#the halls of mandos

[velvet4510]

Headcanon that all that juicy stuff such as the hug, the acorn moment, “to me he was…” etc. all happened in book canon too because who says it didn’t, Bilbo just wanted to keep and treasure those moments to himself and leave them out of his memoir.

SO when Thorin went to Aulë’s corner in the Halls of Mandos, he watched Bilbo and Balin’s “to me he was” talk via Vairë’s tapestries. And he wondered what the rest of that sentence was, especially as the rest of the company insisted Bilbo’s use of “friend” to the house thieves was an oversimplification and not the real truth.

When Bilbo finally arrived in the Halls, though the Gift of Men could not be taken from him, he was allowed a few hours in Aulë’s corner to reconnect with the Dwarves one last time before leaving Arda. Once everyone had caught up on Bilbo’s life, and he’d said his last farewells to most of them, he and Thorin went to Aulë’s gates alone.

What followed was akin to the WandaVision finale. Though they knew they could not stay like this, Thorin’s last request was to know the rest of that one unfinished sentence he once overheard. “…What am I to you?” Bilbo’s answer was a parallel to, if not word for word, “You are my sadness and my hope, but mostly you’re my love.” One last hug and kiss, a promise to reunite when the world is remade, and Bilbo departed from Arda.

[ilaneya]

d9: mystery

‪námo mandos sketch ‬

[nelyos-right-hand]

I honestly don't think that elves get reembodied without their scars. I have three reasons for that:

1. The new hröa is made from the memory of the fëa. So they might not have scars from wounds they acquired shortly before their deaths, but the fëa should remember the other ones.

2. I don't think that's how Mandos works. It helps the fëa *heal* from its wounds, but it doesn't just *erase* them, just like it doesn't erase all those years of battle and hardship. Some wounds heal without a trace, but others leave scars, so reembodiement elves will still be irrevocably changed, and since the hröa and fëa mirror each other the same should apply to the body. Scars are a sign of survival, of all the things you went through and still lived. I think elves might even feel uncomfortable in perfect new bodies that seem to completely ignore the hardship of their previous lives.

3. Let's be honest. It's just so much cooler. And I'm not just talking about Maedhros with his badass I'm-super-terrifying-and-one-of-the-greatest-warriors-to-ever-live-now-run-for-your-life-look. Think of Fingolfin and Fingon with the battle scars acquired in four-hundred years of fighting Morgoth, and Celegorm, Curufin and Amrod with burn scars from the Bragollach (and *other* incidents). I just don't see them walking in Tirion looking all perfect and harmless again.

[stitcherofchaos]

If if the fëa reflects the hröa at the moment of death...

When/if he faded, Maglor had pure white hair due to the eons of grief. Celegorm finds Maglor in the Halls, seeing his older brother with his same shining white hair and finally understands the burden of both their guilt and the gravity of their sins.

It felt as if a train struck his fëa.

[lidoshka]

@feanorianweek Day 7: Miriel

Maybe Miriel wasn’t there physically, but she was present every small struggle and every tiny moment of joy in her grandchildren’s lives.

♡(ꈍ ᴗ ꈍ✿)

(part of the now camed “Eramos Felices y no lo Sabiamos” series, a.k.a. 5 times a Feanorian was not appreciating the moment and 1 time one did + 1)

°˖✧ Happy Feanorian Week! I hope you enjoyed it!! ✧˖° 

+

@feanorianweek Día 7: Miriel

Tal vez Miriel no estaba físicamente ahí, pero ella estuvo presente en cada momento de conflicto y cada momento de alegría en la vida de sus nietos

♡(ꈍ ᴗ ꈍ✿)

(parte de la recién bautizada serie “Eramos Felices y no lo Sabiamos" a.k.a. 5 veces que un hijo de Feanor no disfruto el momento y 1 vez que sí + 1)

°˖✧ Feliz Semana de Feanorians! ✧˖°  

[silvantransthranduiltrash]

Where did the dead elves go before orome discovered the elves?

Bc if they went to the halls of mandos, then Mandos probably would have been aware of their existence, but he wasn’t?

Therefore: the elves that died before orome discovered the elves either A: were waiting for mandos to notice them, either as ghosts or in a sort of celestial waiting room.

Or B: went to a different afterlife all together.

[lordgrimwing]

okay, i know about all the aus in your post except the Art Therapy in Mandos one. can you pleeeease enlighten me? :>>>

Ok, it's very simple and here goes.

Art Therapy in Mandos

So, we all know how Feanor must constantly be working on projects and doing things or else he might actually die (exaggeration), right? Well, filling your mind with projects etc isn't great for having time to meditate upon your actions and heal from traumas in Mandos, but Namos can clearly see that the traditional 'meditate in silence and isolation' that works for most of the eldar is not going to cut it for firey Feanor.

Namo comes up with a new kind of healing method for Feanor that involves 12 crayons and one of those adult meditative coloring books. He gives these items to Feanor without explanation.

Feanor hated it so much. It's so dull and pointless to color everything in, but he has to be perfect and the best so he colored the first several books in shocking realism given the limited colors, staying exactly inside the lines. Every time he finishes, a maia comes and takes the book away and replaces it with another.

He doesn't understand the purpose of this ridiculous assignment, the maiar hardly speak to him, and Namo won't answer his shouted demands for answers. They just keep giving him fresh books and replenishing the crayons and the only explanation Feanor can come up with is that he somehow isn't completing the books the way the Vala wants him to.

'Namo is unreasonable' he seethes to himself as he creates yet another near exact replica of Lorien's gates. Never have any coloring books been competed with such exacting attention to detail and symmetry using only the waxy crayons given to children who have yet to earn the right for better tools. 'The Valar are unreasonable,' he spits as he recreates a swan boat with the lightest touches of yellow and orange and pink and white.

So it continues until one day Feanor has screamed himself nearly hoarse at the absent Vala. Why persist in playing this game when Namo makes it clear he will never accept his work and will always make him do it again, he wonders. He takes up the red crayon. It has no purpose here in this picture. He drags it across the page anyway, crossing over the lines with an out of place streak of red.

Somehow, through all of this, Feanor learns to let go of his perfectionism, accepts that his ability to create wonderful and miraculous things does not determine his worth, etc etc, healing and understanding, etc etc.

Eventually, Namo lets him out of Mandos :)

Ask me about fics that live rent-free in my head!

[overlord-of-fantasy]

Feanorian family-therapy (because they need it)

Namo: What’s your biggest fear? Maedhros: That I’ll never be good enough for anyone. Maglor: Everyone hates me and talks about me behind my back. Celegorm: Zombies. Maedhros: ... Maglor: ... Celegorm: BUT they can open doors.

[camille-lachenille]

Mandos is a place of rest and healing for the fëar of dead Elves. It is a non-place, somewhere not quite physical yet enclosed within clear boundaries by the power of Námo. If feels utterly safe and warm, and the fëar can rebuild themselves before their rebirth - as if in the womb once more - or dwell forever in this place. Mandos is enclosed yet open, for the stars always shine upon the healing fëar, and the dead Elves revel in this cherished light, be it for a time or until the remaking of the world. The floors are of the darkest water, and each Elf who passes through the halls experiences what it was to wake at Cuiviénen, surrounded by silence, and marvelling at the countless stars reflecting upon the still water. Mandos is a place beyond comprehension, where the Song fills every nook and cranny, nurturing each of the Firstborn back to life or to timeless peace. It is both terrible and beautiful but, ultimately, it is a place sung to be the safest, most peaceful and healing possible to the Elves. And maybe, in this non-place, this timeless hall, they can catch a glimpse of what Arda unmarred could have been, until they awake anew and remember only the hope and healing this place brought them.

[solmarillion]

Remade

Here's my piece for this year's @tolkienrsb! This is my first time participating and I'm so excited to share what I've been working on with my fic author🥰️

In this piece, Celebrimbor reunites with his family in the Halls of Mandos, hoping to reconcile with them. You'll find out what happens in @goschatewabn's fic when the collection goes live!

This piece, like many of my others, is drawn in the style of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. But this time, I took inspiration from the stained glass concept art from the game and decided to imitate the effect. It took a ton of work- I did a lot of the flat colors and shading all in one day. But I'm glad I was able to challenge myself with such a complex composition!

(From top to bottom, left to right: Nienna, Maedhros, Fëanor, Maglor, Celegorm, Curufin, Celebrimbor, Caranthir, Amrod, Amras)

[sesamenom]

Late-FA Maglor from the reverse gondolin AU (Maedhros died a bit earlier and Maglor is even more depressed)

[stitcherofchaos]

On The Matter of Oaths

...Specifically on the oath of Feanor.

Tolkien was a catholic, so how do catholics believe oaths work?

Let me explain: If you use the name of God in an oath that forces you to sin (ie, murder, lying, adultery... etc) that makes the oath automatically invalid due to the contents of the oath forcing you to sin. It is- of course- still a sin because you used the name of God in a blasphemous manner, but the oath you made is not binding.

Oaths are only valid if they do not force you to sin and if they are said with 100% knowledge of what you are promising in the first place. Think of wedding vows or vows taken by those in holy orders.

The tragedy in the Silmarillion is the fact that the oath was in vain the whole time, which is why all the Feanor's sons died brutally, Maedhros took his life, and Maglor 'mourned himself to death' essentially.

[ettelenethelien]

When Finrod is reembodied at the beginning of the War of Wrath he holds the record for "Shortest time spent in Mandos for an Exile" (81 years of time as it passes outside)

He holds it, perhaps, until one Noldorin woman slain in the Last Alliance is reembodied after 70 years. It is much debated whether this counts or not, given that she died after the Doom was lifted.

Neither of the parties concerned will comment on the matter.

[feanors-silmarils]

Group therapy with the Feanorians in the Halls of Mandos:

*everyone yelling at once*

Námo: *sighs tiredly*