"Of the Beginning of the Days" is the first chapter of the Quenta Silmarillion, the third part of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Silmarillion.
Synopsis[]
Before Arda was completely shaped, the First War between the Valar and Melkor began. At this time, the Vala Tulkas came to Arda to lend his strength in the fight against Melkor. Melkor then forsook Arda and hid from Tulkas; and there was peace in Arda for a long time.
At the prayer of Yavanna, Aulë made two lamps to provide light: Illuin and Ormal. Both were placed in the north and south of Arda, leaving the world always in daylight. Yavanna had planted trees and flowers, and the beasts began to multiply.
Then, the Valar rested after their labor, but Melkor grew jealous of their work and sent spies among them. During the Spring of Arda, Tulkas espoused Nessa and slept. Therefore, Melkor took his chance and passed the Walls of Night with his servants, coming to Middle-earth without the knowing of the Valar. Melkor began to delve into the Earth and built his first fortress, Utumno. He marred all the labors of the Valar and broke the Two Lamps. However, Melkor fled upon hearing the voice of Manwë and the coming of Tulkas.
The Valar departed to Aman and there begun their labor once again. Behind the walls of Pelóri, the Valar established Valinor. Cities were built; and Yavanna hallowed the mound Ezellohar. Yavanna sang as she sat upon the mound, and there grew two saplings that were the Two Trees of Valinor, and called Telperion and Laurelin.
After the labors of the Valar, Ilúvatar decided the fates of his children: Elves shall remain immortal until the end of days, whereas Men were given the Gift of Ilúvatar, that they shall not be bound to the earth. It was declared that the Children of Ilúvatar will join the Second Music of the Ainur.
Appearances[]
| Characters | Species and creatures | Locations | Factions, groups and titles |
| Events | Objects and artifacts | Miscellanea |
Characters
Dramatis personae
Other characters
Species and creatures
Locations
Factions, groups and titles
Events
Objects and artifacts
Translations[]
| Foreign Language | Translated name |
| Afrikaans | Oor die Begin van Dae |
| Albanian | Rreth Fillimi i Ditëve |
| Amharic | የቀናት መጀመሪያ |
| Arabic | حول بداية الأيام |
| Armenian | Օրերի սկիզբի մասին |
| Azerbaijani | Günlərin Başlanğıcı Haqqında |
| Belarusian Cyrillic | Пра пачатак дзён |
| Bulgarian Cyrillic | За началото на дните |
| Catalan | Dels Inici dels dies |
| Cebuano | Mahitungod sa Sinugdanan sa Mga Adlaw |
| Chinese | 天地之初，萬物之始 |
| Croatian | O Početku dani |
| Czech | Začátek dnů |
| Danish | De ældste tider |
| Dutch | Over het Begin der Tijden |
| Esperanto | Pri la komenco de Tagoj |
| Estonian | Umbes Päevade alguses |
| Filipino | Tungkol sa simula ng mga araw |
| Finnish | Aikojen alku |
| French | Au commencement des jours |
| Galician | Sobre o comezo dos días |
| Georgian | დღეები დასაწყისის შესახებ |
| German | Vom Anbeginn der Tage |
| Greek | Σχετικά με την αρχή των ημερών |
| Gujarati | દિવસની શરૂઆત દિવસો |
| Haitian Creole | Osijè de kòmansman jou |
| Hebrew | של תחילת ימי |
| Hindi | दिनों की शुरुआत के बारे में |
| Hungarian | Az idők kezdetéről |
| Icelandic | Um upphaf daga |
| Italian | Riguardo all'Inizio dei giorni |
| Japanese | 日の始まりについて |
| Kannada | ದಿನಗಳ ಪ್ರಾರಂಭದಲ್ಲಿ |
| Kazakh | Күндердің басталуы туралы (Cyrillic) Künderdiñ bastalwı twralı (Latin) |
| Korean | 일의 시작에 관하여 |
| Kyrgyz Cyrillic | Күндөрдүн башталышы жөнүндө |
| Laotian | ກ່ຽວກັບການເລີ່ມຕົ້ນຂອງມື້ |
| Latin | De initium dierum |
| Latvian | Par dienas sākumu |
| Lithuanian | Apie dienos pradžia |
| Macedonian Cyrillic | Почетокот на деновите |
| Malagasy | Mikasika ny fiandohan' andro |
| Malaysian | Tentang permulaan hari |
| Mongolian Cyrillic | Өдрийн эхэн үе |
| Nepalese | दिनहरू सुरुवातको |
| Norwegian | Om det Begynnelsen av Dager |
| Pashto | د ورځو په پیل کې |
| Persian | درباره آغاز روزها |
| Polish | Początek dni |
| Portuguese | Sobre o início dos dias |
| Punjabi | ਦਿਨ ਦੇ ਸ਼ੁਰੂਆਤ ਬਾਰੇ |
| Romanian | Despre începutul zilelor |
| Russian | О начале дней |
| Serbian | О почетку дани (Cyrillic) O početku dani (Latin) |
| Sinhalese | දවස්වල ආරම්භය ගැන |
| Slovak | O Začiatku dní |
| Slovenian | O na Začetka dni |
| Spanish | De los Sobre el comienzo de los Días |
| Swahili | Kuhusu mwanzo wa siku |
| Swedish | Om de Början av Dagarna |
| Tajik Cyrillic | Дар бораи оғози рӯзи |
| Tamil | நாட்களின் ஆரம்பம் பற்றி |
| Thai | เกี่ยวกับจุดเริ่มต้นของวัน |
| Ukrainian Cyrillic | Про початок днів |
| Urdu | دنوں کے آغاز کے بارے میں |
| Uzbek | Кунларнинг бошланиши ҳақида (Cyrillic) Kunlarning boshlanishi haqida (Latin) |
| Vietnamese | Khoảng đầu ngày |
| Telugu | రోజుల ప్రారంభం గురించి |
| Turkish | Günlerin Başlangıcına Dair |
| Turkmen | Günleriň Başlangyjy Hakda |
| Uzbek | Кунларнинг Бошланиши Ҳақида (Cyrillic) Kunlarning Boshlanishi Haqida (Latin) |
| Welsh | Ynglŷn â Dechrau'r Dyddiau |
| Xhosa | Malunga nokuqala kweentsuku |
| Yiddish | וועגן די אָנהייב פון טעג |