Religion in Ancient Tevinter

Capture from Dragon Age Inquisition

What was it like to live in Thedas before the religion of the Maker was born - before the Dragon Age, or any Age of the Chantry's calendar?  Since I want to start my first DA campaign long before the events of the video games, I have had to research this and imagine it at length.  Starting with a Wiki entry as a base, here is my vision of religious life in ancient Tevinter as it will be used in my game.  GMs and players should be able to safely read this part (and can use or comment on it as they see fit, but beware of clicking links, since they might lead to spoilers): 

Ancient historians believed that the earliest human tribes worshiped animistic spirits, probably due to early contact with them (and certainly before they figured out how to bind them).  Some people also revered ancestors as personal guardians, but their authenticity as ghosts of the dead was always in question.  In any case, the oldest known religious activity was tied to local features and spirits, so deities varied greatly from settlement to settlement.

Then came the Old Gods.  They were always called the Old Gods because they claimed to have been the first spirits of any significance to come into being.  In visions and dreams, they revealed themselves to be dragons of far grander scale and majesty than those in the material world.  Their number was seven, but an eighth was always whispered about (though never confirmed).  Slowly but surely, those who continued to revere ancestors and spirits were ridiculed, converted, driven into hiding, and eventually considered heretics.

Humans did not know much about the true nature of the Old Gods, but they accepted that dragons would keep their mysteries when they wished.  It is noteworthy that the Old Gods never claimed to be the originators of life or the world.  There was a Creator, but it was so silent and distant as to warrant little attention.  There were many theories, but the consensus was that if the Creator didn't care enough to know its creations, there was no reason to venerate it.  Anyone who admitted to following the Creator was laughed at.

A few centuries after humans arrived in Thedas (around 2800 Ancient), the Old Gods began to reach out to the dreamers of the Neromenian tribes, teaching them magic.  Their followers became the first priests and kings and united the disparate kingdoms into the Tevinter Imperium.  Thalsian established the first proper temples to the Old Gods after Dumat revealed blood magic to him in -1595 Ancient.  Dragons then became the symbol of divine might across the land.  Four hundred years later, the Tevinter Imperium created the magisterium as a governing body from among the mages in the priesthood.  

The pantheon of all seven Old Gods was worshiped by most of the citizenry.  While some folks dedicated themselves to a particular dragon, they were usually part of that dragon's clergy; most citizens prayed to all of the gods depending on the situation and favored one or two.  Temples and priesthoods were frequent, and were inviting options for non-magical but high-born citizens.  A citizen generally had to reach the age of majority to swear oneself to a god, but there were no other restrictions, so long as the god in question approved.  (Slaves who worshiped the Old Gods could not change their station but might have been treated a little better once they could prove they heard the call.)  The individual High Priests of each dragon were known together as the Magisters Sidereal.

For roughly 2,400 years after first contact, common people could experience the desires of the Old Gods personally.  One didn't have to be a priest to hear or sense what the gods wanted; visions could occur during private prayer, intoxication, or quiet moments.  Visions were also known to happen during temple ceremonies.  Priests were often needed to interpret the best course of action to appease the gods, however, and only they could reply and expect to be heard.  They recorded praises that laypeople could buy and use and maintained a holy litany of verses to the different dragons (rather like the Chant of Light) - but one had to visit each type of temple to hear it in its entirety.  There were also regular holidays in the dragons' honor.  

The Old Gods and their purviews were as follows:

Dumat, the Dragon of Silence - first and most potent, god of the dead, magic (especially blood magic), laws, and order.  His name was sworn on during any official proceedings of the empire.  His grand holiday was Funalis, which was dedicated to remembering the dead.  Some took to the streets at midnight dressed as the recently deceased (which was particularly striking when close relatives decided to don the garb of family members they resembled).  It was also a time to reveal any secrets of the dead that they had left behind.

Zazikel, the Dragon of Chaos - god of trickery, madness, celebration, danger, entropy magic, poisons, spying, and poetic justice.  He was the wildcard of the pantheon, standing with and against the other dragons seemingly at random.  He is the only being known to have fooled Dumat.  His holiday was Satanalia, which relied on wearing masks, allowing debauchery, and letting the town fool rule for the day.  Some cities extended the festivities as long as they could, while others allowed only a few days with a great feast and gift-swapping at the end.

Toth, the Dragon of Fire - god of the elements, primal magic, the forge, domination over the weak, and physical strength.  His holiday was Nacaeus, a time for ritual bonfires and burnt sacrifices, as well as public presenting of master metalwork and martial displays of power.  In smaller villages, the burning of items associated with bad memories and simple animal sacrifices were the norm.  In cities, ritual combat and full military parades for big audiences were arranged.  Generally, the celebration took up two days in the middle of the month of Ferventis.

Andoral, the Dragon of Bonds (called the Dragon of Unity or Slavery in later times) - god of contracts, obligations, record-keeping and slavery, as well as spirit magic.  His holiday, Andoralis, was a day for rejoicing at the start of summer.  It was a time for binding people together through weddings, business ventures, or other official deals.  A procession was also held for those who were newly at the age of adulthood to introduce them and give them a "practice run" at setting up their first deal, either for work, betrothal, or some other aspect.

Urthemiel, the Dragon of Beauty - god of comeliness and grace, creation magic, as well as passion and procreation.  He was revered for the great effects these aspects of life could have on even the strongest soul and feared for the ways that passion could sway the destinies of nations.  Music and art were often folded into his worship, as well as childbearing, cooking, and brewing.  His holy day, Urthalis, marked the end of winter.  It was a time for tournaments, trade, and efforts to breed (not only livestock, but also slaves and citizens), and was held at the start of Pluitanis.

Razikale, the Dragon of Mystery - of the seven dragon gods, she was the only female, the goddess of truth, knowledge, insight and intuition, teaching, mental fortitude, and interpretation of symbols.  She had less to do with lies or secrets and more to do with revealed knowledge, when the supplicant was ready to receive it.  She was less concerned with recording knowledge than with testing for it.  Her temples had their own hidden rites that were only for the faithful and those invited due to divine intervention.  Times and themes changed from year to year and details were kept among the clergy, so little was known about them.

Lusacan, the Dragon of Night - god of time, fortune, the darkness of the future, the secrets of the past, and endings.  He was also associated with divorce, curses, and blessings.  While all nights were thought to be sacred to Lusacan and his temples held their services after dark, the last night of the year was his high holy occasion, known as Morosalia.  The mundane celebration of the faith was a feast eaten in complete darkness, with gifts and secrets bestowed by hidden hands and lips.  The clergy experienced another gathering in dreams, in the Fade, in a procession purportedly led by the god himself.  Where it went or how it ended is anyone's guess, as priests were forbidden to speak of it.

Destiny/Spoilers (highlight to read at your own risk)

At the behest of their gods, the Magisters Sidereal breached the Golden City bodily in -395 Ancient.  They were cast out as the first darkspawn and brought with them the First Blight.  In the wake of that event, the Old Gods fell silent.  No one, not even the priests heard them again.  This led to widespread fear and even anger as the faithful searched for answers.  There were uprisings against clergy and temples in some places, until the Imperium officially replaced the Old Gods with the Maker in -160 Ancient.  Cults of the Old Gods have never fully died out, but they are rare, very secretive, and each is twisted in its own way.  

It has since been learned that the Archdemons are the Old Gods, transformed by the taint, each wakened one at a time to lead the darkspawn.  The same calling that the Archdemons have used to coordinate the darkspawn is likely a corrupted version of the telepathic communication they once held with their parishioners.  The Grey Wardens are able to hear the calling of an active Archdemon more over time, also suffering from nightmares until they give in to their taint or enact the ritual of The Calling.  Whether current cultists of the Old Gods experience the same - or resist the pull - is unknown.