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Why did 🧙Gandalf go white?

A

Angelica

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I recently started listening to LOR on CDs and they got to the point where the trio meets Gandalf in white clothes. And then Gandalf describes how he became white.

I understood that he was fighting with that fire-creature and won. But then I didn't get it. DId he die and was reborn? Where did he get the white clothes??

And Sauruman(sp?) also had white clothes - did he do smth noble too?

Thanks!!!
 
Solution
He died; and was sent back (for a time, as he says) to finish the job. Galadriel clothed him in white. But even naked he was already a 'different man', since Gwaihir (the eagle that took him to Lothlórien) said that he was as light as a feather.

I hope that helped

Oh, I almost forgot about Saruman; he was always 'the White', when he arrived on Middle-Earth he was already wearing white as a personal color. He did not measure up to the color , but surely he did good things in his first years at Middle-Earth.

But ultimately Saruman failed; Gandalf says to Gimli at that meeting, "I am Saruman, or what Saruman should have been". He should have been noble, but wasn't.
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Well,I have to agree that Radagast was not powerless,if he was he wouldn't be sent in Middle-earth.But I do think he became powerless with the time,because he chose the wrong way.
 
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Perhaps the colours of the Istari should not be taken that literally.

Saruman is not necessarily greater than the other Istari, or at least Gandalf. He may have been elected as the head of the Istari simply because he was, like Sauron, a Maia of Aulë's people, and has studied ring lore extensively.



Looks like we shouldn't take Saruman as the greatest simply on account of the colour of his robes!

I think the Blue Wizards were meant to journey into the far East from the very beginning. I'd say they were pretty powerful, somewhere up there with Saruman and Gandalf. After all they had to be - the scope of their mission was rather difficult to achieve (prevent Sauron from totally dominating all men of the East).

Also keep in mind, that white is not always indicative of being the greatest. Vilya, the greatest Elven ring, had a BLUE stone, while Nenya had a white one...
 
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Haha, you're absolutely right Ithryn. But in general, White is held to be the power of Good and Black the power of Evil. There is no simpler way of putting it! SO perhaps when Saruman cast off his White robes, he cast off the last shreds of his kindness and Goodness.
Anyway the way I saw it before all these people smarter than me came up with brighter ideas was this:
In order from most powerful to least.

white --> grey --> blue --> brown



Originally posted by Red Istar
Radagast was most defintely not powerless!
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Oh certainly not, I agree. And I had forgotten that quote from the COuncil of Elrond too, thanks GandalftheGrey.
What I actually meant to convey with what I said was that Radagast was portrayed, intentionally, as the weakest of the Istari in strength, which I believe cannot be denied, and I tried to therefore justify Tolkien's use of the colour Brown in connection with him, as something other than the colour of the forest (which I believe is also a very plausible explanation).
 
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Vilya is the most powerful, followed by Nenya and then Narya I think.

Of course I agree with white being the supreme colour of good, as opposed to black being representative of evil, but it's interesting to try and come up with alternative analogies.

If we look at the Three Rings again, we see that Vilya has a blue stone, and this is the greatest of the three. It is also called the Ring of Air, and this is all reminiscent of Manwë, the greatest of the Valar - the sky is blue and perhaps blue is a colour of great importance. Nenya, the Ring of Water, and the second most powerful, is the same colour as water - white, and this is reminiscent of Ulmo, the second greatest Vala. And Narya, the Ring of Fire, the third greatest, reminds us of Aulë, the third greatest Vala.

So just maybe blue has more importance to it than some of you have assumed. I think I'd put the Blue Wizards higher on the scale than where they are on yours, Lanty.
 
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Probably we don't know nothing,because they did not nothing imortant and Tolkien did not find a reason to speak about them.The only thing we know is that they porbably started doing tings related with occultism.I don't have the book next to me right now (UT) and I cannot provide the quote,but I do remember this passage in the book.
 
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The only related quotes I'm coming across in Unfinished Tales right now are these two:



I seem to remember another quote taking a different view in which the Blue Wizards kept the situation in the East from becoming worse than it was ... is anyone else of like memory and can find this other quote?

Gandalf the Grey
 
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