Religion was an important aspect of Game of Thrones that contributed to several core character arcs as well as connecting and dividing the houses throughout the series’ eight seasons. While the Faith of the Seven has the most influence on the Seven Kingdoms’ rule, several other religions have important roles in the overall story arc of Game of Thrones.

As with the real world, Game of Thrones has several religions that tend to dominate certain regions and peoples. Westeros’ two most common religions worship either the Old Gods of the First Men or the New Gods of The Seven. These are the most explored religions in the series as most of the main characters adhere to one or the other. Essos has several religions with much less abundant followings such as the Lord of Light and the Many-Faced God of the Faceless Men.

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The numerous religions explored, their names, their purposes, their followers, and their roles in Game of Thrones’ core conflicts can be quite confusing. With less time to deeply investigate and give context to the gods of Westeros and Essos than A Song of Ice and Fire, the series only gives a few explanations here and there that can easily be forgotten. Here is a guide to the major religions featured in Game of Thrones.

The Old Gods of the Forest

The Old Gods of the Forest are nameless and faceless, found in the trees and streams and natural elements of forests. The Old Gods are most commonly worshipped by the Northerners, including the Starks, Umbers, Boltons, and the Wildlings. There isn’t much structure to the old religion, but followers tend to worship the godswood at the heart tree through contemplation and devotion. The history of the Old Gods begins with the Children of the Forest who were the non-human first inhabitants of Westeros before the arrival of the First Men. The Children of the Forest are responsible for the carving of faces into the sacred Weirwood trees worshipped by followers of the Old Gods that can be found all around Westeros, though primarily in the North. The Children of the Forest and the First Men battled for a time until they reached peace whereby the First Men agreed to never cut down another Weirwood tree. The First Men adopted the religion of the Old Gods which remained Westeros’ dominant religion until the Andals invaded, bringing the Faith of Seven from the east and cutting down most Weirwood trees in the south. Eventually, only the Houses and regions north of the Neck remained loyal to the Old Gods.

The religion of the Old Gods is one major thing that separates House Stark from the other major Houses that tend to worship the Seven. The Old Gods seem to be one way in which Bran and the Starks derive their warg powers, and how Bran learns to become the Three-Eyed Raven. Before Bran, the Three-Eyed Raven was located in a great weirwood tree supported by the last of the Children of the Forest which may have assisted his powers. The only greenseers explicitly mentioned in Game of Thrones happen to be devoted to the Old Gods, so it may be that the gods gifted the Starks, especially Bran, with these powers.

The Faith of the Seven

Also referred to as the New Gods, the Faith of the Seven is the most widely adopted religion in Westeros, and the closest tied to the Iron Throne. Besides those from the North and the Iron Islands, the rest of Game of Thrones’ Houses such as the Lannisters, Tyrells, Targaryens, Tullys, and Tarlys adhere to the Seven. The religion worships one god with seven facets: The Father (divine justice, judges souls of the dead), The Mother (mercy, peace, fertility, childbirth, the strength of women), The Maiden (beauty, purity, innocence, love), The Crone (wisdom, foresight), The Warrior (strength and courage in battle), The Smith (creation, craftsmanship, labor), and The Stranger (death, the unknown; rarely prayed to).

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The Seven are worshipped in seven-sided temples called Septs, with Septons (men) and Septas (women) serving as priests and the High Septon as the head of the Faith. The High Septon lives at the Great Sept of Baelor, located in the Seven Kingdoms’ capital of King’s Landing. The Faith has moral rules and regulations given the holy text of The Seven-Pointed Star and highly organized rituals such as how weddings are performed. Before House Targaryen conquered Westeros, the Faith Militant (the military-like force of the Faith) passed judgment and enforced regulations.

The Faith of the Seven plays a major role in Game of Thrones seasons 5 and 6, where Cersei and Tommen Lannister restore the Seven’s influence through the Faith Militant to maintain the Lannisters’ power and order in Westeros. In season 5, the Sparrows - a cult of smallfolk who believe all are equal in the eyes of the gods - arrive in King’s Landing as they recruit and preach to all. Lancel Lannister becomes a Sparrow, disavowing his title as a Lannister and, in confessing his sins, reveals his incestual relationship with Cersei and how he assisted her in killing Robert Baratheon. Cersei reveals Loras Tyrell's homosexuality and Margaery Tyrell's complicity, leading to their arrest by the Sparrows. After a long period of captivity, Cersei confesses her sins, takes a walk of atonement, and vengefully blows up the Great Sept of Baelor using wildfire with all of the Sparrows and Tyrells inside, effectively ending the Seven’s judicial influence.

The Drowned God

Theon being having water poured on his head on the shores of the Iron Islands in Game of Thrones

The Drowned God has a niche following, serving as the guiding religion for the Iron Islands. Devotees admire combative, maritime, and piratical raiding skills. The religion supports paying the “iron price” instead of the “gold price,” meaning to take and pillage instead of purchase. Revival after drowning is an important aspect, as the Drowned God is said to have drowned in the sea for the iron born, returning to life “harder and stronger.” The most common prayer said by worshipers of the Drowned God is, “What is dead may never die.” The priests, including Theon Greyjoy’s uncle, are known as Drowned Men, who dunk followers underwater for ceremonies such as baptisms and blessings.

Theon is the Game of Thrones character that reckons with the Drowned God the most, as he was born in the Iron Islands and is heir to its lordship, though was raised in Winterfell as a ward where those around him worshipped the Old Gods. He always stood by the Drowned God as a method of retaining his ironborn identity, even augmenting his beliefs when rounding up his fellow ironborn to take Winterfell and save his sister Yara. It’s Theon’s devotion to the Drowned God in his baptism that seals his betrayal of House Stark and single devotion to the Iron Islands for the first few seasons.

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The Lord of Light

The Lord of Light, also referred to as R’hllor, is a fire god (representing light, love, life) that combats the darkness, cold, and death of the world. The Lord of the Light is generally followed in Essos but made its way to Westeros as a few red priests such as Melisandre and Thoros of Myr traveled across the sea. The religion favors prophecies and visions communicated through flames, especially that of “the prince that was promised.”

The Lord of Light plays an integral role in the titular game of thrones where the prophecy of Azor Ahai, relayed by Melisandre, details who will hold the Iron Throne. Melisandre originally believes the promised prince to be Stannis Baratheon, becoming a principle advisor to his cause and influential in making sacrifices to the Lord of Light that will bring him nearer to his throne. When Stannis is killed, Melisandre is convinced the prophecy was about Jon Snow, whom she resurrects after he is murdered by members of the Night’s Watch. After meeting Daenerys Targaryen in season 6, Melisandre changes her belief to Daenerys as being the prince who was promised. Beric Dondarrion also has an important relationship with the Lord of Light, where Thoros of Myr continually uses powers from the Lord of Light to resurrect him after death in battle.

The Many-Faced God of Death

Jaqen H'ghar in the hall of faces from Game of Thrones

The Many-Faced God is a minor religion followed by the Faceless Men of Braavos in Essos, with Jaqen H’ghar as the Faceless Man acting in Westeros. The Faceless Men believe that death-like gods from religions such as the Seven, the Drowned God, and the Lord of Light are all different ways the God of Death has revealed itself to humanity. To the Faceless Men, death is a gift and an end to suffering, and they are Death’s servants. Their victims cannot be chosen for personal reasons, they must follow the religion’s guidelines and enter an assassin’s contract in which the requestors pay a price. The Faceless Men must become “no one,” abandoning any hint of their past lives and identities to better serve the Many-Faced God. The faces of those who are assassinated or given the ease of suffering by the Faceless Men are subsequently used as disguises.

Arya Stark befriends Jaqen H’ghar in season 2 of Game of Thrones, saving him from dying in a fire to which he informs her she must choose three people to die as she now owes a debt to the God of Death. Eventually, Arya learns to become a Faceless Man in season 5 where she trains at the House of Black of White in Braavos. As punishment, Jaqen turned Arya blind until she had incredible combat skills and could believably pass as a Faceless Man. Once she learns the powers of the God of Death, she returns to Westeros to exact revenge and kill those on her list.

Next: Game of Thrones: Every City Daenerys Targaryen Conquered (& How)