Most stories come to an end. They have to, for some day, everything gets settled: the heroes get their goals, and the villains get their due. And then the people themselves pass on, as do eventually the memories of those who knew them. Only the story remains.
But when a story concerns an eternal thing, it cannot end. It can only echo through time, repeat itself a little differently. For the ages of the world pass, but the objects of great power and beauty are coveted by each generation anew, even unto the present day. Perhaps, some future people can avoid this cruel fate. And yet, even those people who suffer the most would never wish to part with the hope and joy the crystals bring.
The history of the Silmarili in the First Age and earlier is too long and convoluted to reproduce here, and another excellent work is already written on the topic. But a brief summary may be illustrative, especially on those points embellished.
When the Ainur first arrived, the Earth was formless, and the Sun a dim glow across the realm of Arda. As Arien kindled the sun, the Valar set about the task of preparing for the arrival of the Eruhíni, the children of Ilúvatar. Thus they formed the Earth, sculpting its mountains and carving its oceans, populating it with plants and all of the lesser creatures.
The supposed lamps at each end of the Earth, Illuin and Ormal, ostensibly lit the world in these days. However, this was just mere legend, likely a corruption of the story of the Trees. The Sun was present in the earliest of days, though it was the only light. When it was near time for the first children to arrive, Varda cleared the orbits of the heavens, gathering the gas and rock to fashion the wandering planets, and revealing the night sky. This is how the Valië Varda first earned her title, Elbereth, or Star Queen.
Thus when the Elves first awoke, their nights were filled only with starlight. However, as Melkor's dissension grew into outright rebellion against his fellow Valar -- and eventually against Eru himself -- the other Valar fashioned the Moon to limit the evil that could be accomplished under cover of darkness.
In commemoration of this achievement, Vala Yavanna cultivated two trees to light the continent of Aman. The silver tree, Telperion, and the golden tree, Laurelin, dimmed and shined with day and night in Valimar.
Meanwhile, Melkor repeatedly tried to tempt Arien, the maia who guided the Sun, as he had done with so many other fire spirits -- whom we now know as Balrogs. Unable to win her over, instead Melkor ravished Arien, and as a result, the pure eminence of light in Aman was forever tarnished.
The Sun's light, though still borne by Arien and still warming and nourishing the world, became harsh and blinding. Even the Moon's reflected light became weak and wavering, though still a guide in the night. But on the highest mountain of Aman, the pure light of the trees still shone.
One day Fëanor, son of Finwë, perhaps the greatest of the Noldorin craftsmen, crafted three jewels, one a silver crystal bearing Telperion's light, another a golden crystal with the light of Laurelin, and a third gem that captured the light of both trees. The jewels were called Silmarili, and each Silmaril was beautiful beyond compare. It was at this point that the desire to own and control the true light of creation entered the world.
The great spider-being Ungoliant, at the prompting of Melkor, with her awful fangs poisoned the Two Trees. Even Yavanna and Nienna could not save the trees, but with great labor preserved a small part from each tree: Telperion's last fruit remained, and Laurelin's last flower blossomed and seeded, to grow into the White Tree of Gondor.
But pure light that had remained in the Two Trees was no more. No more was the world bathed in the true light; the only pure light remaining in the world lay within the three Silmarils.
A lot of things happened at this point, with Finwë being killed, the Silmarils doing a stint on Melkor's crown, and the blood oath of Fëanor, sworn against Melkor (whom he renamed Morgoth), to reclaim the jewels. And true to their word, they slew all else who possessed the gems, even their kin.
Even the descendents of Beren, who stole a jewel from Morgoth's crown, faced the wrath of the sons of Fëanor. With Beren's Simaril, Elwing narrowly escaped across the ocean to her husband Eärendil, sailor and half-elven. Together they returned to Valinor, and persuaded the Valar to make war. With the power of the silver crystal, Eärendil was able to destroy the dragon Ancalagon, whose power was Morgoth's last ditch attempt at victory. After the War of Wrath, Morgoth was judged by his fellow Valar and cast deep into the void, far outside our galaxy.
As the First Age drew to an end, the Silmarils were scattered. One was thrown deep into a volcano, to rest in the earth; another was lost in the sea. But the silver crystal went into the skies, borne by Eärendil, aboard his flying ship Vingilótë. Taking the fate of Elves, for the sake of his wife Elwing and the rest of his crew, they spread the light of the silver crystal in the night sky to give hope to those in darkness.
Eärendil and Elwing's son Elros chose the Gift of Men, and founded Númenor before passing early in the Second Age. Their other son Elrond chose the Gift of Elves, and was instrumental in the defeat of Sauron, before leaving to Valinor aboard the White Ship, marking the end of the Third Age.
But up in the heavens, they had a third child, a daughter, whom they named Kalainë, though she is better known by her name translated to English: Serenity. This is primarily her story.
As Eärendil and his crew founded the Moon Kingdom, the last kingdom of elves, they set in motion the events that would bring about the end of the Fourth Age, and yet another remaking of the world. They could hardly help it, though. The eternal Silmarils are fated to bring both hope and destruction to the world, again and again.
A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
-- "Endymion", Keats
Notes:
Quenta Isilaranyëo
Literally "The Tale of the Moon Kingdom" in Quenya. Um, if I declined that noun right. "Quenta": account. "Isil": moon. "Aranyë": kingdom.
But when a story concerns an eternal thing, it cannot end.
Wow, that Utena reference came fast! The silmarili meet all of the criteria: they are an eternal thing, they have miraculous power, they are a shining thing literally and figuratively, and have the power to overthrow order. Thus, the power to revolutionize the world. It's no wonder that Morgoth/Chaos' agents keep trying to get them.
realm of Arda
Okay this is a bit like saying ATM Machine (but only if you really know your elf-talk). Later Tolkien considered Arda, the realm of Manwë, to be the entire solar system. And that other star systems could have their own Ainur, and even people? But Arda is special not just because of elves and men, but also because Melkor was here first.
Melkor ravished Arien, and as a result, the pure eminence of light in Aman was forever tarnished.
As an Utena fan I feel bad for writing this. First of all, it's not my own idea, it's the eventual, more scientific version that Tolkien came up with at the end of his life: http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Round_Wor...lmarillion
The other to remember here is that as they are both Ainur, this "ravashing" was probably not physical, but spiritual corruption. And once touched by sin, her soul cannot become clean again without the help of Eru, the LORD, so it's kind of like original sin. Yet still an act by the most powerful male in Arda against a female. In some ways, her purity held up well against the corruption, if you compare her fate to the Balrogs or even the Orcs. So, um, Morgoth was kind of a bad guy, right?
Ainur
Essentially: angels. Or powers. Includes the greater order, Valar, of which there are 14*, and Maiar, which are more numerous. Melkor is technically a Vala, in fact his power is unsurpassed among the Valar, but he got kicked out of the club on account of inventing evil.
Eruhíni, the children of Ilúvatar
God. Also known as Eru. The first children are Elves, and the second are humans. But the Ainur are also His creations, as is everything else. Except the bad stuff Melkor makes. If you need more detail on how *that* works, see a Theology class.
But when a story concerns an eternal thing, it cannot end. It can only echo through time, repeat itself a little differently. For the ages of the world pass, but the objects of great power and beauty are coveted by each generation anew, even unto the present day. Perhaps, some future people can avoid this cruel fate. And yet, even those people who suffer the most would never wish to part with the hope and joy the crystals bring.
The history of the Silmarili in the First Age and earlier is too long and convoluted to reproduce here, and another excellent work is already written on the topic. But a brief summary may be illustrative, especially on those points embellished.
When the Ainur first arrived, the Earth was formless, and the Sun a dim glow across the realm of Arda. As Arien kindled the sun, the Valar set about the task of preparing for the arrival of the Eruhíni, the children of Ilúvatar. Thus they formed the Earth, sculpting its mountains and carving its oceans, populating it with plants and all of the lesser creatures.
The supposed lamps at each end of the Earth, Illuin and Ormal, ostensibly lit the world in these days. However, this was just mere legend, likely a corruption of the story of the Trees. The Sun was present in the earliest of days, though it was the only light. When it was near time for the first children to arrive, Varda cleared the orbits of the heavens, gathering the gas and rock to fashion the wandering planets, and revealing the night sky. This is how the Valië Varda first earned her title, Elbereth, or Star Queen.
Thus when the Elves first awoke, their nights were filled only with starlight. However, as Melkor's dissension grew into outright rebellion against his fellow Valar -- and eventually against Eru himself -- the other Valar fashioned the Moon to limit the evil that could be accomplished under cover of darkness.
In commemoration of this achievement, Vala Yavanna cultivated two trees to light the continent of Aman. The silver tree, Telperion, and the golden tree, Laurelin, dimmed and shined with day and night in Valimar.
Meanwhile, Melkor repeatedly tried to tempt Arien, the maia who guided the Sun, as he had done with so many other fire spirits -- whom we now know as Balrogs. Unable to win her over, instead Melkor ravished Arien, and as a result, the pure eminence of light in Aman was forever tarnished.
The Sun's light, though still borne by Arien and still warming and nourishing the world, became harsh and blinding. Even the Moon's reflected light became weak and wavering, though still a guide in the night. But on the highest mountain of Aman, the pure light of the trees still shone.
One day Fëanor, son of Finwë, perhaps the greatest of the Noldorin craftsmen, crafted three jewels, one a silver crystal bearing Telperion's light, another a golden crystal with the light of Laurelin, and a third gem that captured the light of both trees. The jewels were called Silmarili, and each Silmaril was beautiful beyond compare. It was at this point that the desire to own and control the true light of creation entered the world.
The great spider-being Ungoliant, at the prompting of Melkor, with her awful fangs poisoned the Two Trees. Even Yavanna and Nienna could not save the trees, but with great labor preserved a small part from each tree: Telperion's last fruit remained, and Laurelin's last flower blossomed and seeded, to grow into the White Tree of Gondor.
But pure light that had remained in the Two Trees was no more. No more was the world bathed in the true light; the only pure light remaining in the world lay within the three Silmarils.
A lot of things happened at this point, with Finwë being killed, the Silmarils doing a stint on Melkor's crown, and the blood oath of Fëanor, sworn against Melkor (whom he renamed Morgoth), to reclaim the jewels. And true to their word, they slew all else who possessed the gems, even their kin.
Even the descendents of Beren, who stole a jewel from Morgoth's crown, faced the wrath of the sons of Fëanor. With Beren's Simaril, Elwing narrowly escaped across the ocean to her husband Eärendil, sailor and half-elven. Together they returned to Valinor, and persuaded the Valar to make war. With the power of the silver crystal, Eärendil was able to destroy the dragon Ancalagon, whose power was Morgoth's last ditch attempt at victory. After the War of Wrath, Morgoth was judged by his fellow Valar and cast deep into the void, far outside our galaxy.
As the First Age drew to an end, the Silmarils were scattered. One was thrown deep into a volcano, to rest in the earth; another was lost in the sea. But the silver crystal went into the skies, borne by Eärendil, aboard his flying ship Vingilótë. Taking the fate of Elves, for the sake of his wife Elwing and the rest of his crew, they spread the light of the silver crystal in the night sky to give hope to those in darkness.
Eärendil and Elwing's son Elros chose the Gift of Men, and founded Númenor before passing early in the Second Age. Their other son Elrond chose the Gift of Elves, and was instrumental in the defeat of Sauron, before leaving to Valinor aboard the White Ship, marking the end of the Third Age.
But up in the heavens, they had a third child, a daughter, whom they named Kalainë, though she is better known by her name translated to English: Serenity. This is primarily her story.
As Eärendil and his crew founded the Moon Kingdom, the last kingdom of elves, they set in motion the events that would bring about the end of the Fourth Age, and yet another remaking of the world. They could hardly help it, though. The eternal Silmarils are fated to bring both hope and destruction to the world, again and again.
A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
-- "Endymion", Keats
Notes:
Quenta Isilaranyëo
Literally "The Tale of the Moon Kingdom" in Quenya. Um, if I declined that noun right. "Quenta": account. "Isil": moon. "Aranyë": kingdom.
But when a story concerns an eternal thing, it cannot end.
Wow, that Utena reference came fast! The silmarili meet all of the criteria: they are an eternal thing, they have miraculous power, they are a shining thing literally and figuratively, and have the power to overthrow order. Thus, the power to revolutionize the world. It's no wonder that Morgoth/Chaos' agents keep trying to get them.
realm of Arda
Okay this is a bit like saying ATM Machine (but only if you really know your elf-talk). Later Tolkien considered Arda, the realm of Manwë, to be the entire solar system. And that other star systems could have their own Ainur, and even people? But Arda is special not just because of elves and men, but also because Melkor was here first.
Melkor ravished Arien, and as a result, the pure eminence of light in Aman was forever tarnished.
As an Utena fan I feel bad for writing this. First of all, it's not my own idea, it's the eventual, more scientific version that Tolkien came up with at the end of his life: http://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Round_Wor...lmarillion
The other to remember here is that as they are both Ainur, this "ravashing" was probably not physical, but spiritual corruption. And once touched by sin, her soul cannot become clean again without the help of Eru, the LORD, so it's kind of like original sin. Yet still an act by the most powerful male in Arda against a female. In some ways, her purity held up well against the corruption, if you compare her fate to the Balrogs or even the Orcs. So, um, Morgoth was kind of a bad guy, right?
Ainur
Essentially: angels. Or powers. Includes the greater order, Valar, of which there are 14*, and Maiar, which are more numerous. Melkor is technically a Vala, in fact his power is unsurpassed among the Valar, but he got kicked out of the club on account of inventing evil.
Eruhíni, the children of Ilúvatar
God. Also known as Eru. The first children are Elves, and the second are humans. But the Ainur are also His creations, as is everything else. Except the bad stuff Melkor makes. If you need more detail on how *that* works, see a Theology class.
"Kitto daijoubu da yo." - Sakura Kinomoto