Religion

Most races possess some sort of cultural faith that reflects their values, fears, and hopes. Races sometimes personify their faiths in the form of a god, but members of the race understand that their “god” is really just a symbol of their philosophical beliefs, not an actual being. Some, however, see actual beings as gods or demigods that do exist (either as a God, gods, or demigods is debatable among the races themselves), such as those who view Cenarius as a demigod. Others, such as the titans, are seen as beings that actually exist, not symbolism for philosophic beliefs. Others, such as Firelord Ragnaros, are seen by some to have achieved a god-like status. Most racial faiths include the concept of an afterlife, along with cultural mores and taboos to indicate the correct path to the afterlife. Spiritual leaders who guide their race along the proper philosophical path tend to be shaman or druids. Few races revere an actual deity to whom they can dedicate their lives as priests.Dark Factions, pg. 88 In the quest The Formation of Felbane, the quest giver, Loramus Thalipedes, mentions the concept of a singular god as a blessing; "May your determination and faith, carry you through this ordeal. Should you fail, know that your God smiles down upon you, mortal." Strangely enough, in the first two Warcraft games (including expansions), humans referred to a singular God behind the Holy Light.
==Faiths==
The following are the currently known religions in the Warcraft universe:
==The Light and the Shadow==
===The Light===
* Members: Humans, worgen, Forsaken, dwarves, gnomes, high elves, blood elves, tauren, orcs, Mag'har orcs, Zandalari trolls, half-elves, naaru, draenei, lightforged draenei
* Organizations: The Church of the Holy Light, The Brotherhood of Northshire, The Knights of the Silver Hand, The Scarlet Crusade, The Argent Dawn, The Brotherhood of the Light, The Argent Crusade, The Hand of Argus, The Light's Chosen, The Aldor, The Sha'tar, The Blood Knights, The Sunwalkers, The Seers, The Conclave, The Army of the Light, The Lightbound, The Lok'osh
===The Shadow===
* Members: Many Forsaken, humans, and various races of both factionsWorld of Warcraft: The Magazine Issue 4, pg. 84
* Organizations: The Cult of the Forgotten Shadow, The Conclave, The Cult of the Void
==Arcane==
Religions or ideologies that study arcane magic and its corrupted version the Fel magic
===Arcane===
* Members: Humans, high elves, naga, gnomes, blood elves, draenei, undead, trolls, dwarves, night elves, worgen, goblins, orcs 
* Organizations: The Kirin Tor, The Echo of Life
===Fel and Demonology===
* Members: Warlocks, Demon hunters, Demonic sapient races, and those corrupted by fel
* Organizations: The Burning Legion, The Illidari, The Shadow Council
==Nature worship==
Religions that worship nature and feel the need to take care of it.
===Shamanism===
* Members: Orcs, trolls, tauren, draenei, furbolgs, Wildhammer dwarves, tuskarr, quilboar, goblins, and ogres
* Organizations: The Earthen Ring, The Mag'har, The Kurenai
===Druidism===
* Members: Night elves, tauren, half-elves, Wildhammer dwarves, furbolgs (debated), worgen, Gilneans, high elves (somewhat), trolls, Kul Tirans
* Organizations: The Cenarion Circle, The Cenarion Expedition, The Thornspeakers, The Harvest-Witches
===Geomancy===
* Members: Pandaren, troggs, quilboar, kobolds
==Major deities and religions==
The Major deities and religions worshiped by the races.
===Elune/Mu'sha===
The Worship of the Moon White Lady as a divine entity, by the tauren and the nigh elves.Conversation between Aponi Brightmane and Tahu Sagewind 
* Members: Night elves, wildkin, tauren
* Organizations: The Sisters of Elune, The Sentinels
===Earth Mother===
The worship of Nature as a singular deity.
* Members: Tauren, Orcs
===Sky Father===
A mysterious deity of the tauren.
* Members: Tauren
===An'she===
The worship of the Sun as a deity.
* Members: Tauren
===Old Gods===
The worship of the Old Gods, mysterious, godlike, and great malefic horrors
* Members: Naga, fire and air elementals, qiraji, nerubians, Black dragonflight, Twilight dragonflight, Mantid.
* Organizations: The Twilight's Hammer cult
===Loa and voodoo===
* Members: Trolls
* Organizations: Atal'Jani, Hakkari (Atal'ai tribe), Pa'kura, Atal'Shadra, Torcalin, Zandalari prelates
===Dragon worship===
The worship of dragons, reptilian creatures, usually winged, with magical or unusual abilities
* Members: Humans, orcs, draenei, night elves, dragonspawn
* Organizations: The Wyrmcult, The Sect of the Dragons
===Mystery of the Makers (The titans)===
The Study of the Titans, metallic giants that travel across the cosmos bringing order to worlds.
* Members: Ironforge dwarves
* Organizations: The Explorers' League
===Cult of the Damned===
A necromantic cult that studies necromancy and worships the Lich King as the God of death/undeath.
* Members: Undead and cultists of all races
* Organizations: The Scourge, Cult of the Damned
===Tidemother===
A sea deity worshiped by the people of Kul Tiras.
* Members: Kul Tirans
* Organizations: Tidesages
==Minor deities==
=== Arkkoroc ===
Worship of the Arkkoroc a sea giant god.
* Members: Sea giants, murlocs, makrura
* The Arkkoran
=== Borrok the Devourer ===
An immense lava worm found in a pit in Frostfire Ridge, worshipped by the nearby Grimfrost ogres of Grimfrost Hill. 
=== Nath===
*Nath is the ogre war god revered by both ogres and half-ogres. The term mok'nathal means the "sons of nath".
* Members: Ogres and half-ogres
===Tuskarr deities===
Assortment of deities that might be Loa and/or Ancient Guardians
*Tayutka
A mysterious spirit that guided the ancestors of the tuskarr to Kaskala.
*Karkut
Is a spirit to watch over the dead, according to what tuskarr claim he might be the Lich King.
*Issliruk
A spirit of war depicted as a silver eagle.
*Oacha'noa
A sea goddess that the tuskarr contact to know their destiny
* Members: Tuskarr
===Arakkoan deities===
*Terokk/Rukhmar
Terokk was the greatest hero of the arakkoa, closely associated with their god Rukhmar. He left his people when worship of Rukhmar began to wane, leading to speculation that he was Rukhmar in mortal form. It is unknown if they are the same being, or are separate beings that were combined in stories as the legends of Terokk were retold throughout the years. 
* Members: Arakkoa
*Anzu
Anzu is a god of the Grishnath arakkoa. The Oracles of the Raven prophesied that the Raven God would soon rise again.Whispers of the Raven God
* Members: Grishnath arakkoa
===Murloc deities===
*Deep Mother
A belief similar to the belief of the Earthmother only applied to the oceans
*The One in the Deeps
A deity worshipped by murlocs, it's speculated he's either Neptulon or an Old God
*Zar'jira 
A mysterious goddess, and powerful naga spellcaster.
* Members: Murloc
===Murmur===
Murmur is a being from a dimension of the cosmos unfathomable to mortal minds. Its very entrance into existence shattered all reality around it. Murmur is a god that, when summoned by a mortal possessed of arcane and dark knowledge, eventually destroyed the world of the summoner. The Shadow Council is now trying to bring forth this entity into Outland.
* Organizations: Shadow Council
==See also==
*Religions category for a list of other categories or articles on religions.
==References==
Category:Lore
Category:Religions