The Elven Pantheon
The elven pantheon, also known in elven as the Evanuris, is a pantheon of ancient deities comprised of five gods and four goddesses, whom the modern Dalish elves call "the Creators." The pantheon is said to be led by Elgar'nan the All-Father, God of fatherhood and vengeance, and Mythal the Protector, Goddess of motherhood and justice. There are also references in elven mythology to another race of gods which they knew as "The Forgotten Ones," who were the sworn enemies of the elven pantheon. It is said that Fen'Harel was the only one among both Evanuris and the Forgotten One’s able to walk freely between the two warring clans, for they both thought of him as one of their own.
Interestingly, elven belief holds that—though the elven gods are credited with creating the gifts of the world (and in some cases for recreating the world itself)—they, too, were borne of the earth and are not considered responsible for its initial creation.[1] Unlike the Old Gods, the elven pantheon were never believed to have walked in the mortal realm or to have directly challenged the Maker.[2] Their current location is uncertain, as they do not, apparently, interact with the mortal world. However, elven belief holds that the Fade, or the "Beyond" as it is known to the elves, is considered a holy place and the gods are trapped there in the "Eternal City."[3]
History[]
- See also: Elves#History
The presence of figures depicting the elven gods lingers in the wild places of Thedas.[4]
In ancient elven history, magical orbs called "foci" were sometimes used to channel the power of the elven gods for various purposes. These items were usually associated with a particular member of the elven pantheon, such as Fen’Harel or Elgar’nan.
Pews in a forgotten place of worship
Their power required a great deal of energy to unlock.[5]
Solas, who is actually revealed to be the elven god Fen'Harel, states that the ancient elven gods were not really deities as the Maker is perceived to be by the Chantry, but rather, they were instead very powerful entities in their own unique right. Whether they were mages or spirits or something else entirely, Solas says they have a deep and powerful connection to the Fade, where they dwelled and spoke to the elves through various rituals performed in certain locations. Solas also remarks that the elven "gods" were arrogant and fickle, as they warred frequent amongst themselves and had many feuds and vendettas throughout their rule. A similar attitude is expressed in an inscription attributed to Geldauran, one of the Forgotten Ones.
According to Solas' memories, the Evanuris were originally spirits who crafted true corporeal bodies for themselves out of raw lyrium, thus becoming the first of the Elves. It may be proposed in that case that, in spite of later grasping at divinity, the elven people never had true gods at all in the strictest sense, as the Evanuris were ultimately simply very powerful mages. In the process of taking this lyrium, however, the Evanuris inadvertently angered the Titans, who rose in retribution at the violation of their bodies. This led to a long and bloody war between the First Elves and the Titans.
The war eventually ended when Solas and Mythal forcibly made the Titans tranquil by creating a dagger out of pure lyrium and using it to sever the Titan’s minds from their bodies.
Once the war against the Titans had ended, Elgar'nan, a leader among the Evanuris, refused to give up his command as he had promised at the onset of hostilities. Elgar'nan argued that the nascent elven people needed his stern leadership and strength for their own protection. Much to Solas' disappointment, Mythal agreed with Elgar'nan, believing that the elves did indeed require inspiring figures to unite them, quell their fears, and guide them toward a better future. The respected generals and elders that consisted the Evanuris followed Elgar'nan and Mythal's examples shortly afterwards, proclaiming themselves to be the gods of the elven people.
Only Solas refused to follow suit and was furious that the Evanuris had set themselves up as despots over the elves. To avenge this betrayal and make right his mistake in aiding the Evanuris, Solas started a rebellion against the elven pantheon.[6]
Solas reveals to Rook that there were many more members of the Evanuris than the surviving pantheon. One such member was known for his cruelty and had such a fearsome reputation that none would join Solas when he attempted to free the warlord's slaves. Solas changed tactics, instead making people laugh at the man. For twelve years, every sound the warlord heard was laughter. His mind broke under the ridicule, enabling his slaves to rise up join Solas freely.[7]
The elven pantheon was revered in the time of Elvhenan, before the humans came to Thedas. Little is known about how the gods were worshiped at this time, except that the gods had temples with guards in specially made armor,[8] the elves worshiped their gods for months at a time,[9] and that worship may have included rituals involving water and kneeling and praying before elaborate altars.[10]
Once the elves found that the very presence of the humans, or "quicklings," caused the once immortal elves to age and die, they attempted to isolate themselves. Many believed that the gods had judged them unworthy of their long lives and cast them down among the quicklings.[9]
The elves retreated within Elvhenan but were ultimately conquered and enslaved by the Tevinter Imperium. During their centuries of slavery, the elves lost most of their language and history, and the worship of the old elven pantheon declined. However, the elves, led by Shartan, fought alongside Andraste in her fight against the Imperium, and their reward was a new home in The Dales, where the worship of the elven pantheon could be revived. The elves left Tevinter for their new homeland in -165 Ancient (1030 TE).[11]
Though Andraste's sons honored her promise to the elves and gave them their new homeland, it was to be short-lived by the standards of Elvhenan. Over the next 270 years or so, relations between the elves and their human neighbors deteriorated. By the early Glory Age, there were numerous border skirmishes between the Dales and Orlais, which soon escalated into war. When it appeared that the elves might actually capture Val Royeaux, the Chantry called for a holy war, resulting in a new Exalted March against the Dales that completely crushed the elves by 2:20 Glory. The lands of the Dales were appropriated by Orlais, with elven settlements being uprooted and worship of the elven gods forbidden. Elves who accepted the Chantry's offered truce were required to accept the Maker and live in ghettos, known as alienages, within human settlements. Some elves, however, refused to give up their worship of the Evanuris or the dream of their own homeland, and they became the Dalish. Today, all that is left of the pantheon are old statues, Elven temples in ruins, and lingering stories.
Following the initial events of the Exalted Council, the Inquisitor discovers that the Elven Gods were in fact phenomenally powerful mages who rose in prominence after the end of an unknown war. Solas implies that the Evanuris started out as generals during the war, then respected elders, then kings, and finally were revered as gods who became corrupt tyrants in order to hoard and maintain their own power. The Evanuris institutionalized a system of slavery using Vallaslin as a brand, with only Fen'Harel (and more subtly, Mythal) challenging their tyranny. Most of the gods were arrogant in their ways, their power and attitudes more akin to the Tevinter Magisters. Eventually, the other Evanuris plotted against Mythal and killed her, prompting Fen'Harel to lead a rebellion against them and later creating the Veil to banish them into the Beyond.
It is also heavily implied that the Evanuris still live, and that if Solas carries out his plans to tear down the Veil they’ll be freed.
Fen'Harel, the Dread Wolf, started as an insult until the Evanuris used it as propaganda against Solas. To Solas' followers however, the Dread Wolf was a symbol of their revered savior and to the Evanuris, an avenging god of rebellion.
Despite their differences, Solas wrote to the Evanuris to persuade them to lead their people in a noble way and to cease claiming they were gods. To Elgar'nan, he tried to temper his tyrannical tendencies by telling him dominating his subjects' minds was unnecessary when their bodies were already shackled and his authority was accepted by most.[12] Elgar'nan appeared to have ignored his words and had his servants give Solas a polite dismissal.[13] To Ghilan'nain, he tried to urge her to create creatures to defend the elven people from the Evanuris' mistreatment and suggests she serves the Evanuris for Andruil's approval.[14] Ghilan'nain however, argues that her ambitious creations can only be realized with the Evanuris' resources and that Andruil had always supported her career. Thus she believes she has every incentive to throw her lot with the Evanuris and that she has given enough to the elves by creating the Halla.[15]
The Evanuris and Solas faced other threats such as The Forgotten Ones, a competing faction of elven warlords,[16] and also enemies from across the sea. The Evanuris used cruel measures to defend their kingdoms, such as Andruil, who had her slaves' life forces bound to magical wards that were supposedly set to defend Arlathan from such threats but were instead being siphoned for Andruil's personal empowerment. The agents of Fen'Harel freed such slaves in their revolt and broadcasted that their sacrifices only benefited the Evanuris and doesn't serve the elven people.[17] Andruil would retaliate by slaughtering an enormous amount of people at the warding sites and framing the Dread Wolf for the slaughter in order to paint Solas as a cold-blooded disruptor seeking to weaken the security of Arlathan. All the Dread Wolf could do was focus on saving as many people as he can and begrudgingly act out the symbol of rebellion in order to inspire his people to follow him in breaking free from their yoke of oppression.[18] Even so, Solas admits that his rebellion had made the Evanuris desperate enough to utilize more dangerous forms of power.[19]
During the events of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, it is revealed that the Evanuris weaponized the Blight in their wars of supremacy, especially during Solas' rebellion against them. Presumably the Evanuris discovered the Blight could be used as a source of power when Andruil discovered a magical armor infused with the Taint and used its power to terrorize the other elven gods until Mythal stopped her.[20]
Solas told Mythal of the other elven gods' abuse of the Blight and she sought to convince them to cease its use on behalf of Solas. The other elven gods had somehow acquired Solas' lyrium dagger and murdered Mythal with it when she confronted them. Solas recovered the lyrium dagger from Elgar'nan and from it extracted a fragment of Mythal that had lain hidden within its depths.[21] For unleashing the Blight onto the world and murdering Mythal, Solas imprisoned the Evanuris in the Fade and used their lives to sustain the Veil by connecting their blood to his lyrium dagger. Yet Solas did not anticipate that the Elven pantheon that he had imprisoned would speak through the Old Gods and manipulate the Magisters Sidereal into breaching the Black City and releasing a portion of the Blight onto Thedas.[22][23]
Following the defeat of the last of the gods, the only member of the Evanuris left is Solas and he is subsequently bound to the Veil by persuasion, coercion, or trickery by Rook in spite of his continued desire to sunder it. Some of the other Evanuris may yet have survived as shells of their former selves, nowhere near the state of Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain before their deaths.[24]
Involvement[]
In Arlathan Forest, Solas begins to finish his ritual to destroy the Veil and is in the process of moving the last remaining Evanuris to a new prison, but he's interrupted by Varric Tethras, Neve Gallus, Lace Harding and Rook who collapse the giant pillars around the temple where the ritual is taking place. However, Solas is able to magically push the falling debris away. Varric then tries to stop Solas, and during their scuffle Solas stabs Varric with his ritual dagger which interrupts the ritual and frees Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain from their prison. Solas tries to stop the gods but gets trapped in the Fade.
Wasting no time seeking to rebuild their dominion, the Evanuris traveled to D'Meta's Crossing, where they used blood magic on Mayor Julius, exploiting his greed to lure a pair of visiting Veil Jumpers into a trap, where they unleashed the blight on the village, killing or blighting many.
Seeking to access the full force of the Blight from the Black City, Ghilan'nain sent a ghoul to retrieve Solas' dagger to cut open the Veil, but it was retrieved by the Veilguard first. Forced to adapt their plans, Ghilan'nain proposed creating a new dagger made of red lyrium. In the meantime, the Evanuris began to build their followers. Caring nothing for the elves, who would be unlikely to bow before blighted deities, the Evanuris sought out those craving power like the Venatori by revealing themselves as the Old Gods, and the rebel Antaam.
Pantheon[]
Elgar'nan: God of Vengeance[]
- Main article: Elgar'nan
Elgar'nan—also known as the All-Father, the Eldest of the Sun, He Who Overthrew His Father, The Father of Retribution[25]—represents fatherhood and vengeance, and is the mythical head of the pantheon who leads the Evanuris alongside the goddess Mythal. In narrative, he represents promise before acceptance. The power before the price. The moment of choice that precedes justice or vengeance, rise or fall.[26]
Mythal: the Great Protector[]
- Main article: Mythal
Mythal, the Protector and the All-Mother, and goddess of love[27], is the patron of motherhood and justice who leads the pantheon with her male counterpart, Elgar'nan. In narrative, she is the portent that spurs the story, suffering first and most the forces that wish the tale untold and the hero unsung.[28]
Falon'Din: Friend of the Dead, the Guide[]
- Main article: Falon'Din
Falon'Din is the elven God of Death and Fortune who guides the dead to the Beyond. He and his twin brother, Dirthamen, are the eldest children of Elgar'nan the All-Father and Mythal the Protector. In narrative, he's the unfamiliar that precedes change. The willing sleep that calms or changes desire. Endings were different in the time of immortals.[29]
Dirthamen: Keeper of Secrets[]
- Main article: Dirthamen
Dirthamen is the twin brother of Falon'Din and is the elven god of secrets and knowledge, and master of the ravens Fear and Deceit. Dirthamen gave to the elves the gift of knowledge and taught them loyalty and faith in family.[4] In narrative, he is the secret behind what beckons, whose reveal answers questions first denied, then demanded.[30]
Andruil: Goddess of the Hunt[]
- Main article: Andruil
Andruil is the elven Goddess of the Hunt, known also as "blood and force," "great hunter," and "The Lady of Fortune."[31] In narrative, she is purpose. She grants strength of clarity but blindness to trickery. Blood and force, spare us the moment we become your prey.[32]
Sylaise: the Hearthkeeper[]
- Main article: Sylaise
Sylaise, the Hearthkeeper, is the goddess of all the domestic arts[33] and the sister of Andruil the Huntress. Sylaise gave the elves fire, and taught them how to weave rope and thread, and to use herbs and magic for healing purposes. In narrative, she is the hearth you leave and return to. The comfort that bookends a journey where everything, especially self, has become unfamiliar.[34]
June: God of the Craft[]
- Main article: June
June is the elven Master of Crafts. He is variously described either as a brother to Andruil and Sylaise[4] or as Sylaise's husband[33]. He taught the elves to make bows, arrows, and knives to hunt Andruil's gifts.[4] In narrative, he is the means, and the tools by which needs are met or obstacles conquered. His will hides in the actions of others.[35]
Ghilan'nain: Mother of the Halla[]
- Main article: Ghilan'nain
Ghilan'nain is called the Mother of the halla—white deer-like creatures revered by the Dalish and used to pull their aravel, or "landships"—and goddess of navigation. In narrative, she is the price and acceptance of purpose, and the becoming that allows no return. Betrayal and devotion became equals to her.[36]
Fen'Harel: The Dread Wolf[]
- Main article: Fen'Harel
The Dread Wolf is an enigmatic trickster god of the elves, whose supposed betrayal of both the benevolent Creators and the malefic Forgotten Ones is the only explanation most elves have for the destruction of Arlathan. Dalish clans view him with wariness and seek to protect themselves and their kin from his treachery. His narrative role changes with the curse of perspective. He has as many faces as names. His arrival is as much profanity as prayer.[37]
It is revealed by Solas in Mythal's temple that this could be a misinterpretation by the Dalish, and instead he was the god of rebellion.[38]
The Forgotten Ones[]
- Main article: The Forgotten Ones
Only in dreams do we hear whispered the names of Geldauran and Daern'thal and Anaris, for they are the Forgotten Ones, the gods of terror and malice, spite and pestilence.
There are references in elven mythology to another race of gods: gods of evil, with whom the gods of the elven pantheon fought an endless war. These gods are now known as the Forgotten Ones, and for good reason, as even the hahrens, or elven elders, know little to nothing about them. According to legend they, along with the elven pantheon, were trapped away from the world at around the time of the fall of Arlathan.
Vallaslin: Blood writing[]
Vallaslin, or blood writing, on the face of Athras, a Dalish hunter.
- Main article: Vallaslin
I asked him about the intricate tattoos on his face; he told me they were called vallaslin—"blood writing." His were symbols of Andruil the Huntress, one of the most highly revered elven goddesses.
When a Dalish elf comes of age, they are marked with intricate tattoos representing one of the elven gods. The tattooing is preceded by meditation on the gods and the ways of the Dalish, and by purifying the body and the skin. It is not known whether this practice was part of the worship of elven gods in ancient Elvhenan or is a more recent development.
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