Magic and Spells
in Middle-earth
The Mirror of Galadriel
Ancient Lore
Teachings
Gateways
Images
Questions
Contents:
Is There Magic in Middle-earth?
Who Could Use This Magic?
What is the Nature of This Magic?
How is Magic Invoked?
Aren't there instances of Mortals using Spells for Magic?
What is the difference between Magic and Lore?
Didn't the Istari, or Wizards use Magic?
The Nazgul were mortal, yet they used magic, didn't they?
What about the Magic of the Valar and Maiar?
What About Runes of Power?
When one asks the question, it seems almost ludicrous because there are numerous examples and passages that, on the surface, appear to offer unequivocal proof that `magic' does exist.
Yet, one needs to consider the question more closely, and
especially what Tolkien wrote and hinted at about `magic'; which
occurences actually used the word magic, could certain actions or
items have another explanation, and does the reader apply the word
based on his perception of the word and the particular occurence in
question?
Tolkien admits that `magic' exists in Middle-earth, but only
certain peoples could use it. And he further writes that the word
itself is problematic because it does not adequately describe what
it means within the context of Middle-earth. He had to "settle" on
the word, much as he did for the word "wizard" when describing the
Istari; it was the closest word in the English language, but it
still didn't mean exactly what he wanted.
Tolkien believed that `magic' in Middle-earth was derived from an
inherent power contained within the individual. Elves were given
this ability, but Men and the other races of Middle-earth including
the Dwarves, Hobbits, Orcs, and others did NOT have this type of
power:
"
Anyway, a difference in the use of `magic' in this story is
that it is not to be come by by `lore' or spells; but is in an
inherent power not possessed by Men as such.
"[Letter #155]
Notice that Tolkien makes a distinction between the use of magic
and that of lore or spells. Of all the races of Middle-earth, only
the Elves (and of course the Wizards, but they aren't a race) could
use magic - meaning the use of an innate and internal power to
create effects or items.
However, he goes on to explain that there are exceptions to this
(as with most everything in Middle-earth) especially in the
case of Aragorn because of his Elvish descent:
"
Aragorn's `healing' might be regarded as `magical', or at
least a blend of magic with pharmacy and `hypnotic' processes.
But it is (in theory) reported by hobbits who have very little
notions of philosophy and science; while A.(ragorn) is not a
pure `Man', but at long remove one of the `children of Luthien'.
"[Letter #155]
The word itself, "magic", is a relative term used by mortal races
of Middle-earth for those acts or items whose workings could not be
explained. The Elves themselves only use the term figuratively
because to them this ability is completely natural for them.
Notice Galadriel's comments to Sam in Lothlorien when she asks
Frodo and Sam to look into her mirror:
"
`And you?' she said, turning to Sam. `For this is what your
folk would call magic, I believe; though I do not understand
clearly what they mean; and they seem also to use the same
word of the deceits of the Enemy. But this, if you will, is
the magic of Galadriel. Did you not say that you wished to
see Elf-magic?'
" [The Fellowship of the Ring: The Mirror of Galadriel]
Galadriel is somewhat confused on what the word means because it is
in the nature of the Elves to have and to use an innate power that
is artistic in purpose and different from the magic used by the
Enemy primarily for domination.
The nature of magic is wrapped around Tolkien's philosophy of power
and domination:
"
[Elf-magic] is Art, delivered from many of its human
limitations; more effortless, more quick, more complete
(product, and vision in unflawed correspondence). And its
object is Art not Power, sub-creation not domination and
tyrannous re-forming of Creation....The Enemy in successive
forms is always `naturally' concerned with sheer Domination,
and so the Lord of magic and machines...
"[Letter #131]
This description implies a capability that the mortal races of
Middle-earth do not, will not, can not obtain because it "exceeds
human limitations" (NOT read as learning or technology). It
implies a power that is more effortless in the creation of
"things". Effortless means without the use of tools, or external
devices. Its source is within Elves and not external, and is more
than wisdom or lore.
Magic also quickened the process between the conception of thought
and actual realization of effect:
"
The basic motive for magia - quite apart from any philosophic
consideration of how it would work - is immediacy: speed,
reduction of labour, and reduction also to a minimum (or
vanishing point) of the gap betweeen the idea or desire and
the result or effect.
"[Letter #155]
Good magic is meant to be "artistic" for the purpose of creating or
preserving beauty, whereas bad magic was used for "deceit" or to
dominate the wills of others. Tolkien explains the differences in
types and motives of magic in another one of his letters:
"
But I suppose that, for the purposes of the tale, some would
say that there is a latent distinction such as once was called
the distinction between `magia' and `goeteia'. Galadriel
speaks of the `deceits of the Enemy'. Well, enough, but magia
could be, was, held good (per se), and goeteia bad. Neither
is, in this tale, good or bad (per se), but only by motive or
purpose of use. Both sides use both, but with different
motives. The supremely bad motive is domination of other
`free wills'. The Enemy's operations are by no means all
goetic deceits, but `magic' that produces real effects in the
physical world. But his magia he uses to bulldoze both people
and things, and his goeteia to terrify and subjugate. Their
magia the Elves and Gandalf use (sparingly): a magia,
producing real results (like fire in a wet faggot) for
specific beneficent purposes. Their goetic effects are
entirely artistic and not intended to deceive: they never
deceive the Elves (but may deceive or bewilder unaware Men)
since the difference is to them as clear as the difference to
us between fiction, painting, and sculpture, and `life'.
"[Letter #155]
"
The incarnate mind, the tongue, and the tale are in our world
coeval. The human mind, endowed with the powers of
generalisation and abstraction, sees not only `green-grass',
discriminating it from other things, but sees that it is
`green' as well as being `grass'. But how powerful, how
stimulating to the very faculty that produced it, was the
invention of the adjective: no spell or incantation in Fairie
is more potent...The mind that thought of light, heavy, grey,
yellow, still, swift, also concevied of magic that would make
heavy things light and able to fly, turn grey lead into gold,
and the still rock into swift water.
"[The Monsters and the Critics - The essay: On Fairie Stories]
What more appropriate way to make real the desire of thought than
to speak the words which form the thought?
The invocation of magic thru words occurs both in the Silmarillion
and Lord of the Rings:
- Felagund struggles against Sauron while chanting words of power:
"
The chanting swelled, Felagund fought,
And all the magic and might he brought
of Elvenesse into his words.
"[The Silmarillion - Beren & Luthien]
- Luthien commands Carcaroth, the wolf who guards the gates of
Morgoth, to sleep so that she and Beren can enter Thangorodrim to
reclaim a Silmaril:
"
Lifting up her hand she commanded him to sleep, saying: `O
woe-begotten spirit, fall now into dark oblivion, and forget
for a while the dreadful doom of life.' And Carcaroth was
felled, as though lightning had smitten him.
"[The Silmarillion - Beren & Luthien]
- Gandalf creates fire to warm the Fellowship:
"
Picking up a faggot he held it aloft for a moment, and then
with a word of command, naur an edraith ammen! he thrust the
end of his staff into the midst of it. At once a great spout
of green and blue flame sprang out, and the wood flared and
sputtered.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - The Ring Goes South]
- Gandalf invokes a word of Command in his contest with the Balrog
at the Tomb of Balin:
"
Then something came into the chamber-I felt it through the
door, and the orcs themselves were afraid and fell silent. It
laid hold of the iron ring, and then it perceived me and my
spell. What it was I cannot guess, but I have never felt such
a challenge. The counter-spell was terrible. It nearly broke
me. For an instant the door left my control and began to
open! I had to speak a word of Command. That proved too
great a strain.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - The Bridge of Khazad-dum]
- Aragorn heals Faramir, Eowyn, and Merry, by speaking their names
and calling to them, with the aid of the healing virtues of
athelas/kingsfoil:
"
Then Aragorn laid his hand on Merry's head, and passing his
hand gently through the brown curls, he touched the eyelids,
and called him by name. And when the fragrance of athelas
stole through the room, like the scent of orchards, and of
heather in the sunhsine full of bees, suddenly Merry awoke,
and he said: `I am hungry. What time is it?'
"[The Return of the King - The Houses of Healing]
- Gimil's mistaken warning about Gandalf to Legolas in Fangorn:
"
Your bow, Legolas! Bend it! Get ready! It is Saruman. Do
not let him speak, or put a spell upon us! Shoot first!
"[The Two Towers - The White Rider]
But the use of magic in this manner comes at a price: it
temporarily tires the user, as it requires the expenditure of
energy from within the individual. Gandalf expressed that he
needed to rest after his struggle with the Balrog in Moria:
"
I am weary. I must rest here a moment, even if all the orcs
ever spawned are after us.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - The Bridge of Khazad-dum]
However, characteristic of Tolkien, there are several exceptions
where magic is invoked without the use of words, but these
occurrences are invariably associated with using items. The most
potent example of this kind is when Sam uses the phial of
Galadriel, which contains the reflected starlight in Galadriel's
mirror of Earendil's star-which is itself the light of a Silmaril
far removed in the sky:
"
As if his indomitable spirit had set its potency in motion,
the glass blazed suddenly like a white torch in his hand. It
flamed like a star that leaping from the firmament sears the
dark air with intolerable light.
"[The Two Towers - The Choices of Master Samwise]
The phial itself contains the power of light, and Sam's desire to
use the light, without words, is what causes it to blaze forth to
burn the eyes of Shelob.
Yes, as with all things in Tolkien's Middle-earth there seem to be
exceptions. Note Gandalf's words as the Fellowship tries to enter
Moria via the Gates:
"
I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves or Men or
Orcs, that was ever used for such a purpose.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - A Journey in the Dark]
This passage implies that other races (including Orcs!) could use
spells for the purpose of opening doors. However, it is more
likely that the Gates of Moria were themselves "magical" with a
specific phrase/spell that had to be spoken in order to open them:
"mellon".
This would also apply to other "magical" items where a word or
phrase can invoke the special abilities. In other words, a mortal
can use the magic of an item by speaking/casting the correct spell.
For example, Sam gets his rope, made in Lothlorien, to untie
itself:
"
`But I don't like leaving it, and that's a fact.' He
stroked the end and shook it gently. `It goes hard parting
with anything I brought out of the elf-country. Made by
Galadriel herself, too, maybe. Galadriel,' he murmured,
nodding his head mournfully. He looked up and gave one last
pull to the rope as if in farewell. To the complete suprise
of both the hobbits it came loose...Frodo laughed. `Who tied
the rope?' he said. `A good thing it held as long as it
did!'...`Have it your own way, Mr. Frodo,' he said at last,
`but I think the rope came off itself-when I called.' He
coiled it up and stowed it lovingly in his pack.
"[The Two Towers -The Taming of Smeagol]
Sam, of course, is no wizard, nor does he have any magical ability,
but perhaps the rope does, and by speaking the name of Galadriel he
invokes a virtue of the rope to untie itself so that its owner can
use it for another day.
Yet, all these items were made thru the use of _Lore_, which is
different, according to Tolkien, than the use of "magic".
Tolkien specifically stated that magic could only be performed by
individuals possessing an inherent power (which did NOT include
Men). Magic allowed for the instantaneous creation of effect from
thought. Lore, on the otherhand, was knowledge gained by study to
be used in the creation of items such as weapons, helms, rings,
etc. Lore could be likened to technology and an understanding of
how nature functions. Tolkien likened this form of magic to
technology in one of his letters:
"
The particular branch of the High-Elves concerned, the Noldor
or Loremasters, were always on the side of `science and
technology', as we should call it: they wanted to have the
knowledge that Sauron genuinely had... The particluar `desire'
of the Eregion Elves - an `allegory' if you like of a love of
machinery, and technical devices - is also symbolized by their
special friendship with the Dwarves of Moria.
"[Letter #153]
Take a flashlight, for example. To a less advanced culture, a
flashlight would certainly seem as a magic source of light. But
for us, its manufacture and use is in accordance with the laws of
nature. So it was for the mortals of Middle-earth when witnessing
the "technology" of the Elves. Sam thought as much when he asked
to see Elven magic.
Lore is the means by which items are created with special
abilities. Some (but not all) examples of items created with lore
are:
Elvish Origin:
Dwarvish Origin:
Numenorean Origin:
Evil Origin:
The Istari, of course, could also use magic, but they are not a
race. Nor were they intended to be viewed as traditional "wizards"
or "magicians" as we have them in later European legends. Tolkien
stated that unfortunately there was no appropriate word that
clearly denoted his intent and that he more or less settled on the
word "wizard" as coming closest, but that there were differences.
There were a total of five Istari who came as messengers from
Valinor to help the races of Middle-earth resist the domination of
Sauron. They were Maiar, angelic powers of a lesser order than the
Valar, "but clad in bodies as of Men", and subject to the trials
and effects of Middle-earth. Being changed into Istari, their
inherent power was used as magic, but in a restrictive manner; they
were forbidden to use their power openly in direct confrontation or
for domination.
How exactly the Wizards used magic is speculation, but it could be
argued that their staffs were conduits for their inherent power to
be used as magic. Consider the following passages where Gandalf
uses his staff:
"
In his left hand he held up his glimmering staff, the light
of which just showed the ground before his feet; in his right
he held his sword Glamdring.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - A Journey in the Dark]
"
He lifted up his staff, and Gimli's axe leaped from his grasp
and fell ringing on the ground. The sword of Aragorn, stiff
in his motionless hand, blazed with a sudden fire. Legolas
gave a great shout and shot an arrow high into the air: it
vanished in a flash of flame.
"[The Two Towers - The White Rider]
"
He raised his staff. There was a roll of thunder. The
sunlight was blotted out from the eastern windows; the whole
hall became suddenly dark as night. The fire faded to sullen
embers. Only Gandalf could be seen, standing white and tall
before the blackened hearth. In the gloom they heard the hiss
of Wormtongue's voice: `Did I not counsel you, lord, to forbid
his staff? That fool, Hama, has betrayed us!' There was a
flash as if lightning had cloven the roof. Then all was
silent. Wormtongue sprawled on his face.
"[The Two Towers - The King in the Golden Hall]
Also, consider Tolkien's translation of the name "Gandalf":
"
Gandalf is a substitution in the English narrative on the
same lines as the treatment of Hobbit and Dwarf names. It is
an actual Norse name (found applied to a Dwarf in Voluspa)
used by me since it appears to contain GANDR, a staff,
especially one used in `magic', and might be supposed to mean
`Elvish wight with a (magic) staff'.
"[Unfinished Tales - The Istari]
It would appear then, that the staffs of the Istari are necessary
for their ability to use magic. Not that the staffs were
themselves magical, but were a device by which their magic was
manifested. As discussed above, the Elves and the Maiar (Gandalf
was himself one) possessed the requisite inherent power for magic.
But in the case of the Istari, a staff serves both as a symbol of
their order and as a conduit.
Indeed, it is so, as is demonstrated by Gandalf when he breaks the
staff of Saruman and casts him out from the order of the Istari
causing Saruman to lose his powers. This is confirmed by Frodo
during the last encounter with Saruman:
"
[Saruman] drew himself up and stared darkly with his black
eyes. `But do not think that when I lost all my goods I lost
all my power!'...The hobbits recoiled. But Frodo said: `Do
not believe him! He has lost all his power, save his voice
that can still daunt you and deceive you, if you let it.'
"[The Return of the King - The Scouring of the Shire]
Yes, they did. We know that as wearers of the Nine Rings they were
given magical powers:
"
Men proved easier to ensnare. Those who used the Nine Rings
became mighty in their day, kings, sorcerers, and warriors of
old.
"[The Silmarillion - Of The Rings of Power and The Third Age]
But a distinction should be made between the power lent to them by
their rings as "magic" while they were still alive as mortals and
the evil necromancy wielded by them as Nazgul - that is after they
became ringwraiths. It has been argued elsewhere that the Nazgul
did not wear their own rings, yet they did perform acts of magic in
several instances:
- During Frodo's flight from the Nazgul at the Ford of Bruinen:
"
Then the leader, who was now half across the Ford, stood up
menacing in his stirrups, and raised up his hand. Frodo was
stricken dumb. He felt his tongue cleave to his mouth, and
his heart labouring. His sword broke and fell out of his
shaking hand.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - The Flight to the Ford]
- At the Seige of Gondor:
"
Then the Black Captain rose in his stirrups and cried aloud
in a dreadful voice, speaking in some forgotten tongue words
of power and terror to rend both heart and stone. Thrice he
cried, Thrice the great ram boomed. And suddenly upon the
last stroke the Gate of Gondor broke. As if stricken by some
blasting spell it burst asunder: there was a flash of searing
lightning, and the doors tumbled in riven fragments to the
ground.
"[The Return of the King - The Seige of Gondor]
However, the source of this magic was derived from Sauron himself;
it was the nature of the Nazgul to have this ability as defined by
Sauron and as a result of their enslavement to him thru the
continued use of their rings. The Nazgul's ability to use magic
was "bought" at a terrible price - to be the invisible thralls of
Sauron under his dominion.
The Valar and Maiar should be treated separately and not associated
with magic in the everyday sense. The Valar were considered as the
`angelic guardians' of Middle-earth, and the Maiar as their lesser
servants. They certainly could perform supernatural feats, but
these abilities should be considered as "divine power" and not
magic. The word `Valar' as given in the index of the Silmarillion
means `Those with Power', not magic.
Such is not the case with Sauron, even though he is a Maia.
Because he debased himself to the role of tyrannt and squandered
his power to dominate lesser beings he is reduced from angelic
being to "Dark Lord" and "Necromancer". As such, his original
divine power is lowered to the level of magic - his involvement in
Middle-earth is that of constant domination and the exercise of his
will to subjugate and control as "evil magic".
Runes are used to instill an item or thing with special powers or
abilites. The use of Runes is knowledge gained from lore. The
Dwarves, especially used Runes of Power. Take the following
examples:
"
A king he was on carven throne
In many-pillared halls of stone
With golden roof and silver floor
and runes of power upon the door.
"[The Fellowship of the Ring - A Journey in the Dark]
"
The Helm of Hador was given into Thingol's hand. That helm
was made of grey steel adorned with gold, and on it were
graven runes of victory. A power was in it that guarded any
who wore it from wound or death...
"[Unfinished Tales - Narn I Hin Hurin]
The nature of runes is never explained by Tolkien, but we can infer
something about them from the historical contexts which Tolkien
used to construct Middle-earth. We know that Tolkien was
influenced by Germanic, Anglo-Saxon, as well as Norse history and
literature. As such, the use of runes by these cultures was also
for "magic" purposes on swords, scabbards, and other items.
Simply, then, runes had names and were meant to represent certain
fundamental concepts such as victory or protection. If one knew
the rune for a certain property one could then enscribe it on an
item and pass on this property into the desired item.
Is There Magic in Middle-earth?
TOPWho Could Use This Magic?
TOPWhat is the Nature of This Magic?
TOPHow is Magic Invoked?
Magic was predominantly invoked by speaking. Words were extremely
important to Tolkien, who was a philologist - someone interested in
the origins of words. Consider the following passage where Tolkien
likens words to spells:
TOPAren't there instances of Mortals using Spells for Magic?
TOPWhat is the difference between Magic and Lore?
TOPDidn't the Istari, or Wizards use Magic?
TOPThe Nazgul were mortal, yet they used magic, didn't they?
TOPWhat about the Magic of the Valar and Maiar?
TOPWhat About Runes of Power?
TOP