The Grand Unifying Theory

The Grand Unifying Theory is a popular theological concept among secular minded western scholars. It argues that all the world’s religions are different viewpoints of the same group of divine entities. The theory goes that there is one top tier creator god, 20-30 second and third tier gods, and countless lesser gods, demi-gods, and other divine beings, but that different religions focus on different tiers, with Monotheistic Religions focusing on the top god, Pantheon Religions focusing on one or more individuals of the middle tier, and Guardian Spirit Type Religions focusing on the lesser divine beings relevant to their geographic area.
== Monotheistic Religions ==
Monotheistic religions emphasize the one Creator God, seeing (nearly) all other divine entities as direct servants of this one individual (or misinterpretations and false gods). Examples of this include the one God worshipped by the followers of the Nine Saints, as well as certain interpretations of the Earthmother, the All-Father, and the god of the Joos. 
== Pantheon religions ==
Pantheon religions believe that the creator god has become largely disengaged from the day to day management of reality and that emphasis should be on the next tier or two of gods who they see as having responsibility over the continued function of this world. Some Pantheon religions focus entirely on a single god (while acknowledging the existence of others), others as many as 30. There is a lot of debate over “which gods correspond to which” across different cultures as roles rarely line up well from one religion to the next, but there are certain archetypes that appear in most cultures who are seen by many as the same being viewed through different cultural lens:
* The Creator God – Most religions agree there is just one being who is responsible for the initial creation of this world. Some religions focus heavily on this god (see Monotheistic religions) but others see them as relatively disengaged and as having no more influence over the affairs of mortals than the next tier or two of gods below them. Some pantheons depict this individual as male (the All-Creator, The Celestial Father, The Great Gold Lion, Amu, etc.), some as female (the Earthmother, Marusia, The Mother of the Earth, Gaia, Ulgnah/Ignah, etc.), and some as having both male and female aspects (Treesoul, Queveron, etc.). The creator god is often associated with fertility, plants, and the earth.
* The Three Sisters – A trio of goddesses that show up in many religions in some form or other, though their exact roles can vary. 
** The Mother Goddess – Secondary creator goddess, often seen as a daughter of the Creator God, but sometimes as a wife. She is present in most pantheons, but fills different roles in each one. Many races believe she had a direct hand in their creation and that she favors them over other races. She is often associated with crops and fertility, except in some areas where the Creator God already fills that niche (though some areas simply have two similar gods) and other areas where she is seen as more of a protector. Examples include Nathra (northwest), Meritele (west), Ashtor (southeast), Forlaitha, Freggya and Aurelia (all northeast). A more unusual example sometimes cited is The Great Mother Toad.
** The Moon/Magic Goddess – Usually seen as a daughter of the Creator God. Said to have been created to guide the development of mortals, though she is said to have helped create some races directly as well. Associated with magic, knowledge, nighttime, creativity, art, and dreams. She is often associated with owls, but also sometimes snakes. Comes in many different forms including Irem, Eili, Miruna, Kagal, Nuit, Aoghm, Aobhunnun, Uana, etc. According to some pantheons she has several daughters who she shares her responsibilities with.
** The Prosperity Goddess – Usually seen as another daughter of the Creator God. Associated with love, beauty, successful harvests, summer, prosperity, wealth, and luck. Examples include Zolovara, Sadva, and Solstara. The Twin Goddesses of the Drunigs may represent two aspects of her. Said to have been involved in the creation of several races.
* The Brothers – A group of gods, who along with the Three Sisters, created most of the world’s demigods, faerie lords, animal spirits, and many of its mortal races. The exact number varies by religion.
** The Hedonist – Usually seen as a son of the Creator God. Created along with the Prosperity Goddess to ensure mortals feel joy in their lives. Associated with excess, wine, lust, indulgence, and autumn. Often seen as being a bit of a trickster. In some cultures, there is overlap between some of his roles, and those of the more benevolent aspects of the Gluttony God. Takes many different shapes in different cultures including a young male or female (Audric and Razvratnik), an older lecherous male (Oengus), or a pile of food (Onba). Many fey races and faerie lords claim to be descended from him. 
** The Beast Lord – Usually seen as a son of the Creator God, but some see him as a demon who managed to convince mortals to include him in their pantheons. In some cultures his role is merged with (or at least heavily overlaps with) that of the Dark Mother. He is often seen as the creator of many predators, both animal and sentient, including certain unseelie fey and animal spirits. Examples include Gorn and Zverukitel. 
** The Storm/Winter/Wind God – Usually seen as a son of the Creator God who was tasked with managing climates and weather patterns. Often seen as harsh and uncaring. Examples include Kartaluk and Firn. Said to have created many of the world’s flying creatures, fey, and animal and nature spirits.
** The Forest God – Usually seen as a son of the Creator God who was tasked with protecting forests and jungles. Said to be the creator of many plant based fey and nature spirits who help him in his task. Examples include Silvin and Soshotnik.
* The Three Guardians – It is said they were created by the Creator God to protect the world from excursions by hostile foreign gods and demons. Each was assigned one third of the world to protect.
** Bronzar – Protects the west and uses dragons as divine servants. He has a large number of followers (Azan Faith and variants) who acknowledge the existence of other gods, but feel given Bronzar’s strong emphasis on smiting evil and encouraging social stability, there is little need for worshipping other gods. Bronzar is the most hardline of the Guardians and is said to not get along with a number of other gods who he sees as more lenient towards demons and such. It didn’t help that in ancient times his divine dragon servants meddled in affairs far outside his portion of the world.
** Vursid/Wurna – Protects the north and uses animal spirits as his divine servants, though he often empowers followers directly (usually only for a short period of time) instead of creating new servants. Unlike Bronzar, he seems to feel a certain level of violence is required to keep societies from becoming too soft, and as a result has become a war god in addition to his role as defender of his region against demons and such.
** Tauora – Protects the east and uses lamassu and a few other such beings as her servants. According to followers of Bronzar and Wurna, she became either corrupt or complacent and stopped filling her original role and became too concerned with the opinions of her mortal followers. Mostly found in the Khenomeric and Gilgameshi Pantheons, but Lamagash of the Cowmen is thought to be somehow linked to her as well.
* The Ocean Gods – It is said there are several distinct ocean gods created to manage different oceans. Examples include Brezz (northwest), Axile (west), Argon (south), Rusalochka (east), and Legoluboy (north). In the northwest there are several other ocean gods whose lineage is unclear, such as Caijin. Some are said to be powerful faerie lords, and others are said to be outsider gods. The Ocean Gods have a range of behaviors ranging from warm and nurturing to harsh and uncaring depending on their respective ocean. Several oceanic races are said to have been created by them.
* The Gods of Death – Although some theorize there are only one or two gods of death that take many different forms in different cultures, others feel there are several gods who are all related to one another. In many religions, it is said the original God of Death was created by the Creator God to oversee the movement of mortal souls between various dimensions. The God of Death had several children with other gods in order to create several lesser gods of death who could help him with this task. At some point there was a falling out among those who wanted to remain focused on their original task and saw the undead as an abomination, and those who wanted to interfere in the affairs of mortals by using their powers to create and control the undead. Those who wanted to stop the undead include Corvic (northwest) and Mirslava (northeast), while those who use the undead as servants include Uruc (southeast), Shamhna and Saelm (northeast), and Zanzarah (north). 
* The Dark One/The Dark Mother – Many cultures have a god or goddess (usually a goddess) associated with witchcraft and other dark magic, as well as self-reliance and trickery. It is said this individual helped create many of the darker aspects of this world including many of the unseelie fey (particularly hags) as well as dark nature spirits, poisonous plants, and patient predators. There is much debate on the true nature of this being. Some say he/she is the mortal interpretation of the darker aspects of the Creator God or the Magic God. Others think he/she is a demon or an outsider god who managed to enter this world early enough to become woven into its cultural and metaphysical fabric. Examples of this god include Murga, The Dark One, Crnya, Hekatarina, and Jesmeralda. She/he is also associated with Uun according to a few fringe religions and theories.
* The God of Action and the Goddess of Harmony – These two gods appear in several different pantheons and religions. They seem to enjoy meddling in each other’s affairs. Given their low profile in most creation myths, their high levels of direct contact with mortals, and their tendency to focus most of their energy in one geographical area at a time, it is commonly believed they are outsider gods (see below).
* Other Gods – A number of other gods show up in some pantheons but not others. Some of the more common ones include the Goddess of Greed, and the Sun Goddess.
* Lesser Gods and Demigods – In many religions the gods had offspring with each other, who in turn had offspring, with each generation getting weaker than the last. Every religion seems to have different interpretations of who is related to who and what roles these lesser gods play. Some of them have never had dedicated followers or other indications of interacting directly with the mortal world and may just be fictional entities meant to explain certain natural phenomenon. Others entities claiming direct ancestry of the gods are extremely powerful in certain areas like the Bog-Witch or the Bright Ones of Faarowt.
* The Outsider Gods – There are a number of gods that many religions and metaphysical researchers consider to be from outside the dimensions created by this universe’s Creator God. Some are incomprehensible cosmic horrors (sometimes known as Far Outsiders), while others appear as superpowered mortals with relatable goals. Some pantheon religions shun these individuals, but others consider them to be valid entities to worship. The worst of the outsider gods are the demons (see below). Some pantheon religions, particularly in the south, make no distinction between “original” and “outsider” gods and their creation stories claim all gods, demon lords, and other such individuals were involved in the creation of the world from the beginning and that they are all offspring of the Creator God. Commonly cited examples include Uun and the God of Action, but many other gods are considered to be outsider gods by one group or another. 
== Guardian Spirit Type Religions ==
These religions believe all the gods have become disengaged from mortal affairs and instead focus their worship on lesser divine entities they feel look out for their particular culture/region/tribe. Alternately, they simply don’t distinguish between the gods and lesser divine entities. These lesser divine entities may be Faerie Lords (common throughout the north), animal and nature spirits (common throughout the south but some in the north and central areas as well), or a mortal they believe (correctly or not) has ascended to demigod status (Nine Saints, certain drow gods, Dihong Xinjianng, Changrilan God-Emperors, Gilgam, the Emperors of Elanxa, Avangar, etc.)
== Demon Worship ==
There is no real consensus on which evil gods are demons, which are hostile outsider gods, and which are indigenous gods to this world who are simply dark by nature. Common traits associated with powerful demon lords include granting power in return for evil acts, having armies of evil beings at their disposal, and an interest in conquering parts of this world by making breaches in reality. Demon worshippers are outlawed in most nations and therefore often operate in secret, seeking out the power hungry and depraved. Entities often considered to be demons include Mg’umba, Gogotha/Gogothi/Gozer, the Spider Goddess, the Volcano God, Nuckelavee, the Glutton God, Althazzar, Raksasa, and Ulek-Mol. Some cultures also consider the darker of the gods of death and some other gods like the Dark Mother and the Beast Lord to be demons as well. 
Category:Cosmogony
Category:Divinity
Category:Myth
Category:Religion