ten altars: one for each of the Nine Divines and a tenth central altar devoted to the chapel's main Divine. The staff at each traditional chapel consists of at least three people: the Primate, who is in charge of all administrative duties; the Healer, who provides healing for the citizens of the city; and the priest or priestess, who presides over services. There are several non-traditional chapels in Cyrodiil as well - the Temple of One is the main temple in the Imperial City and is dedicated to the official worship of Akatosh.

There are too many cults in the Empire to mention, particularly among the Nibenese, as well as thousands of cults operating in the Imperial City alone, hence its namesake as the City of a Thousand Cults. Some of the most famous cults in Cyrodiil are the Alessian Order, the Cult of the Ancestor Moth, the Cult of Heroes, the Cult of Tiber Septim, the Cult of Emperor Zero, the Cult of Reman, the Cult of the One and the Cult of Shezarr to name a few.

Another aspect of the Imperial Religion is the Imperial Saints, pious individuals venerated by the Church. Devotions are often made to them as a group, known collectively as the Communion of Saints.

The last religious institution of note is the Templar Knightly Orders. All Chantry have their own militant arm, sworn to protect its temples with their lives and enforce divine will.

Nordic Religion

The Nordic Religion has its origins in Atmora and revolved around the worship of totem animals. Eventually, the animal-totem gods transformed into the eight gods they worship today. Their gods are as cyclical as the world itself, so they also remember the Dead Gods who fought and died to bring about the current world, the Hearth Gods who watch over the present cycle, and the Twilight God who ushers in the next cycle. As well as these are the so-called Testing Gods, who they do not worship but instead protect the hearth against.

Dead Gods: Shor the Fox, Tsun the Bear

Hearth Gods: Kyne the Hawk, Mara the She-Wolf, Dibella the Moth, Stuhn the Whale, Jhunal the Owl

Twilight God: Alduin the Dragon

Testing Gods: Orkey the Snake, Mauloch the Old Knocker, Herma-Mora the Woodland Man

When the Imperials arrived, they brought with them their southern religion and worked to unify the worship of the Eight Divines, resulting in the construction of the Temple of the Divines in Solitude. Whiterun, Riften and Markarth also have temples devoted to each of the Hearth Gods; Kynareth, Mara and Dibella respectively. Most cities have a Hall of the Dead, the Nordic term for mausoleums where bodies are interred, overseen by a Priest of Orkey or Arkay, depending on the era, who ensures that corpses are properly consecrated and cared for. Most famous of these Halls is the Heroes' graveyard in Falkreath, where great battles took place here for centuries, and where countless warriors were buried.

The spiritual relationship between the Nords and the Thu'um is crucial to understanding Nordic beliefs and motivations. They believe Kyne breathed life into them at the Throat of the World, the highest mountain in Skyrim.. They view the Thu'um as a gift from Kyne, and those with the talent to wield it are called "Tongues". The ancient Greybeards, masters of the Thu'um, still sit atop the 7000 steps leading to High Hrothgar, near the summit of the Throat of the World, where they practice the Way of the Voice. Their leader, Jurgen Windcaller, brought about a ban on the use of the Thu'um outside of times of "True Need". Tiber Septim established the Imperial College of the Voice in Markarth in an attempt to turn the Way of the Voice to warfare. Today the High Hrothgar is a common pilgrimage destination and only a few are granted access to its halls as they must be deemed worthy by the Greybeards first. Most are then trained in the Way of the Voice.

Another major pilgrimage site is the Eldergleam Sanctuary, which is sacred to the worshippers of Kyne. It is said to be the oldest living thing in Skyrim, perhaps all of Tamriel, older than metal, from a time before men or elves which makes it impervious to regular weapons. . The Gildergreen, another holy tree found in Whiterun and great importance to the city's Temple of Kynareth, was planted during the early days of the settlement using a seed taken from the ancient Eldergleam.

Breton Religion

The Breton Religion is a melting pot of faiths inherited from the Bretons' Nedic and Aldmer ancestors. The earliest Bretons, the Manmer, inherited a form of nature worship from their Nedic ancestors, but this faith split into two separate subcultures. The witches of the Wyrd became their own entity due to the elves, and these witches continue to worship "old gods of the ancient past" in the modern day. On the other hand, Druidism arose as a distinct identity shortly after the Bretons first came about, and their Y'ffre-centric religion survived in the Systres Archipelago after their exodus. Druidism would later be reintroduced to mainland Tamriel, specifically around Iliac Bay. Most Bretons transitioned to the Eight Divines under the First Empire. The Eight Divines are worshipped widely in mainstream Breton culture, but other traditional deities still persist nonetheless. Sheor, Phynaster, Y'ffre and Magnus have significant cults in High Rock.

The first druids of High Rock are referred to as the Druids of Galen by retroactive nomenclature, and they were the Nedes of High Rock (or proto-Bretons) that intermingled with the Aldmer for centuries during the Merethic Era. They are practitioners of Y'ffre's True Way (also known as Druidism), in which one is to lead a life connecting with, valuing, and stewarding the growth of the natural world referred to as the Green. A religious schism brought about the Wyrd's separation from their druid brethren. The Wyrd abandoned civilization in favor of living in the wilds,, believing that they were nature itself: the forest, the plants and beasts within it, and even the weather. In contrast, the druids accepted what they interpreted as their "proper place" as people, and embraced the idea that civilization can coexist alongside nature. Once a singular entity, the Wyrd split into subgroups by the time of the last Druid King's voyage to the Systres. These sisterhoods remained behind on the mainland to safeguard the forests of High Rock, with some of the dozen or so covens even spreading throughout Tamriel.

The details of the influence of Aldmeri religion among the earliest of Bretons is sparse. Evidence of peaceful cultural diffusion of religion between men and mer exists in the form of unearthed ancient idols of Mara as depicted in the elven pantheon. Interestingly, Sheor, or his Aldmeri pantheon equivalent Lorkhan, is depicted positively in a lovers embrace with this elven Mara figure, while Sheor is demonized in modern Breton religion, as is Lorkhan. Worship of the elven gods still exists in modern Breton culture, such as among Bretons that emphasize their elvish blood, who are often drawn towards Phynaster. The gods Magnus and Y'ffre are traditionally associated with elven pantheons. Though Breton's Nedic ancestors knew of Y'ffre's presence in their hearts and channeled his power, his name was not known to them until the daughters and sons of Anuiel introduced them to the name Y'ffre.

Redguard Religion

The Redguard Religion originated from an ancient Yokudan creation myth. It centers around the idea of Satakal the World-Snake consuming the current world to begin another. This continuous cycle prompted the birth of spirits that could survive the transition. One such spirit was Ruptga, a Yokudan god and the first who learned how to do so. Ruptga set the stars in the sky to show lesser spirits how to do this, and these spirits ultimately became the Yokudan pantheon. Yokudan creation myth holds that mortals are doomed to mortality because they are very far away from the real world of Satakal, and the safe haven of the Far Shores is too far away for them to jump to from the mortal world. It is believed that Sep, the Yokudan variant of Lorkhan, tricked the other spirits into creating the mortal world, claiming this would make it easier for more spirits to survive Satakal's inevitable onslaught. However, the mortal plane acted as a trap which made apotheosis even harder. In this way, the Redguard view of creation has more in common with the Elven tradition than that of other humans, who view the mortal plane as a blessing.

Crowns tend to worship the old Yokudan pantheon, while Forebear beliefs have more modern Imperial influences. Many Crowns are nomadic tribesman who mainly travel around the Alik'r Desert, and though they adhere to traditional Yokudan beliefs, they have also developed a deep, spiritual attachment to their adopted land. They venerate deities and spirits of all kinds, from Pixies (or faeries) to Satakal the Worldskin, the god of everything. The Forebears include several of the Divines recognized by other cultures. However, it is often unclear if they have the same understanding of these deities that others possess, as they often use a name of one of the Divines when referring to a Yokudan deity.

The Silverhoof Horsemen tribe of High Rock have substantially different religious beliefs than their brethren. They venerate a divine animist spirit they call the Herd Mother. Their tradition holds that they left Yokuda in order to freely worship this equine deity.

Additionally, the Redguards also revere their departed ancestors. The origins of Redguard ancestor worship is unclear. Some believe this ancient tradition began after the Yokudans settled in Hammerfell. They noticed that corpses decomposed very slowly in the desert, and over time the people assigned a spiritual significance to the process and declared that the remains of their ancestors were sacred. Other sources claim Ancestor Worship was the most sacred law and tradition of the ancient Yokudans.

Redguards are famous not just for their many religious rituals surrounding the dead, but also for the elaborate necropolises they build to house them. At these sacred sites, supplicants give prayer not just to their own direct ancestors, but also historical Redguard kings and the untold number of Yokudans who perished when the continent sank.

Bosmer Religion

Much of Bosmer Religion centers around the Green Pact, a strict code upheld by many Bosmer in order to preserve the Green, the natural world on Nirn. It forbids the Bosmer from harming Valenwood's forests or plant life and or killing wastefully, among other things. However, despite its apparent simplicity, there are some aspects of the Green Pact that cause confusion, particularly to outsiders, but aspects of the Green Pact are debated even among the Bosmer. Despite the tenet "eat no plants", consuming fallen fruits is not considered a breach of the Green Pact, and according to the Green Lady Gwaering, the tenet would be better rephrased as "harm no living plants". It is widely accepted for Bosmer to consume items such as dairy, honey, mushrooms, and insects, and only the most zealous of Pact Bosmer consider this a breach of the Green Pact. Another tenet of the Green Pact requires Bosmer to eat all fallen enemies within three days. This is known as the Meat Mandate - however, this faded out of common practice by the Second Era, only being adhered to in the most remote villages.

Bosmer creation myth says that before everything, there was only primordial Ooze, constantly shifting chaos. The god Y'ffre shaped and ordered the chaos by telling their stories, creating the Green, giving the Bosmer their physical forms, and most importantly establishing the Green Pact between the Green and the Bosmer. As long as the Bosmer respected the Green, they could ask the Green for shelter and sustenance and it would obey. However, when Y'ffre was finished, there was still leftover Ooze, so Y'ffre gave the remaining Ooze a purpose, letting it serve as a warning to the Bosmer that any who violated the Green Pact in any way would be condemned and return to the formlessness of the Ooze. To this day, the Bosmer recognize Ooze to be a spiritual prison for those who break the code of the Green Pact.

Despite having influences from the Eight, The Bosmer Religion includes many other deities, including Aedra such as Auri-El, Arkay, Mara and Stendarr, Daedra such as Hircine, and spirits unique to Valenwood like Baan Dar and Selene. The Wooded Eye cult in the Drowned Coast worshiped a malicious trickster spirit by the name of Herma-Mora, although they insist their Mora is different from the Daedric Prince Hermaeus Mora. Other Bosmer openly admit that the two are the same. Other notable deities in the Bosmer pantheon include Xarxes, Z'en, and the Wilderking/Wilderqueen, a living god worshiped by tribal Bosmer.

References

Note: The following references are considered to be unofficial sources. They are included to round off this article and may not be authoritative or conclusive.