Maiar

The Maiar are a class of supernatural beings found in J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel series. The name 'Maiar' originated from the Quenya term 'Maya,' which means admirable and excellent. Because they are supernatural, the Maiar are supposedly immortal. However, they also can incarnate in human bodies, and they can get killed. Tolkien was unclear about what happens in such cases. Some people have also noted that the Maiar is like Christian angels, in that they can be sent on divine missions.​

The Maiar were spirits that came into the world to help the Valar in shaping it. Although they were many, only a few had names. Their leaders were Eönwë, the herald and banner-bearer of Manwë, and the handmaid of Baroda, Ilmarë. [1] During the Third Age, five of these spirits became the incarnated wizards.​

According to Tolkien, the Maiar were relatives of the Valar, though they had lesser powers than the nine great rulers. He further explained that they were spirits that existed before the start of the world but were significantly inferior to the Valar. In the Valanquenta, Tolkien wrote that the majority of the Maiar associated themselves with the Valar. For example, Ossë and Uinen were with Ulmo, while the Dark Lord Sauron worked with Aulë before being corrupted by Melkor. Sauron continued his relationship with Aulë intending to gain power over other rings by creating the One Ring. Because of their supernatural powers, the Maiar could roam around the world without being seen or change themselves into elves and otherworldly creatures. These incarnations, known as 'Fanya' in Quenya, are destructible, but you cannot destroy their actual being. However, only a few of the Maiar adopted their visible form, which is why many remain unnamed. Also, the elves did not know their exact population.​

As mentioned earlier, only a small portion of the Maiar had names. Eönwë was the herald of Manwë, and under his leadership, the West won the War of Wrath. It was in this war that Morgoth was overthrown, and Thangorodrim was destroyed. Melkor, also known as Morgoth in Sindarin, corrupted many Maiar to serve him. These included the Dark Lord Sauron, the principal antagonist in the Lord of the Rings, as well as the Balrogs. Before the First Age, a Maia (singular for Maiar) called Melian went to Middle-earth. There, she fell in love with Thingol, the King of Doriath. She used her powers (the Girdle of Melian) [2] to protect the kingdom when Morgoth attacked. Melian had a daughter with Thingol, named Lúthien, who was described as the most beautiful child in Ilúvatar.​

During the Third Age, Sauron was evil to the world. As a result, the Valar sent the Maiar to help combat the Lord’s evil deeds. They had impressive hand and mind skills, though they appeared old. Their objective was to guide elves and men by gaining their trust and imparting knowledge, rather than using brute force and spreading fear. Known as the wizards, they included Gandalf the Grey, Saruman the White, and Radagast the Brown.​

The Balrogs had immense strength and served the first two Valar, Morgoth, and the Dark Lord Sauron. Besides having fiery whips and being dominant, they were the Lord’s most dangerous workers.​

Similar to the Valar, the Maiar did not have a fixed form. They could walk freely among people of the Middle-earth unseen before being sent for a divine mission, such as the wizards. However, the Maiar could lose their powers if they used it on vices like hate and mockery. Following in the steps left by Melkor, his predecessor, Sauron became the Dark Lord in the Second Age. Despite their actions, the Maiar do not lose their immortality. When their physical body gets destroyed, their powers diminish, and their spirits wander. This continues until they regain the ability to incarnate in physical form, or their corresponding Valar restores them. An example of this is the resurrection of Gandalf. While it is unclear what restored Gandalf, many believe that Manwë had a hand in it. After all, it was Manwë that sent the wizards to deal with Sauron’s harsh rule. Therefore, the return of Gandalf shows that Manwë was involved.​

As is the case with most Ainur, nobody knows the extent of the powers of the Maiar. Since their primary role was to assist the Valar in shaping the world, many assume that they could augment their surroundings. Being supernatural, they could withstand the ravages of time and remain immortal. Even if their physical bodies got killed, their spirit would live on. The Maiar could also shapeshift if they wanted. They could become invisible or adopt the shapes of other physical beings and roam freely around the world. More importantly, they could get destroyed but not extinguished. Since they helped the Valar in shaping the world, some believe that the Maiar could control the elements and other energies. Even if they got killed, they could restore their physical bodies either themselves or with aid from the Valar. Also, the Maiar had magical powers, meaning that they could perform blessings, curses, exorcism, and spells, and so on. Lastly, the Maiar could teleport because they had supernatural powers, and mostly because the universe was enormous. This was made possible by their ability to transform into flying creatures such as bats, birds, vampires, and so forth.​

Theological experts describe the Maiar as what Christians refer to as angels. They are the intermediaries between the creator and the people. Like angels, they have free will and can choose to go against higher powers. Another theory by Grant C. Sterling states that the Maiar are similar to the Valar in that they are immortal, although their bodily forms cabe killed. He cites the inability of Sauron to reincarnate his physical body after his defeat, which is why he transferred his powers to the One Ring. That said, nobody knows the fate of the killed Maiar.​