<p>The supreme being who was there at the beginning of all time. Ainulindalë, the first part of the Silmarillion, starts with: There was Eru, the One, who in Arda is called Ilúvatar; and he made first the <a class="glossaryLink" aria-describedby="tt" data-cmtooltip="<div class=glossaryItemTitle>Ainur</div><div class=glossaryItemBody><!-- wp:paragraph -->Ainur were the mightiest being created by Eru. Divine spirits, the Holy Ones. There are two "orders" of Ainur - Valar and Maia. <br>The Ainur were the offspring of Eru's thoughts.<br/><!-- /wp:paragraph --></div>" href="https://tolkienology.net/glossary/ainur/" data-gt-translate-attributes='[{"attribute":"data-cmtooltip", "format":"html"}]' tabindex='0' role='link'>Ainur</a>, the Holy Ones, that were the offspring of his thought. Ilúvatar gave to their vision Being, and […]</p>
FREE REFERENCE ENTRYUpdated 16 February 2023Attribution: Tolkienology
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The supreme being who was there at the beginning of all time.
Ainulindalë, the first part of the Silmarillion, starts with:
There was Eru, the One, who in Arda is called Ilúvatar; and he made first the Ainur, the Holy Ones, that were the offspring of his thought.
Ilúvatar gave to their vision Being, and set it amid the Void, and the Secret Fire was set to burn at the heart of the world, and it was called Eä (the “universe”). The Anuir entered into Eä as Powers of the World and they were named the Valar, and the Lords were:
Children of Iluvatar are Elves and Men, Firstborn and Followers, and they were conceived by Eru himself. They lived in Arda, the Earth, that was made inside Eä.
