Godstones

Godstones are monumental relics, giant rocks engraved with ancient carvings. Some are towering reliefs depicting individuals or creatures or stories in stylized detail, others are more abstract forms. Each Godstone is entirely unique.   Their origins are entirely unknown; they serve as sources of mystery and mysticism for the world. All manner of stories and folklore have been spun trying to answer the question of what their purpose or significance is. There's somewhere in the low dozens of them, though the count is unknown for some are considered regional secrets and others haven't even yet been found.   Common wisdom suggests being curious and open to their "meaning", for perhaps whatever is being depicted by the Godstone may yet bestow its "power" upon you — if one believes in such things.  

Mythology

These wonders exist throughout the world, one is recorded to stand amidst the inhospitable Frostback Mountains and another in the outskirts of a small town in Antiva's Tellari Swamps. Some are found in even less explicable spots, like one being at the bottom of a lake that was otherwise full for centuries past. Most are partially buried, overgrown by roots, or splintered by wind — yet they remain as if impossibly unbroken.   What they are, in actuality, is anyone's guess. Some believe them to be depictions of powerful entities that existed before the time of man; others believe they're legendary figures of a bygone age. Some even believe them to be the gravestones of dead gods, hence the origin of the name. Most have no real answers.   These sites are honored and feared in equal measure. It's rare for people to make treks to those off in distant lands, if they'd ever even learn those ones exist, but some choose to respect a Godstone near them by taking pilgrimages to it. Gifts are often placed at their base; others may decorate the Godstone depending on its folklore. Stories suggest that some have slept at the base of a Godstone and awoken to visions or the gaining of knowledge they otherwise would have no reason to know.  

Interferences

The Chantry has tried in the past to deface or even destroy certain Godstones. At one point in the Storm Age, after the Second Exalted March, Divine Renata I was so inspired to oust heresy that she proclaimed any form of reverence to Godstones was unfaithful to the Maker. Religious zealots attempted to wash these things away from the face of Thedas but were ultimately unsuccessful due to the Stones' impossibly larger-than-life nature. Few people today care. Most belivers easily find a way to justify piety even when holding simultaneous beliefs.