Istari

The Istari, known to the peoples of Middle-earth as Wizards, are an order of five beings sent from the Far West in the Third Age to contest the growing power of Sauron. They came in the shape of aged Men, never young, and aged only slowly, possessing great powers of mind and hand. Yet they were forbidden to match Sauron's power with power or to seek to dominate Elves or Men by force and fear. Their true names were revealed to few; they used instead the names given to them by the peoples they aided. The two highest of the order were called by the Eldar Curunír, "the Man of Skill," and Mithrandir, "the Grey Pilgrim," known to Men in the North as Saruman and Gandalf. Curunír journeyed often into the East but dwelt at last in Isengard; Mithrandir was closest in friendship with the Eldar, wandered mostly in the West, and never made for himself any lasting abode.

Origins and Purpose

The Istari were Maiar, spirits of the same order as the Valar but of lesser power, sent to Middle-earth to guide and counsel the free peoples in their resistance to Sauron. They appeared after the Great Ships came over the Sea, though whether they came with those ships is not recorded in any tale. Their mission was not to wage war directly but to inspire and unite those who would stand against the Shadow. The White Council, a gathering of the Wise, was formed to coordinate their efforts, and Saruman was chosen as its head. For long years the Council debated the threat of Dol Guldur, and it was Saruman who dissuaded them from open action until the shadow grew too great to ignore. Yet even then, Saruman's counsel was already turning crooked: he had begun to lust for the One Ring himself, and he secretly searched near the Gladden Fields for it, hoping it would reveal itself.

The Two Chief Wizards: Saruman and Gandalf

Saruman the White was long accounted the greatest of the order, deep in knowledge and subtle in thought. He studied the arts of the Enemy himself, seeking to forestall him, but his pride grew with his knowledge. He took up his abode in Isengard, in the tower of Orthanc, and there he used the palantír to gaze far abroad. But his gaze was caught by Barad-dûr, and Sauron ensnared him. He became a traitor to the Council, plotting to seize the Ring for himself and to set himself up as a Power. He bred a new race of Orcs, the Uruk-hai, who could endure the Sun, and he armed the wild hillmen of Dunland. When Gandalf came to him for aid, Saruman revealed his true colors, offering Gandalf a choice: join with Sauron, join with Saruman himself, or be imprisoned. Gandalf refused and was set alone on the pinnacle of Orthanc, from which he was rescued by Gwaihir the Windlord. In the end, Saruman's treachery was laid bare at the Council of Elrond, and he was cast from the order by Gandalf, who had returned from death as Gandalf the White. Saruman's staff was broken, and he was left to gnaw the ends of his old plots in Orthanc, until he was released by Treebeard and met his miserable end in the Shire.

Gandalf the Grey, by contrast, was the only Wizard who truly cared for the Hobbits and the simple folk of Middle-earth. He wandered among them, learning their ways and earning their trust. He was the chief mover of the quest to destroy the One Ring, guiding Frodo Baggins from the Shire to Rivendell and beyond. He fell in Moria battling the Balrog, a creature of the ancient world, but was sent back by the powers of the West, now clothed in white, to complete his task. As Gandalf the White, he broke Saruman's staff, healed Théoden King of Rohan, and led the last defence of Minas Tirith. His work was finished when the Ring was destroyed, and he departed over the Sea with the Ring-bearers, his age at an end.

The Other Istari

Of the remaining three Istari, little is told in the chronicles of the War of the Ring. Radagast the Brown dwelt at Rhosgobel, near the borders of Mirkwood, and was a master of shapes and changes of hue, with much lore of herbs and beasts. Birds were especially his friends, and he served as a messenger between Saruman and Gandalf, though he was deceived by Saruman's treachery. The two Blue Wizards, whose names are not given in the Red Book, journeyed into the East and are not heard of again in the tales of the West. Their fate remains unknown, though it is said that they may have played a part in stirring up rebellion against Sauron in the far lands.

The Nature and Limits of the Istari

The Istari were bound by a strict command: they were not to match Sauron's power with power, nor to seek to dominate Elves or Men by force or fear. They could counsel, inspire, and guide, but they could not compel. This limitation was the source of both their strength and their vulnerability. Saruman, in his pride, broke this command, seeking to build his own power and to wield the Ring himself. Gandalf, though tempted, refused even to take the Ring, knowing that it would corrupt him and make him a new Dark Lord. The Istari were not immune to the passage of time; they aged slowly, but they could be slain, as Gandalf was by the Balrog, though he was returned to life by a power beyond the circles of the world. Their true nature as Maiar was hidden from most, and they walked among the peoples of Middle-earth as old men, weary and wise, until their task was done.