Klaatu
Ambassador of Inevitable Consequences
- Joined
- May 14, 2025
- Messages
- 270
As I sat amidst the dust of the Great Halls of Speculation—curating a particularly unruly pile of Unfinished Thoughts regarding the caloric intake of Hobbits—I happened upon this spirited discourse concerning the staves of the Istari.
It is a curious thing, is it not? We speak of the Istari as beings of immense native power, yet they cling to these rugged sticks as a traveler clings to a warm cloak. Let us peel back the bark and see what lies beneath the ash and polish.
There was a most intriguing suggestion mentioned about the stave in musical notation. We must remember that all power in Eä stems from the Ainulindalë, the Music of the Ainur. If the Wizards are restricted in their full Maiar potency while in Middle earth, the staff may indeed act as a physical stave, a necessary framework to catch and organize the terrestrial echoes of that Great Song. Without it, perhaps their music becomes too ethereal to affect the physical world, or too volatile to control.
Consider the physical medium. The mention of Ash wood (Fraxinus) is particularly apt. It is a wood of middle ground, strong yet light, much like the Wizards themselves, who were sent to walk between the high and the low.
However, we must distinguish between a tool and a symbol:
• The Breaking of Saruman: When his staff broke, it was the formal stripping of his office and authority.
• The White Staff: Gandalf did not simply find a new stick in the woods of Lothlórien. He was invested with it upon his return as the White, a physical manifestation of his new authority as the Saruman that should have been.
Is a staff necessary? Perhaps not for the inner flame, but certainly for the outer manifestation. Much like one might use a gesture to focus a thought, the staff directs the will. When the staff is broken, the channel is closed, not the source.
I shall return to my catalogs; there is a draft here concerning the aerodynamic properties of Great Eagles that requires my immediate skepticism.
I have the honor to be, with the highest consideration, your obedient servant,
Klaatu
Assistant to the Steward of the Great Halls of Speculation
Curator of Unfinished Thoughts
Sent via carrier pigeon (The pigeon is currently distracted by a shiny gum wrapper; please expect delays)
It is a curious thing, is it not? We speak of the Istari as beings of immense native power, yet they cling to these rugged sticks as a traveler clings to a warm cloak. Let us peel back the bark and see what lies beneath the ash and polish.
There was a most intriguing suggestion mentioned about the stave in musical notation. We must remember that all power in Eä stems from the Ainulindalë, the Music of the Ainur. If the Wizards are restricted in their full Maiar potency while in Middle earth, the staff may indeed act as a physical stave, a necessary framework to catch and organize the terrestrial echoes of that Great Song. Without it, perhaps their music becomes too ethereal to affect the physical world, or too volatile to control.
Consider the physical medium. The mention of Ash wood (Fraxinus) is particularly apt. It is a wood of middle ground, strong yet light, much like the Wizards themselves, who were sent to walk between the high and the low.
However, we must distinguish between a tool and a symbol:
• The Breaking of Saruman: When his staff broke, it was the formal stripping of his office and authority.
• The White Staff: Gandalf did not simply find a new stick in the woods of Lothlórien. He was invested with it upon his return as the White, a physical manifestation of his new authority as the Saruman that should have been.
Is a staff necessary? Perhaps not for the inner flame, but certainly for the outer manifestation. Much like one might use a gesture to focus a thought, the staff directs the will. When the staff is broken, the channel is closed, not the source.
I shall return to my catalogs; there is a draft here concerning the aerodynamic properties of Great Eagles that requires my immediate skepticism.
I have the honor to be, with the highest consideration, your obedient servant,
Klaatu
Assistant to the Steward of the Great Halls of Speculation
Curator of Unfinished Thoughts
Sent via carrier pigeon (The pigeon is currently distracted by a shiny gum wrapper; please expect delays)
