Eru Ilúvatar

“	There was Eru, the One, who in Arda is called Ilúvatar; and he made first the Ainur, the Holy Ones, that were the offspring of his thought, and they were with him before aught else was made. And he spoke to them, propounding to them themes of music; and they sang before him, and he was glad. But for a long while they sang only each alone, or but few together, while the rest hearkened; for each comprehended only that part of the mind of Ilúvatar from which he came, and in the understanding of their brethren they grew but slowly. Yet ever as they listened they came to deeper understanding, and increased in unison and harmony. And it came to pass that Ilúvatar called together all the Ainur and declared to them a mighty theme, unfolding to them things greater and more wonderful than he had yet revealed; and the glory of its beginning and the splendour of its end amazed the Ainur, so that they bowed before Ilúvatar and were silent. Then Ilúvatar said to them: ‘Of the theme that I have declared to you, I will now that ye make in harmony together a Great Music. And since I have kindled you with the Flame Imperishable, ye shall show forth your powers in adorning this theme, each with his own thoughts and devices, if he will. But I will sit and hearken, and be glad that through you great beauty has been wakened into song.’	„
	~ The Silmarillion: Ainulindalë

Summary

Eru Ilúvatar, also known as the One, is the supreme being of J.R.R. Tolkien's Legendarium and, as Tolkien understood Eru not as a "fictional deity" but as a name in a fictional language for the actual monotheistic God, is the same God that is referred to in all of Tolkien's writings. He is the sustainer and creator of all that exists or ever will exist, being the eternal "Prime Being" which all existences are contingent upon. Yet despite His infinite transcendence and remoteness to all His creations, Eru is an omnibenevolent God, within whom all themes find their source. He has repeatedly interfered and aided the efforts of those who remain good, and it is said that, in time, Eru will give life to the Second Music of the Ainur within with Arda will be made anew, free from Melkor's marring forever.

Powers and Stats

Tier: 0

Name: Nameless. However, he is known by many names, including but not limited to: Eru ("He Who Is Alone"), Ilúvatar ("Father of All"), The One, "The Other Power," "The Writer of the Story," "The Author of the Great Tale," "The Creator."

Origin: Lord of the Rings

Gender: Inapplicable (Referred to as masculine)

Age: Inapplicable

Classification: God, Supreme Being, Benevolent Creator

Powers and Abilities:

• Omnipotence, Omnipresence & Omniscience (Specific applications that have been shown are:)
  • Creation & Void Manipulation (Eru possesses the Flame Imperishable that is the heart of existence, and with it he is capable of creating things ex nihilo by granting the gift of "Being". As the sole essence on which all things are contingent, everything that exists emerges from, and coheres in, his thought)
    • Soul Manipulation & Conceptual Manipulation (Type 1; The Ainulindalë which established the foundations of Eä is secondary to primary reality of the Timeless Halls, and it, as well as all else that exists beneath it, is ultimately subject to the Great Pattern produced by Eru. He alone is capable of ensouling objects with the Flame Imperishable and granting them form)
    • Law Manipulation (In the Legendarium, we have two laws descending from Eru, the únati, a thing that is impossible to be done, and the axani, a thing that should not be done but can be done. While the latter is merely a written law, the former are enforced laws that cannot be repudiated by even the likes of Melkor. All things that are impossible are the result of Eru's únati, with their very existence being noted as a perpetual reminder of Eru's "invincibility")
  • Beyond-Dimensional Existence (Type 2) & Transduality (Type 2; Eru, as the Prime Being, is utterly unique and beyond any identity or plurality)
    • Acausality (Type 5; Eru is immutable, existing eternally as the "ever-present" Person who is never present or named)

Attack Potency: Boundless (Eru exists outside of thought and transcends all identity and multiplicity, being above even the predicate "He is," which applies only to created sub-existences and not to the "Prime Being" of Ilúvatar. Completely transcendent over the Ainur, with all of Eru's creations being equally distant from his majesty and considered finite in relation to him. All songs that the Ainur can produce have their ultimate source in him, as all possible stories, with no limit but the laws of non-contradiction, are expressions of his creative power, compared to "refracted hues" of the singular white light that is Eru)

Speed: Omnipresent (Described as "ever-present" and as that in which "we live, and move, and have our being," simultaneously outside time and creation and "in the heart of the world" through the Flame Imperishable)

Lifting Strength: Inapplicable

Striking Strength: Inapplicable

Durability: Boundless (Unlike his products, Eru is not contingent, and nor does he possess existence in any derivative mode, but is instead "Prime Being" itself, with his creations being described as simply "sub-existences")

Stamina: Inapplicable

Range: Boundless

Standard Equipment: None

Intelligence: Omniscient (All things originate from Eru and he knows all, for every theme and pattern no matter their variation finds their uttermost source in him)

Weaknesses: None

Explanations

As for Tom Bombadil, I really do think you are being too serious, besides missing the point. (Again the words used are by Goldberry and Tom not me as a commentator). You rather remind me of a Protestant relation who to me objected to the (modern) Catholic habit of calling priests Father, because the name father belonged only to the First Person, citing last Sunday's Epistle – inappositely since that says ex quo. Lots of other characters are called Master; and if 'in time' Tom was primeval he was Eldest in Time. But Goldberry and Tom are referring to the mystery of names. See and ponder Tom's words in Vol. I p. 142. You may be able to conceive of your unique relation to the Creator without a name – can you: for in such a relation pronouns become proper nouns? But as soon as you are in a world of other finites with a similar, if each unique and different, relation to Prime Being, who are you? Frodo has asked not 'what is Tom Bombadil' but 'Who is he'. We and he no doubt often laxly confuse the questions. Goldberry gives what I think is the correct answer. We need not go into the sublimities of 'I am that am' – which is quite different from he is.* She adds as a concession a statement of pan of the 'what'. He is master in a peculiar way: he has no fear, and no desire of possession or domination at all. He merely knows and understands about such things as concern him in his natural little realm. He hardly even judges, and as far as can be seen makes no effort to reform or remove even the Willow. * Only the first person (of worlds or anything) can be unique. If you say he is there must be more than one, and created (sub) existence is implied. I can say 'he is' of Winston Churchill as well as of Tom Bombadil, surely? —Letter 153

The above statement is done with reference to the following passage:

“	‘Fair lady!’ said Frodo again after a while. ‘Tell me, if my asking does not seem foolish, who is Tom Bombadil?’ ‘He is,’ said Goldberry, staying her swift movements and smiling. Frodo looked at her questioningly. ‘He is, as you have seen him,’ she said in answer to his look. ‘He is the Master of wood, water, and hill.’	„
	~ Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

And Tom's words, which Tolkien says have to be pondered on, are the following:

“	‘Who are you, Master?’ he asked. ‘Eh, what?’ said Tom sitting up, and his eyes glinting in the gloom. ‘Don’t you know my name yet? That’s the only answer. Tell me, who are you, alone, yourself and nameless? But you are young and I am old. Eldest, that’s what I am. Mark my words, my friends: Tom was here before the river and the trees; Tom remembers the first raindrop and the first acorn. He made paths before the Big People, and saw the little People arriving. He was here before the Kings and the graves and the Barrow-wights. When the Elves passed west-ward, 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.’	„
	~ Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring

In summary: The third-person predicate "He is" is correlative with the identity of something ("Goldberry gives what I think is the correct answer" [to the question of who Tom Bombadil is]). However, that very predicate is only applicable to created sub-existences, as to say that something "is" implies that it is not unique, and that there is more than one of it. Evidenced further when Tolkien states: "You may be able to conceive of your unique relation to the Creator without a name[...] But as soon as you are in a world of other finites with a similar, if each unique and different, relation to Prime Being, who are you?"

That is to say: Identity (i.e. "Who"ness and "Is"ness) is only an attribute of finites entering in relation with other finites. Eru, being infinite, utterly unique and transcendent over all such relations, is beyond identity and not part of any plurality of things. As he exists in complete aloneness, names, as well as questions such as "Who are you?", are not applicable to him. ("Tell me, who are you, alone, yourself and nameless?")

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