Thanks for the thoughtful reply, Sauce, but since you’ve revealed this gaping hole in your Tolkien library ( [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]), I don’t think we can get much further on the topic of Bombadil as riddle. Suffice to say that extracts like the ‘enigma’ one cited in that argument, without context, may be misleading. I urge you to check out
Letters (and specifically letters 144 and 153 in relation to this discussion) when you get a chance. It is filled with
gems beyond number, as I’m sure you’re aware.