Many of the most significant characters’ names in the books are formed around the elven word for star, which is ‘El’ for example ‘Elrond’ which means Star-dome, as in the dome that contains the stars, aka the night sky, Elbereth, which means Star queen, and Elessar, the royal name of Aragorn, which means Star-stone, referring to the stone that he was given by Arwen, as a sign of their love. These noble characters are named after the stars because the stars play an important part in the lore of Middle Earth, and especially in the coming of the elves and men into the world.

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When Eru first creates Middle Earth, and shows his Ainur a vision of the children he wants to bring forth to live in its lands, most of them are delighted to share in the joys that this new creation will bring. All except one (Melkor) who is jealous of the way Eru treats his new beings, and jealous of his power to create them in the first place, without any rules or regulations, like the ones he imposes on the Ainur.

Although Eru has good reason to be hesitant in allowing the gift of creation to be bandied around, in case it is mistreated (like when Melkor uses it to create the Balrogs, or later to corrupt elves and twist them into orcs) he cannot foretell the way that Melkor reacts when shown the vision of the elves and Men. Melkor flew into a rage, and set out to embody a terrible darkness over Middle Earth to prevent Eru’s new children from growing or thriving. “It is doom that the Firstborn shall come in the darkness, and shall look first upon the stars. Great light shall be for their waning.” He aimed to kill the green lands, pollute the clean waters, to crumble mountains with his might, and create a pitch-black so profound that it destroyed any chance or hope that they might have.

Seeing their plight, one of the Ainur realized that the only way to foil Melkor’s cruel plans was to combat the darkness that he brought with a light of her own. “Then Varda went forth from the council and she looked out from the height of Taniquetil, and beheld the darkness of Middle Earth beneath the innumerable stars, faint and far. Then she began a great labor, greatest of all the works of the Valar since their coming to Arda. She took the silver dews from the vats of Telperion, and therein she made new stars, brighter against the coming of the Firstborn; wherefore she whose name out of the deeps of time and the labors of the Ea was Tintalle, the Kindler, was called after by the elves, Queen of Stars.”

“It is told that even as Varda ended her labours, and they were long, when first Menelmacar strode up the sky and the blue fire of Helluin flickered in the mists above the borders of the world, in that hour the Children of the Earth awoke, the Firstborn of Illuvatar. By the starlit mere of Cuivienen, Water of the Awakening, they rose from the sleep of Illuvatar; and while they dwelt yet silent by Cuivienen, their eyes beheld first of all things the stars of heaven. Therefore, they have ever loved the starlight, and have revered Varda Elentari above all the Valar.”

Varda literally drew the constellations in the night sky, so that the children would wake to something beautiful, and know that no matter what dangers were to come their way, they would always have a light to guide them. She replaced Melkor’s trouble with an act of pure love and kindness, that made all of the stars of Middle Earth shine more brightly than ever before, and in doing so, she created a layer of protection within the stars magic, which would later be used over and over again by the elves of the world, to do and create amazing things. All the beings of Middle Earth are connected to the stars, and revere the stars above all else, simply because the stars are Varda’s love for them in physical form.

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