Manwë stumbles

[alatar]

Then Manwë upon the Mountain called upon Iluvatar, and for that time the Valar laid down their government of Arda. But Iluvatar showed forth his power, and he changed the fashion of the world; and a great chasm opened in the sea between Númenor and the Deathless Lands, and the waters flowed down into it, and the noise and smoke of the cataracts went up to heaven, and the world was shaken. And all the fleets of the Númenóreans were drawn down into the abyss, and they were drowned and swallowed up for ever. But Ar-Pharazon the King and the mortal warriors that had set foot upon the land of Aman were buried under falling hills: there it is said that they lie imprisoned in the Caves of the Forgotten, until the Last Battle and the Day of Doom.

But the land of Aman and Eressea of the Eldar were taken away and removed beyond the reach of Men for ever. And Andor, the Land of Gift, Númenor of the Kings, Elenna of the Star of Earendil, was utterly destroyed. For it was nigh to the east of the great rift, and its foundations were overturned, and it fell and went down into darkness, and is no more. And there is not now upon Earth any place abiding where the memory of a time without evil is preserved. For Iluvatar cast back the Great Seas west of Middle-earth, and the Empty Lands east of it, and new lands and new seas were made; and the world was diminished, for Valinor and Eressea were taken from it into the realm of hidden things.

In an hour unlocked for by Men this doom befell, on the nine and thirtieth day since the passing of the fleets. Then suddenly fire burst from the Meneltarma, and there came a mighty wind and a tumult of the earth, and the sky reeled, and the hills slid, and Númenor went down into the sea, with all its children and its wives and its maidens and its ladies proud; and all its gardens and its balls and its towers, its tombs and its riches, and its jewels and its webs and its things painted and carven, and its lore: they vanished for ever.

It had been ages - AGES! - yet Manwë still remembered the day that the Gift was taken back. Númenor...fair Númenor, that land and people that held so much promise, the place where the Second Born of Iluvatar rose to their potential, and yet...

Surely Sauron, that foul champion of every poison that Melkor spewed, had his hand in Númenor's destruction, but he wouldn't have done so much so quickly if Men hadn't been so eager to listen to his lies. The Númenóreans were not blameless, but how deep lay their guilt, and how dark then their punishment? The First Born had shown to be just as foolish, and yet...

Manwë sight could look back to that day. Children, not more than a few years old, struggled to stay above the waters that eventually dragged them down. Flora and fauna, still stainless and innocent, were drowned as surely as those that threw their brothers onto the burning altar. On that day Manwë thought the problem too big, too subtle, too sad, to handle without guidance from Iluvatar, who knew the beginning and the end and all points in between. Manwë asked Eru to help, and so had laid down his authority of Arda, believing that Eru would put things to right, as Eru would be just and caring.

In all of the long days when Manwë and the Valar fought for control of Arda, Manwë had never sought such help as he did that day. Not when Aman was darkened, not when elf slew elf, staining the seas with blood, did he set aside his kingship. When they broke the doors of Angband and cast Morgoth into the Void, Manwë was in charge. The one time he wasn't, and the Land of the Gift, and all that was beautiful and innocent and vile and dark was destroyed. The combatants in their small ships were one thing, but what of those drowned children?

Why did Iluvatar do this?

It was then, the first time since Manwë first sang his first note, that he began to doubt The One...

***

I've always understood why Melkor couldn't be redeemed. It was in his nature, much like Saruman ages later, to continue to gnaw at the small twisted plots though they clearly led to ruin. It's been my observation that, absent some epiphanical life event-explosion, that people continue to act as they do with little variance. What I'm saying that, after a certain age (and it varies for each individual), certain behavioral patterns lock in and people use those as they go through life. A person who is a jerk may continue that lifestyle until the end, though he be friendless and yet wondering why. In other instances you see someone have some huge life event, then completely change. Sometimes this is a good thing; other times, not so much.

So, given that, why is it that we don't ever 'worry' that one day Manwë will wake up (if he ever sleeps) and turn to the dark side? Again, I never wonder about this in regards to Melkor, but the rest of them, I'm not too sure.

And note that I've wondered about this in regards to Abrahamic religions in that if a third of the angels fell with Lucifer (and they had no snake to tempt them), what would stop another third from falling sometime between now and the end of eternity?

How does Tolkien's Manwë stay faithful?

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

I think the answer can be put from several directions, also depending on the way you look at it.

A) Manwë would simply never "fall to the dark side", because that's the way we feel it from the story. I think most, if not all the readers have this feeling. Otherwise, Manwë knows lot of Ilúvatar's mind... maybe even for example if there is any deeper reason behind the drowning of Númenor he may actually understand why the innocents have died... etc...

B) (Is rather a continuing of the first, but I am putting this apart to emphasise the different "level" of it.) Manwë could eventually doubt Ilúvatar sometimes, but his faith in Ilúvatar's doing being good would ultimately convince him to stay true to what Ilúvatar set before him.

C) (This could also go together with both those named above, it's just another way of seeing the things.) Manwë (and Valar) are simply "pre-destined" by Eru NOT to fall. Point. (This actually may be true in the deeper sense if you look at the story from the "outside" point of view, again, Tolkien wrote the characters in some way, so they are predestined by his inkpen, so to say. Of course Tolkien didn't write about what Manwë does in the Fourth Age, but if he continued to, the characters would be still predestined by his inkpen as he was in the ages before, where we knew Manwë as faithful to Eru. And again, one would probably assume he wouldn't differ from the Manwë we know.)

D) Yes, it's possible that Manwë would eventually fall. There's always a possibility.

I think there can't be said much more than this (basically).

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by alatar

And note that I've wondered about this in regards to Abrahamic religions in that if a third of the angels fell with Lucifer (and they had no snake to tempt them), what would stop another third from falling sometime between now and the end of eternity?

Perhaps because they remember the battle in heaven wherebye Lucifer and the rebel angels were defeated and thrown into the torments of Hell and don't want to be similarly tormented and placed? Of course, I'm thinking of Milton's Paradise Lost, the theology of which is dicey. The Vatican, after all, placed it on its list of banned books.

Melkor had no forerunner so he could not conceive what his loss would be like. Manwe knew/knows what the cost of pride/ambition/rebellion is. This is the right use of longevity, rather than the nostalgia to which the elves were prey.

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Manwe knew/knows what the cost of pride/ambition/rebellion is.

Never stopped me.

Our laws today, with the threat of punishment, are obviously not deterrents. So what you are saying is that, if not for the example of Melkor's punishment, Manwe would be running amok? Not sure that that's what I'm getting at. Maybe, to speak more in your terms, why is Manwe such the dog? Isn't there even a bit of feline in him, making him want to tease his "master," if not outright disobey him?

Why were the teams decided so long ago for these beings? Is there never even a thought of playing for the other side? Could Eru do something that would push Manwe into rebellion?

Think how lucky a parent Eru is, never having to wonder which 'kid' broke the vase.

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by alatar

Never stopped me.

You are of the race of Man, a third creation. Manwe is of the Valar, the first created. I think there must be folk wisdom that talks of declining vigour and virility as creation continues. And anyway, Manwe was of lesser power than Melkor, wasn't he? Weren't they all? It was only Melkor who went into the void seeking the Flame Imperishable. Beware the loner.

Originally Posted by alatar

Maybe, to speak more in your terms, why is Manwe such the dog? Isn't there even a bit of feline in him, making him want to tease his "master," if not outright disobey him?

See above. Cats were domesticated long after dogs. They are still a work in progress.

Originally Posted by alatar

Why were the teams decided so long ago for these beings? Is there never even a thought of playing for the other side? Could Eru do something that would push Manwe into rebellion?

Think how lucky a parent Eru is, never having to wonder which 'kid' broke the vase.

One of the things that's really interesting about the Biblical Flood is God's reaction when Noah offers ritual sacrifices of the animals that God has just caused to be saved. (Talk of learned respsonses.)

Originally Posted by Genesis 6:20

Then Noah built an altar [note, not an alatar] to the LORD. He took ritually clean beasts and birds of every kind, and offered whole-offerings on the altar. When the LORD smelt the soothing odour, he said within himself, 'Never again will I curse the ground because of man, however evil his inclinations may be from his youth upwards. I will never again kill every living creature, as I have just done.

The Covenant is made not just with Noah, but with all future generations and with all living creatures. And it is repeated three times. Something happened when the Lord realized what he had done to creation. He will still make spot cleansing operations, with Babel and Sodom, but destroy the entire creation, no. (And he does make an agreement with Abraham to save Sodom if only ten good men could be found in the city. Lot can't find ten good men.)

(The rainbow is often regarded sentimentally as God's promise not to destroy life, but it also means that God has left man to his own responsibility, so it becomes a stoic reminder that we are on our own now.) Interestingly, Tolkien's Eru does not voice any kind of regret over the loss of Numenor or the removal the Deathless Realm, not regret such as is suggested in the Bible. Nor does he offer to save Numemor if a few faithful can be found. Nor does Eru ever make any kind of covenant with Elendil.

Note that any seriousness on my part is a small effort to forestall any further fanfiction attempts by you. But I suppose you've given more ideas for Lush's bad fanfic thread.

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

You are of the race of Man, a third creation. Manwe is of the Valar, the first created. I think there must be folk wisdom that talks of declining vigour and virility as creation continues.

That's all true, except that I have more children that he.

And anyway, Manwe was of lesser power than Melkor, wasn't he? Weren't they all?

"All the best people work at some other company." Why is it all the ones that have it all go 'bad?' Is it that they have no where else to go but down, or is it that they, seeing more clearly than all others, see the real truth and so rebel?

It was only Melkor who went into the void seeking the Flame Imperishable. Beware the loner.

Agreed. One should share knowledge and the pursuit of the same.

See above. Cats were domesticated long after dogs. They are still a work in progress.

I thought that they were just finishing up domesticating humans.

One of the things that's really interesting about the Biblical Flood is God's reaction when Noah offers ritual sacrifices of the animals that God has just caused to be saved. (Talk of learned responses.)

"One less!" Saved them from the flood for the fire. How lucky. Explains those unicorns, or the lack thereof.

(The rainbow is often regarded sentimentally as God's promise not to destroy life, but it also means that God has left man to his own responsibility, so it becomes a stoic reminder that we are on our own now.) Interestingly, Tolkien's Eru does not voice any kind of regret over the loss of Numenor or the removal the Deathless Realm, not regret such as is suggested in the Bible. Nor does he offer to save Numemor if a few faithful can be found. Nor does Eru ever make any kind of covenant with Elendil.

Interesting. I guess a god cannot regret. I just wonder what was so special about the rebellion of Numenor that made Eru jump in.

Note that any seriousness on my part is a small effort to forestall any further fanfiction attempts by you. But I suppose you've given more ideas for Lush's bad fanfic thread.

I knew that's it been your job to keep me in check.

Thanks for the responses.

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

Eschewing the Biblical parallels and such, I always figured Eru's motives -- and quite likely a lot of the motives of the Valar -- were beyond the full comprehension of the Men and Elves who recorded the tale of the Akallabeth. Manwe and Melkor always struck me as somewhat akin to the twin brothers Nissyen and Efnissyen of the Welsh Mabinogian, two halves of a whole in terms of good and evil (although Efnissyen is less absolute in his evil, since he repents in the end and sacrifices himself to destroy the Cauldron and save the Welsh forces from its armies of Undead, something I can't picture Melkor doing). It is said in the Silmarillion (IIRC) that Manwe cannot comprehend evil, having within him no evil. This is the first time that Valinor was directly assailed by armies of the Eruhini; my suspicion has long been that Manwe simply didn't know how to handle the situation. The Secondborn in particular have a fate unknown to him; any major action against them might subvert that destiny. So he falls back to asking Eru to take a hand, since He will know what the situation demands. It seems a rather extreme measure -- not unlike the Great Flood, since one has to assume there were innocent children in the world, even if every adult in existence was corrupt -- but by this point, it may have been the best solution to a problem the Valar themselves began when they did not deal with Melkor more expediently, and brought the Elves to Valinor, rather than trust that Eru would protect His Children while the Valar handled Melkor. Because he is good and without evil does not mean Manwe is free from mistakes. Perhaps if he had called upon Eru for help a long time before, the destruction of Numenor would not have happened. If the privilege of dwelling in Aman had not been granted to the Elves, they and Men would have had to find ways to coexist in Middle-earth -- with Melkor and his minions subdued before they had a chance to so thoroughly spoil the world.

Well, that's what's been burbling around my head for a while.

[Eönwë]

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

You are of the race of Man, a third creation. Manwe is of the Valar, the first created. I think there must be folk wisdom that talks of declining vigour and virility as creation continues. And anyway, Manwe was of lesser power than Melkor, wasn't he? Weren't they all? It was only Melkor who went into the void seeking the Flame Imperishable. Beware the loner.

I will have to reply to this with a single word. Ulmo. He at first was Manwe's "best friend". He got "private tutoring" from Eru. Later on, he separates from the other Valar "preferring the sea", but yet, he knows more about the happeings in ME than all the otherVala through water. And water is the least marred of all things in Arda, even air (Manwe's creation). Later on, he goes against the beliefs of the other Valar, he is "the voice that gainsayeth" *wink wink Legate* but also "a light where darkness was decreed" (if that's not too long, I'm stealing that as my personal title). So even though he is not with the Valar, he is still on their side, in fact, even more on their side than themselves. He communicates with Cirdan, a firstborn, while the Valar leave ME, and only help later by sending the Istari. Even then, Ulmo, most likely unbidden by the Valar, tells Cirdan to give his ring to Olorin, which helps the free peoples greatly, and maybe without this gift Sauron would have had dominion over all of ME. Without "joining the good side", Ulmo is a good side in his own right. What I mean is that even though he distances himself from the others, he still remains true, and uncorrupted. He's actually a bit like Eru's "secret weapon". So if Ulmo, alone in the deeps of the world, and the great sea does not feel slightly inclined to turn to the dark side (even though he journeys alone), why would Manwe, when he is surrounded by all the good of the world. And Ulmo is the next step down in power from Manwe, and not by that much.


On a different note, Ulmo, in a way, caused Numenor, by helping Tuor. In fact, during its destruction, maybe that is why the Valar "laid down their government of Arda" for the time, because Ulmo would not do it. And maybe in that case, Ulmo would be right. Maybe by destroying Numenor Eru was just doing a favour for the Valar, after all the good they did for him and in his name. Or he could have got angry. Or maybe Eru was just trying to protect his Valar, and got only slightly carried away. He might not have wanted to do it all. He might have regretted it too, but no-one would have ever told mere Eldar that their Father and creator could make a mistake. Even without such cause to doubt him the Numenoreans had turned away from him to "Melkor worship", so imagine what would have happened if one of the "good" Vala like Manwe had told the Faithful (or any other men, or even elves, for that matter) of Eru's mistake. Even if the Faithful disagreed with the "turned-bad" Numenoreans, they were still related, still of the same blood. Even the Eldar have been known to doubt the "good" Valar (e.g. Feanor in the First Age). So, if this was the case, he was protecting them from themselves and their own wrong judgement. Wouldn't you lose faith if you found out that someone had wrongly destroyed your whole former country and killed everyone in/on it? I would definately doubt the Valar and/or Eru. It might have been the biggest cover-up in ME history.

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Interestingly, Tolkien's Eru does not voice any kind of regret over the loss of Numenor or the removal the Deathless Realm, not regret such as is suggested in the Bible. Nor does he offer to save Numemor if a few faithful can be found. Nor does Eru ever make any kind of covenant with Elendil.

But are you sure that Eru is not letting the Faithful escape. He could have just as easily let tem get killed.

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

Originally Posted by Eönwë

But are you sure that Eru is not letting the Faithful escape. He could have just as easily let tem get killed.

I think this is good point. After all, it's not as if Sauron was wholly responsible for the corruption of Numenor. The rift between the King's Men and the Faithful had become entrenched a thousand years before he showed up, and rumblings against the Ban of the Valar had been around even before that. If I recall correctly, Sauron took umbrage at Ar-Pharazon proclaiming himself the Lord of Middle-earth, as the Valar took umbrage at him calling himself the Lord of the West (a title that already belonged more rightfully to Manwe). The people of Numenor had a long time to choose which side they would be on, that of the King or that of Eru and the Valar, and most of them appear to have chosen the King. One could argue that this came about out of fear, but when the second to last king, Tar-Palantir, attempted to restore the old ways of friendship with the Elves and faithfulness to the Valar and the One, it doesn't appear that the people wholly embraced this opportunity for change. When Ar-Pharazon forced himself on Tar-Palantir's daughter to proclaim himself king, he was not stopped -- something I think rather unlikely, if the people had indeed chosen to return to the old ways. Even so, they were given additional warnings, and though Sauron spread lies as to their true meaning, the Faithful knew them for lies, and took what action they could. Why did they know that it was time to flee? How did they figure this out, or who told them? One might suspect that they were warned -- but not by anyone in Numenor. If Manwe sent signs in the form of storms and eagles, others of the Valar, or even Eru Himself, could have sent warnings more direct to the Faithful. I suspect they probably did -- and I also suspect that Eru regretted the destruction of Numenor as much as He regretted all that happened in the First Age because of mistakes the Valar had made in their dealings with the Elves.

To me, it seems that when they made Numenor for the Edain, the Valar didn't understand the nature of jealousy. A gift that brings one too close to what they cannot have, and thus reminds them of what they cannot -- indeed, are forbidden to -- have, isn't much of a gift at all, IMHO; sooner or later, someone thus "rewarded" is going to think that it's not a reward, and become jealous and angry. Why the Valar didn't foresee this possibility (probability?) has long puzzled me.