He sits in the dark. Roots of weirwood trees grow through his pale skin, winding into his eye socket and tangling with his hair. He isn't exactly a man anymore, but he isn't quite a god either. If you watched the HBO show, you might think you know him. If you read the books, you know he’s much more terrifying. Who is the Three Eyed Raven? Honestly, the answer depends on whether you're looking at the history of Westeros or the magical biology of the Children of the Forest.
At his core, this figure is the Last Greenseer. He’s a bridge. He connects the present moment to every single memory ever held by a tree in the known world. It's a lot to handle. Most people in the Seven Kingdoms think he’s a bedtime story used to scare children into staying in their beds at night. They're wrong. He is the ultimate spy, the ultimate historian, and—arguably—the most powerful player in the Great Game, even if he doesn't have a crown.
The Man Behind the Mask: Brynden Rivers
Before he was a bird or a tree-man, he was a person. A real, breathing, hated person. In George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series, the entity Bran Stark meets is widely accepted to be Brynden Rivers, also known as Bloodraven. He was a Great Bastard of King Aegon IV Targaryen.
He had one eye. The other was lost in a duel with his half-brother, Aegor "Bittersteel" Rivers. He didn't wear a patch. He just let the empty socket stare people down, which is incredibly metal if you think about it. He was a sorcerer and a spymaster. People used to whisper, "How many eyes does Lord Bloodraven have? A thousand eyes, and one."
This wasn't just a clever saying about his network of informants. It was literal. He was already using skinchanging abilities to look through the eyes of animals and the carved faces on weirwoods long before he vanished into the Far North. He served as Hand of the King, was eventually sent to the Wall as a prisoner, became Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, and then simply disappeared on a ranging.
He didn't die. He found a cave. He found the Children of the Forest. And he began the long, slow process of becoming who is the Three Eyed Raven in the eyes of the world. He traded his humanity for a seat at the edge of time.
Powers That Break the Brain
Greensight isn't just "seeing the future." That's a cheap way of describing it. It is the ability to perceive time as a single, cohesive entity rather than a straight line. Imagine standing on a mountain looking down at a river. You can see where it starts, where it bends, and where it flows into the sea all at once. That's what it’s like.
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- Skinchanging: He can slip into the mind of a raven, a wolf, or even a person (though that’s a massive taboo).
- Time-walking: He can observe the past through the weirwood trees.
- Dream-sending: He can reach out and touch the minds of others, influencing them through visions.
It’s a lonely existence. You’re trapped in a cave, your body is rotting, and you’re watching the world go by without being able to touch it. This is why he needed Bran. The Three Eyed Raven isn't just a title; it’s a job description that requires a fresh set of eyes every century or so.
The show simplified this. In the books, Bloodraven is still very much a Targaryen at heart—haunted by his lost love, Shiera Seastar, and his bitter rivalries. He’s a gray character. Is he "good"? Probably not. He’s pragmatic. He does what needs to be done to ensure the world doesn't end in a permanent winter. If that means manipulating a young boy or sacrificing thousands of lives, he’ll do it without blinking his one remaining eye.
Why the Raven and Not a Crow?
There’s a weird discrepancy here that drives fans crazy. In the books, Bran follows a Three-Eyed Crow. In the show, it’s a Three-Eyed Raven. Does it matter? Sorta.
Ravens in Westeros are messengers. They carry the truth across long distances. Crows are scavengers. They eat the dead. By changing the animal, the show made the character feel a bit more "regal" and less "death-adjacent." But the core remains: he is an avian symbol of watching. He sees the things no one else sees. He hears the whispers in the Red Keep and the screams at the Wall.
When you ask who is the Three Eyed Raven, you’re really asking about the memory of the world. Without him, the history of Westeros is just a bunch of stories told by winners. With him, the truth survives, even if it's buried under a mountain of ice and roots.
The Theory of Everything: Is He Evil?
There is a massive contingent of the fandom that believes the Three Eyed Raven is the "Big Bad." Think about it. He manipulated Bran Stark into leaving his family, trekking into the most dangerous place on earth, and then essentially "downloaded" himself into Bran’s brain.
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Is Bran even Bran anymore?
By the end of the series, he says he "doesn't really 'want' anymore." He’s a shell. A hard drive for the Raven’s consciousness. If the Raven’s goal was to eventually rule Westeros, he won. He’s the King. He has the ultimate surveillance state. He can see if you’re planning a coup before you even think of it. That’s not a hero. That’s a god-emperor with a very efficient PR department.
The Children of the Forest have their own agenda, too. Humans burned their trees. Humans slaughtered their people. What better revenge than putting one of their own—or a human they’ve completely co-opted—on the Iron Throne? It’s a subtle, slow-burn vengeance that takes centuries to play out.
How to Spot a Greenseer in the Wild
If you’re diving deep into the lore, look for these specific traits. They aren't just random details; they are markers of the power.
- Eye Color: Greenseers among the Children of the Forest usually have red or green eyes. Bloodraven had one red eye (he was an albino).
- Physical Frailty: The power seems to tax the body. You don't see warrior-greenseers. They are usually sickly or "marked" from birth.
- The Connection to Weirwoods: If someone is hanging out near a face-tree and seems to know things they shouldn't, you've found your candidate.
The Tragic Reality of the Role
The Three Eyed Raven is a sacrificial lamb. To save the world, you have to leave it. You sit in a cave. You eat "paste" that might be made of your dead friend (the Jojen Paste theory is a rabbit hole you should definitely jump down sometime). You watch your family die. You watch empires fall.
It’s a burden. When the Raven tells Bran, "You will never walk again, but you will fly," it sounds like a gift. It isn't. It’s a consolation prize for a life stolen.
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Most people focus on the magic. They want to know the "how." But the "why" is more interesting. The Raven exists because the world is forgetful. Humans forget the mistakes they made. They forget the Long Night. They forget why they built the Wall. The Three Eyed Raven is the living record of those mistakes. He is the person who says, "Hey, don't do that again," even if no one is listening.
What Most People Get Wrong
The biggest misconception is that he’s an individual. He’s more like a collective. When Bran becomes the Raven, he inherits the memories of all the Ravens before him. He becomes a "We," not an "I."
This is why the Bran we see in Season 8 is so detached. He’s processing thousands of years of human suffering and triumph at the same time. He’s watching the building of the Wall while simultaneously watching the fall of King's Landing. It's a miracle he can even hold a conversation.
Actionable Takeaways for Lore Enthusiasts
If you want to truly master the lore of who is the Three Eyed Raven, stop looking at the surface level. Go deeper into the history of the First Men.
- Read the "Dunk and Egg" Novellas: These stories give you a look at Brynden Rivers when he was still a man. You’ll see his cruelty, his brilliance, and his obsession with the "greater good." It makes his transformation much more tragic.
- Study the Old Gods: The Raven is effectively the "voice" of the Old Gods. Understanding the religion of the North is key to understanding his motives.
- Analyze Bran's Visions: Go back and read the chapters where Bran is "flying." The things he sees aren't random. They are the Raven’s way of teaching him how the world actually works, stripped of the songs and the chivalry.
The Three Eyed Raven is the most complex character in the saga because he isn't even a character by the end—he's a force of nature. He is the cold, hard truth of the North. He is the memory that won't die. Whether he's a savior or a conqueror is a question that will keep fans arguing for decades.
Observe the recurring themes of sacrifice. Every bit of knowledge the Raven gains costs him a piece of his soul. Every vision Bran sees costs him a bit of his humanity. In the world of Westeros, magic is never free. It’s always bought with blood. The Three Eyed Raven has paid more than anyone else.