Wayfinders: The Call of Exploration

A Collection of Thoughts from by Illona Torok

Finders light, true and bright
Shine upon my path tonight
Reaching towards the truest height
Elvitri bless my trails tonight

Throughout my travels across the continent, I’ve heard this stanza spoken but never thought much about the rhyming phrases. I had assumed it to be some sort of nursery rhyme, like the ones I’d heard in my youth, but I was lucky enough to learn of their true origins when a cluster of parchment wriggled loose from its original source and found its way into my possession. With the parchment to guide me, the poem started to take a bit more meaning. Not only was this mantra scrawled onto the page in neat and tidy script, but there were other notes related to the verse. For whatever reason, the Twins trusted me with these notes and, for them, I can only extend a heartfelt thanks to the Prince, the Scholar, and whoever this ‘Simm’ fellow is.

Truth be told, the rhyming couplets are actually a prayer belonging to a religious following called the Wayfinders. These folk celebrate exploration and understanding the unknown by means of travel. While travel itself is essential, the method of said ventures isn’t exclusive to one form or another, though many of the believers choose to embark on these exploratory pilgrimages via sailing. Because of its links to the sail and the sea, Wayfinding is quite popular in Alvania, southern Nashriam, and various regions along the coastline, and while it is often coined as the popular religion for pirates, the belief of a Wayfinder is anything but exclusive. In fact, it’s accessible to all, as long as that exploratory spirit is well kindled. If one believes the unknown is precious, what is new should be celebrated, and that the exploration of it all is absolutely sacred, Wayfinders will welcome them with arms wide open.

Since Wayfinders hold such a reverence to exploration, methods of travel are held in the highest regard, often viewed in the same light that others would give to temples. A method of travel is a Wayfinder’s place of worship, and the rituals to accompany this mindset include cleaning one's shoes at the door and leaving them on a woven mat overnight to recharge for the adventurous day ahead. In fact, an easy way to spot a Wayfinder’s caravan is to find the strings of beads that decorate the ship or wagon’s exterior. Some land-locked Wayfinders will even string beads between the horns of their oxen, or will hang the decorations off of their favored horse or mule’s bridles and saddles. These beads are strung around what carries them onward and often have carvings of protective symbols to keep their exploratory ventures safe and in the watchful eye of Elvitri, their divine Finders Light.

To some, the Finders Light is the Divinity Elvitri themself, guiding lost travelers on their wayward paths. To others, the Finders Light is a gift bestowed onto them by Elvitri, a constant beacon in the sky that explorers can use to find their heading as they venture on. No matter how much a person moves about the continent, if the sky is clear, they can find the Light above, and based on where they see them in the sky, they can travel on. No word has been spoken of Elvitri walking among us on the continent, so whether or not they’re actually in the sky or take care to remain hidden from mortal eyes is still beyond us.

Whether or not you worship Elvitri, they’re kind enough to light the sky with the Finder’s Light, and if you get to know a Wayfinder well enough, I’m sure you could convince them to point it out to you. Who knows, perhaps the Finder’s Light will guide you to wherever you need to venture next in your life. I think everybody could benefit from a bit of the Wayfinder’s spirit, truth be told. After all, there’s something exciting about the unknown, and to the brave souls who choose to dedicate their lives to exploring it, I wish only the clearest of skies and the brightest of lights above.