#silindrin

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Arien and Silmo Caretakers of the Two Trees

In the Silmarillion, the Maia Arien is described as being in charge of watering the golden tree Laurelin, because she was the only one who could withstand its heat. She would also collect the golden dews of Laurelin, and use it to water Vana’s flowers. Her counterpart is Tilion, a hunter from Orome’s company who loved the color silver and was in love with Arien.

But in early versions of Tolkien’s works, Tilion didn’t exist. Instead, there was Silmo, a youthful Ainu who was “loved” by the Vala Irmo-Lorien. Silmo was more like a male copy of Arien (called Urwen and Urwendi in early stages) than Tilion is, being appointed guardian of the silver tree (then called Silpion) to be “ever mindful” of the watering of the tree. This similarity between Arien and Silmo is a reflection of the Valar Irmo-Lorien and Vana, who were both more connected to Telperion/Silpion and Laurelin, respectively; Arien was associated with just as Silmo was associated with Irmo-Lorien. 

When the the Two Trees were destroyed, Arien was selected to guide the last fruit of Laurelin (the Sun) across the sky. But while Silmo begged to become the guardian of the last flower of Telperion/Silipion (the Moon), the Valar ended up choosing Ilinsor, an air spirit and assistant to Varda who was associated with snow, instead. 

Silmo’s connection to the silver tree is made clear through the rootword it shares with Silpion as well as Silindrin, a cauldron that held the collected dews of Silpion which Irmo-Lorien gazed into for divination. They all share the root “sil” or “silip” which means to shine with a white or silver light.

Whereas the conception of the character associated with Telperion changed with different stages of Tolkien’s writings (besides always being male), Arien’s character remained essentially the same from Tolkien’s early drafts all the way to The Silmarillion. Tilion replaced Silmo and Ilinsor in the published Silmarillion, leading the two of them to be included as the “Lost Valar.”

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Irmo-Lorien, Master of Dreams and Visions

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Silmo, Guardian of Silpion

Irmo was the Vala of dreams and visions, and was often called Lorien after the gardens in which he lived. Together with his brother Mandos he is one of the Feanturi, the Masters of Spirits, and their sister is Nienna. His wife is Este the Healer, who sleeps during the day on the isle of Lorellin in Lorien. In early stages of Tolkien's works, Irmo-Lorien was more closely associated with the silver tree, which at one point was known as Silpion. At this stage the dews of Silpion were collected in a cauldron called Silindrin, and Irmo would gaze into it and see strange and mystifying visions.

Silmo is a youthful Ainu in Tolkien's early works who was a servant of the Vala Irmo-Lorien. Silmo was in charge of watering the silver tree Silpion (with his name coming from the same rootword as Silpion and Silindrin) in the same way that Arien was in charge of watering Laurelin. When the moon was created Silmo wanted to be given the task of guiding it through the sky, but he was passed over in favor of Ilinsor, a servant of Varda who was associated with air, snow, and starlight. Both Silmo and Ilinsor are absent from the Silmarillion, with the Maia Tilion replacing them.

The text mentions that Lorien "loved the youthful Silmo" which is an interesting description of two male characters considering that Tolkien was strongly influenced by his Catholic faith. In the Silmarillion it’s mentioned that many Maiar served Lorien and his wife Este in their gardens, but while Melian served both Vana and Este, no Maia specifically associated with Lorien is named. Olorin (later Gandalf/Mithrandir) is mentioned as visiting the gardens of Lorien frequently and his name comes from a rootword for “dream” so there was likely a connection. 

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Silmo 

Maia of Lorien, Guardian of Silpion

Silmo is an Ainu from Tolkien’s early works who was associated with the White Tree of Valinor. The Vala Irmo/Lorien who “loved the youthful Silmo” chose him to be the guardian of The White Tree, which in this stage of Tolkien’s writings was called Silpion, to keep it watered. In this sense he is essentially a male, lunar copy of Arien/Urwen/Urwendi. But while Arien was chosen to guide the Sun upon its creation, the Valar chose Ilinsor to guide the Moon instead of Silmo even though Silmo begged to be given this task. They chose Ilinsor because he was a wind spirit who served Manwe and Varda and loved snows and starlight and assisted Varda in her works, so he would be more familiar with the regions of the sky than Silmo, who spent all his time on the ground. Silmo isn’t mentioned after this and neither Silmo nor Ilinsor appear in Tolkien’s later works; Tilion is the Maia in The Silmarillion who is associated with the Moon. 

Silmo’s name comes from the Quenya root sil, which means to shine with white or silver light, and emphasizes how closely he was connected to the tree Silpion (later Telperion) whose name comes from the same root. In Tolkien’s early works there is also a pot called Silindrin that stored the collected dew of Silpion/Telperion. It’s also probably not a coincidence that his name also contains “ilm”, a word for starlight which can be found in the names of Ilmen, Ilmare, and Ilmarin. Ilmen refers to the region of the sky where the stars, Sun, and Moon are, while Ilmare is the handmaiden of Varda and Ilmarin is the mansions on top of Taniquetil where Manwe and Varda live. Tolkien in turn got the inspiration for this root from Finnish ilma (air) which appears in the Finnish epic Kalevala in the names of the characters Ilmatar and Ilmarinen. The Gnomish (earlier name for Noldorin) version of Silmo’s name was Thilim.

The Valar’s reason for passing over Silmo as guardian of the Moon is intriguing since Arien, who they chose as guardian of the Sun, had essentially the same role as Silmo, spending her time watering the golden tree Laurelin. Like Silmo, Arien was associated with a Vala (Vana) who wasn’t numbered among the Aratar, the eight most powerful of the Valar. Even as Silmo disappeared and Vana’s role “shrank” in Tolkien’s later drafts, Arien has remained the guardian (and only candidate mentioned) of the Sun.

Silmo and Arien’s roles as the guardians of the Two Trees also reflect how the Valar Irmo/Lorien and Vana were much more closely connected to the Trees in the early drafts than they are in the published Silmarillion. Lorien, who was associated with dreams, prophecy, spirits, and magic, would gaze into the pot Silindrin (which contained the collected dews of Silpion) and saw many visions. This probably reflects the fact that most dreams occur during the night when the moon is out, and the fact that the moon has long been associated with magic and the supernatural. 

Silmo is an example of how Tolkien’s perception of the character who guided the Moon went through many revisions during his writing process. In the early works we have both Silmo (associated with dreams and visions; servant of Lorien) and Ilinsor (connected with snows, air and wind, and stars; servant of Manwe and Varda) while later on there is the Maia Tilion, who is a hunter skilled in archery who loves the color silver and is one of Orome’s Maiar. The Book of Lost Tales also mentions a being living on the Moon called Uolë Kúvion by the elves, though not much is known about him. The folklore of the Hobbits also mentions The Man in the Moon, an old being who secretly lives on the Moon in a tower. This same character occurs in some of Tolkien’s non-Middle-earth stories such as Roverandom, The Adventures of Tom Bombadil, and Letters From Father Christmas. In contrast, Arien/Urwen/Urwendi has been the guardian of the Sun throughout Tolkien’s writings and her details have pretty muched remained the the same since the beginning.

Silmo as a youthful, male character who is admired by an older, also male character (Lorien) is also intruiging given Tolkien’s Catholic faith, which he was heavily devoted to and whose influence can be seen in his works, especially in many of his female characters. 

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Irmo, also called Lorien

The Dream-Ruler, Master of Desires, Master of Visions and Dreams

Other names:  Olofantur, Fulmur, Losfan, Glurim, Luriel

In the Silmarillion, Irmo is a Vala and one of the Feanturi (Masters of Spirits) together with his brother Namo/Mandos. His sister is Nienna, and he dwells with his wife Este in the Gardens of Lorien in Valinor, where many spirits serve them. Irmo is the youngest sibling in the mind of Illuvatar, and his brother and sister are both counted among the Aratar, the 8 most powerful Valar, while he is not. His gardens are the most beautiful in Arda, and the elves and even other Ainur come there for rest and refreshment. Irmo is more commonly known as Lorien, even though this is actually the name of his dwelling. His power is less physical than other Valar such as Ulmo, Yavanna, or Aule; he sends dreams and visions to provide hope and guidance to the elves. Originally, when the Sun and Moon were created, it was Varda’s intention that they should journey together across the sky, so that their lights would mingle like those of the Two Trees. Lorien and Este intervened, stating that the combined light had caused sleep and rest to vanish from the earth and had dried up the gardens. Thus, Varda changed her design so that each would rest below the earth while the other traveled across the sky to allow for a time of night. After the elf Miriel gave birth to Feanor, she became weary of the world and was taken to Lorien and Este for rest and recovery. However, her spirit departed from her body to the Halls of Mandos and refused to return; Este’s maidens continued to tend and preserve Miriel’s lifeless body. This was a shocking event for both the Valar and the elves as it was essentially the first death to occur in Valinor.

In The Book of Lost Tales Lorien is a more detailed and prominent character. His halls are south of the mountains of Aman and the large gardens wind around until they come near the silver tree Telperion. Yavanna gave Lorien many species of yews, cedars, and pines for his gardens that gave off a soothing fragrance that made one drowsy. He is also mentioned using poppies in his “enchantments” which have hallucinogenic properties in the “real” world.

Here Lorien’s relationship to the Moon is more established: a servant of Lorien named Silmo is tasked with watering Telperion in the same way Arien is in charge of watering Laurelin, the dews of Telperion are collected into a cauldron called Silindrin which is kept in Lorien’s gardens, and after the death of the Two Trees Lorien and Vana try to use the dews of Silindrin to revive them while the other Valar chase after Melkor. It was said that Lorien would gaze into Silindrin and see many strange and mysterious visions in the waters. Lorien’s servant Silmo is later a candidate for steersman of the Moon but Varda’s servant Ilinsor is chosen instead, at a point in Tolkien’s writings when the Maia Tilion didn’t exist yet. In these stories he can also be seen as a counterpart to Vana; both are associated with gardens and with the Two Trees (and eventually the Sun and Moon) and both have Maiar who become the guardians of the Sun and Moon. They also are both described as the younger sibling, and both of their sibling are counted among the Aratar while they themselves are not.

After the Fall of Numenor and the removal of Aman from Arda, Manwe has Lorien create the Olórë Mallë (The Path of Dreams) which is non-physical path that allows the spirits of elves and men to visit the gardens of Lorien while they sleep, since Manwe was unwilling to completely abandon the people of Middle-earth. During the Hiding of Valinor, Lorien placed enchantments on the island of Tol Eressea that caused mariners who set foot on it to fall into a deep slumber for eternity.

The Silmarillion states that many Maiar served Lorien and his wife Este, but doesn’t name them. There is a connection to Gandalf, whose name before he came to Middle-earth was Olorin, which comes from the same elvish root word (olor/olos) as the Olórë Mallë (Path of Dreams) that was made by Lorien, as well as Olofantur (Master of Dreams) which is an earlier surname of Lorien himself. Gandalf was known for his ability to inspire hope and courage in mortal people, a trait shared with Lorien. In earlier works, Silmo is a youthful male Maia who is “much loved” by Lorien and is in charge of watering and caring for the tree Telperion, being that trees’ counterpart to the Maia Arien. After the death of the Two Trees, Silmo begs to become the steersman of the Moon but the Valar pick Ilinsor for this task because of his close association with the sky and Varda. Both of these characters are absent from The Silmarillion and are replaced by Tilion, a Maia of Orome who loves Arien.