Gods in Eberron?

[mhacdebhandia]

There, then is a question where divine magic comes from. Does it come from the gods, is it a mystic energy that permeates the universe, or does it come from the (misguided) faith of the clerics themselves.

Some scholars in Eberron believe that some or all divine spellcasters channel spiritual energy from the remains of Siberys, the Dragon Above. Opinions differ on whether or not those who follow the Sovereign Host, the Dark Six, or other major faiths actually draw power from the gods or, like those who follow minor philosophical religions, from Siberys.

It's also possible that the whole Siberys theory is incorrect, of course.

The Blood of Vol, the Undying Court, the Keepers of the Past, and the Path of Light all lack deities to worship. It's possible that clerics of these faiths draw on the collective spiritual energy of, for instance, the community of believers (Blood of Vol), the deathless of Aerenal (Undying Court), spirits of the ancestors kept alive through emulation by their descendants (Keepers of the Past), or the future spiritual force of the Next Age (Path of Light).

If people can be raised from the dead, couldn't the resurrected character tell everyone about their experience in the afterlife?

As noted by others, if you can be returned to life, it means that your soul was trapped in Dolurrh - whether or not there is a final reward or punishment beyond that plane is something no-one can know, because no power exists (at least so far) which can discover the ultimate fate of souls which fade from Dolurrh.

Some Vassals of the Sovereign Host believe that Dolurrh is a place of cleansing to prepare the soul to join the Sovereigns in their realm beyond the planes. The Church of the Silver Flame teaches that worthy souls merge with the Flame itself after death. The Keepers of the Past believe that the spirits of their ancestors can live again in their descendants when they perform deeds worthy of the ancestor's own achievements. The Blood of Vol believes wholeheartedly in the miserable truth of Dolurrh, that the secret to eternal life is found in the living blood of mortal creatures, and that they can conquer death if only they can achieve this mystery.

 

[Warbringer]

This does leave a little mystery, but still it eliminates philosophies such as materialism. So while the gods still remain a mystery, dualism is proven. In the real world, many atheists believe that consciousness is nothing more than an unintended byproduct of evolution. Such a belief would have no adherents in Eberron.

As others have already said, not necessarily so. The soul may be nothing more than a physical manifestation of consciousness that evolved during life. As time passes the manifestation loses his connection with the living body it fades. This leaves space for emergent theorist regarding the apparant dualism with no need to resort to a deus ex machina

As to the specific dimensional characteristics of the manifestations, who knows what effect warping reality with magic has.

In the stories (which are granted not canon) many characters clearly battle with atheistic believes, and certainly at least one antagonist has nothing but contempt for clerics...

Must say, I have really fallen in love with Eberron's take on many things (even if halflings on dinos still makes me cringe)

 

[SWBaxter]

This does leave a little mystery, but still it eliminates philosophies such as materialism.

Generally, the simple existence of magic eliminates materialism as we know it. If you want that kind of philosophy in your game world (and have it be a relatively rational approach), you'll have to expand materialism to include known and understood supernatural effects, which AFAICT would allow a version to exist in Eberron.

In the real world, many atheists believe that consciousness is nothing more than an unintended byproduct of evolution. Such a belief would have no adherents in Eberron.

I see no reason why an Eberron atheist couldn't hold that belief, they'd just have to expand their theory of evolution to include Dolurrh and any other objectively real planes.

 

[Glyfair]

I see no reason why an Eberron atheist couldn't hold that belief, they'd just have to expand their theory of evolution to include Dolurrh and any other objectively real planes.

And, as touched on earlier in the thread, how "objectively real" is Dolurrh? High level characters are very rare in Eberron, and high level PC classes even rarer. The evidence of planes is probably not something most of the population ever experiences.

Given human nature there are likely people around that are skeptical of any stories of such things. Even in our world you have things like the flat earthers who disbelieve any stories that discredit their theories. It's not hard to extend it to a world where less people have observed the evidence, and the average person has less contact with those few who have.