Who do you think Tom Bombadil really was

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Inziladun

You wouldn't know that by reading through The Movies here.

You obviously haven't read through the Sequence-by-Sequence threads.

Really, in the end it must be down to conjecture and personal interpretation, or the question would likely have been resolved to the satisfaction of most long ago.

Where's the fun in the known?

Personally, I don't care much for 'enigmas', even in books. I like to be able to categorize things and make them fit in the world they inhabit. I know it can't always be done, but that doesn't stop me trying.

The world must be a scary place for you.

But that said, in order to boost my own theory, I must lay waste to the others.

Tom cannot be an Ent, as his speech is much faster than that of any Ent, even Quickbeam. Goldberry is not an Entwife, as she's more into water sports than gardening (though if Tom has the last surviving Entwife around, I can see why he's hidden himself from the others).

Tom is jolly, silly and wears a hat, and these aren't Ent traits either. So Tom is not an Ent. Next...

[Inziladun]

Originally Posted by alatar

You obviously haven't read through the Sequence-by-Sequence threads.

No, I haven't. Sounds worthwhile, though.

Originally Posted by alatar

Where's the fun in the known?.

Who said it was fun?

Originally Posted by alatar

The world must be a scary place for you.

Not at all. Attempting to make sense of the nonsensical is a constant exercise in enlightenment.
To clarify, I'm not saying this topic, or any other for that matter, is an exercise in futility in trying to make a case one way or the other. Personally, I lean toward the 'Tom is Eru' view because it seems to make the most 'in-world' sense to me, though that certainly is an ever evolving opinion.

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Morsul the Dark

really? that's kind of an obnoxious approach

Agreed; in hindsight that wasn't very proper or friendly. Apologies; that the Tylenol and coffee hadn't taken effect will be my excuse. What I meant to say was:

"To show my theory valid, I will next show, politely, how other theories are less likely, given the evidence."

and also entirely false I say the world is a cube, to support it I'll destroy the image of a flat world. Doesn't make me right

Don't know what you mean.

Let me Destroy yours

I was hoping for some feedback, and deserve the bolded verb.

Eru wouldn't last against Sauron?

Stated by whom? How do we know if the person making such a statement actually knows what he/she/it is talking about? For example, Rohan was thought to pay tribute to Sauron. And do we 'really' know if Gollum ate human infants?

Also, my argument has an analogy in Jesus the Christ. Christians believe Him to be 100% God yet 100% man. Though at any time He could have called forth angels to defend him - nay, to keep him from merely stubbing His toe - Jesus veiled His divinity, and so lived as as one of us. This meant that He could be scourged, stabbed, bleed, suffer thirst, and eventually die via crucifixion. Tolkien knew all of this. I posit that when he kept Tom in the text, he may have wanted the same kind of God-man around, self-limiting, though much more than your average citizen (especially as Eru was Goldberry and Fatty Lumpkin as well).

Didn't Gandalf limit his power? So we have precedent.

It is said his power is limited beyond the forest.

By Tom's own choice. Think that Elrond or Gandalf states that Tom has set boundaries for his own pleasure, and awaits some *thing* to go beyond them.

...Though, as Tom seems to be only within in the Old Forest, not sure how he has talks with Farmer Maggot.

Eru's power would be limitless.

Agreed. Why then do you limit Eru's power to *not* be able to live as a triune being in Middle Earth with a veiled powers?

Obviously Tom isn't Eru NEXT

To some.

[Hakon]

Originally Posted by Morsul the Dark

It is said his power is limited beyond the forest.

Originally Posted by alatar

By Tom's own choice. Think that Elrond or Gandalf states that Tom has set boundaries for his own pleasure, and awaits some *thing* to go beyond them.

Maybe Tom's power is limited because of the fact that he does not in a way belong. This goes back to the letter that talked about different planes of existence. It could just be because the plane of existence that Tom is from only overlaps with the forest and that makes his power limited to the forest. It could also be as Alatar stated and he set his own boundaries or it could be both.

[Morsul the Dark]

I believe Elrond says something to the effect of "If Sauron came with all his mihgt not even Tom Bombadil could outlast him.

and the cube bit what I was saying was disproving one theory doesn't make another more valid.
Hey, do the rings give their bearer power to bestow some sort of power to others?
Bombadil almost seem to the Old Forest what Galadriel is to Lorien.

and I think I'll delete my last post, mostly out of ander the tone is unbecoming of the downs

[alatar]

Originally Posted by Morsul the Dark

I believe Elrond says something to the effect of "If Sauron came with all his mihgt not even Tom Bombadil could outlast him.

That might have said in the context of Bombadil actually accepting guardianship of the Ring. What if the Free and Wise, thinking desperately, threw the Ring into the Old Forest. Tom may not have stopped the Nine from coming in and claiming it, as he wasn't really concerned about the whole issue (Eru, as Tom, knows how the song ends, and so what if Sauron gets the Ring?).

and the cube bit what I was saying was disproving one theory doesn't make another more valid.

Understood, though I was a bit intrigued about the cubic earth.

Bombadil almost seem to the Old Forest what Galadriel is to Lorien.

Another, to me, piece of evidence that somehow Tom effects things more than naturally.

and I think I'll delete my last post, mostly out of ander the tone is unbecoming of the downs

But you were perfectly right in calling my tone "obnoxious," as, though I didn't intend it as such (meaning it to be more playfully challenging), it could have and was taken as that. So I apologize, and also thank you for pointing that out to me.

[Morsul the Dark]

here's a unique theory

http://flyingmoose.org/tolksarc/theories/bombadil.html

also on another site;

Tom Bombadil is from Wonderland.
He just plain doesn't fit in Middle-earth; he's much more "fairy-tale" than anything else that exists, with magical powers and implied incredible age despite being apparently human. His bit of the story is a cheerful diversion from the main plot, and almost seems to belong to another tale altogether.
Alternatively, he's from Oz.
Or, he is The One, aka Eru aka Ilúvatar. The Ring has no affect on him whatsoever, and in fact, he makes the Ring disappear briefly! When Frodo puts on the Ring, it is said he is putting one foot in the Wraith world and if he wears it too long, risks becoming a wraith. But the "wraith world" is not necessarily an evil place, for, because of the Ring, Frodo is able to see Glorfindel's "other side" the side that exists in the "wraith" or "spirit" world when Glorfindel goes all badass at the Ford of Bruinen. Tom does not disappear when he puts on the Ring, because the Ring has nowhere to pull him to, he already exists totally on "the other side" as the One. In a way, by making the Ring disappear, Tom is pulling the Ring all the way over to "the other side" with himself. Gandalf remarks at the Council of Elrond to the affect that it is notsomuch that Tom has power over the Ring as that the Ring has no power over him, which fits in with Tom as the One, since a creation cannot be higher than the Creator, but the One being a Creator that doesn't muck around with the free will of his creations (but doesn't mind extending a helping hand every now and again). Even Tom's habit of incessant singing fits this theory.
The whole idea was Jossed by Tolkien in 1954, as he has stated in his letters that The One has no incarnation in Middle-earth. This naturally depends on how heavily you accept the Word Of God.
Or, he is Aulë the Smith. Aulë is unique among the Valar in being fonder of life in Middle-earth than in Heaven, as the god of created objects he would naturally have power over the Ring, and he is romantically involved with an earth-mother goddess who is described in similar terms to Goldberry. Only he has the means, motive and opportunity.
A longish essay (on painful background, unfortunately) on this premise is here.
Oromë was like that too, and I could more easily imagine him as Bombadil than Aulë, whose fascination with created and non-living things just doesn't fit with Tom's close-to-nature lifestyle. Also, his nature as the "Eldest" being on Middle-earth would support this, as, if this troper remembers correctly, Oromë was the first of the Valar to set foot on Middle-earth and certainly the only one to remain there for any length of time.
Or he's one of the Maiar, since Gandalf seems to view him on equal terms, not as a servant would his master.
Tom Bombadil is Santa Claus, and Sauron is the Grinch. Tom, who of course is really the spirit of Middle-earth incarnate, switched rings on Frodo, claiming the Ring for himself. At the proper moment, he used the Ring to throw down Sauron, reducing him to powerlessness. Over the long centuries that followed, the Ring darkened his heart until he became Santa Claus, lord of greed, bringer of strife. It's all explained here.
Or maybe he was just hanging around Middle-earth during that hundred-year-or-so period when he was kept out of Narnia by the White Witch.
Tom Bombadil is the Witch-king of Angmar. Explained here.
As strange as that theory is, it does look like it has textual backup.
Tom Bombadil is Thomas Covenant. He's just enjoying a holiday after his fairly harrowing adventures in a foreign land. What, the name wasn't a hint?
Tom Bombadil is the Green Man from folklore, the manifestation of the British/Shire countryside. At least metaphorically.
That's the what Word Of God say he really but Tolkien just put him the story to mess with readers' heads.
Tom Bombadil represents the reader. You are Tom Bombadil. He can see Frodo when he's wearing the ring, which has no power over him and Elrond says a world ruled by Sauron would have no interest for him but he could not take the ring himself.
Isn't anyone going to say he's a Time Lord?
He's actually an incarnation of Suzumiya Haruhi, when she was going through an obsession with medieval fantasy.
Clearly Tom is actually a Refugee From Discworld. You know it's true

[Bêthberry]

I think Tom really practices the power of Now, don't you all think?

[Nogrod]

Someone probably has said this already (and I'm not going back to see if one of you did like five years ago ), but Tom is JRRT himself naturally...

And I mean it. It's the obvious solution.

Or then like a Finnish comparative-religion academic said in a radio-programme this summer; he's an offspring of an earlier Tolkien story he had gotten so fond of that he just wished to fit him in in the early stages and never got to write him out later as he didn't actually fit in... and most of you guys probably can give a list of letters of the Prof. to either comfirm that or to rebuke it.

I like my theory the better but the latter seems quite credible.

[skip spence]

Originally Posted by Morsul

Tom Bombadil is the Witch-king of Angmar

Morthoron had me convinced of this on another thread which I'm too lazy to dig up sadly. It would be worth the effort though as it was a brilliant theory.

[Bêthberry]

Originally Posted by Nogrod

Someone probably has said this already (and I'm not going back to see if one of you did like five years ago ), but Tom is JRRT himself naturally...

And I mean it. It's the obvious solution.

Beat ya too it, kid, and not like five years ago, but merely on the previous page: The Author in His Works by Bethberry

Note too that Pitchwife, al and Morth subsequently admired the theory as they thought it could tidily be incorporated into their own. I must say I think I'll go and work on Pitchwife's anagram idea a bit . . . .

[Morsul the Dark]

Tolkien says Bombadil doesn't fit into middle-earth so only one true answer remains;

Eru creator of ME would fit in
Any Vlar or Maiar samething.
Tolkien himself fits in.
Witchking
Crazy Hobbit Hobo- even that works


Tom Bombadil after process of elimination ;
"When you eliminate the impossible that which is left, however improbable, is true"-Spock

An Alien!

[Nogrod]

Originally Posted by Bêthberry

Beat ya too it, kid, and not like five years ago, but merely on the previous page

Well, I knew someone had to have come up with that already...

Kudos! As one tends to think the idea he got himself and was pleased with as a great idea anyway!

[Eönwë]

Originally Posted by alatar

• Tom is Eru

So that's why he's always singing. Now you know what the Music of the Ainur really sounded like .

Anyway, I think he is more something that Eru put there to be an antidote to the evil of Middle-Earth, so in a way, he is a manifestation of Eru, as he does what Eru wants, but isn't actually him.

And also, remember the whole thing about trolls being made in mockery of Ents and Orcs being made in mockery of Elves/Men? I would assume that this was already decided in the Music, and that Melkor, hearing of Tom Bombadil (literally), created an opposite, Ungoliant. I'm sure that somewhere I've read that she is the primeval spirit of darkness and so, according to this, Tom would be the primeval spirit of good.

This would actually make sense, as Tom is sort of made to be a perfect being: He is kind and carefree, he is a perfect partner with his wife (and together they make a whole), he is in tune with nature and isn't against it (e.g. he can talk to trees), he is his own master (nothing can take control of his mind, and he is himself all the time), and best of all, he is happy.

And would you put it past Eru to make Goldberry for Tom, as God made Eve for Adam?

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Eönwë

Anyway, I think he is more something that Eru put there to be an antidote to the evil of Middle-Earth, so in a way, he is a manifestation of Eru, as he does what Eru wants, but isn't actually him.

And also, remember the whole thing about trolls being made in mockery of Ents and Orcs being made in mockery of Elves/Men? I would assume that this was already decided in the Music, and that Melkor, hearing of Tom Bombadil (literally), created an opposite, Ungoliant. I'm sure that somewhere I've read that she is the primeval spirit of darkness and so, according to this, Tom would be the primeval spirit of good.

Nay, that really doesn't work. Tom does not actually DO much, does he? Tom could be a spirit of the primeval, good (in the sense: unspoiled, undisturbed) Arda, however, he just is not able to cope with the flow of events. Or, let's say, history. He is old and can just live, live and live on and time can pass him by and not affect him - but at the same time, history works and affects everybody around him violently. "He's a moss-gatherer", and Gandalf put it quite well in this comparison of his, the forces who were able to actually act on good's behalf and stand against Sauron or whatever were not Tom, but messengers like Gandalf, "a stone doomed to rolling". Tom portrays the ideal state, something like the Shire as it was isolated from the outside world - even though it could not escape it eventually, as it HAD TO be touched by the history, as it WAS a part of the history too (or "was in it", or how to put it. And now I am not referring to the Ring or anything, I am speaking on very general terms).

I think Bombadil is the extreme example of isolation "outside" the history - almost, or on the very edge (mostly as an observer - as we are shown in the places where he tells something about old Arnor, the barrows or the woman wearing the jewel from that tomb). Only if it really came to that Tom would keep the Ring, and Sauron would have had to confront him, he would came into real "touch" with the history. But not otherwise. See, there was Sauron's rule all over Eriador (except Lindon) in the dark ages, while Tom was apparently still there in his place. Nothing touched him, and he was of no concern to Sauron's rule. No threat, except that maybe he could offer a shelter to a few passers-by - just like with Frodo. But he really didn't have any special "agenda", did he? He just helped Frodo because he managed to stop by, not because he would have some real urge to contribuge to destroying Sauron.

All in all, Tom is really the closest to nature - also in this sense. But he has little to do with the history of humans, elves, hobbits or Dark Lords. In this way, he is not really a representative of any powers of the West or anything - he is just too passive, as in comparison to the Istari's mission, for example. Therefore, even his connection as some manifestation of Eru would be a bit doubtful (though it is true that theologically, Eru is not one of the most active gods himself, or at least he does not seem to be in the process of history - though still, TB is just too much even for him, and Eru has all these delegates like Valar and delegates of delegates like the Istari).

[Inziladun]

Originally Posted by Legate of Amon Lanc

I think Bombadil is the extreme example of isolation "outside" the history - almost, or on the very edge (mostly as an observer - as we are shown in the places where he tells something about old Arnor, the barrows or the woman wearing the jewel from that tomb).

The 'outside' word interests me, and leads me to wonder if my 'Maia or Eru' ideas might not be too stratified. Tom actually reminds me a bit of Ungoliant in that context.

For though the Valar did not yet understand fully what had befallen, they perceived that Melkor had called upon some aid that came from beyond Arda.

Silm Of the Flight of the Noldor

So the Valar, the most powerful and knowledgeable beings of Arda, were unaware of Ungoliant and did not know what manner of creature she was. Perhaps Tom was a being of the same sort, differently embodied. It would explain why the Eldar, taught by the Valar, had no clear notion what Tom was.

[Eönwë]

Originally Posted by Legate of Amon Lanc

Nay, that really doesn't work. Tom does not actually DO much, does he? Tom could be a spirit of the primeval, good (in the sense: unspoiled, undisturbed) Arda, however, he just is not able to cope with the flow of events. Or, let's say, history. He is old and can just live, live and live on and time can pass him by and not affect him - but at the same time, history works and affects everybody around him violently. "He's a moss-gatherer", and Gandalf put it quite well in this comparison of his, the forces who were able to actually act on good's behalf and stand against Sauron or whatever were not Tom, but messengers like Gandalf, "a stone doomed to rolling". Tom portrays the ideal state, something like the Shire as it was isolated from the outside world - even though it could not escape it eventually, as it HAD TO be touched by the history, as it WAS a part of the history too (or "was in it", or how to put it. And now I am not referring to the Ring or anything, I am speaking on very general terms).

I didn't mean that he was there to help the good guys. I just said that he was good. When I said that he was an antidote to the evil, I didn't mean that he would just go out and defeat the baddies, but that he is just good.

He shows many the opposite characteristics of the bad characters:

• The bad want to control, he doesn't
• The bad want to be involved in everything and everyone's lives
• The bad are never content wit anything they have, he is
• The bad always want to expand, he sticks to his own lands

and so on.

Tom Bombadil is the opposite extreme to all the evil characters, and that is why no-one knows anything about him. He keeps to himself unlike any of the bad characters.

And anyway, if Tom Bombadil actually interfered, then it would go against all of Melkor's designs, and then the Music of the Ainur wouldn't be more magnificent (Remember what Eru says about how Melkor's discord contributes to the Theme?)

He wasn't there to go against the Music the way that Men were allowed to, and so the theme still played out. He was just there, I think, to give comfort to the few that passed his lands. There was only one time (that we know about), where he directly coincided with the fate of the world, and technically, he only helped them through his land and told them stories. He just gave them a much-needed break. It was still up to them to them to carry on the quest and destroy the ring, he just gave them a little bit of safety at the start of the quest. I don't think he was made to play a big part (while Ungoliant, who I regard as his opposite, but of the same nature, plays a huge part, such as in destroying the Trees) in the world, but just to be a safe haven, and in that way, he contributed to the good without influencing the world. Eru left that to his creations: His Children and the Ainur. The Ainur were almost as fallible as elves, only on a much huger scale, for example when Manwe decided to let Melkor go and he wreaked havoc upon Arda.

I think that Tom Bombadil was pure in a way, but in an earthy way, unlike the Ainur who were not pure- look at Melkor. Because he (Tom Bombadil) was pure, he couldn't interfere with the world, otherwise there probably wouldn't even be a story.

Think of what happens with the wights- they are evil and dangerous, and in his land, yet he only gets rid of one, and only when it threatens people. I think this shows him to be a truly good and pure being, as most of the "good" characters would have definitely got rid of the wights if they could, yet Tom lets them stay there and only interferes when someone's life, and in fact the whole fate of Middle-Earth, is at risk he acts, and then only destroys the immediate threat (one of the many wights).

We can look at the ring in the same way. If he has it, then he probably wouldn't keep it safe because of his purity. He is so pure that the ring doesn't affect him like every other being in Middle-Earth. Because he is perfectly content, the ring has nothing to offer him, and so it has no power over him. He would just treat it as a normal ring, because to him, that is what it is. He is not affected by anything, but he also does not affect anything outside his realm, and only gets involved with things inside his realm if he needs to.

So I think (if we disregard the AOTB, which isn't really Middle-Earth canon, to me at least), that the Tom Bombadil we see in Middle-Earth is a wholly good character, and only gets involved when there is a benefit for the greater good (or just for the good side in general), and does not become involved just because he can.

[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Okay, now I can say I more or less agree with you, Eönwë, on most points - more or less. But maybe just as reply to this, to make it clear:

Originally Posted by Eönwë

I didn't mean that he was there to help the good guys. I just said that he was good. When I said that he was an antidote to the evil, I didn't mean that he would just go out and defeat the baddies, but that he is just good.

But that was the point. You used the word "antidote", which is, in this case, not well used at all. Tom was the first pure thing before any antidote had to be used. You use antidote to purify the already poisoned, let's say, body. But Tom was a part of the original unpoisoned Arda, and then poison (Melkor, Sauron) came, and then the antidote (Istari...) had to be used.

[Eönwë]

Originally Posted by Legate of Amon Lanc

But that was the point. You used the word "antidote", which is, in this case, not well used at all. Tom was the first pure thing before any antidote had to be used. You use antidote to purify the already poisoned, let's say, body. But Tom was a part of the original unpoisoned Arda, and then poison (Melkor, Sauron) came, and then the antidote (Istari...) had to be used.

Ah, yes, that is a good point. I was thinking more that it was an antidote for the characters passing through his land.

[PrinceOfTheHalflings]

I don't normally get involved in Bombadil threads, but I think we can rule out a few possibilities just by asking the author. He did say quite a lot about what Bombadil is not:

Letter 144, written in 1954:

"He has not connexion in my mind with the Entwives", "...only the Victory of the West will allow Bombadil to continue, or even to survive. Nothing would be left for him in the world of Sauron." He says that if you have no interest in power or control then "the questions of the rights and wrongs of power and control" have no meaning to you. "It is a natural pacifist view".

Letter 153, also written in 1954, in response to the claim the Bombadil is God/Eru because Goldberry says "He is":

"...I really do think you are being too serious ... Frodo has asked not 'What is Tom Bombadil' but 'Who is he' .... Goldberry gives what I think is the correct answer... Goldberry and Tom are referring to the mystery of names."

In other words you can only explain who Tom Bombadil is by the statement "He is Tom Bombadil". He is the one and only Tom Bombadil. As Tom asks Frodo, "Don't you know my name yet? That's the only answer. Who are you, alone, yourself and nameless?"

So, Tolkien implicitly rejects that Tom is Eru and hints that he is really in a class of his own.

As for the suggestion that Tom is Tolkien himself, or the reader, well that really is unhelpful. Besides, Tolkien said the character he mosts identifies with is Faramir - see, for example Letter 180; both the comment that Faramir shares Tolkien's dream of the "Giant Wave" and also his footnote, "As far as any character is 'like me' it is Faramir".

So from the author's own words... Bombadil is not:

- The author.

- God

- An ent or entwife.


Bombadil is:

- One of a kind.

- A 'natural pacifist'. He does not get involved or seem to be concerned about events in the outside world.

- Eldest. He was there before anything else.

So, we also know that he is not mortal, for he seemingly has lived for as long as middle-earth itself. Also, he does not disappear when he wears the Ring ... this is only true for immortals. Therefore he can't be some kind of strange man or hobbit.

In the story his function seems to be to show that the Ring has no effect on someone with no interest in power and control. Thus, even Frodo and Bilbo do have, at least in some measure, some hidden desire for power and control. There has to be something inside you that the Ring can work on.

Insofar as he can be compared to any character, I would say that he is the anti-Melkor. Whereas Melkor from the very beginning wished to impose his own will on things, and this desire (when denied) became an impulse to ruin everything and oppress everyone, Tom has no personal interest whatsoever in controlling anything. Tom, of course, cannot oppose someone like Melkor or Sauron in any meaningful way, because he does not wield power in the way that they do. So when I say he is the anti-Melkor I don't mean that he is 'equal' to Melkor (or the 'antidote' to Melkor) because to be Melkor's true opposite means he cannot oppose evil. Indeed, in general he is oblivious to it. That isn't to say that Tom is powerless ... indeed he is 'Master' of his own little land ... he has profound influence through his 'songs' ... but he has no "personal interest" in power. He does not use power to enhance his standing or boost his ego.

One interesting thing to notice is that Tom does say "his songs are stronger". He does seem to maintain order in his land through his songs. It's hard not to be reminded of the Music of Eru at this moment, as Tom's songs seem to have some kind of deep influence on reality. This doesn't mean that Tom is Eru, just that he knows the Music! I seem to recall reading a theory that Tom actually is a manifestation of the Music brought to life as a conscious being. A spirit of the Music, if you like.

[Inziladun]

Originally Posted by PrinceOfTheHalflings

One interesting thing to notice is that Tom does say "his songs are stronger". He does seem to maintain order in his land through his songs. It's hard not to be reminded of the Music of Eru at this moment, as Tom's songs seem to have some kind of deep influence on reality. This doesn't mean that Tom is Eru, just that he knows the Music! I seem to recall reading a theory that Tom actually is a manifestation of the Music brought to life as a conscious being. A spirit of the Music, if you like.

In my continuing quest to force Tom into fitting the established cosmology, and in reference to what I said here, the above quote makes me wonder if both Tom and Ungoliant couldn't be Ainu who entered Arda independantly, for purposes they perceived to be their own. Ungoliant initially was allied with Melkor, though she later renounced him to serve herself.

The Eldar knew not whence (Ungoliant) came; but some have said that in ages long before she descended from the darkness that lies about Arda....

Silm Of the Darkening of Valinor

Tom was here before the River and the trees; Tom remembers the first raindrop and the first acorn. ....When the Elves passed westward, Tom was here already, before the seas were bent. He knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless--before the Dark Lord came from Outside

FOTR In the House of Tom Bombadil

'Outside', to me must mean the Void, and Tom is claiming to have entered Arda before Melkor. Tom's allegiance, similar to Ungoliant, appears to be to himself, with the difference that he is not malevolent.

[PrinceOfTheHalflings]

Originally Posted by Inziladun

In my continuing quest to force Tom into fitting the established cosmology, and in reference to what I said here, the above quote makes me wonder if both Tom and Ungoliant couldn't be Ainu who entered Arda independantly, for purposes they perceived to be their own. Ungoliant initially was allied with Melkor, though she later renounced him to serve herself.

Yes, if Tom has to be considered to be part of any known order of being it would make sense for him to be an Ainu. Thus he would have been present, and participated in, the Music. Any question of whether he is a lesser or greater Ainu is too hard to answer ... and perhaps not relevant. What this means though (to me) is that he is not one of the known Vala or Maia.

[Rhugga II]

I think it most likely that Tom is a Melian-like being. However, he is deeply in touch with the Earth and nothing else really - kind of like uber Radagast. Tom is a traditional woodland spirit out of mythology and his wife is a fairy - perhaps an intrusion or throwback to concepts featured The Book of Lost Tales. This helps to explain Tom's actions visa vi the One Ring. He is so enamored with the green things and growing things, like the extrapolation of Hobbitness, that he does not desire power over others and therefore the Ring cannot sway him or even make him invisible. Tolkien's ultimate fantasy may have been a Wizard Hobbit - it certainly is a great combination.