Beorn

[Pitchwife]

Ibrin, I'm really flattered (and impressed, too, as you were still 'flu-muddled'!) to see how much thought and erudition you spent trying to make sense of an idea that occurred to me in the mental haze of an extended New Year's hangover!

Actually, I hadn't quite decided myself whether I was thinking of Radagast + mortal human woman or Radagast-bear + mortal she-bear. Reconsidering, I tend to thinking that the Istari being permanently incarnate (as opposed to 'clad') in human shape would probably preclude any genuine (as opposed to illusionary) shape-shifting, but if my theory is supposed to make any sense at all, it must have been the way you explained. Respect!

[Ibrîniðilpathânezel]

Thank you. It would seem to me that Radagast+normal female bear would not be an impossibility, but I rather think Tolkien would have balked at it. It feels to me more "mythological" for the mother to have been a human woman, as I can recall at least one Greek myth in which Zeus went to a mortal woman (Europa, I believe) in the form of a bull (though I don't believe they had relations while he was still in that form. Maybe they did. Will have to look it up). I believe there are other myths about various gods coming to women as one creature or another, with resulting unusual children. It just felt like a more logical connection (though how much logic can be applied to myth is certainly subject to debate ).

[Pitchwife]

Well, if you go for the mythological feeling, that would mean Radagast-bear + mortal woman. The poor girl!

[The Might]

This discussion is taking a turn for the funny!

Indeed, in mythology it often happens that men charm the ladies as a beautiful -insert animal here- and then procreate.
In one really extreme myth this happened:

After he ascended the throne of Crete, Minos struggled with his brothers for the right to rule. Minos prayed to Poseidon to send him a snow-white bull, as a sign of approval. He was to sacrifice the bull in honor of Poseidon but decided to keep it instead because of its beauty. To punish Minos, Poseidon caused Pasiphaë, Minos' wife, to fall madly in love with the bull from the sea, the Cretan Bull. She had Daedalus, the famous architect, make a wooden cow for her. Pasiphaë climbed into the decoy in order to copulate with the white bull. The offspring of their coupling was a monster called the Minotaur. ~ From Wikipedia

Ok, so this is really extreme. I don't think Tolkien ever picture some woman building herself a wooden bear for any recreational purposes, and I doubt that any bestiality was involoved in his thoughts.

And I still doubt that Radagast was the type to fall in love with women... he was after all so in love with beasts, remember?!