Priest Tree

"To feel the Old Gods and the spirits, one needs only to meditate and pray wherever able. But to touch them, to reach the tendrils of the soul and to spread the energy of an aura within the spirits themselves, that is to happen between the bark of the Eshon Tree."

Purpose / Function

Priests that are a part of the Vider Chiefdom pray and commune with spirits inside this tree. In the hollowed out trunk the tree is large enough to fit five average sized people. The reflecting pool in the middle reflects the sky from an opening in the top and enhances the spiritual energy inside the tree, creating an ethereal tether.

Alterations

The tree is hollowed out in the middle as well as opening a hole in the top of the trunk to be open to the sky. The water pocket that the trees normally use as storage is expanded and made into a reflecting pool in the center of the hollow. Each Tribe's Priests might make slight changes to the trees, such as carving cubbies on the inside to hold herbs or other implements for rituals, but those vary by Tribe. The entryway is a simple carved archway covered in either a blanket of lichen or actual hanging blankets depending on the tree.

History

Only a handful of these trees exist, 6 to be exact, but five of the six are used by the Priests in each of the five Tribes. When they were first discovered, early Priests could sense an innate sort of spiritual magic in these trees, and they were chosen to be a special place of conduit to the spirits. While five of the trees were approached as a type of holy shelter, the sixth tree was tended and protected separately in order to replace one of the others if they were to die. The Priests guard the seeds that are dropped.

Alternative Names

Eshon Tree

Type

Tree

Related Professions

• Old Gods Priesthood

Owning Organization

Vider Chiefdom