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Many thanks to Ultima for helping me with this project! This is a cosmology expansion for Tolkien's Legendarium that proposes Eru as tier 0 and the Ainur in their "Prior to entering Eä" key as High 1-A+
vsbattles.fandom.com
The draft itself will contain the meat of the arguments and relevant references, and I insist that people read it. But for a basic summary:
The current justification for Low 1-C Ainur and Eru is that Eru is threefold. Essentially the conflict between the Ainur shakes the Timeless Halls and potentially beyond, aka the Low 1-C "primary" level of existence that Eru and the Ainur all reside. The Halls being Low 1-C due to R>F for 3 separate reasons which are summarised in short below:
This would, if maintained, result in a 1-A cosmology as a baseline due to R>F Qualitative Superiority. However, since the initial revision, my understanding of Tolkien's cosmology has expanded upon this. In short, there are three key existences that matter to this revision:
From the Creator comes forth Sub-creators. At the basest form, anything can be a sub-creator, for the act of sub-creation is simply the act of creation through the channels provided by God. However, the title of Sub-creator is given by Tolkien in reference to those who create stories. For example, Tolkien himself is a Sub-creator and subordinate to God. This does not mean that Tolkien is a true character within the Legendarium in a way that matters, but what this revision does consider is that the position of Sub-creators is very real within the Legendarium.
Indeed, the Ainur are addressed as such by Tolkien, being the angelic and highest creations of Eru/God that possess "special" sub-creative power.
Now for the argument.
Eru/God is given many, many reasons as to why He can be considered Tier 0.
Sub-creators meanwhile are capable of realising all logical possible worlds under God/Eru's Creation. As Tolkien himself writes, there are no "'bounds to a writer's job' except those imposed by his own finiteness..." and "the laws of contradiction".
Again, the blog is where the meat of the proposal is, this is a basic summarisation. The potential concerns of religion are also addressed there, but in short, Tolkien's is very respectful of his own faith.
God being the same across all things is just that. There is no direct quotation of biblical verses in any noticeable fashion within the Lord of the Rings or Hobbit, indeed it is sometimes easy to forget Eru and the Ainur are there as they are only really hinted, and even the Silmarillion reads quite differently as a Creation story despite having the same beats. The Legendarium is a fundamentally Christian work, but not in an overly overt way that results in a 1 to 1 translation of the Christian God into power scaling, rather this is the indexing of Tolkien's description of his views of God through fiction.
Tolkien High 1-A+ and 0 Proposal Draft
vsbattles.fandom.com
The draft itself will contain the meat of the arguments and relevant references, and I insist that people read it. But for a basic summary:
The current justification for Low 1-C Ainur and Eru is that Eru is threefold. Essentially the conflict between the Ainur shakes the Timeless Halls and potentially beyond, aka the Low 1-C "primary" level of existence that Eru and the Ainur all reside. The Halls being Low 1-C due to R>F for 3 separate reasons which are summarised in short below:
- Tolkien uses the same language to differentiate Eru's and the Ainur's level of existence to Eä (the universe) as he does to differentiate between reality and mythology
- Eru holds all of Eä as mere thought, being able to maintain it in his mind. To Him, it is on the same level as fiction is, as an entire space-time is but merely thought in His mind (indeed, the language is used describes Eä as but one finite fictional sub-creation under Eru/God's infinite creative potential. Meanwhile Tolkien states both space and time in Eä being limitlessly extensive, aka infinite. In essence a 4-D Space-Time is finite and fractional compared to Eru)
- Eru is described as an author, with his interventions being that of an Author, as is his role, level of existence, etc.
This would, if maintained, result in a 1-A cosmology as a baseline due to R>F Qualitative Superiority. However, since the initial revision, my understanding of Tolkien's cosmology has expanded upon this. In short, there are three key existences that matter to this revision:
- God/Eru
- Sub-creators/Authors
- The Ainur/Angels/gods
From the Creator comes forth Sub-creators. At the basest form, anything can be a sub-creator, for the act of sub-creation is simply the act of creation through the channels provided by God. However, the title of Sub-creator is given by Tolkien in reference to those who create stories. For example, Tolkien himself is a Sub-creator and subordinate to God. This does not mean that Tolkien is a true character within the Legendarium in a way that matters, but what this revision does consider is that the position of Sub-creators is very real within the Legendarium.
Indeed, the Ainur are addressed as such by Tolkien, being the angelic and highest creations of Eru/God that possess "special" sub-creative power.
Now for the argument.
Eru/God is given many, many reasons as to why He can be considered Tier 0.
- Point 1: Eru/God is boundless and the source of possibilities
- Point 2: Eru/God is unique
- Point 3: Eru/God holds infinite power in comparison to even the Ainur
- Point 4: Eru/God is the source of all free-wills, life, the universe, etc
- Point 5: Eru/God is ineffable and unreachable, He is beyond even thought
Sub-creators meanwhile are capable of realising all logical possible worlds under God/Eru's Creation. As Tolkien himself writes, there are no "'bounds to a writer's job' except those imposed by his own finiteness..." and "the laws of contradiction".
- Sub-creators (encore)
- Of course, Sub-creators are finite despite as only God is considered infinite. Compared to God, Sub-creators are considered as "refracted light" from a "single white"
Again, the blog is where the meat of the proposal is, this is a basic summarisation. The potential concerns of religion are also addressed there, but in short, Tolkien's is very respectful of his own faith.
God being the same across all things is just that. There is no direct quotation of biblical verses in any noticeable fashion within the Lord of the Rings or Hobbit, indeed it is sometimes easy to forget Eru and the Ainur are there as they are only really hinted, and even the Silmarillion reads quite differently as a Creation story despite having the same beats. The Legendarium is a fundamentally Christian work, but not in an overly overt way that results in a 1 to 1 translation of the Christian God into power scaling, rather this is the indexing of Tolkien's description of his views of God through fiction.
