Aure Entuluva!

Remember this phrase...I will come back to it and explain its significance to our brokenness. If you are a voracious reader such as I, you may recognize it, more than likely you may not. The phrase itself holds a promise for us who struggle with losing our grip, not on life but the expectation of hope. Here is the back story of this phrase:

When J.R.R Tolkien compiled his masterful works such as The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings, as well a

s his extremely detailed work of The Silmarillion, he created numerous worlds, kingdoms, and languages. His world-building skills are unmatched as well as his thematic lessons carried throughout his writing. Some fans truly immerse themselves in his work including a detailed synopsis of the languages and lineages he created. I'm not one of them but I thoroughly enjoy a good story!

In one scene of The Simarillion, Hurin (the hero of Men during the First Age) was the greatest warrior of men. His name, in Sindarin, means "steadfast". In one battle scene he and his companions are pushed back by the evil Orc army of Morgoth. Step by step Hurin is pushed back, along with the men of the House of Hadar, and must take a stand at the river Rivil because there was no place to go. They knew the battle was lost. The tale says that they did not take one step back. They kept fighting until dusk until Hurins ally Huor was slain right beside him. Hurin stood there alone. In this epic scene, Hurin threw down his sword and shield on the ground and took a grand battle-ax of an Orc captain and waded into the sea of oncoming Trolls, and with everyone he slew he yelled with all his voice: "Azure Entuluva!" (Day will come again!"). This battle cry was heard seventy times! Did he survive? Well you'll have to read Tolkiens work to find out!

When I first heard about this scene (from an audiobook of all places) It resonated with me. Tolkien crafted a back story about keeping one's grip during crisis and onslaught, taking a stand, and crying out in hope! Powerful imagery. As I dove into the explanation of this scene it gets even better! Apparently in the Elvish language of Quenya (sorry I'm a layman here) there is the word 'Estle" which means hope for the future beyond your immediate self. It is like "faith". It’s a concept Tolkien integrated into all his works...here we see many of his best characters acting out of "Estel". "Aure Entuluva" simply is to dig in your heels and proclaim... that "Daylight will Come Again!" It is the faith that "I will not give up but persist in the face of pain and uncertainty," it is " I will endure until I see daybreak...until I can hope again!"

It's easy to lose your grip while being crushed by a broken and downtrodden spirit. Emotionally we are in a dark place, trapped between despair and hope. All we can focus on is survival and

emergence. I equate it to walking into a dark deep tunnel. You can see the tunnel and its entrance (the beginning of the broken experience), going into the experience and entering halfway through.... only darkness. You look back, the tunnel is long and deep, you feel loneliness and desertion...betrayal...it is a dark path. There is no light from which you came. You stand in the middle. You look forward and you know that forward in the way out after all one cannot remain in the center of a tunnel, however, all that you can see is penetrating darkness, a thick blackness that pierces your very soul. You squint your eyes to see if there is any light...nothing...no daybreak, no hope on the horizon. It is in this state it is easy to become unraveled at one's seems, deeply depressed, emotionally turbulent, and mentally troubled.

In my life I have visited this place many times through many circumstances that have placed me there. I am learning "Aure Entuluva" to emerge from the darkness of being trapped in the tunnel until I see daybreak. It's different with each situation and circumstance I encounter, but I'm learning to fight through...I am not only learning endurance in the process, I am believing that "Estle" (hope for the future beyond my immediate circumstances) is possible if not probable.