The elves have a unique religious perspective. They worship literally thousands of gods. For them, every field, every tree, every flower and every creature of the forest has a guardian spirit, a being of spiritual energy that represents the essence of that particular type of creature. For instance, all oak trees are brothers and their life is given to them by the great oak tree spirit. Likewise, there is a spirit for wolves, a spirit for daisies, a spirit of squirrels, etc. These spirits reside in a realm which is at once intertwined with and apart from the mortal realm. It is to these guardian spirits of the forest that elves pray. This philosophy/religion is often referred to as "Elven Mysticism".
Because essence is basically made of life energy, elves are in actuality, worshipping life itself. In a broader way, the elves worship nature and life and magic. Elves pray to all three in a unity that transcends the explanations of human mages and priests. Elves see the Universe as a unified whole, almost a living thing. Essence is the life blood of nature.
All of their gods are false gods, but in practice, their priests and healers generate spells that are somewhere between a wizard’s magic and a coalescent phenomena. This is because elves are so adept at magic and the flow of essence comes so naturally to them.
As a culture, the elves have little organized religion. Worship for the majority of elves is a very personal thing, not to be cluttered up with ritual and protocol. On occasion, elves may gather to weep or sing or pray, but such is always spontaneous and natural.. Only those elves who go out into the world and interact with other cultures ever adopt the worship of individual gods.
This page last updated Monday, October 08, 2007. Copyright 1990-2008 David M. Roomes.