Oh No, Not Again!

[Neithan]

Yes, just when you thought you were finally done with it, it keeps creeping back. I am speaking, of course, about the dreaded subject of Tom Bombadil (what? you were expecting Balrog wings?). Now, before I get started I should tell you that if you are sick of this topic and want nothing to do with it, then just don't participate. There is no need to post telling us how much you don't want to hear about it. It is equally unnecessary to say that Tolkien meant for Tom to be an enigma, I know, and I still want to discuss him.
Being relatively new to this forum I haven't had a chance to discuss Tom yet but I sifted through quite a few long threads, some of which were mostly nonsense . To my frustration much of what I had wanted to say had already been said , especially by burrahobbit, however I think I can still add something of my own.
To business then. First let us consider this quote

He knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless - before the Dark Lord came from Outside. (my italics)

The point that is usually made from this quote is that he was in the world before the Ainur and it is a valid point, but I will go further. He says Outside, clearly contrasting it to himself. You do not say that someone came from Outside (with a capital O) if you did too. My point here is that Tom is not an Eala of any kind. There is other evidence that he is not an Ainu (Vala, Maia, or otherwise), for example Tom said that he is "no weather master" but we know that the Valar and Maiar could control the weather. Unlike the Ainur who came "from Outside", Tom belonged in Arda. Some have said that he was the incarnation of Arda itself but if that were the case he would have been changed when the Ainur came and shaped the world. When Arda was marred by Melkor he would have been also, but he was not. I believe that Tom was created with the world, with Eru's word rather than with the Music.

The trees and the grasses and all things growing or living in the land belong each to themselves. Tom Bombadil is the Master.

Tom owns nothing and cares nothing for possesions but he is the Master. In The Adventures of Tom Bombadil Tom shows his mastery of water, plants, animals, and even the Barrow Wights. In the night all of these things try to scare him with "nightly noises" but he is fearless.
All of these things try to use fear, especially the Barrow Wight. In FotR the Hobbits are bothered by the nightly noises. Merry and Pippin are effected by the river and Old Man Willow but Sam is uneffected and Frodo has a dream of another sort. This, I think, is significant but I will not get into it here. Tom was not part of the Music of the Ainur, he is completely seperate from it as nothing else in the world is. Therefore he has no cares and consequently no fears, he does not care about the ring for the same reason that he has no fear, because all those things that were foretold by the Music have nothing to do with him. This is also the reason that the ring has no power over him.
A note on Tom's power, none can resist the power of his words, what he says inevitabley happens. All of the inhabitants of the forest listened to him, the rain would not get him wet when he warded it off, and Frodo even handed over the ring to him.
Tom is also a reminder to us not to take ourselves too seriously.
Notice that I have not mentioned Goldberry, I hope to create a thread for her as well sometime soon but for now lets focus on Tom.