The lightning Lord and different Gods (or magic...)

[Bloodraven's Lost Eye]

I believe the true power behind Beric Dondarrion’s revivals were not those of the Red God, R’hlor.

There are several arguments to be made for this theory, although it seems plain that it’s R’hlor I think this is a very clever misdirection on GRRM’s part and another way of throwing doubt over the powers of this or that God throughout Westeros. Here are the pro’s (+) and con’s (-)

(+-) Beric is revived in Hollow Hill in an Arya chapter, after the fight with Sandor. Hollow hill is built inside the roots of a weirwood tree. “huge white roots twisting through them like a thousand slow pale snakes”. It’s not a far stretch that the powers of the Old Gods are strong here. When Beric dies it says “The dirt drank his blood”, like a blood sacrifice of old. The question remains: where have the other resurections of Beric taken place?

Was he always taken back here? If so (+) or was he resurected in the field? If so (-) But nobody ever saw Thoros revive him… was it always between the twisting roots of the Weirnet?

(+) Beric Dondarrion’s vows lie with Ned Stark, Ned Stark of the North, who sent him on the mission to bring him the head of the Mountain. (this is imo quite thin)

(+) The red priest is not very devout and he doesn’t exactly know how he does the ressurections, he admits so himself. This is because it’s not his Red God that does the resurecting! If Thoros was so certain of the powers of the lord of light, shouldn’t he be shouting it from the rooftops?

(+) He gave his gift to Catelyn Stark because she is on a quest for revenge, a revenge for blood of the north and to exact the curse brought upon the breaking of the guest right… and the North remembers! (-) What’s the timeline here, specifically when does the Mountain die? This would allow Beric to pass on his gift to Catelyn, because his original vow is completed.

(+) There are connections with the Old Gods, they visit the Ghost of High heart and not for the first time in an Arya chapter. “This place belongs to the old gods still...they linger here as I do, shrunken and feeble but not yet dead.”

(+) Beric gives the “kiss of life” to Catelyn, without the aid of Thoros, how can this still be fire magic? Wouldn’t it make more sense if it was Old Gods’ magic, in revenge of the spilling of Stark blood?

(-) Beric doesn’t seem to have any special affiliation with the Old Gods.

(-) If the weirwoods had the power to heal, why not somebody else with strong belief in the Old Gods?

(-) Thoros of Myr himself is a point for the red god

(-) Beric says (I paraphrase) “I have felt the fire in my breath” when he was ressurected.

That’s what I’ve dug up so far, I definitely think it’s something worth considering and obviously this pro’s and con’s list isn’t finished, it’s to be expanded and maybe the balance will favor one or the other, or not…

Now why do I believe in this theory and why do I think The lord of light is a misdirection?

There isn’t any one God; there is only magic, different kinds of Magic and different ways of manifestation. Some experience Greenseer dreams and others see visions in their fires, there are wargs and glamours… IMO this is not because they believe in the Old gods or Rh’lorr respectively, but because they have a certain aptitude towards this type of magic… Because of the many questions that rise with such powers, they seek answers in a certain God(s), as men have always done.

There are things that enhance any sort of magic: Places such as the Weirwood trees/weirnet, Actions such as a Blood sacrifice (before the Weirnet or the fires) and there are Blood lines more attoned to certain types of Magic (Starks to the Weirwnet/warging and Targaryan to the Fire/dragon magic). When Melisandre is at the wall, she says the Wall's magic makes her powers stronger... but that makes no sence if (as she claims) her powers come from Rh'lor, why would the wall (a HUGE block of magical ice) make her powers stronger? perhaps because it's just magic, not the power derived from a diety...

That is why Thoros of Myr and his Red God are (imo) a misdirection, we’re left wondering of the truth of Rh’lor, of HIS powers… but perhaps there is no God, it’s just magic, the fire magic's visions are true, as is the greensight… the God aspect is a human aspect, they tribute the magic to some god, because they cannot comprehend it.

(disclaimer, this isn’t my theory, I sort of picked it up reading various, well-thought-out threads here and there.)

Think about it, would GRRM put something as mundane and single-minded as Gods in his world? There is only magic and religion. Both can be used by man to their will and neither are tied to the other.

[Iron Bank Debtor]

Seems like there would be stories of Starks, Northeners or wildlings being resurrected in one of Old Nan's stories if that was the case.

[Ludd]

Yes I think the point of much of the book is that there is just a magic "force" capable of reviving the dead sometimes. All the gods claim this in part, but it may be nothing to do with the gods.

The fire gods claim resurrection and seem to do so with Beric and Cat, but it may well be the weirwoods that transfer the power

The drowned god resurrects and we have the Ironmen religion and probably patchface as "evidence"

Nimble Dick talks of the reanimated talking heads of the whispers, once again old magic with an enormous godswood. I am assuming that the Whispers will play a role in the end story, to explain Brienne's long trip there.

Then their are the Northern "bones" with echoes of potential reanimation

Finally of course the wights.

Clearly as magic rises in the world resurrection also strengthens - for ALL gods.