chsdbacks Chapter 468 The Hall of Mandos
Chapter 468 The Hall of Mandos
Chapter 468 The Hall of Mandos
Valinor, the Temple of Mandos.
This is the palace of Mandos, the Lord of the Dead, located in the northern part of Aman, on the western coast of Valinor, facing the ocean that surrounds the world.
Mandos's real name was Namou, but he was commonly referred to as Mandos because the palace he lived in was called the Hall of Mandos.
The Temple of Mandos is located far from the other cities of the Valar and Elves, in a relatively remote area. It is inhabited by Mandos and his wife, the weaving goddess Vera.
But Nina, the goddess of mercy, will also come to the Hall of Mandos with her student Orolin (Gandalf) to listen to the wisdom of the dead.
The Hall of Mandos is the final resting place for the souls of Arda. Elves, humans, and dwarves are all guided to the Hall of Mandos after death to be judged.
The souls of the dead come here, and after being judged and cleansed of their sins, they are permitted by Mandos to be reborn and return to the world.
For example, Glorfindel, the Lord of the Golden Flower, was resurrected after perishing alongside the Balrog, thanks to the grace of the Valar, and was sent to Middle-earth to assist in the fight against Sauron.
Some elves do not wish to be reborn after death. Those elves who have suffered and become exhausted in the mortal world, and who are tired of living there, will choose to reside forever in the temple and rest there.
In addition, there are elves like Fëanor who incite kinship killings and whose hands are stained with the blood of their own kind; their souls are condemned to be imprisoned in the temple forever until the end of the world.
In addition to elves, the spirits of humans also come to the Hall of Mandos for judgment after death.
Human souls that are free from sin or have cleansed themselves of sin will pass through the Gate of Mourning to the Land of Destiny, known only to Ilúvatar, and be completely detached from the world.
Those human souls burdened with sin remain in the Hall of Mandos to cleanse their sins, and only after they have been cleansed can they embark on the journey to the Land of Destiny.
As for the souls of the dwarves, they remain in a separate area specially opened up for them by Mandos, waiting until the end of the war, when their creator, Aulli, will decide their fate.
Therefore, the Temple of Mandos is, in a sense, a prison fortress for the soul.
Even Morgoth, after his first capture and trial, was sentenced to three ages of imprisonment in the Temple of Mandos. After his release, he once again rebelled, destroyed the Two Trees, and ultimately sparked the War of Wrath.
On this day, Dui visited the Temple of Mandos.
The temple was like a huge cave structure, and the space inside was so vast that it could hold the souls of all the elves, humans, and dwarves in the world of Arda.
The main hall presents a solemn and dignified atmosphere, and countless tapestries are hung on the walls.
These tapestries were woven by Vire, the weaving goddess and wife of Mandos, and depict all the historical events that have occurred from the creation of the world to the present.
Almost at the same time as the events in Central Continent, Vera was weaving the same content, as if she had foreseen it.
Therefore, Vera, the goddess of textiles, is also regarded as the goddess of history.
Speaking of this goddess who is easily overlooked, among the many Valar, her historical role is the closest to the authority of time.
If Dui hadn't seized control of time beforehand, this goddess would have also had the opportunity to become the goddess of time.
Despite this, Dui and the goddess of textiles did not have any conflict.
Perhaps these Valar were born with the corresponding authority, and being Valar below a single god, in a position of absolute rule, they did not have such a great desire to expand their power.
Therefore, the weaving goddess Veri did not feel that Dui had usurped her power. On the contrary, she sincerely congratulated him when he was promoted to Vera and even gave him a tapestry she had woven herself.
Her husband, Mandos, also had no grudge and was friendly towards Dui.
Therefore, among all the Vera, Mandos and Vera had a pretty good relationship with Dui.
Dui reciprocated the favor by recalling Vera's exquisite weaving skills, which reminded him of the three Fates in Greek mythology, who also wove the threads of fate using spinning wheels.
Therefore, it was suggested that Vera could use her own textile skills as a foundation to extend and evolve the power of destiny, and thus grasp the power of fate.
Vera found this very insightful, feeling that it perfectly suited her authority.
Dui thus became a guest of honor at the Mandos Temple, and was very well welcomed by Mandos and Vera.
When Dui visited the Mandos Palace, he was also personally greeted by Mandos and Vera, who warmly invited him into the palace.
The Hall of Mandos seemed to contain a whole world, even more expansive than the palaces of Manwe and Varda.
It wasn't just Mandos and Veree who lived here. In the public areas of Mandos's temple, elves who refused to be reborn were allowed to move around and watch Veree weave her tapestries.
They are received by Mandos as guests in the state of souls, where they enjoy peace and purification of their souls, and even serve Mandos and Vera.
And human souls, summoned by Mandos, flow continuously from Arda along the Path of the Dead.
They lined up in long queues, entered a private, silent hall through a door specially opened for them, waited briefly, and then left Arda through the Gate of Mourning.
Under Mandos's guidance, Dui also personally visited the Gate of Mourning.
According to Mandos, the Gate of Mourning was created by Ilúvatar, and only human souls can pass through it; other races and the Valar are refused entry.
Even if one were to force their way through, the Gate of Mourning would be as if it did not exist for any race other than human souls; it would be untouchable.
Dui also visited the dwarves' private hall, where he reunited with his dwarf teammates from the expedition to Lonely Mountain, as well as Gimli, a dwarf from the Fellowship of the Ring.
All the dwarves gathered here, living in peace and tranquility, waiting for the end of the world to come before making their fateful choices.
That said, Dui's main mission in coming to the Temple of Mandos was to cooperate with Mandos to open up the Underworld.
This is not due to Dui's selfless dedication in trying to build a perfect world of Arda.
Rather, ever since Dui transformed the Netherworld into a subspace to house the Sea of Mind and the Sea of Magic, the ghosts stranded in Middle-earth have had nowhere to go.
The world of Arda is home to many races, but only elves, humans, and dwarves are allowed to enter the Hall of Mandos.
Meanwhile, other animals, along with the souls of humans, elves, dwarves, and other races who refused Mandos's summons, gathered in increasing numbers in Middle-earth.
Because there is no Netherworld to replace the Hall of Mandos to gather these souls, these souls have no fixed abode and wander everywhere. They either become ghosts and spirits that disturb reality, or they gather together to form ghostly realms.
After discovering this situation, Dui realized that it was a problem he had caused, so he came to visit Mandos to seek a solution.