The White Council

Re: Radical New Bombadil

Tolkien and Inklings Discussion

Below is a copy of an email I sent Jon some months ago, which sets out at some length my thoughts on Bombadil. I think some of this might be relevant to the present discussion.

Martin.

The message I put on the board was written very quickly and did'nt go into much depth. I suspect that Tolkien had some specific ideas on the nature and origin of Bombadil but preferred to leave him as an enigma. Goldberry, especially in the light of what Bombadil said of her (as being the daughter of the River Withywindle - not sure of the river name) is pehaps even more difficult to assign an origin to.

The problem of defining the Maiar is dependent on the origin of the hierarchy of the "Angelic Powers" in Arda. I don't think Tolkien was ever very explicit about this, but I'll give you my thoughts on it for what they're worth. It seems that before the creation of the physical universe Eru "produced" a number of independent beings, the Ainur, which I would credit on the available evidence with "Free Will". In that these beings were not merely extensions of Eru but had a separate existence. I think this is supported by the story of the creation of the Dwarves, which were animate but did not "live" untill Eru adopted them from Aule (Sp?), i.e. they were mere automaton extensions of Aule.

If it is accepted that the Ainur posessed Free Will then I think that it follows that the Ainur were under no compulsion to either enter Arda in the first place or if they entered it to work in any particular manner. Probably, the Ainur in the "Singing" recognised aspects of creation that appealed to them and formed associations with others of like mind. It would seem to me that the most powerful member of each grouping would naturally become its leader, and once established would be differentiated as a Vala with the subordinate associates being known as the Maiar. At some stage this hierarchy probably recieved approval from Eru and became "established". This would undoubtedly leave some Ainur outside the Hierarchy, but I think that they would still be able to enter Arda if they so wished, which is what I think Bombadil did. Tulkas could be seen as something of an exception as he entered Arda for a particular purpose, to oppose Melkor after his malign nature had become obvious.

To return to definitions: I would define the Maiar as Ainur who entered the hierarchy of Arda in a lesser position to, and follower of , the Valar. The Ainur not entering this system would be neither Maiar nor Valar.

The relative strength or power of Bombadil to the Valar and Maiar is difficult to measure. He was unnaffected and immune to temptation by the One Ring which argues for his strength, also Gandalf stated that Bombadil would be able to defy Sauron in his own small domain even if the whole of the West had fallen. I therefore would place Bombadil as equal to even the greatest of the Maiar such as Eonwe or Sauron.

Bombadil is shown as having an affinity with both animals and plants which I think also argues against him being a Maiar follower of either Orome or Yavanna. I think of Bombadil as enjoying and appreciating the created world rather than having any desire to dominate or control it, or be involved in "Great events". In this sense he is more the opposite to Morgoth than even Manwe is.

After all the above argument I still think that the real origins of Bombadil are outside of Tolkien's mythology and in English folklore, as a nature spirit.