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| + | {{Infobox religion |
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| + | | Title= Old Gods of the Forest |
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| + | | Image= Winterfell_Godswood.jpg |
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| + | | Type= [[wikipedia:Polytheism|Polytheistic]], [[wikipedia:Animism|animistic]] |
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| + | | Clergy= ''(none)'' |
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| + | | Location = Primarily [[The North]] <br>(and [[Beyond the Wall]]),<br> a scattered minority in the rest of [[Westeros]] |
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| + | | Leader= ''(none'') |
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| + | | Place = }} |
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| + | {{Quote|But there are some who still keep to the Old Way, worshiping the faceless gods of the Children of the Forest and the First Men.|[[Bran Stark]]|The Old Gods and the New (Complete Guide to Westeros)}} |
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| + | The '''Old Gods of the Forest''' are a collection of innumerable and unnamed spirits of nature, which are worshiped by many people of [[the North]] and small numbers elsewhere in [[Westeros]]. It is the old religion of Westeros, supplanted by the [[Faith of the Seven]] which was brought to the continent by the [[Andals]] and is now the dominant faith of the continent. Though the two religions have coexisted for more than six thousand years, there is still tension between the most devout adherents of the two faiths. |
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| + | The Old Gods were originally worshiped by the [[Children of the Forest]], the non-human original inhabitants of Westeros, for thousands of years before the arrival of the [[First Men]] from the east twelve thousand years ago. It was the Children of the Forest who carved the faces into weirwood trees. The Children and their priests, the greenseers, [[Wars of the First Men and the Children of the Forest|successfully fought]] the First Men to a standstill and they signed a Pact of mutual peace and cooperation. It gave the deep forests to the children, but all other land in Westeros to the First Men, who promised never to cut down the sacred weirwood trees again. Over the succeeding four thousand years, the First Men came to worship the Old Gods as well.<ref>[[Complete Guide to Westeros]]: "The Old Gods and the New"</ref><ref name="VG Gods Old and New">[http://viewers-guide.hbo.com/game-of-thrones/season2/#!/guide/appendix/gods-old-and-new/ HBO viewers guide, season 2 appendix, Gods Old and New entry]</ref> |
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| + | [[File:Tree.png|thumb|left|The carved face of a heart tree.]]After the war against the [[White Walkers]] in [[The Long Night]] eight thousand years ago, the Children gradually declined throughout Westeros. The worship of the Old Gods remained strong among the First Men in Westeros until the [[Andal Invasion|invasion of the Andals]] six thousand years ago, who brought the Faith of the Seven with them from the east. The Andals slaughtered the Children of the Forest, viewing their magic as an abomination before the Seven. The Andals cut down the weirwood trees in the south, which were sacred to the Old Gods. |
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| − | :[url=http://www.iforce.co.nz/View.aspx?i=4v5wtnen.p4p.jpg][img]http://iforce.co.nz/i/4v5wtnen.p4p.jpg[/img][/url] |
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| + | The Faith supplanted the worship of the Old Gods in most lands south of [[the Neck]], but it remained strong in the North, where the First Men were able to halt the Andals' advance. After centuries of religious wars and strife, the two religions settled into a – sometimes uneasy – coexistence. |
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| − | :"''You clearly don't know who you're talking to, so let me clue you in: I am not in danger, Skyler. I am the danger. A guy opens his door and gets shot, and you think that of me? No! I am the one who knocks!''" |
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| − | :―Walter Hartwell White<sup>[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Cornered [src]]</sup> |
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| − | '''Walter "Walt" Hartwell White''', a.k.a. '''"Heisenberg'''", is the main protagonist of '''''[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Breaking_Bad Breaking Bad]'''''. He is a chemist, a former teacher, and recently, a producer of illicit [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Blue_Sky methamphetamine]. |
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| + | The [[Free Folk|wildlings]] also worship the Old Gods, like their distant cousins in the North. Even in the lands of House Stark, there are a few followers of the Faith of the Seven, often southern noblewomen who come to the north to secure marriage alliances. [[Beyond the Wall]], however, the Old Gods are the only gods.<ref>"[[The Pointy End]]"</ref> |
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| − | After being diagnosed with an inoperable lung cancer, Walt decided to provide money for his family after his impending death by producing crystal methamphetamine. He partnered up with his former student, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Jesse_Pinkman Jesse Pinkman] (also a meth "cook") as manufacturing and dealing duo. |
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| − | {| class="toc" id="toc" style="border-color:rgb(0,128,58);font-size:11px;" |
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| − | | |
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| − | ==Contents== |
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| − | [[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Walter_White# show]] |
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| − | |} |
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| ⚫ | |||
| − | ===At Gray Matter=== |
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| − | Born on September 7, 1959, Walter studied at Caltech with [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Elliott_Schwartz Elliott Schwartz], where he was a brilliant chemist who specialized in crystallography. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gray_Matter Gray Matter]"). In 1985, Walt's groundbreaking research regarding photon radiography contributed to a project that was awarded the Nobel Prize. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Pilot Pilot]"). He went on to co-found [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gray_Matter_Technologies Gray Matter Technologies] with his friend, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Elliott_Schwartz Elliott Schwartz]. At this time, he was dating his female lab assistant, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gretchen_Schwartz Gretchen] ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/...and_the_Bag%27s_in_the_River ...and the Bag's in the River]"). For reasons not yet explained, Walter suddenly left Gretchen during a vacation with her family, leaving her and his research behind("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Peekaboo Peekaboo]"). Walt sold his share of the company to Elliott for $5,000.("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Buyout Buyout]") Gretchen eventually went on to marry Elliot instead, and Gray Matter became a highly successful company using Walter's research. Walter secretly feels that his work was stolen from him and bitterly blames Elliott and Gretchen for his lot in life. |
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| − | ===Post-Gray Matter=== |
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| − | Around 20 years ago, Walt worked in Application Labs. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Cancer_Man Cancer Man]")He also worked in a chemical lab near Los Alamos, and met [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Skyler Skyler], a hostess at that time, in a restaurant. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Cancer_Man Cancer Man]") He moved to Albuquerque to work for Sandia Laboratories just prior to his firstborn("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Full_Measure Full Measure]"). |
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| + | ==Beliefs and Practices== |
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| − | Walt eventually went on to become a chemistry teacher at [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/JP_Wynne_High_School JP Wynne High School] where his son, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Walt_Jr Walt Jr.], also attends as a student. Financially, this job was not enough to support his family, so Walt took on a second job at a local [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Car_Wash car wash]. |
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| + | [[File:Night's Watch vows.jpg|thumb|250px|New members of the Night's Watch swearing their vows before a heart tree.]] |
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| − | ===Season 1=== |
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| + | The religion believes in innumerable and unnamed nature gods, the spirits of each tree, each rock, and each stream. |
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| − | [http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100617123318/breakingbad/images/0/0b/Inoperable.jpg]Walt's oddly calm reaction to his diagnosis in "[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Pilot Pilot]"Soon after his 50th birthday, Walt passed out while working at the car wash. He was then reluctantly rushed to the hospital via ambulance where he was eventually diagnosed with stage-three terminal lung cancer and given less than two years left to live. This grim prognosis causes a dramatic change in Walt's usual mild-mannered demeanor, and he decides he must take extreme measures to provide for his family's long-term financial security. After being invited by his DEA agent brother-in-law, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Hank_Schrader Hank], to accompany him on a live raid on a methamphetamine lab, Walt has a circumstantial encounter with one of his former students, Jesse Pinkman, whom he finds out is a meth dealer and manufacturer, also referred to as cook, who goes by the name "Captain Cook". With this information, Walt blackmails Jesse into helping him also enter the illegal drug trade on the production side, using his chemistry knowledge to cook remarkably potent and chemically pure "crystal" meth with Jesse to help him distribute it ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Pilot Pilot]"). |
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| + | Worshipers of the Old Gods do not have elaborate ceremonies, holy texts, hierarchies of priests, or large structures of worship like followers of the Faith of the Seven. Instead they practice quiet contemplation in [[godswood]]s, small areas of forest which have been enclosed within a castle's walls. Worship in a godswood is centered on [[heart tree]]s, which are great [[weirwood]] trees with a face carved into the bark. Weirwoods are considered sacred in the religion, and heart trees are the closest thing to a "shrine" that it possesses. Oaths and promises sworn in front of a heart tree are considered binding.<ref name="VG Gods Old and New" /><ref>"[[You Win or You Die]]"</ref> |
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| − | <p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;">Operating out of an [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/The_RV RV] in the desert, the two must defend themselves against two dealers, formerly Jesse's distributors, who accuse Walter of being a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drug_Enforcement_Administration DEA] agent. At first offering them the recipe to his crystal meth, Walter instead gasses them with [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/phosphine phosphine gas] and leaves them to suffocate in the RV, before driving away with an injured Jesse in tow ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Pilot Pilot]"). Walter and Jesse soon discover that [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Krazy_8 one of the dealers] is still alive, and restrain him in Jesse's basement. After a coin flip, Jesse is tasked with disposing of the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Emilio dead dealer's] body, and Walter with killing the other, a prospect that sickens him. Ignoring Walter's instructions on using a specific plastic container, Jesse dissolves the dead body in a bathtub of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/hydrofluoric_acid hydrofluoric acid], but the acid eats through the tub and the floor beneath it, spilling dissolved entrails in the hall ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Cat%27s_in_the_Bag... Cat's in the Bag...]").</p> |
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| + | The faith of the Old Gods is personal and less structured than other religions, though some basic social violations are proscribed by it, such as [[kinslaying]], [[Incest|incest]], and [[bastard]]y. It also upholds the [[Guest right|laws of hospitality]]. |
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| − | Meanwhile, Walter has begun providing food and a latrine to his prisoner, Krazy-8, whom he also confides in, attempting to find any excuse to leave him alive. Due to his illness, Walter passes out briefly while delivering food in one such instance, breaking a plate. Awakening later, Walter picks up the broken plate and goes to get the key to set Krazy-8 free. However, while upstairs, Walt has a sudden realization that there is a large sharp piece of the plate missing, which Krazy-8 picked up and hid on his person while Walt was passed out. Realizing that Krazy-8 intends to kill him the second he sets him free, Walt decides that he has no choice but to kill the dealer, which he does by pulling back on the bike lock around his neck holding him in place until he chokes to death. Following the disposal of the body, Walter severs ties with Jesse ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/...and_the_Bag%27s_in_the_River ...and the Bag's in the River]"). |
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| + | ==In the books== |
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| − | At a dinner party with his family, Walter finally reveals his cancer, having first told Skyler about his health condition some time before. They implore him to visit specialist doctors and undergo [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/chemotherapy chemotherapy]. At first adamant to decide his own fate, to die honorably instead of suffering the indignities of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/chemotherapy#Adverse_effects chemotherapy side-effects], Walter finally agrees to treatment. He pretends to accept financial assistance from his wealthy friends Elliott and Gretchen as a cover story to explain the source of payment for his chemotherapy. In reality, he approaches Jesse to rebuild their business arrangement and so pay for the treatments himself as a matter of pride. Jesse, unable to replicate Walter's recipe, accepts Walter's partnership and agrees to their clearly defined roles: Jesse the salesman and Walter the cook. Jesse learns that Walter has lung cancer and, realizing his goals of helping his family after his death, develops a newfound respect for him ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Cancer_Man Cancer Man]"). |
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| + | In the ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'' novels, while the Faith of the Seven generally supplanted the Old Gods south of the Neck, and the Old Gods are the dominant religion in the North, there are exceptions in both cases. There are still several major and minor Houses in southern Westeros that worship the Old Gods, mostly in the Riverlands but fading out further away from the North. The biggest example is [[House Blackwood]], one of the major noble Houses of the Riverlands, which continues to worship the Old Gods. Throughout the rest of Westeros one might find a scattered assortment of lesser Houses or even individual families who still keep to the Old Gods, tucked away in isolated places like mountain ranges, etc. |
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| + | Conversely, while most inhabitants of the North worship the Old Gods there are a few exceptions who worship the Seven. Several centuries ago a major House from the Reach, [[House Manderly]], fled to the North and was rewarded with land by the Starks for their services. House Manderly continued to worship the Seven, and they are the only one of the leading noble Houses of the North to do so, but they get along well with their neighbors who worship the Old Gods. Also, noble ladies who come from the south to live in the North as part of marriage alliances may also continue to worship the Seven. This was the case with [[Catelyn Stark]], and for love of her Ned Stark had a small sept built at Winterfell to accommodate members of her household that she brought with her, such as Septa [[Mordane]]. |
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| − | Walt sends Jesse to negotiate with [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Tuco_Salamanca Tuco], a violent psychopath with links to the Mexican cartels who has taken over local drug distribution after the death and disappearance of Krazy-8. During their first meeting, Tuco refuses to pay up front for the product and savagely beats Jesse when he attempts to end the deal. With Jesse in the hospital, Walt confronts Tuco with the demand for up-front payment, using the pseudonym "Heisenberg." As Tuco prepares to assault him, Walt detonates a concealed explosive ([http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Fulminated_mercury Fulminated mercury]), blowing out the top floor of the hideout and intimidating Tuco into surrendering payment with a promise for future business ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Crazy_Handful_of_Nothin%27 Crazy Handful of Nothin']"). Jesse recovers from his wounds and the two resume cooking meth, this time circumventing the restrictions on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/over-the-counter_drug over-the-counter drug] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/pseudoephedrine pseudoephedrine] products by stealing a large drum of [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Methylamine methylamine] from a chemical warehouse and using an alternate method of synthesis. Now able to produce four times as much crystal meth as before, and of higher quality, the two begin steady business with the increasingly psychotic Tuco ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/A_No-Rough-Stuff-Type_Deal A No-Rough-Stuff-Type Deal]"). |
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| − | ===Season 2=== |
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| − | [http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20090513002803/breakingbad/images/b/bf/Season_2_-_Walt.jpg]Continuing where season one ended, one of Tuco's [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/No-Doze henchmen] comments that Walt and Jesse must remember who they are working for. Tuco takes it as an offensive comment and beats his henchman to death, later giving a cold stare to Jesse. Fearing for their lives, Walt and Jesse cook up a plan to kill Tuco before he kills them. Walt creates a batch of [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Ricin ricin], a potent poison they hope will kill Tuco after they trick him into ingesting it under the pretense that it is a new batch of meth. As they devise a scheme to deliver the poison to Tuco, a DEA raid shuts down his operation in Albuquerque. Tuco managed to scape and kidnaps Walter and Jesse, planning to take them to a "[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Superlab superlab]" in Mexico. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Seven_Thirty-Seven Seven Thirty-Seven]") |
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| + | The faith of the Old Gods of the Forest would appear to be a form of Animism, as it lacks specific identities for any particular deity in its belief system. |
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| − | He first takes them to a hideout, a shack in the desert just outside the Mexican border where he lives with his [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Hector_%22Tio%22_Salamanca uncle] and keeps the two captive. Tuco tells them that he and his cousins plan on taking Walt to cook more meth in a Mexican lab. Tuco insinuates that he will kill Jesse, but Walt manages to convince Tuco that he needs his partner in order to cook. Time is running out and fearing that the cousins will kill Jesse as soon as they arrive, the two discuss ways of killing Tuco. They realize that they have the ricin poison with them, and they tempt Tuco into taking a hit. Jesse convinces Tuco to snort a line but during the conversation, Tuco grows suspicious about the product. Jesse goes in to tell Tuco that it has a special ingredient, Pinkman's old trademark signature of adding chili pepper to his meth. Tuco, upon hearing this, says he hates chili powder and doesn't take the drug. They try again, this time adding the poison to the food that Tuco is preparing for them and his uncle, but Tuco switches his plate and instead gives his poisoned food to his uncle, who, having witnessed the poison being put into the food, flings the plate to the floor. Tuco eventually figures out that they are trying to harm him, so he takes Jesse out back to kill him. Angry and desperate, Walt and Jesse manage to incapacitate Tuco and escape when they see a vehicle approaching the house, a vehicle they believe is bringing the cousins. Walt and Jesse run and hide, but instead of the cousins arriving, they realize that Hank has shown up after tracing Pinkman's vehicle using the tracking device installed in his car. A shootout between Hank and Tuco ensues, leaving Tuco dead. Walt and Jesse run off into the desert. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Grilled Grilled]"). |
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| + | ==See also== |
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| − | With Tuco out of the picture, Walt decides that it's time the two become the new meth kingpins, expanding into Tuco's old territory. Things seem to be on track until one of their dealers, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Skinny_Pete Skinny Pete], is mugged, forcing Jesse to confront the perpetrators ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Breakage Breakage]"). One of the junkies is killed when his wife drops a stolen ATM on his head, but Jesse takes credit for the killing, earning him fear and respect and further solidifying "Heisenberg" in the area. Another dealer, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Badger Badger], is arrested by the DEA during a sting operation, forcing Walter to deal with a crooked lawyer named [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Saul_Goodman Saul Goodman] who can offer only an expensive solution to keep Badger from snitching while also keeping him alive. Then Saul demands a cut of the meth profit in return for being Walter and Jesse's legal counsel and advisor in their drug operation, further eroding their income ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Better_Call_Saul Better Call Saul]"). |
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| + | *{{AWOIAF|Old Gods}} |
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| + | ==References== |
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| − | Meanwhile, Gretchen, Walter's former lover and co-head of Gray Matter, discovers Walter has been lying to his family about her and her husband Elliott paying for his cancer treatment. She is horrified when an angry and bitter Walter blames them for getting rich off his research, but she continues to keep secret Walter's refusal of their financial assistance, for his family's sake. Skyler goes back to work for Ted Beneke, her former boss, who apparently once groped her while drunk, forcing her to quit her job. She increasingly relies on Ted for emotional support due to Walter's constant absence and strange behavior.("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Peekaboo Peekaboo]") |
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| + | {{reflist}} |
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| − | |||
| + | {{religions}} |
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| − | After Walter notices a large blotch on a scan of his chest, he believes the cancer has spread. Having only $16,000 remaining of the meth money after the numerous setbacks, he and Jesse spend several days in the desert cooking 38 pounds of meth to sell off before Walter dies ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/4_Days_Out 4 Days Out]"). At the doctor, Walter discovers that the blotch is only a treatable side effect of the radiation and that his tumor has shrunk 80%. He plans to quit his meth partnership once the 38 pounds are sold off, but he finds himself bored with the return to his mundane life, finding pleasure only when he is distracted or dealing with dangerous situations.("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Over Over]") |
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| − | When one of Walter and Jesse's dealers, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Combo Combo], is killed by rival dealers, Jesse is sent spiraling into a drug addiction that drags his new girlfriend Jane out of her sobriety. With their remaining dealers backing out, Saul uses his connections to introduce Walter and Jesse to a new distributor, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gus_Fring Gus Fring], a cautious yet successful businessman who is skeptical of Jesse's dependability. Gus reluctantly offers to buy Walter's products for 1.2 million dollars but offers him only a one hour time frame to deliver. Walter attempts to contact Jesse to complete the exchange, but he and Jane are incapacitated after injecting heroin. Walter breaks into Pinkman's apartment to retrieve the meth. He manages to wake Jesse up, and asks him where the meth is. Jesse, who is high, tells Walter that it is hidden underneath the kitchen sink. Trying to rush to the deal, Walter receives a text message informing him that Skyler is giving birth. Walter is forced to complete the trade by himself just as Skyler goes into labor. He narrowly manages to complete the transaction, but he misses the birth of his [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Holly_White daughter] ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Mandala Mandala]"). |
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| − | Walter loses trust in Jesse who has now begun to use heroin and promises to give him his share of the payout only if he agrees to go sober. Jane threatens to blackmail Walter, prompting him to turn over Jesse's share of the money. Jane's father, growing suspicious of his daughter's recent behavior, catches Jesse and Jane with heroin and paraphanelia. He demands she return to rehab immediately, but Jane manages to convince him that she will go first thing the next morning. Jesse and Walter agree to go their separate ways, but Walter feels obligated to help Jesse. Walter gives Jesse his money and Jesse and Jane plan on running away before her father can take her to rehab. With almost half million dollars, they decide to go to New Zealand and get clean, agreeing that sobering up is something they should do together and the decision has to be their choice to make and not to placate those around them. They plan to destroy their remaining supply of drugs, but they decide to use just one more time. |
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| − | After a coincidental meeting with Donald, Walt returns to Jesse, only to discover that he and Jane have taken heroin again. Walter attempts to wake Jesse by shaking him, knocking Jane from her side to her back. When Jane begins to cough and vomit, Walter decides to not intervene, letting her die ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Phoenix Phoenix]"). Jesse wakes up and realizes Jane is dead, he calls Walter, asking for help. Walt contacts Saul about what hapenned, and Saul sends [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Mike_Ehrmantraut Mike Ehrmantraut]to help Jesse deal with the police. |
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| − | Later, while dealing with his son creating a website so people can donate to Walt's treatment, Saul tells him that Jesse is living in a ramshackle trap house. Mike takes Walt to the house and they rescue Jesse, taking him to a rehab center so he can finally stop using drugs. Walt is later forced to be part of an interview, set up but Marie, about the site created by Walter Jr. Walt is finally taken for the surgery, while on medications, Walt accidentally mentions to Skyler about having a second cellphone. Several weeks after the operation, Walt returns home and is confronted by Skyler, who investigated about the second cellphone and has finally discovered his numerous lives and lies. She leaves him, even when Walt offers to tell her everything, saying, "I'm too scared to know." Alone at home, shocked that his wife left him, Walt sits by the poolside when two airplanes collide in the sky right above Walt's house. Before any of the other wreckage reigns down, a pink teddy bear splashes directly into his swimming pool ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/ABQ ABQ]"). |
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| − | ===Season 3=== |
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| − | [http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120704064733/breakingbad/images/4/4a/Season_3_Walt.jpeg]A week after the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Wayfarer_515 Wayfarer Flight 515] collision, Walt finally moves out of the house and into his own apartment. The next day, Skyler comes to visit him and hands over divorce papers and revealing her deduction that Walt is a drug dealer, and this is how he has paid for his treatment. Walt concedes and specifies that he is a crystal meth manufacturer, not a dealer, but Skyler still wants a divorce, saying she won't tell the police as long as he stays away from the family. After visiting and consoling Jesse about the plane crash, Walt meets with Gus, who makes Walt an offer of 3 million dollars for three months of his time, but Walt turns him down as he wants to get his family back. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/No_Mas No Mas]") |
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| − | Walt confides in Saul that Skyler knows about his double life, leading Saul to ask Mike to bug the White house. Walter Jr. sides with Walt during the marital spat, even packing a bag and going to Walt's new apartment in an effort to live with him, which Walt puts a stop to. However, Walter does eventually break back into his house after Skyler changes the locks to forcibly move back in with the family. Skyler responds by beginning an affair with Ted Beneke and informing Walt right away. |
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| − | Walt reacts with furious anger at the realization that his wife is having an affair, and goes to Beneke Fabricators to talk to Ted. While waiting outside his office, Walt notices Ted peeking through the blinds and attempts to force his way into the office by throwing a large potted plant at the window. Security escorts him out and Mike picks him up and takes him straight to Saul's office, revealing they both knew about the affair because of the bugs. |
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| − | Walt furiously fires Saul for bugging his house, who cancels the website [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Money_laundering money laundering]. Following an attempt by Walt to intiate an affair with Carmen, he is suspended indefinitely with pay, and refuses to leave the house despite Skyler's affair. Gus eventually pulls him back into the meth-cooking business with a ploy pitting Jesse and Walt against one another, and showing him the state-of-the-art superlab he has just installed in one of his buildings. Once he has decided to go back in he moves back out of the house and signs Skyler's divorce papers. |
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| − | Hank informs Walt of his impending investigation into Jesse and the RV, prompting Walt to get involved in the destruction of the RV, barely managing to not be discovered by Hank thanks to a well-timed phone call. After Jesse lands in the hospital due to Hank's beating, Walt manipulates Gus into making Jesse his partner to replace the nerdy Gale so Jesse will drop the charges on Hank. Later, Skyler forces Walt to pay for Hank's hospital bills after she deduces he is the reason behind the attack on Hank, lying to Marie and telling her that Walt earned the money counting cards and gambling in backrooms, providing a less extreme lie to account for his behavior and finances. |
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| − | When Hank comes around, he lets the family know he received a warning call one minute before the ambush informing him of it. Walt concludes that Gus has orchestrated this entire series of events: steering the cousins away from him and onto Hank while also saving Hank's life, creating a firefight that would put heat on the cartel and allow him to corner the meth market in the Southwest. Walt meets with Gus at the Pollos Hermanos industrial plant, letting him know he has come to this conclusion and is grateful. Gus in return extends Walt's contract to 15 million dollars for a year's work along with a guarantee of safety for his family. |
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| − | As Walt begins to write checks for Hank's medical bills, Skyler decides to become involved in the money laundering side of things, meeting with Walt and Saul and asserting her own demands. Walt also becomes friendlier with Gus, eating dinner with him on occasion. However, when Jesse discovers Tomas, Andrea's brother, murdered Combo, and is working for dealers who work for Gus, he demands retribution. Gus agrees to stop using children in his organization, but Tomas then turns up dead in a playground. When Jesse seeks vengeance against the two dealers who murdered him, Walt intervenes and kills them both, telling Jesse to run, fearing Gus's wrath. |
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| − | Walt meets with Gus and Mike in the desert, asserting that what he did was necessary and Jesse is in hiding, not to be given up by Walt. Gus rehires Gale as Walt's lab assistant, secretly planning to replace Walt with Gale as his skills at running the lab increase. Walt begins to suspect this, and has Jesse lie in wait near Gale's apartment with a gun. When Mike and Victor kidnap Walt, planning to kill him, he promises to give up Jesse, but instead orders him to kill Gale, saving both their lives and keeping their jobs safe. Jesse goes to Gale's apartment and despite his pleas, shoots him as the season ends. |
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| − | ===Season 4=== |
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| − | [http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110620220619/breakingbad/images/d/d1/Season_4_-_Walt.jpg]After Jesse shot Gale, the two were brought to the lab and held together until Gus arrived and slit Victor's throat for being seen at the murder scene. Ever since, Walt has started to become paranoid and is plotting to get rid of Gus in order to ensure his safety. Walt bought a .38 Snub Nose Revolver from a guns dealer and started practicing his draw, and also tried getting Mike to help him get an audience with Gus so he could assassinate the drug-lord. |
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| − | Walt worries that Gus is trying to set Jesse against him. Lately Jesse has been tasked with helping Mike and has met with Gus, so Walt creates some [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ricin ricin] and gives it to Jesse hoping that he'll be able to get close enough to poison Gus. After giving him the ricin, Walt places a GPS tracker on Jesse's car, confirming that Jesse went to Gus's house yet didn't poison him. When Jesse seeks Walt's help regarding how to teach the cartel how to make meth, Walt confronts him about the ricin and they get into a fist fight ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Bug Bug]"). |
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| − | While Jesse is in Mexico, Walt continues cooking meth in the superlab under the supervision of [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Tyrus Tyrus]. He also drives Hank out to [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gus%27s_farm?action=edit&redlink=1 Gus's farm] and to the industrial laundry as part of Hank's investigation. After being tasared and kidnapped by Tyrus, Gus meets with Walt and says that he's going to be taking care of Hank and that if he interferes, he'll kill Walt's family. Immediately Walt goes to Saul to get the phone number of the guy who makes people disappear and instructs Saul to tip-off law enforcement about the threat against Hank. At home, Walt is horrified to discover that he doesn't actually have enough cash to pay the guy to make his family disappear ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Crawl_Space Crawl Space]"). |
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| − | Because he had Saul make an anonymous tip to the D.E.A. threatening that The Cartel was seeking to kill him in retaliation for his killing of The Cousins, the D.E.A. send agents to Hank's house to guard him and Marie. Walt sends Skyler, Walt Jr., and Holly with them until he can figure out how to get Gus before he can make good on his threat to execute them all. |
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| − | Walt manipulates Jesse into believing this was the work of Gus, who has a history of exploiting children and using poison to eliminate his enemies. Together they plan to have Jesse refuse to cook and lure Gus to the hospital so Walt can use a radio-activated pipe-bomb to blow up his vehicle and kill him. As Gus is leaving the hospital, however, he realizes that if he didn't poison Brock, then somebody did, and has the gut instinct to abandon his Volvo and seek another mode of transportation, figuring Walt is somehow behind the scheme. As Gus and his henchmen walk away, Walt bursts into tears from a rooftop across the street, distraught that another attempt on Gus has failed. |
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| − | When Walt retrieves the car-bomb, he asks Jesse what happened, but Jesse is immediately taken in for questioning by federal agents for suspicion of posessing ricin. Walt has Saul visit Jesse while he's under arrest and he clues Saul into a potential enemy of Gus, Hector Salamanca, who Gus has been terrorizing at a retirement home. |
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| − | Walt deduces that Hector is an enemy of Gus. Walt goes to the home and suggests that Hector surely hates Walt for what happened to Tuco, Leonel and Marco, but surely Hector must hate Gus more for killing his friends and family. |
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| − | [http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110817002356/breakingbad/images/e/ea/Season_4_-_Heisenberg.jpg]Walt convinces Hector to strap the bomb under his wheelchair once he returns from a meeting with Hank, in which Hector offers no other information, but succeeds in luring Gus to the retirement home. Hector later detonates the bomb Walt strapped to his wheelchair, killing Hector and Tyrus instantly and fatally wounding Gus. |
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| − | Later that same day, Walt kidnaps one of Gus' henchman and forces him to escort them down the elevator to the main Super-Lab under the laundry where Jesse has been taken hostage and forced to cook the meth. Walt guns down both men and then rescues Jesse, who assists him in dumping all the chemicals and starting a huge fire before they evacuate all the immigrants working in the laundry. |
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| − | Back on the rooftop of the hospital, Jesse reveals to Walt that Brock wasn't poisoned with Ricin, but a plant called Lily of the Valley which children often think is edible. Walt is relieved that Brock is ok and tells an uncertain Jesse that even though Gus did not poison Brock, he still "had to go". After Jesse leaves, Walt calls Skyler, who is curious about what happened with Gus and his men's death. Walt simply tells her, "I won..." and then drives off, pausing for a moment to gaze at Gus's Volvo still in the parking garage, and smiles. |
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| − | The final shot of Season 4 zooms back in on the potted plant in Walt's yard that the spinning gun pointed at in the previous episode. As the camera zooms in on the plant, the music plays "until you travel to the place you can't come back..." and the tag "[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Lily_of_the_Valley Lily of the Valley]" is revealed, implying that Walt had poisoned Brock to win back Jesse's trust against Gus. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Face_Off Face Off]") |
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| − | ===Season 5=== |
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| − | [http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120620020602/breakingbad/images/1/18/5x01_2.jpg]After Gus' death, Walt returned home and disposed of all evidence from the pipe bomb and [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Lily_of_the_Valley Lily of the Valley] poison.[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Walt,_Jr. Walt, Jr.] and [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Skyler Skyler] return home and while Jr. is excited about Hank's validation, Skyler tells Walt that she is afraid of him. Walt enjoyed a glass of scotch in celebration when he suddenly remembered Gus' cameras in the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Superlab superlab]. |
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| − | Walt and Jesse stopped [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Mike Mike] in the desert and after a heated argument the three worked with [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Old_Joe Old Joe] to devise a plan to destroy Gus' laptop which was being held at the local police evidence locker. They managed to destroy the laptop by powering up a giant magnet inside a moving truck outside the police station. They escaped but had to leave the truck. In the car, Walt told Mike that he was certain the magnet worked "because I said so." |
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| − | Walt visited [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Saul Saul] at his [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/The_Offices_of_Saul_Goodman_%26_Associates office] and when Saul tried to fire him as his client, Walt told him "we're done when I say we're done." Returning home, Walt told Skyler he knew what happened to Ted and, hugging her, said "I forgive you."("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Live_Free_or_Die Live Free or Die]") |
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| − | Before helping [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Jesse Jesse] search for the missing [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Ricin ricin] cigarette, Walt hid the ricin in his bedroom's electrical outlet and placed a dummy cigarette in Jesse's roomba. Walt consoled Jesse after he had an emotional breakdown about nearly killing his partner and closest ally. Walt then used Jesse's guilt and vulnerability to convince him to continue their work together. Walt and Jesse extended an offer to [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Mike Mike] to form a new meth operation and accepted his decision to decline. When the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/DEA DEA] ceased Mike's funds he reluctantly changed his mind and Walt smugly accepted his partnership. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Madrigal Madrigal]") |
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| − | [http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120730061229/breakingbad/images/5/50/5x3_Hazard_Pay_%2809%29.jpg]Walt, Jesse, and Mike worked with Saul to sort out a new front for the meth manufacturing. They ended up agreeing on a mobile lab inside houses that were being bug bombed by [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Vamonos_Pest_Control Vamonos Pest Control]. The mobile lab yielded less meth per cook than they were making for Gus but they each received a larger cut. However, Mike took "Legacy Funds" from each cook to recoup the lost savings of Fring's former colleages. Walt didn't take to this decision kindly at first but reluctantly accepted it. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Hazard_Pay Hazard Pay]") |
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| − | Walt sells his [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Aztek Aztek] to his mechanic for $50 and buys himself a new [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Chrysler_300 Chrysler 300] and Jr. another [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Dodge_Challenger Dodge Challenger]. He tells Skyler to launder another $20,000 and she tells him that she wants the children out of the house. He refuses. The next morning, Skyler reluctantly makes a "51" with bacon on Walt's eggs to celebrate his birthday. Instead of a grand party, Hank and Marie arrive for dinner. As Walt gives a speech thanking the family for their support over the last year, Skyler walks into the pool and remains at the bottom. Walt dives in to save her. Hank and Marie offer, on behalf of Skyler, to take Walt Jr. and Holly for a few days. Walt sarcastically congratulates a frightened Skyler about her brilliant plan but she tells him that her only choice is to wait for Walt's cancer to return and keep the children away from as much crime as she can. |
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| − | [http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120806071459/breakingbad/images/c/ca/5x4_Fifty-One_promo_03.jpeg]The next day, as Mike and Jesse argue over killing [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Lydia Lydia] Walt, looking at his Heisenberg hat, informs them that the cooking must never slow down, no matter what. Outside, Jesse gives Walt a brand new TAG Heuer watch. At home, Walt shows the watch to Skyler and tell her that she will come around, just as Jesse did. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Fifty-One Fifty-One]") |
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| − | After interrogating Lydia with Mike and Jesse, they learn she had nothing to do with the GPS tracker. She suggests they steal methylamine from a train that runs through New Mexico but Walt calls the task impossible. Jesse comes up with a plan involving siphoning off 1,000 gallons and replacing it with water. The men and [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Todd Todd] narrowly pull off the heist and witness as Todd murders a [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Drew_Sharp bystander]. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Dead_Freight Dead Freight]") |
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| − | [http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120820055907/breakingbad/images/c/ca/506_Buyout_%2803%29.jpg]After disposing of the boy's bike and body; Walt, Jesse and Mike debate what to do with Todd. They vote to keep him close so he won't do anything rash. Walt tries to tell Jesse that their operation is now in the "smooth sailing" mode but the next day Jesse and Mike inform him they are selling their share of methylamine for $5 million each and bowing out of the meth trade. Walt refuses to join them, even when Mike's contact refuses to buy unless he gets all 1,000 gallons. Walt forces Jesse to dine with him and Skyler and when Skyler sullenly leaves the table he reveals to Jesse that his family has left him and his drug empire is the only thing that matters to him. Walt then heads to the Vamonos HQ where he is tied up by Mike so the methylamine can be sold without Walt's interruption. Walt escapes and hides the methylamine, promising -- at gunpoint -- that he has a solution where "everybody wins". ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Buyout Buyout]") |
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| − | At the meeting with [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Declan Declan], Walt offers to sell Mike's 35% stake in the crew and responsibility for distrubution for $5 million. After the deal is sealed, Walt and Jesse retreive he methylamine from the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Car_Wash Car Wash] under the glare of Skyler. Jesse reminds Walt that he is done with the meth trade too but Walt tries to convince him that throwing his talent away is a mistake. Jesse willingly leaves Vamonos without a penny. Walt then begins training [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Todd Todd] on cooking meth. Walt removes the bugs from Hank's office and overhears that the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/DEA DEA] is going to arrest Mike. Walt tips off Mike and later meets him to hand off a "burn bag" of cash, a gun, and a passport. After handing over the bag, Walt demanded Mike give him the names of the nine guys in prison who would likely flip on Walt since their legacy funds stopped flowing. Mike refused and in a fit of rage Walt storms up to Mike's car and shoots him through the window. Horrified by his actions, Walt drops the gun and staggers to Mike. He attempts to apologize but shuts up on Mike's dying request. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Say_My_Name Say My Name]") |
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| − | Walt and Todd disposed of Mike's car and body. Walt made an arrangement with Lydia to sell [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Blue_Sky Blue Sky] to the Czech Republic in exchange for the names of Gus' former ten henchmen. Walt paid Todd's uncle and neo-Nazi friends to murder them all in the span of two minutes. The plan was executed perfectly and no one was able to squeal to the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/DEA DEA]. Walt and Todd continued to cook meth flawlessly and effortlessly for three months until Skyler showed Walt a giant pile of cash in a storage unit and asked him for her children back. After a visit to the doctor, Walt paid Jesse a visit and gave him two duffle bags of cash. He then told Skyler "I'm out" and they had a lunch the next day with their kids and [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Hank Hank] and Marie. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gliding_Over_All Gliding Over All]") |
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| − | [http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120716045203/breakingbad/images/4/43/5x1_Walt_at_52.png]Walt in 2011One year later, Walt is at a New Mexico Denny's restaurant, with a full head of a hair and an unkempt beard, celebrating his 52nd birthday. A waitress tries to make conversation with him but Walt keeps to himself and gives her a fake name (Lambert, which is Skyler's and Marie's maiden names) and shows her a fake ID from New Hampshire. Excusing himself to the restroom, Walt then trades an envelope of cash for a set of car keys in the bathroom with [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Lawson Lawson], his previous gun dealer. Before exiting the restroom, Walt lets out a slight cough, and takes some medication. The keys belong to a car in the parking lot with an M60 machine gun in the trunk. ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Live_Free_or_Die Live Free or Die]") |
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| − | ==Walt's victims== |
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| − | ;First-hand |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Emilio_Koyama Emilio Koyama] (Poisoned with phosphine gas) |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Krazy_8 Krazy 8] (Strangled with bike lock) |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Rival_Dealers Rival Dealers] (Ran both over with his car, shot the surviving one in the head) |
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| − | *Two of Gus' henchmen (Shot) |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Mike_Ehrmantraut Mike Ehrmantraut] (Shot) |
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| − | ;Second-hand |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Jane_Margolis Jane Margolis] (Accidently rolled her over on her back while sleeping, causing her to asphyxiate on her own vomit; Walt witnessed but did nothing to save her) |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gale_Boetticher Gale Boetticher] (Shot by Jesse, but murder is plotted and initiated by Walt) |
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| − | *Supplied the bomb for the [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Casa_Tranquila Casa Tranquila] bombing |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Gus_Fring Gus Fring] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Tyrus_Kitt Tyrus Kitt] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Hector_Salamanca Hector Salamanca] |
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| − | *Ten of Gus's ex employees (Orchestrated by Walt with help of Todd's cousin, stabbed with shivs inside two minutes across multiple prisons) |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Dan_Wachsberger Dan Wachsberger] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Ron_Forenall Ron Forenall] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Dennis_Markowski Dennis Markowski] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Jack_McGann Jack McGann] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Andrew_Holt Andrew Holt] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Anthony_Perez Anthony Perez] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Isaac_Conley Isaac Conley] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/William_Moniz William Moniz] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Harris_Boivin Harris Boivin] |
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| − | **[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Raymond_Martinez Raymond Martinez] |
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| − | '''Collateral''' |
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| − | *[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Wayfarer_515 167 People aboard the Wayfarer 515 that collided midflight with a charted plane] (Due to Walt consciously deciding not to save Jane while she was asphixiating on her own vomit, she consequently died. Jane's death deeply afected father [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Donald_Margolis Donald Margolis], who, while at work as an air traffic controller, was still greiving and accidentally sent the Wayferer 515 off it's path, coliding with another plane) |
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| − | ==Trivia== |
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| − | *Walt's car was a well-used 2003 [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Pontiac_Aztek Pontiac Aztek] that had been repainted in a non-factory color chosen by series creator Vince Gilligan, perhaps to mimic the look of a badly-faded factory paint job or as symbolic of Walt's previously bland existence. The windshield has been broken and replaced several times due to various acts that have been a result of Walt's descent into the drug world. The show's production team has at least 2 Azteks equipped for different filming situations. |
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| − | *Walt is 5'11" (180 cm) and 165-170 lbs (75-77 kg) ("[http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Grilled Grilled]"). |
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| − | *"Heisenberg", the actual [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werner_Heisenberg Werner Heisenberg] from which he derived his criminal alias, was born on December 5, 1901, at Würzburg, and was a German theoretical physicist who made foundational contributions to quantum mechanics. He was also 'investigated' by the SS before his acceptance into the Nazi controlled scientific reich. One of his main contributions to science was the uncertainty principle (hence, this being the probable cause for Walter choosing Heisenberg as his alias). Heisenberg died of cancer in 1976. |
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| − | *Walter is one of two characters (along with Jesse Pinkman) to have appeared in every episode thus far. |
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| − | *Walter was born September 7, 1959, meaning that [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Pilot "Pilot"] takes place in 2009, [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Fifty-One "Fifty-One"] in 2010, and the flash-forward in [http://breakingbad.wikia.com/wiki/Live_Free_or_Die "Live Free or Die"] in 2011. |
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| − | * |
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[[Category:Religion]] |
[[Category:Religion]] |
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| − | [[Category: |
+ | [[Category:Culture & Society]] |
| − | [[Category: |
+ | [[Category:Free Folk culture]] |
| + | [[Category:Deities]] |
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| + | [[Category:Old Gods of the Forest]] |
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Revision as of 01:16, 8 July 2014
Template:Infobox religion
- "But there are some who still keep to the Old Way, worshiping the faceless gods of the Children of the Forest and the First Men."
- ―Bran Stark
The Old Gods of the Forest are a collection of innumerable and unnamed spirits of nature, which are worshiped by many people of the North and small numbers elsewhere in Westeros. It is the old religion of Westeros, supplanted by the Faith of the Seven which was brought to the continent by the Andals and is now the dominant faith of the continent. Though the two religions have coexisted for more than six thousand years, there is still tension between the most devout adherents of the two faiths.
History
The Old Gods were originally worshiped by the Children of the Forest, the non-human original inhabitants of Westeros, for thousands of years before the arrival of the First Men from the east twelve thousand years ago. It was the Children of the Forest who carved the faces into weirwood trees. The Children and their priests, the greenseers, successfully fought the First Men to a standstill and they signed a Pact of mutual peace and cooperation. It gave the deep forests to the children, but all other land in Westeros to the First Men, who promised never to cut down the sacred weirwood trees again. Over the succeeding four thousand years, the First Men came to worship the Old Gods as well.[1][2]
The carved face of a heart tree.
After the war against the White Walkers in The Long Night eight thousand years ago, the Children gradually declined throughout Westeros. The worship of the Old Gods remained strong among the First Men in Westeros until the invasion of the Andals six thousand years ago, who brought the Faith of the Seven with them from the east. The Andals slaughtered the Children of the Forest, viewing their magic as an abomination before the Seven. The Andals cut down the weirwood trees in the south, which were sacred to the Old Gods.
The Faith supplanted the worship of the Old Gods in most lands south of the Neck, but it remained strong in the North, where the First Men were able to halt the Andals' advance. After centuries of religious wars and strife, the two religions settled into a – sometimes uneasy – coexistence.
The wildlings also worship the Old Gods, like their distant cousins in the North. Even in the lands of House Stark, there are a few followers of the Faith of the Seven, often southern noblewomen who come to the north to secure marriage alliances. Beyond the Wall, however, the Old Gods are the only gods.[3]
Beliefs and Practices
New members of the Night's Watch swearing their vows before a heart tree.
The religion believes in innumerable and unnamed nature gods, the spirits of each tree, each rock, and each stream.
Worshipers of the Old Gods do not have elaborate ceremonies, holy texts, hierarchies of priests, or large structures of worship like followers of the Faith of the Seven. Instead they practice quiet contemplation in godswoods, small areas of forest which have been enclosed within a castle's walls. Worship in a godswood is centered on heart trees, which are great weirwood trees with a face carved into the bark. Weirwoods are considered sacred in the religion, and heart trees are the closest thing to a "shrine" that it possesses. Oaths and promises sworn in front of a heart tree are considered binding.[2][4]
The faith of the Old Gods is personal and less structured than other religions, though some basic social violations are proscribed by it, such as kinslaying, incest, and bastardy. It also upholds the laws of hospitality.
In the books
In the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, while the Faith of the Seven generally supplanted the Old Gods south of the Neck, and the Old Gods are the dominant religion in the North, there are exceptions in both cases. There are still several major and minor Houses in southern Westeros that worship the Old Gods, mostly in the Riverlands but fading out further away from the North. The biggest example is House Blackwood, one of the major noble Houses of the Riverlands, which continues to worship the Old Gods. Throughout the rest of Westeros one might find a scattered assortment of lesser Houses or even individual families who still keep to the Old Gods, tucked away in isolated places like mountain ranges, etc.
Conversely, while most inhabitants of the North worship the Old Gods there are a few exceptions who worship the Seven. Several centuries ago a major House from the Reach, House Manderly, fled to the North and was rewarded with land by the Starks for their services. House Manderly continued to worship the Seven, and they are the only one of the leading noble Houses of the North to do so, but they get along well with their neighbors who worship the Old Gods. Also, noble ladies who come from the south to live in the North as part of marriage alliances may also continue to worship the Seven. This was the case with Catelyn Stark, and for love of her Ned Stark had a small sept built at Winterfell to accommodate members of her household that she brought with her, such as Septa Mordane.
The faith of the Old Gods of the Forest would appear to be a form of Animism, as it lacks specific identities for any particular deity in its belief system.
See also
References
- ↑ Complete Guide to Westeros: "The Old Gods and the New"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 HBO viewers guide, season 2 appendix, Gods Old and New entry
- ↑ "The Pointy End"
- ↑ "You Win or You Die"
| Westeros |
Old Gods · Faith of the Seven · Drowned God |
| Major religions in Essos |
Lord of Light · Black Goat · Bearded Priests of Norvos · Great Stallion · Great Shepherd · Ghiscari religion · Moonsingers · Lion of Night & Maiden-Made-of-Light |
| Other cults in Essos |
Many-Faced God · Old Gods of Valyria · Weeping Lady · Bakkalon · Hooded Wayfarer · Moon-Pale Maiden · Merling King |
| Sothoryos | |