Shrine of Spirituality

The Shrine of Spirituality is one of the eight holy sites established by the Council of Wizards during the days of Lord British's philosophical renaissance of the early Age of Enlightenment.

Description
This shrine, dedicated to the virtue of Spirituality, is located not in Britannia itself, but instead in the Ethereal Void, only reachable by moongate travel. The shrine is adorned with a perennial exit gate leading back to the terrestrial realm. During Ultima VII an ankh lies on its altar. Those who seek wisdom at this holy site may gain a deeper understanding of the virtue of Spirituality, which strives to have abetter understanding of the world through truth, Love and Courage. Gaining entry to the shrine required the use of a rune at various points in its history, and the mantra "OM" was required to fully glean the insights offered at its altar.

The circumstances facilitating moongate access vary by era: In Ultima IV, twin full moons were required, whereas simply stepping through a moongate at midnight sufficed in Ultima V. By the time of The False Prophet, the lone Shrine to escape occupation by gargoyles could be reached in multiple ways: entering a blue moongate at midnight; entering a blue moongate when a moon in its last quarter phase occupied the highest zenith (provided the Spirituality moonstone was not yet liberated); or, more readily, by using the Orb of the Moons, a method depended upon in Ultima VII after the obsidian stone had been appropriately activated by the wisps.

Age of Enlightenment
The Shrine of Spirituality was erected around the time of Britannia's christening, and it would figure into the spiritual quest of the Stranger in their pursuit of Avatarhood. The hero would sojourn here after proving themselves to be a seeker of enlightenment, and would attain ascendance in ways of Spirituality after meditating on the virtue for three cycles. The Shrine of Spirituality marked the first of many occasions the Avatar travelled to the Ethereal Void

Later, in the dark days of Lord Blackthorn and the Oppression, the Avatar would travel again to this sacred place, and would be directed by the powers within it to quest after the knowledge of Spirituality contained in the enshrined Codex of Ultimate Wisdom. In the struggle to restore Lord British to his throne, the hero would realize that it was impossible for the dark forces to reach the shrine, so the Word of Power was not needed for an eventual repair.

After the beginning of the Gargish conflict, this shrine and the other seven would all be seized by gargoyle warriors seeking to thwart the prophecy of the False Prophet. Due to its position, it was impossible for the gargoyles to leave behind guards. In time, however, the Avatar would liberate it and could again meditate there on the mysteries of Spirituality. With proper experience, the Avatar could draw on the shrine to gain boosts in strength, dexterity and intellect.

Age of Armageddon
Over the next two centuries, the Shrine of Spirituality would fall into disuse, as the seductive philosophies of the Fellowship eventually came to supplant widespread adherence to the Eight Virtues, though it stayed safe in the void. By the time of the Avatar's eventual return near the time of the Astronomical Alignment, the hero would find that the Guardian had trapped the Time Lord at the shrine, after finally gaining access to it. The actions needed however to free the Time Lord collapsed all moongates, making access to the shrine impossible.

Nonetheless, one year later, the crisis surrounding the Blackrock Dome surprisingly allowed the Avatar access to the shrine. It served as one of the sinister being's places of power and housed a Blackrock Gem, reachable only by first navigating a color-coded maze system. The Avatar had to manage to remove the dark artifact and cut the Guardian's line of power to the shrine.

During the hero's exile on Pagan, the Guardian and his forces would corrupt the shrine. In doing so, the corresponding rune was twisted into an artifact known as a glyph. During their last journeys in Britannia, the Avatar would be able to cleanse the Shrine of Spirituality of such evils, using the powers of the Ankh of Spirituality to undo the damage wrought by the Destroyer of Worlds. The environment surrounding the Shrine differed markedly from the bespangled, celestial ambience of prior times, instead resembling a vast, misty cavern. While here, the Avatar was reunited with the ghost of Dupre, as well as those of any other companions who were slain as Wyrmguard.

Alternate Appearance

 * In Lord of Ultima, a Shrine of Spirituality can randomly be located in Caledonia.
 * In the cancelled Ultima Online 2 and the Technocrat War trilogy, the Shrine of Spirituality was to be included on the southwestern continent of Avenosh.

Trivia

 * In Ultima VI, the Shrine of Spirituality adds one bonus point each to Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence when advancing a character's level.
 * The Keyring Mod for the Ultima VII utility, Exult, gives the Avatar the option to meditate at the Shrine of Spirituality using its corresponding rune. It will issue a quest for the hero to seek knowledge of Spirituality from the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom, as it had in previous games.