Eru Iluvatar, the Creator, the supreme being who brought the Ainur (the Valar and Maiar) into existence through his thought and created the world through the Great Music (the Ainulindale). Iluvatar stands above and apart from the world, intervening directly only at the most critical moments. He alone can grant the gift of true creation - the Flame Imperishable - and he alone shaped the fates of Elves and Men, the Children of Iluvatar.