[lindil]

Iluvatar and the Ainur are certainly not bound by real physical laws. Nor are Elves and Men (Osanwe, for example, would appear to violate special relativity - though perhaps quantum non-locality could come to its rescue!).

But I don't in any way mean to condemn the game of finding surprising similarities between Tolkien's world and the real world. I only mean that such similarities end just where they begin; they are accidental, not meaningful.

Well as I can not speak to the physics question directly [ and forgive me Aiwendil, when I posted this your major had completely skipped my mind, or obviously I needn't have bothered] but what in I think to be an analogous situation, there are many aspects of the Legendarium that are 'true' and it is I believent any accident.

THat of Elves and esoteric disciplines of Taoism and Eastern Christianity.

This is a whole paper I have nevre written [despite creating a discussion board to do just that [img]smilies/frown.gif[/img] ] but in short all of the mentioned 'higher attributes'[excepting physical immortality - of which even that therecould well be exceptions] of the Elves are to be found exemplified, explained and even in this present day lived out.

-Osanwe
- a higher physiology as regards endurance, sickness and self-healing
- the effect of just being around these people is explained in nearly identical ways
- their healing abilitites with others
- their ability to communicate and even travel to the land of the 'gods' whom many do not regard as gods.
- their understanding and classification of things in an 'elemental' fashion. [rings of Fire, air, water - wood elves - etc.]

I could probably expand on this list rather easily for another half hour, but my point is, in my experience, virtually all of these things re: the Elves are true [potentially] for humans and granted he was undoutedly a reader of the lives of Christian Saints wherein some of this appears [and is explained as a combination of grace and asceticism] and obviously of Mythology, where it appears, but is rarely if ever given an explanation.

So if he nailed it re: esotericism and human nature, despite a theological background that would be if not antaganistic to many of these things at least uneducated, he got details right re: the above virtually everytime.

Co-incidence? I do not think so, I think 'truth' permeates virtually every level of the legendarium to such a degree, that I see no reason why with the Ainulindale he might not have 'accidently', or more exactly 'intuited' any physics behind an Ainulindale.

Thus my original question.

and actually my question reveals to me much more clearly now his impulse to 'Transform the Myths' cosmologically.

And from one other angle, the World according to Christian [and Jewish of course, though interpreted differntly] Theology, was also created through sound by God's 'Word'.

Now if one takes this as a possibility that through divine inspiration the early writers of Genesis [or Moses if you prefer] and of the Gospel of St. John were correct in attributing Creation to sound via God's Word and 'voice' and 'speaking', then it is hardly a stretch to posit a sung version.

In short I think there must surely be grounds for linking 'truth' of currently understood physics [meaning as it is somewhat incomplete it may not yet have accurate postulates, but assuming for a moment it does] with the 'Truth' of Creation 'Myth's' both Scriptural and in the Legendarium.


That is sort of the [possibly naive] impetus behind my question.

and I in my rather quaint fashion fully expect there to be similarities that are not only parallel but even inspirationaly so.

As to whether we [or in this case others than me [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]] understand the underlying scientific and Theological postulates clearly enough to line them up correctly and to recognize 2 different languages saying possily the same thing is an altogether different question.

But in short if Physics can explain and illuminate the Ainulindale [ or Genesis] then why must it be co-incidence?

[ March 25, 2003: Message edited by: lindil ]