Summary
The questions of divinity are as old as the first thoughts any being called a 'person' could have. How they came to tackle these questions is as endless as the stars in the universe. Each approach a product of its people, its time, and the minds of the age that could grasp hold of an idea, let alone try answering it. For the likes of
dragonkind, the first peoples to walk upon
Veltrona, it proved a ponderous subject.
Their scholars throughout the ages tried to grasp hold of divinity to study it. They were ones who wanted to understand the universe and all its vast mysteries. It came to be as the other peoples emerged, their understandings collided time and again. Faith came to mean something different to the other peoples, some necessary purpose dragons didn't need in the same way.
Like a chicken and an egg, the question of which came first boiled down to a hard-to-discern point. Hence, in questions of divinity, perception readily becomes reality. It is the same mechanism by which
mana and
magic operate by. For some, magic is divinity itself, but many more insist upon separating 'mortal' and 'divine' into better, understandable ideas.
Hierarchy of the Heavens
Dragonkind scholars worked diligently to decipher the universe's mysteries. The so-called realms of divinity–Heaven(s), afterlife, paradiso, celestial court, etc–were where all kinds of nonsensical beings existed with fantastical natures. Their works eventually boiled down into a so-called
hierarchy. Rather than one based on rulers, power, or other authoritarian ideas,
relevancy became its foundation. In other words, they sorted the concepts of divinities based on how much they regularly influence Veltrona or its peoples.
Such work time and again sparked endless controversies, and made it problematic for the many peoples. To some minds, quantifying the divine is to make them
lesser. The more one understands, paradoxically somehow there is less perceived value. Others, curious as to those incomprehensible beings, were yet intrigued in learning more. This, too, became a problem throughout history–for better or worse.
The hierarchy is traditionally divided into seven spheres of influence:
Spirit
Divine Beast
Lesser Divinity
Divine Being
Exalted
Worldly Goddess
Origin Goddess
Notably it exists in a very generalized sense–some parts of the hierarchy are much closer to some areas than others. For example, the people of
Atenkhet live beneath a benevolent Exalted queen,
Aramix. Those in
Nerzin live mired about in all kinds of varying degrees of divinity. The pursuit of it is core to
the Path of Cultivation, while spirits and divine beasts often wander the mortal world with casual ease.
Aerthen, by contrast, is a much calmer place with 'less' divine activity going on.
Spirits
Some of the smallest denominations of 'divinity' that can exist, spirits are varied beings. Sometimes sapient, more often not, they live by esoteric rules and notions, flitting between the divine realms and the mortal world at will. The likes of
tinkers and
arete are counted among them. Given how many kinds of spirits there
are, one should be careful to learn their different temperaments. Folk legend can take on a very different meaning where they're concerned, and the wise person pays heed.
That said, people are more often to confuse spirit types than not, so that makes it hard to trust source reliability sometimes.
Divine Beast
Animals that have grasped, or been blessed with, divine power of a kind. Much rarer than spirits, for short-lived peoples they would be fortunate to encounter one in their entire lifetime. They often exemplify their natures as a result of divinity, such as
tagraxi being apex huntresses and mistressfully clever creatures. They can also take on new, uncharacteristic natures, such as pacifism, guardianship, something similar to scholarly interests and 'learning', etc. What ultimately happens is random enough no one has any real idea as to the
why.
They are, however, much more often molded by the cultures around them, an often confusing fact. Where as the nature of spirits tends to be universal, divine beasts seem to emerge as reflections of ideas. A beast believed to have noble characteristics will
usually take on something akin to those characteristics. Mythos and legends of all kinds easily build upon them as a result.
Of course, this doesn't mean they're trapped in any one place for one particular culture. It can be quite awkward when a foreign divine beast meanders through the local scene.
Lesser Divinity
These are willful existences capable of sustaining themselves, and have a grasp on handling divine power. Depending on the form they take, they can be confused for other types of divinity, which makes identifying them a pain. They could be called sapient after a fashion, but they are by their nature 'bound to what they are'. A divine flame, for example, will only ever
be a flame and everything that concept entails. A divine comb will naturally seek to be utilized, and become fussy when it is not.
Little rhyme, reason, or consistency exists where lesser divinities are concerned. Two divine flames can come to emphasize very different natures–one is a flame that purges evil, another is a flame that heals, for instance. Similar to spirits, one must spend time learning the sensibilities of a particular divinity lest they offend it greatly. However, for many, these entities are often the first doorway through which the roads of divinity are made available.
Their title of 'lesser' is due to the severe limitation of their natures, which didn't impress dragon scholars. Do not say that to their faces, though. They're more than willing to cause trouble without a care for the consequences.
Divine Being
A fully sapient existence empowered with divinity, such as a person who has obtained enlightenment, or animals/objects with a realized sapiency. Generally speaking, they're mortals who have stepped into the realm of the divine, and so are usually constrained by mortal concerns still. They can freely practice and increase their capability as a divine without much restriction, however. As a whole they're extremely varied, and the qualifier itself is somewhat generous: "a person/being embodies divine power".
Many types of priestesses usually fall under this classification, but are not 'wholly divine' in nature in the same manner. They can utilize divine power, often through rituals, faith, benevolent spirits, goddesses, etc, but do not 'embody' it. It can, admittedly, become a semantic argument in practical instances. Being able to use
divine magic is not quite the same as existing as a divine being.
Saints, enlightened monks, priestesses, venerated elders, and more can fall into this classification. It is not a function of "this person is called a saint, so they become a divine being", but rather people giving names to the divine beings they do encounter. Immortals and transcendents are usually lumped into this classification.
Exalted
Those mortals who receive divine enlightenment through a patron goddess are traditionally called
exalted. They're a very particular type of divinity, for their future is forever controlled by the goddesses who've empowered them. It should be stated the nature of this relationship is a mutual one–those who are exalted,
want to be, and achieve accord with a respective Goddess. One can revoke this empowerment, but they will lose all divinity, and everything they gained from utilizing it. What this 'everything' entails is a murky detail, and something that varies greatly indeed.
The option nonetheless remains, if an exalted finds great enough cause to do so.
Exalted are rare existences, barely handfuls of them are on Veltrona at a time. Each one is notably memorable, if not in written history, then in the lasting impact they leave behind. For as awesome as their existence is, there are downsides. These problems take better perspective when the exalted are compared with two other types of 'divinity':
immortals, and transcendents.
The exalted are guided upon their path, chosen and controlled. Immortals seek divine perfection on their own, limited by the 'box' of the universe. Transcendents utilize divinity to surpass all limitations; even move beyond the universe's box. These roads to divinity, thus, are shaped and changed radically differently. Exalted are almost always start out ahead of their peers with an immediate, awesome surge in divinity. Their growth, however, is exceedingly slow, and over eternity itself, immortals and transcendents will eventually surpass them.
Also, unlike the other two, exalted cannot pass on their power in any form. Their children are liable to mutate out of control, if they are born at all, becoming abominable types of
Forsaken. Other people cannot become vessels of their will or power, for they themselves are borrowers in the first place. The Goddess who controls the power will often not allow others to possess it. Few have the compatibility to do so in the first place.
Those who accept exaltation do so for endless reasons. Many civilizations come to rely upon, or be influenced by, exalted beings throughout the ages. The burdens foisted upon them are great, and many ultimately buckle underneath the pressure.
They are also sometimes called
demigoddesses, but depending on the specific exalted, this can be hilariously incorrect to assume. It is a name also sometimes applied to those born between divine and mortal relations. However, those are so varied and different that doing so is a maddening exercise.
Worldly Goddess
The grandest of divine existences that live upon Veltrona, and the first among the ranks of the 'Goddesses'. As they're limited to the reach of Veltrona, as far as anyone can tell, they're hence called 'worldly goddesses'. It is a distinction added in later on, particularly to appease the other peoples.
Dragons traditionally refer to all beings of such an existence as 'exalted', but the lines blur when faith-born divinity emerges. These manifestations don't exactly line up with the hierarchy sensibly, and lumping them together with the exalted caused friction in scholarly circles. Its further complicated by the fact that exalted who are blessed by the Origin Goddesses are ridiculously powerful. Their capabilities can easily rival, if not exceed, the Worldly Goddesses, so any semblance of a power relationship is completely whacky.
The most reliable detail is that Worldly Goddesses are not bound to the rules of exaltation. They're usually constrained by other ones, such as the tenets of their religion, foundational existence, or some other limitation. They can continue to grow, and those powered by faith readily rise and fall with the reach and depth of said faith. Because of these rules, that's often how immortals and transcendents can come to exceed
them as well.
More often than not, Worldly Goddesses are busy keeping the various divinities around Veltrona in some semblance of order. Countless parties are pushing their own agendas, be they mortal or divine. The messes that result are endless and unceasing, leaving them often to a role of caretaker and guardian. It doesn't help when a lot of upstarts seek to 'overthrow the Heavens' in their ambitions, either.
It's not an easy life being a Worldly Goddess.
Origin Goddess
At the farthest realms of understanding, there are existences beyond mortal comprehension. The so-called '
Origin Goddesses' are believed to be divine beings far removed from Veltrona. In fact, they push the boundaries of the universe itself. They do not obey the rules as others do, for if anything,
they are the rules. The more they choose to manifest, the greater reality bends, ultimately shattering to accommodate their alien and unfathomable existences.
In other words, they are as much apart of the universe itself as they are outside of it. Few truly grasp their paradoxical natures, perhaps being physically incapable of doing so at all.
What makes them 'goddesses' over other ideas, such as eldritch horrors, is their intrinsic relationship to the universe. As a
jiuweihu scholar once said, "if we are the cauldron, then they are the caretakers who tend it". Parts of them can be found everywhere, forming the foundations that all beings ultimately call 'life'. Those willing to fully question everything may find existence, in its entirety, is comprised
of them. Of course, this is an easy road to madness for those unprepared.
Some of the Origin Goddesses are more perceivable than others, in one form or another. It-That-Loves-Us shares a close relationship with sapient life, for it embodies love in all its pure forms. While it is obviously out of sight and unknowable to many, those who 'delve into love', will encounter it
much faster than the others. A good comparison would be a goddess so difficult to discern, it is simply called
the Fathom. Suspected to be the origin of all mana, and thus magic, no amount of 'delving into mana' brings one any closer to it. Few have any idea what draws its attention, let alone how to go about doing so.
For their part, the Origin Goddesses simply
are. Those among mortals who perceive them may try to worship, revile, or ignore them, but they are always there. It is scarcely countable the times they have listened, or perhaps they always are, and their words cannot reach mortal life? Being unbound by the limitations of linear time, it can be difficult to imagine.
Although, people do enjoy projecting their own limitations on the limitless.
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