The Music of the Ainur

History and context

Ilúvatar proposes themes to the Ainur, whose participation develops the music. Melkor introduces discord in an attempt to advance his own purposes, but cannot turn the whole into a creation independent of Ilúvatar. After the music, the Ainur are shown a vision that makes aspects of its meaning visible. Ilúvatar then gives actual being to the world. Some of the Ainur enter it and work within the history they have partly perceived. Their knowledge of the music does not make them omniscient about every event, and the appearance of the Children of Ilúvatar carries a particular significance beyond their own making.

Literary context and distinctions

The Ainulindalë connects artistic participation with limits. The Ainur contribute to the unfolding vision without becoming the ultimate source of existence. Melkor’s discord can be taken up into a larger design without making his intention good or his victims’ suffering trivial. Critical discussions should distinguish that theological structure from a claim that every act of evil is secretly a duty imposed on its agent. Tolkien’s creation account also exists in a history of revision. Details from earlier cosmological schemes should be identified when compared with the published Silmarillion.

Primary references

• The Silmarillion, “Ainulindalë”.
• Morgoth’s Ring, “Ainulindalë”, including Christopher Tolkien’s commentary.