Canon:Gilean

Gilean, also known as the Book, the Sage, and the Gray Voyager, is the leader of the Gods of Balance in the Dragonlance campaign setting. He represents the godly force of knowledge. He supports the growth of the soul through attaining knowledge and experience. He is the holder of the Tobril, which contains the divine plan of the High God for the world. He is the patron of sages, librarians, and scholars. He supports free will and individual choice for all individuals of Krynn. He is one of the first gods to be called out of the Beyond and is on equal power with Takhisis and Paladine. A legend of him states that the High God commanded Gilean to ensure his own existence by raising the soul of a mortal scholar who would one day become him, in an ontological paradox of sorts. That scholar is often assumed to be Astinus, who watches over the Great Library of Palanthas and scribes all history as it happens until the Chaos War. Gilean is a mediator between the Gods of Good and Evil, siding against the faction that threatens the Balance. All of the Gods of Neutrality look to him for help and advice, and the Gods of Light often do the same in hopes he will side with them. The Gods of Evil manipulate situations to present Gilean with a case where he can only side with them, such as in the Chaos War where Takhisis forces Gilean to side with her Dark Knights, as they are the only chance that mortals can stand against Chaos. His celestial symbol is the constellation Book of Souls. Some believe that the head librarian of Palanthas, Astinus, is in fact Gilean present on Krynn.