Part 1: An Overview of the Major Religions of Westeros and Essos

A classical map showing Westeros and Essos, the main regions in A Song of Ice & Fire

A common characteristic of epic modern fiction is the realization of vast, detailed universes in which the story takes place. These universes often resemble our own with the existence of numerous areas, countries, cultures, societies and worlds that interact with each other in unique and intricate ways. The extensive histories of these universes help to immerse the reader or viewer in the world of the author to enhance the experience of the story. Furthermore, the extreme attention to detail often helps the audience draw comparisons to real-world situations and as such certain aspects of these worlds can be utilized by authors to comment on the current state of the world. Some popular examples of this are the massive Marvel and DC comic book universes, and Tolkien’s meticulously crafted and allegorical Middle Earth.

Recently, George R. R. Martin’s fictional universe described within his A Song of Ice and Fire (ASOIAF) novels has emerged as one of the most prominent in the history of modern literature thanks to the massively popular HBO series Game of Thrones. This universe, as Martin has stated many times, draws a great deal of inspiration from Tolkien’s Middle Earth. However, the two have some major differences. Tolkien’s story contains very clear-cut opposition between good and evil. While it is rich with symbolism and classic fantasy, it lacks the grueling realism and gravitas of Martin’s world. Martin writes his history based on how he understands human beings to behave in a realistic, non-dramatic setting. As such, he allows his characters and stories to grow naturally. Martin often compares his writing process to growing plants, where he creates a “seed” and simply waters it when he must, letting it grow on its own based on where the influences within his universe take it.

For my research I want to examine Martin’s use of religion throughout the history of ASOIAF. On the two major continents of his world, Westeros and Essos, there are dozens of well-described religions with thorough histories and many of them play a significant role in the series’ main plot. Furthermore, due to Martin’s style of writing, many of these religions are based explicitly on real-world religions. As such, a look at how Martin employs the influence of these religions in a political setting can, in turn, provide insight into how Martin feels about religion in our world today. Contrary to popular belief, ASOIAF is in fact a scathing political drama simply disguised as epic fantasy. Its popularity stems from the fact that it tells human stories in a fantasy world. Because of this unique relationship between its content and its apparent genre, audiences are invited to use Martin’s stories to pose questions about politics, religion and power in real life. To what degree can religion influence politics? Does a strong sense of faith imply moral righteousness? I hope to answer these questions, among others, based on the information portrayed in Martin’s work.

 
George R. R. Martin and his massively successful series of novels, A Song of Ice & Fire

Before we begin our analysis, however, we must first examine the significant religions of ASOIAF and how they relate to real-world faiths. To avoid over-complication, we will focus on six religions and provide a brief history of each. From Westeros we will examine the Old Gods of the Forest, who are primarily worshiped in the North, the faith of the Seven; a more popular religion among the rest of the continent, commonly referred to as the New Gods, and the Drowned God, who is worshiped by the Iron Born. From Essos we will examine the Lord of the Light; a morally ambiguous god who communicates through anointed red priests, the Great Stallion; the religion of the Dothraki, and the Many-Faced God; the unique faith of the Faceless Men. While there are certainly many more religions within Martin’s universe, these six religions cover the faiths of a vast majority of characters relevant to the story’s main plot, and as such they will be the source of analysis for my research.

Religions of Westeros

A brief overview of the religions of Westeros

1. The Old Gods

While the plot of ASOIAF eludes traditional storytelling and doesn’t quite have a clear good vs. evil narrative, it can certainly be argued that the Stark family are the protagonists of the story and that the North of Westeros serves as a home-base for the series. If we are comparing Martin’s world to Middle Earth, Winterfell is certainly The Shire of Westeros. As a result, the culture and traditions of the North are a massive part of the series. Most of this culture can be owed to the Starks continued faith in the Old Gods of the Forest, the primal religion of the newly inhabited Westeros (compared to the ancient civilizations of Essos). The religion is based on many nameless forest deities. According to the Children of the Forest, the first inhabitants of Westeros, each piece of nature (each river, tree, rock, etc.) has its own god. As such, at its core, the Old Gods of the Forest represents the worship of nature, a style of worship that is very common in real-world religions such as Wicca and ancient Celtic and Norse systems. In fact, many Celtic and Norse traditions are seen throughout the North of Westeros, particularly in their speech and clothing. The opposition in culture between the North and South, based on their different religions, is extremely obvious and very well-depicted in HBO’s Game of Thrones.

Ned Stark depicted polishing his sword Ice by a sacred weirwood tree in the godswood of Winterfell

Furthermore, contrary to the opposing New Gods of Westeros, the Old Gods do not have any sort of sacred text or place of worship. Instead, worship occurs in godswood grottoes throughout the North, the homes of the sacred weirwood trees. Followers of the Old Gods believe that the gods can see and communicate through the faces carved into these trees. Sacred oaths and marriages are performed in front of these trees so that the gods may witness these significant events. For example, when Jon Snow and Samwell Tarly take their Night’s Watch oath, they perform it in front of a weirwood a mile north of The Wall, since they are the only followers of the Old Gods in their Night’s Watch class. Aside from oathtaking and marriage, the Old Gods are much less present in the lives of their followers than the other religions of Westeros. Standard moral wrongdoings are condemned by the Old Gods, such as kinslaying and incest. However, rape, theft and pillaging are not condemned by this somewhat primitive religion, as exemplified by the often-savage Wildling’s north of The Wall. The faith also imposes a stronger worth on honour than others, clearly exemplified by the strong sense of honour possessed by the Starks (Ned, Robb and Jon) and the Wildlings (Mance Rayder). It was their unwillingness to abandon honour that ultimately resulted in the demise of all four of these characters, and this bond to honour is largely attributed to their faith in the Old Gods.

In terms of influence on the story, the Old Gods are said to be responsible for two very significant magical abilities possessed by a small number of inhabitants of the North; greensight and warging. Greensight is the ability to see and communicate in the past, present and future, and it is exclusive to greenseers, the priests of the Old Gods. At the current point of the story, Bran Stark is the only known greenseer alive and he uses this ability masterfully to protect his family. Warging is the action of implanting one’s own consciousness into another body. While in the novels, all the Stark children have warging abilities, Bran Stark is the only known warg in the show. He uses this ability to warg into creatures during battle and while travelling since he is paralyzed. Many fans speculate that these abilities, and the Starks ultimate faith in the Old Gods will result in their success in defeating both the army of the Dead and the army of the South, although it is too early to say this for certain.

2. The Faith of the Seven

The Seven Faces of the Seven-Faced God

The second major religion of Westeros, and the most popular among the Seven Kingdoms is the Faith of the Seven. Unlike the Old Gods, and contrary to what the name suggests, the Faith of the Seven (FotS) is a monotheistic religion. Its followers worship one single god that is said to have seven different parts and as such, this god is often referred to as the Seven-Faced God. These seven faces all represent different aspects of life and existence, drawing very clear parallels to individual gods Greek and Roman mythology. In fact, the seven faces can all be directly compared to major gods:

Faith of the Seven God	Faith of the Seven Description	Roman (Greek)
The Father	Justice	Zeus
The Mother	Fertility	Demeter
The Maiden	Love	Aphrodite
The Crone	Wisdom	Athena
The Warrior	Courage	Aries
The Smith	Creation	Hephaestus
The Stranger	Death	Hades

Alongside this clear aesthetic inspiration from Greek and Roman mythology, the faith itself is predominantly inspired by early forms of Christianity. This has been confirmed by Martin himself in interviews while discussing the origin of the Faith Militant, the military order of the FotS. Martin discusses the comparisons between the FotS, the Faith Militant, and the medieval Catholic Church, calling the former his own fictional twist on a very real historical faction that will be discussed later.

The Christian parallels of the Faith of the Seven are clear throughout ASOIAF. For example, unlike the Old Gods, the FotS has traditional places of worship, septs, and a sacred text, The Seven-Pointed Star. The seven faces of god parallel the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost in Christianity. The leader of the religion, the High Septon, plays a very similar role for the FotS as The Pope does in Catholicism. Furthermore, priests of the Seven, called septon or septas, are often very active in their communities in the same way as priests are in their own public churches. The comparisons between the FotS and Christianity are endless, as the FotS is clearly Martin’s version of Christianity in his fictional universe. As a result, we can examine the role of the FotS throughout ASOIAF and draw judgment on how Martin believes Christianity intertwines with politics and power.

3. The Drowned God

Artistic depiction of a resurrection in Iron Born culture

The third and final major religion of Westeros, practiced only by the Iron Born of the Iron Islands, is the faith of the Drowned God. The Iron Islands, despite being a part of Westeros, have never truly complied with the order of the Seven Kingdoms. They have a unique culture and have built their way of life around theft, piracy, and pillaging. They do not answer to the rest of the Kingdom and have notoriously attempted to overthrow the monarchy on numerous occasions through rebellion. This inherent negligence is almost entirely due to their faith in the Drowned God, which is unlike the other religions of Westeros in all aspects.

A major aspect of the Drowned faith is the idea of resurrection. For example, to be initiated, Iron Born children are drowned and “resurrected” at a young age. In fact, the Iron Born do not fear drowning as they believe that they will return stronger than before. A common prayer in the faith is the saying “What is dead may never die, but rises again, harder and stronger.” This perfectly exemplifies the foundation of the religion, as it shows relentless faith in oneself. Iron Born believe themselves to be of a higher breed than others, thus justifying their culture of piracy and murder. Paying the “iron price” for something, or in other words, obtaining it through force, is considered a pious act and should be celebrated. For example, when Theon Greyjoy is reunited with his father Balon, Lord of the Iron Islands, he is scolded by his father for obtaining his belongings justly and for paying the “golden price” instead of the “iron price”. This scolding is indicative of just how important this way of life is to the Iron Born and the followers of the Drowned God.

Since it is essentially the religion of piracy, the faith of the Drowned God is easily comparable to the Old Norse religion, practiced historically by Vikings. Iron Born culture and Viking culture are very similar in terms of morals, lifestyle and ambition. The Iron Born are also highly regarded as the masters of the sea in Westeros and remain unchallenged in naval warfare. Therefore, to conclude that the Iron Born are the Vikings of Westeros would be a very fair conclusion to make.

Religions of Essos

While a majority of the plot of ASOIAF takes place in Westeros, the other major continent of Essos is very significant to the plot. Essos is where the audience meets Daenerys Targaryen, and it is here that she begins her conquest to win back her family’s throne in Westeros. During her travels across the continent she interacts with many different cultures, most of which are based loosely on various ancient eastern religions of the real world. We also see a fair bit of the free city of Braavos while Arya Stark spends time there training with the Faceless Men. The faith of the Faceless Men plays an enormous role in Arya’s character arc, and her arc seems to be finishing with a crucial role in the main plot of the series. As such, the many religions and cultures of Essos are relevant when we discuss the role of religion in ASOIAF. For the purposes of this research project, I will provide an overview of the Lord of the Light, The Great Stallion and The Many-Faced God.

A brief overview of religions outside of Westeros

4. R`Hllor, The Lord of Light

The first and most significant religion from Essos is the faith of R’Hllor, the Lord of Light, a duotheistic religion that is arguably the most common faith among the free cities of Essos such as Braavos, Pentos and Myr. It is also widely practiced in its origin city, the mysterious city of Asshai. The religion is based on a belief in two opposing gods: R’Hllor, the great god of fire and life, and The Great Other, the evil god of ice and death. These gods are said to be in an eternal conflict that can only be ended by a human prophesized warrior known as Azor Ahai. A major motivation of R’Hllor’s followers is to find this warrior. For example, Melisandre supports Stannis Baratheon’s claim to the Iron Throne because she claims that R’Hllor tells her that he is Azor Ahai. After his death, Melisandre believes Jon Snow to be the prophesized hero, and dedicates her existence to helping him obtain power and defeat evil.

Azor Ahai, the hero prophesized by R`Hllor

The priests of R’Hllor are known as Red Priests, and they are trained from childhood to perform blood magic and various spells. They are also gifted with the ability of prophecy and can supposedly see through the eyes of R’Hllor by looking into flames. Despite this form of clairvoyance being apparently legitimate, the prophecies are often misinterpreted by priests, leading many to theorize that R’Hllor may in fact be a malevolent deity. Some notable priests in the series are Melisandre, Kinvara and Thoros of Myr, all of whom play important roles in the grand plot of ASOIAF. They have also proven themselves capable of resurrection through blood magic as shown with Jon Snow, Beric Dondarrion, and Lady Stoneheart in the novels.

Finally, while the faith of R’Hllor has no clear real-world comparison, aesthetically it is very similar to Zoroastrianism, an ancient faith in fire. This religion states that there is a connection between fire and life which is clearly also an aspect of the faith in R’Hllor. The titular conflict between ice and fire is a metaphor within ASOIAF, and this religion helps show that the subject of the story is a conflict between the living and the dead (the White Walkers north of The Wall). Some fans have gone as far as to theorize that The Night King is a personification of The Great Other, although at this point this is pure speculation.

5. The Great Stallion

The Horse Gate at Vaes Dothrak, the sacred city of the Dothraki riders

The second religion I’d like to examine from Essos is the faith of the Great Stallion, the religion of the Dothraki. This religion is not truly practiced by any main characters in the story aside from Khal Drogo, but its followers form the foundation of Daenerys’ army during her conquest and as such the religion has influenced her character significantly. While Daenerys does not conform to the religions she encounters, she embraces cultures as she sees fit, and helps progress these cultures with Western ethics while attempting to remain true to their core values. We see this time and time again during her interactions with the Dothraki soldiers.

The Great Stallion is a horse deity worshipped universally throughout the Great Dothraki Sea in Essos. The centre of this religion, Vaes Dothrak, is a sacred city for the Dothraki riders and as such bloodshed is strictly prohibited here. This prohibition is an example of the extremely traditional ways of the Dothraki. Despite their savage tendencies, the Dothraki are an extremely traditional and superstitious group who display a great deal of pride for their god. Because of this pride, one of the main motivations of the Dothraki is to capture and destroy the gods of other faiths. They believe in many other deities, but they also believe that the Great Stallion is the only god deserving of worship which drives them to commit violent acts towards any group who worships something different.

Much like the faith of R’Hllor, the Dothraki believe in a prophesized hero known as the Stallion that will mount the world. When Daenerys is pregnant with Khal Drogo’s baby, this baby is believed by the Dothraki and free people of Essos such as Mirri Maz Duur to be this Stallion. However, after the death of Khal Drogo and the unborn child, the Dothraki start to believe that Daenerys is their prophesized hero. It follows that many people of Westeros believe that Azor Ahai and The Stallion that will mount the world are the same person, a person who will lead humanity against the forces of evil during the Long Night and the war against the dead.

Despite not being directly related to a single real-world religion, the Dothraki’s faith in the Great Stallion can be described as henotheistic. That is, the belief that a certain god is greater than the others, despite the existence of others. A major example of henotheism is pre-Babylonian Captivity Judaism. In this religion, stories are told of the prophet Elijah in conflict with priests of a false god known as Baal. This admission of the existence of a false god exemplifies henotheism perfectly and illustrates why Dothraki treat other cultures in the way that they do. Aesthetically, the Dothraki are often compared to the Mongols, despite not truly sharing any similar belief systems.

6. The Many-Faced God

The main cast of HBO`s Game of Thrones depicted in the Hall of Faces in the House of Black & White

The final and perhaps most unique religion I’d like to introduce for my research is the faith of the Many-Faced God. It is certainly not a major religion of Essos, as it is only followed by the Faceless Men of Braavos. However, it plays a significant role in the plot of ASOIAF, as it is a cornerstone of the character ark of Arya Stark. Furthermore, it is unique in the sense that it ties into other religions and relates to their deities in its own way.

The Faceless Men, a mysterious group of assassins believe in the Many-Faced God, also known as Death, and believe that Death is the only thing truly worth worshipping. They also believe that Death is unknowingly worshipped by all religions, making their belief system a syncretic religion by definition. For example, the belief of the Faceless Men is that The Stranger from the FotS and the fiery heart of R’Hllor are, in fact, Death. The Faceless Men see death as a gift from the Many-Faced God, given as a solution to human suffering. As such, Faceless Men are often sought to perform euthanasia for the sick, and their religion promotes assassination of those who cause suffering to others. At its core, the faith of the Many-Faced God promotes vengeance and can therefore be attributed to Arya Stark’s vindictive nature later in the series.

A Faceless Man

A very notable and unique characteristic of the Many-Faced God’s followers is the magic associated with face changing. After completing an assassination, the Many-Faced God allows the Faceless Men to use the victim’s face to shapeshift into the form of this person. This coincides with the Faceless Men’s belief that each of them is in fact No One, and that identity does not matter. The Faceless Men believe that the purpose of their existence is simply to serve Death. After training with Jaqen H’Ghar, Arya adopts the dogmas of the Faceless Men, but decides that her life has more meaning and moves away from the Faceless Men, despite having her character largely shaped by their beliefs.