Quote:
Originally Posted by Mithalwen
Hi Tom! From your question it seems you have read the Lord of the Rings but not the Silmarillion?
The Havens are not heaven but the Grey Havens (Mithlond) on the coast west of the Shire. From here Elves who are weary of life in the mortal lands of Middle Earth take ship and sail to the Undying Lands. So it is the departure point rather than the destination.
In Tolkien's universe there is an overall creator"god" Eru but the world is governed by angels or demigods called the Valar aided by less powerful beings of the same type called the Maiar. They have specific areas of responsibility like the Norse gods or the gods of Greece and Rome and live in the Undying lands, a sort of Paradise.
One of the Valar is called Namo or Mandos and he deals with judgement. When a elf dies his spirit is summoned to the halls of Mandos. If he refuses the call he will remain as a disembodied spirit - basically a ghost. If he accepts the call he will be judged by Mandos and spend and appointed time in his halls contemplating the deeds of his life and when appropriate will be given a new body and live again in the Undying lands. The Halls of Mandos are a kind of purgatory. Only one elf has returned to Middle Earth having died and gone to Mandos and that is Glorfindel.
It is more complicated than this because it is based on information and writings that weren't published by Tolkien in his lifetime and he revised his ideas about what happened to slain elves but I am sure someone will correct me if I have gone wrong.
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Spot on with your assumption. My knowledge about content not directly in the LOTR is pretty limited, although I've done some internet browsing to try and rectify that. Might be time to invest in the Silmarillion!
Thanks for your response. Got alot more than I bargained for!
In regards to Glorfindel, are you referring to the Elf-Lord in LOTR who assists Frodo in getting to Rivendell? Man I was so annoyed in the movies when they gave his bit to Arwen!
Your response to my question has led me to have more questions!
Does that mean that at the end of the LOTR, when Frodo is allowed to pass onto the Grey Havens, that he is also allowed to pass into the Undying Lands?
And is the Undying Lands strictly for Elves or can other races (i.e. Men, Dwarves) that die also pass into there? I guess what I'm trying to ask is whether the "Halls of Mandos" process is strictly for Elves or for all beings of Middle-Earth?
Apologise for the additional questions, especially since you were so generous with your response.