The Daivasta

The Daivasta the title of any of several anthologies that contains important stories about a variety of deities. Originally published in the First Empire as an introduction to foreign deities, the term has come to refer to any collection of lore covering a wide array of deities.

Purpose

The First Empire was a unified coalition of humans, elves, dwarves, halflings, gnomes and a number of other less common but similarly intelligent species, brought together by the shelter provided by Anchors, a technology that was carefully controlled by the Imperial elite. Promoting that sense of unity was a major concern in first several centuries of the Empire.
The Daivasta was first published in this period, primarily being a primer listing and giving basic information on several major deities from each of these species, serving as an introduction to the majority of religions of the Empire, as well as presenting a couple of key stories such as "The Worldbuilder's Masterpiece," subtly reinforcing the ideas of a handful of specific deities who were particularly important in the halls of power within the Empire. As religions evolved, new editions were produced to update that information, and various "pantheons" were released containing a much deeper coverage of a particular cultural group's deities, containing more detailed stories and more involved descriptions for the selected group.
In the 17 centuries since the fall of the Empire, the Daivasta typically varies dramatically, both on a country by country basis and by region within those countries, containing deep, pantheon level detail about deities who are particularly prevalent in that country or that specific region, as well as providing a less in depth summary for other deities. The contents of a particular region's edition of the Daivasta can tell a religious scholar a great deal about the culture, as the relative importance of different deties provides a great deal of information about cultural values and priorities.