Sehanine Moonbow

“**Sehanine** [**Moonbow**] is Corellon’s beloved; Corellon is Sehanine’s creator. Sehanine is Corellon’s shadow; Corellon is Sehanine’s reflection. Sehanine is the moon; Corellon is the moon’s crescent. Sehanine is the night sky; Corellon is the sun and all the stars.

“No god of the Seldarine is as intertwined with Corellon or presents so many paradoxes for worshipers to unravel, but this role befits Sehanine, for she is a god of mysteries as much as anything else. Many non-elves find it easiest to think of Sehanine as the companion of Corellon and the god of the moon, but to elves she is much more than that. The moon passes from one phase to the next, and Sehanine watches over all such cycles, be it from season to season or cradle to grave. She is midwife to elf mothers, ushering souls into the world. She is also thought to stand beside dying elves, to greet their departing spirits and set them on the path to Arvandor. Sehanine serves as patron of the lost and any who travel, as well as those who seek meaning. Elves beseech her to provide relief from madness, and they mark her symbol on graves and tombs to invoke her protection of the dead. In these comforting aspects, Sehanine is often imagined as a willowy, gentle male elf with shining eyes that reveal both melancholy and tenderness in their gaze when depicted alongside his beloved Corellon.

“In stories of the Seldarine, Sehanine is Corellon’s steadfast companion, the one being who can persuade Corellon to pause and reflect rather than allow his emotions to rule him. Corellon can be resplendent with joy or shaking with anger, but a word or a look from Sehanine is enough to check or subtly alter Corellon’s mood and behavior, redirecting the god to a less extreme course of action. Some elven legends treat Sehanine as Corellon’s spouse or as a favored child, but other stories hint at a deeper truth. They say Sehanine was formed from the first drop of blood spilled from Corellon’s body, and so she reminds Corellon that even as a divine being, he can be harmed.

“Sehanine’s priests often seek her guidance by entering into a state of true sleep and sifting through their dreams for signs. But Sehanine has another way of sending messages to the elves of the world. The crescent-shaped cataracts that appear in the eyes of an elderly elf at Transcendence are symbolic of the moonbow, an astronomical phenomenon with which she is associated. It appears in the night sky above the moon as a luminous arc of refracted light, no brighter than the moon itself. Only elves and some half-elves can perceive this sign, for it is meant only for Corellon’s people. What it signifies depends on the phase of the moon. Above a full moon, when it is most often detected, it means that an elf of great importance and advanced age will soon journey to Arvandor. Elves who see the sign might be compelled to seek out this individual to commune with and learn from before the elder departs the world. The moonbow appearing above the moon during its other phases can be interpreted in many ways, depending on the season and the timing of its appearance. A moonbow appearing above a new moon is the most dreaded sign, for it is said to signal a coming period of great upheaval and many deaths.”

## Lunar Worship

“Temples to Sehanine Moonbow are almost always aligned with the heavens to enable the priests to track the motion and phases of the moon. The sleeping quarters of the priests are positioned such that a shaft of light from the full moon falls on them while they are sleeping, and this silver light of Sehanine can influence their dreams and impart messages to them.

“Offerings to Sehanine are mostly made from silver, often shaped in a way that is reminiscent of the full moon. Cups, bowls, cloak pins, and plates of silver are found at her shrines, as well as those dedicated to the Seldarine collectively. The weapons and gear used by her followers, such as silver arrowheads, knife blades, and wooden shields, are often decorated with a stylized image of Sehanine’s eye with rays coming out of it - a warning to the elves’ enemies that Sehanine’s gaze has fallen upon them.”

## References

1. ↑ Mearls, M., and J. Crawford. 2018. “Elves.” In *Mordenkainen’s Tomb of Foes*, 46–48. Wizards of the Coast.