In my opinion we are robbing ourselves of a much deeper enjoyment of the world of Middle-Earth if we don’t tackle TS and conquer it. It is in TS that we learn of the creation of Middle-Earth and the powers that inhabit it. These stories serve as the canvas on which JRRT painted TH and LoTR.
Ok, enough of the introductory remarks, on to The Silmarillion. TS is divided into five main sections. The first is “The Ainulindale” which is the account of the creation of Middle-Earth by Iluvatar with the assistance of the Ainur (or Valar). The second section is “The Valaquenta” where we are introduced to the players that helped shape Middle-Earth, i.e. the Valar, the Maiar, and the Enemies. The third, and longest, section is the “Quenta Silmarillion”. This recounts in greater detail the creation of Middle-Earth, the introduction of the Children of Iluvatar (Elves and Men), and the making and destruction of The Silmarils. The fourth section is the “Akallabeth” which is the account of the downfall of Numenor. The fifth, and final, section is “Of the Rings of Power and the Third Age”. This last section is self-explanatory.
Let’s begin our journey through The Silmarillion
The Ainulindale
The account of creation as told by Rumil of Tirion
Tolkien took great pains to communicate that LoTR was not an allegory, Christian or otherwise. The great themes of Christianity are present in LoTR, but the specifics are missing. This changes a bit in “The Ainulindale”.
”The Ainulindale” begins with the statement:
There was Eru, the One, who in Arda is called Iluvatar….
One can’t help but be reminded of Genesis 1:1, which says, “In the beginning God….” In Tolkien’s world, Iluvatar is the self-existent Creator God. Iluvatar begins his creation with the creation of the Ainur, who are later called the Valar. Tolkien translates Ainur to mean “Holy Ones”.
Iluvatar makes his creation through music. He begins a theme and each of the Ainur is given a part of their own to weave into the theme begun by Iluvatar. All of the Ainur marveled at the music of the creation, all but one. That one was named Melkor.
Melkor desired to make his own creation, and to have creatures worship him. So Melkor began making his own theme, which he weaved into Iluvatar’s theme, causing discord in the music of creation. Iluvatar eventually stopped Melkor by causing the music to cease. Iluvatar told Melkor, and the assembled Ainur, that:
…thou, Melkor, shalt see that no theme may be played that hath not its uttermost source in me, nor can any alter the music in my despite. For he that attempteth this shall prove but mine instrument in the devising of things more wonderful, which he himself hath not imagined.
Nothing can be done that Iluvatar does not know about and will use for his own glory.
Iluvatar then shows the Ainur what their music has created. He shows the Ainur in a vision how Middle-Earth will run its course. Iluvatar stops the vision before its consummation so the Ainur do not know what occurs after the Third Age.
The Ainur are so enthralled that a number of them want to live on Middle-Earth. Iluvatar creates Middle-Earth, just as he had shown the Ainur earlier. Some of them go to live on Middle-Earth to help create and shape the planet, on the condition that they cannot return to Iluvatar until the ages of Middle-Earth are complete.
We are then treated to an account of the Ainur attempting to create upon the earth the land and sea areas. Every thing the Ainur attempt to create, Melkor destroys. Through this process Middle-Earth receives its final shape.
In “The Ainulindale” we catch a glimpse of some of Tolkien’s theology. He believes that everything that happens is part of God’s plan for Mankind and the earth. Sometimes it is good, sometimes it is bad, but ultimately God’s plan is carried out.
and ones that we can’t even nibble at without getting sick to our stomachs on the other
I think the Silmarillion rocks!
Also, in the LoTR theology, not all has been revealed. Even the Valar do not know all of Illuvatar's mind- especially regarding the fate of Men and Middle-Earth. It is a source of subtle and sorrowful tension/anxiety throughout the stories. Poor Men. Death may indeed be a gift from Illuvatar, but the mystery surrounding what happens to their souls made it so easy for Melkor to turn it into a dark and fearsome thing.