Order of the Lightkeepers
"Each tower blazes brightly
To guide us on our way
So that those upon the sea
Will make it home one day."
The Order of the Lightkeepers is the largest religious institution in the Great Ring. It is made up of nearly six thousand individual priesthoods who can vary widely in their practices and tenets. Their core unifying principle is that all who sail the ocean should be safeguarded and guided, that every sailor has the best chance to come home again.
The Order collectively operates and maintains the Ring of Light, a network of lighthouses that extends around the entire Great Ring. Each lighthouse houses a chapter of the order, and is the physical anchor for a god. You can read more about the Ring of Light here.
The First Lighthouse
While the Fáros Óneiro may not be the first lighthouse ever built, it is the oldest lighthouse in the Ring of Light and the birthplace of the Order of the Lightkeepers. Located on the island of Lindos, it was constructed nearly two thousand years ago, and manifested a god a few decades later. When the island was conquered by Hundaru of Telmun, the priests of the Fáros Óneiro had already conceived of the Ring of Light, and managed to convince him that a Ring-wide system of lighthouses would benefit him and his armies. During the early years of the Telmunic Empire, lighthouses were constructed across the southern arc of the Great Ring, reaching from the Kaphtor Islands all the way to Lahat. In the centuries that followed, the Order of the Lightkeepers formed to complete the Ring of Light, and they persist to maintain it to this day.
Sacred Lights
The lighthouses of the Ring of Light are considered sacred ground by nearly all the cultures around the Great Ring, and especially so by sailors and those who live on the sea. Attacking or hindering the operation of a lighthouse is nearly unheard of, and sailors consider it an invitation to disaster. There have been instances where troops were ordered to attack lighthouses to serve a larger military goal, but sailors and soldiers alike mutinied rather than commit such sacrilege. In the few cases where attacks were attempted, the attackers soon learned that attempting to destroy the physical body of a manifested god is not a great way to continue living.
Structure
The Order is made up of thousands of individual chapters, all of whom are considered equal to each other. However, some of the chapters are older, larger, or command additional respect for some other reason, and their words carry more weight when the Order meets in conclave.
Conclaves are held every five years. Not every chapter sends a representative to each Conclave - while all have the right to attend, many of the smaller lighthouses do not have the personnel to spare for a long trip to Conclave. Sometimes, several small regional lighthouses will send a single representative that may speak for them all.
Conclaves are hosted by the Solennefrieden Lighthouse on Guith. They discuss the construction of new lighthouses, the distribution of resources, and and the maintenance of the Order's system of Lighthouse Signaling. Notably, theological matters are typically not a part of the conclave discussion, and it is considered rude to speak overmuch about the god of one lighthouse or another. Exceptions to this occur when one of the chapters violates the core principles of the Order, such as in the case of Sunda Lighthouse. Only in drastic circumstances will the Order interfere with the internal workings of one of the chapters.
The Gods of the Lighthouse
The gods of the Great Ring are Numina, born out of the beliefs of mortals and anchored to physical locations in our world. In the Ring of Light, each lighthouse has its own divine spirit and priesthood. These gods all share the common goal of safeguarding ships at sea, but frequently also have related interests as well. For example, the god of the Fáros Óneiro seeks to guide those lost in the Dream home, while the Tamashii no Akari helps lost spirits find their proper afterlife. You can read more about how gods in the Great Ring work here.
This article was originally written for Spooktober 2024. You can find all of my Spooktober Articles at Spooktober Central.
This article was originally written for Spooktober 2023. You can find all of my Spooktober Articles at Spooktober Central.
The lighthouses are one of my favourite things about this setting. I would love to be a fly on the wall at one of the conclaves.
Explore Etrea | March of 31 Tales
Thank you! I'm very fond of my lighthouses.