The old gods are nameless deities of stream, forest, and stone worshiped in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros and beyond the Wall. They are so named because the Faith of the Seven (the "new gods") replaced them in
The old gods are nameless deities of stream, forest, and stone worshiped in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros and beyond the Wall. They are so named because the Faith of the Seven (the "new gods") replaced them in all but the north of Westeros, where worship of the old gods is still practiced by northmen, crannogmen, and free folk. Westerosi of various faiths commonly swear by the old gods and the new.
- 1 The old gods
- 2 Practices
- 3 History
- 4 Recent Events
- 5 Quotes
- 6 Behind the Scenes
- 7 Notes
- 8 References
The old gods
The old gods are nameless and numerous. The free folk who live beyond the Wall believe that the gods are everywhere—in the rocks, streams, birds, and beasts—and that they take the deceased down into the earth and trees. The maesters teach that the weirwoods are sacred to the old gods. However, worshippers believe the old gods watch through the trees. 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.
It is said that the sigh of the wind and the rustle of leaves are the old gods speaking back to worshippers. According to Jojen Reed, the singers of the children believe that the weirwood trees are the gods, and that when they die, they become part of the godhood.
Worshippers of the old gods believe that no man can tell a lie in front of a heart tree, as the old gods know when men are telling a lie. Through the eyes of the weirwoods, the old gods judge the people in front of them. As such, an oath might be made in front of a weirwood tree, or with a hand placed in the mouth of the weirwood’s face. It is said that the children of the forest carved faces in the trees during the dawn, centuries before the coming of the First Men from across the narrow sea. According to Maester Luwin, the faces were carved by the greenseers to keep watch on the woods. The First Men believed that the greenseers could see through the eyes of the weirwoods.
The old gods were worshipped by the children of the forest, and eventually after the Pact, by the First Men. Following the coming of the Andals, who brought the Faith of the Seven, the old gods were no longer dominantly worshipped in the south of Westeros. Only a few houses (e.g., House Blackwood) still do, while most of the noble houses follow the Faith of the Seven instead. In the north, however, the majority of the houses still worships the old gods. In the northern lands beyond the Wall, the free folk continue to worship the old gods. Although some accounts state that there are clans who worship different gods (dark gods beneath the ground in the Frostfangs, gods of snow and ice on the Frozen Shore, or crab gods at Storrold's Point), there is no reliable confirmation.
Various actions, such as incest, slavery, and kinslaying are considered offensive to the old gods, although, as regards kinslaying, the degree of kin and circumstance of killing one’s kin (e.g., in war) hold significant influence. The laws of hospitality are considered to be sacred. It is believed that the old gods can detect when men lie to heart trees.
Worshippers visit godswoods, groves contained within castles throughout the Seven Kingdoms, where a heart tree can be found. These trees, which have faces carved into them, are considered to be sacred. The heart trees are usually weirwoods, and godswoods are often the only places where living weirwoods still remain until one goes north of the Wall. Once all noble houses had a godswood with a heart tree in its center; However, the First Men, in their wars against the children of the forest, cut down many of the trees, as did the Andals later on, replacing the old gods with their own in the southern kingdoms. Although godswoods can still be found in the south, they now serve as secular gardens.
Prayer and marriages are done in front of a heart tree. The weirwoods and the places they stand are considered to be sacred. They are not to be defiled by bringing animals such as horses into them.
There are no priests, no holy texts, no songs of worship, and practically no rites that go with the worship of the old gods. It is a folk religion, passed