Friday, 11 December 2015

lord of the rings - Why does Sauron fear Aragorn if he is a Maia?

There are two elements of the answer not mentioned above.



Once a Maia, or even a Vala (such as Morgoth) turns against Eru, they gain no more power. Any power they use is used up, and is lost to them. That is why they can be defeated by those who, originally, had less power than they did. Morgoth is wounded by Shelob and taken captive by Valar once less powerful than himself because of this. Similarly, Sauron lost a lot of power in the fall of Numenor and in making, then losing the One Ring. So he is vulnerable.



Aragorn is the rightful heir of Gondor, the kingdom descended from Numenor, a kingdom of men created by the Valar. This imbues him with power very high among men, close to that of the Maia. So as Sauron descends, unable to replenish his power, and Aragorn ascends, Good prevails over Evil not because it is stronger in this world, but because it is perpetually renewed and reborn from the Source of Life itself.



No doubt Tolkien's view of the triumph of the Good through resurrection of life, which he called "eucatastrophe" is related to his theology, which fits within one of the theories of good and evil within the Catholic doctrine.

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