Five Great Tom Bombadil Theories | Tolkien Theory

Who or what do you think Tom Bombadil is? Let’s hear those theories! And don’t forget to hit subscribe! 😁

I think that Tom is actually Tolkien. He saw the first raindrops and acorns because he wrote them, and he doesn't interfere greatly with the storyline for the sake of the readers.

It's always who's tom bombadil, never how's tom bombadil

I love how Gandalf's reasoning behind Tom not being a good ring barer is because the ring has SOO little effect on him, He'd just forget about it and misplace it.

He was Tolkien's favourite toy as a kid. He had this doll of an old bearded guy with a hat and named him Tom Bombadil. When he started writing stories, he used to include him on them, LOTR is not the only Tolkien's book in which he appears. He is the only creature/thing in middle earth that was not created by the music of the Ainur because it existed before out of that world. It is usually said that he is the personified Tolkien but I believe he is more of a privileged spectator of the worlds that his friend creates. He existed before any of them, he can go from one to another and he is not restrained by the rules of any of them. I would say Iluvatar could be closer to being a representation of Tolkien in his own world. But that's just guessing

Council: Let’s ask Bombadil! Gandalf: Nah he doesn’t give a shit.

"In the beginning there was Eru, the One, who in Arda is called Ilúvatar; and he made first the Ainur, the Holy Ones, that were the offspring of his thought, and they were with him before aught else was made. One day the Ainur asked Eru, ' Who is that guy in blue coat and long hat?' and Illuvatar replied "I don't know, he was already there when I arrived." And thus the mystery of Tom Bombadil continues.

Tom Bombadil is one of my favorite characters in the books. He reads like a character from a children's fantasy book, which considering the overall tone of The Lord of The rings, is a breath of fresh air.

I know this wasn’t Tolkien’s intention, but Tom makes for a perfect representation of someone who has reached Buddhahood

Tom is Eru's hippy brother who was couch surfing when Eru made Middle Earth, and he's still there. And he'll always be there and Eru can't do a thing about it.

I think Tom is meant to be a Tolkien family secret, to always remind his children that these stories were always for them first

I like to think Tom is the spirit of Arda. Not dissimilar from the theory of him being the manifestation of the song of the Ainur, but just that he's specifically the embodiment of Arda, and his singing is a reflection of the songs of creation that run through him. Sort of like a 'mother earth' figure.

I think Tom Bombadil embodies 'The Green Man' of old European mythology. He and Goldberry are both elemental spirits of earth and water respectively.

I always imagined Robin Williams as the actor to play Ol' Bombadil.

He’s the first and the oldest… in Tolkien’s mind. He existed in there as a quirky little adventurer long before the Valar or Ëa or anything else Tolkien created. I think he mentions somewhere in his letters that he would make up stories about bombadil with his brother when they were kids. That’s why he’s unconcerned with everything in middle earth. He sat quietly in Tolkien’s mind, watching the whole legendarium come into existence, and then he plopped himself into it because it looked fun. He exists outside the narrative. He can come and go as he pleases. He’s his own master! Not even his own author can control him!

My theory is that: Tom was a spectator of the music, but that he was so blissfully unaware of the situation he simply hummed his own theme to himself during the singing of the music and didn't hear it such that no external theme carried any sway over him. Meaning Tom lives by his own theme while simultaneously existing in Eru's and Melkor's creation. His innocent naiveté literally allowed him to traverse beyond the natural order of Ea and accomplish feats that should not be possible within this corporeal plane of existence.

Thank you for this. Things are not going well in my life so I decided to finally read these books to hide from my depression but I got hung up on Tom Bombadil! He's such a fascinating character and I can't stop wondering and it's driving me crazy, but this really helps! So thank you.

Theory: Eru started off the Music by singing "Tom Bom, jolly Tom, Tom Bombadillo!"

You forgot to mention that Tom calls the Ring of Power a "little trinket" when he puts it on. That's one of the coolest moments of all the books.

I think the existence of Tom Bombadil is Tolkien's lesson for us that no matter how deeply we try to understand the workings of the universe, there is an inherent mystery under it all that cannot be analyzed and neatly interpreted by the scientific method or comprehensive theological frameworks. We all might have an encounter or two with that which cannot be explained and rather than obsess over making rational sense of these experiences, at some point we can just throw up our hands and accept there is a kind of enchantment to the world – mysteries, that, like Tom Bombadil, owe us no explanation. If Tolkien provided us with a Middle Earth that had airtight, logical history and everything was explainable, it would actually be a less fantastical world than the one we live in.