Was Eru a Sadist?

[Estelyn Telcontar]

Thanks for your provocative thesis, Bombadil - that's often a good way to get an excellent discussion going. Here are my thoughts:

Eru was an artist, a musician first and foremost, not a sadist! The first few sentences of the Ainulindalë show us a Creator who:

1. Sought fellowship and relationship.

...he made first the Ainur, the Holy Ones, that were the off-spring of his thought, and they were with him before aught else was made. And he spoke to them...

2. Wanted to create.

...propounding to them themes of music...

Ilúvatar... declared to them a mighty theme, unfolding to them things greater and more wonderful than he had yet revealed...

3. Wanted his creation to result in joy and glory.

...they sang before him, and he was glad.

...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...

4. Desired harmony.

Then Ilúvatar said to them: 'Of the theme that I have declared to you, I will now that ye make in harmony a Great Music.'

5. Encouraged others to exert their creativity and power.

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...

It is all summed up in the last sentence of the third paragraph of the Ainulindalë (All of these quotes are from the first page):

'But I will sit and hearken, and be glad that through you great beauty has been wakened into song.'

A sadist is interested in exercising power over others, not letting them develop their own. He/she is destructive, not creative, and does not look for beauty to result from his/her actions. And he/she is most certainly not interested in harmony and real fellowship with others!

(I looked up 'sadism' on the M-W online dictionary; here is an excerpt:

...gratification is obtained by the infliction of physical or mental pain on others; delight in cruelty; excessive cruelty.

I can see no evidence of such gratification or delight in Eru as he is shown in the Ainulindalë.)

[edit: davem posted while I was writing this; as you can see, I do think we are given information about Eru's personality, in those very paragraphs I have quoted.]