The history of mankind began in the Garden — an earthly Paradise (a “walled enclosure” in Old Persian). Within that enchanted circle, everything thrived — plants, trees, birds of air, beasts of the field, and humans. Outside of that enclosure, there was chaos — a wild forest full of untamed creatures.
When Adam and Eve were evicted from the Garden, they found themselves in the wild forest. Curiously, all fairy-tales and legends in all cultures capture this motif of the forest as a wild and untamed place.
In Japanese folklore, the forest is home to kami (spirits), both good and bad. In stories like Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood, the forest is a dark, mysterious place that tests the characters’ courage. In The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, forests like Mirkwood represent both danger and infestation by evil forces. Dante finds himself in the “dark forest” where he meets three wild beasts: the lion, the lynx, and the she-wolf.
Forests are full of strange and frightening creatures. In the Old Forest near Buckland, some trees were possessed by evil spirits, like Old Man Willow. In George MacDonald’s Phantastes, there was a malevolent Ash indwelt by an evil spirit. In Russian folklore, Baba Yaga lives in the middle of the dark forest in her hut on a chicken’s leg.
Outside the enchanted circle of Eden, the world is a dangerous place, and yet, there’s always someone whose presence dispels the darkness of the darkest wood. Tom Bombadil’s song renders Old Man Willow helpless. In Phantastes, Anodos is saved from the evil Ash by a beautiful Beech tree woman.
Hansel and Gretel are saved by a friendly swan. In the old Baba Yaga stories, the characters are often saved by an apple tree, a river, and a furnace. The presence of old Tom Bombadil-like characters in the “forest of the world” is not accidental. They are a prefiguration of the coming of the Second Adam,
“Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
The first Adam’s fall turned the Garden into a forest; the Second Adam turns all forests into a Garden. His coming restores the heavenly and earthly hierarchy. The elements themselves, though wild and insidious in and of themselves, align with this Voice. The Second Adam restores the first Adam to what he should have been — Master.
Tom Bombadil’s presence is the presence of Adam as he should have been. His word is enough to instill harmony. His song tames wild creatures and drives out evil spirits. In the presence of Aslan, even the wild Bacchus becomes harmless and friendly.
In Prince Caspian, Susan and Lucy are caught up in a redeemed Bacchanalia, and Susan says,
“I wouldn’t have felt very safe with Bacchus and all his wild girls if we’d met them without Aslan.”
“I should think not,” replied Lucy.
There’s only one difference between a forest and a Garden — the absence or presence of the Master. He lives in a small cottage on the edge of the Old Forest near the Withywindle River. He walks around his domain every day with a song on his lips, and all the wild things, all the tempestuous elements align with his Song.
His house is a safe haven, an earthly Paradise, a walled enclosure. His domain is a Garden as long as he is there. There’s more to gardens than meets the eye — they are a metaphor for the soul. In the absence of Love, the soul is torn apart by tempestuous forces. But when Love comes singing from around the corner, all is well with my soul.
“Love is the bridge between you and everything, soothing the wild tempests within your soul.” Rumi
And:
“The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of our flaws. In that love, the storms within us are quieted.” — Victor Hugo*, Les Miserables*