GANDALF The Grey and Gandalf The White | What Is The Difference? | Middle-Earth Lore

Gandalf came to us as the wandering gray wizard the one who loved and appreciated all life in Middle Earth and he left us as the powerful Gandalf the White with still the same love and care but with far more power hello and welcome to the Broken Sword today we are considering what are the differences between when Gandalf arrived to when he left fill me alone Worthy as you may recall from some of our previous videos like the full story of Saruman Gandalf's arrival in Middle Earth came as one of the five istari or Wizards who came into the lands and mingled among the peoples each in the guise of an elderly bearded gentleman with a natural skill for magic and perhaps hypeweed too despite the brief glimpses that we get into his life that being the character whose actions and words we are able to read and understand as though he was speaking directly to us like the sun though it was not made specifically for one of us or the other it is there to shine for us all to see and Gandalf as you will see is often linked to the sin by metaphor or Spirit we will consider each Gandalf was unable to exert the true extent of his Force as Gandalf the Gray which is why the spirit or fear is caged in such a frail and unassuming frame when sent to Middle Earth as part of an order who were purposed to oppose Sauron in the early third age when he was rumored to yet survive the cutting of the ring from his finger despite winning the battle the war of the last Alliance was uniquely descriptive of how the elves and Men of Middle Earth understand peace with that it was more than a period of infighting between Wars lost in the disaster of the Gladden Fields the ring is lost for nearly two and a half thousand years and Sauron is not yet strong enough to come forth and declare himself rather he has been hiding behind the Alias of The Necromancer and some 900 years prior to the hobbit adventure we know that Gandalf investigated dogoldor this being in the year 2063 of the third age for the first time from Gandalf's appearance Sauron would take flight and remain in raspberry period known then as the watchful piece spanning 400 years before Sauron would once again return to dolgold door if we fast forward to 90 years before The Hobbit Now Gandalf returned once more to doll Gordo in secrecy here he retrieved the map and key of Erebor from thrain II having found him in the dungeons there in such a state that he could not even remember his own name in fact Gandalf wouldn't even find out who this dwarf was until a later date despite this discovery though the white Council failed to act for which saruman's duplicity can be credited a century afterwards and Saruman learns of sauron's search thus would Saruman discover the secret of sauron's actions the one Rings location was drawing ever closer to the dark lord which put it in sauron's reach and only then when it threatens saruman's long-term goals for greater power and Dominion did the white wizard head of the white Council agree to finally attack dolgoldor this takes place during the events recounted in The Hobbit being in the year 2941 as the attack on doggodor takes place after Gandalf leaves the dwarves in merkwood this is kind of acting as the protector of all that is good in the world as he knows that there is more to power than just force which after he dies from his injuries in his Jewel with the balrog of morgoth jiren's Bane Tolkien tells us that Gandalf was resurrected by every Louis vuitar himself he was sent by a mere prudent plan of the Angelic Valar or Governors but Authority had taken up this plan and enlarged it at the moment of its failure it would seem that the Valar and those in valinor had not forgotten Gandalf being the Maya named olorin in his Youth and with his newly reinvigorated spirit and healed of his wounds he does not however retain doubt fear and he is more focused with the Mandate from iluvatar to see his mission to its end as he is the only one of the emissaries of the Valar to have not deviated from his mission at this time it is claimed that he can match Sauron with power as we see his powers expanded immensely his hood and his gray Rags were flung away his white garments shot he lifted up his staff and gimli's ax 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 risk of leaving perspective by believing in the LIE of personal greatness and power is what lies at the Thematic heart of The Lord of the Rings the power they have is power they are loamed but for a Time the Elves and the Maya like Gandalf distinguished Spirit also known as fear from the body also known as the hero when the latter dies the former departs and is Spirited Away to the halls of Mandos there to remain until the prophesied dagor dagorath a cindaran phrase meaning Battle of all battles which is believed to come at the end of time as an apocalyptic battle albeit Christopher tolgin had cleaned his father had abandoned this idea by the time of his death although if you would like to see a video on all that we know about this last battle please leave me a comment below of daggle dagarath please and we will get working on that for you but anyway the truth is that the power Gandalf has he knows is not all his own but rather on loan to him for a time and gifted to him from the uttermost high aru himself and it is no accident he is often mentioned in the same breath as the sun for example when he appears before the three writers he stepped down from the Rock and picking up his great cloak wrapped it about him it seemed as if the sun had been shining and now was hid in Cloud again Gandalf the White is returned invigorated alive with the memory of his home valinor removed other gray shrouds of wear and tear over his physical form removed are his doubts his fears focused he has become he now has permission to match power with power he knows the chess pieces are already in motion and he knows what he needs to do or at least he knows where to start if we think back to the quote from a minute ago which will be on screen now in case you need it but it is in reference to how easily he disarms the three Hunters this is power beyond maybe even Sauron it is thought that the gap between Aragorn and the lender is not so great that Aragorn would be completely harmless against one of the Maya while elendil albeit with Aid of gilgalat could slay one this may make you think though why didn't Gandalf just go on about fighting Sauron himself head on after returning despite arguably displaying greater power than Sauron Gandalf still expresses reluctance in facing Sauron in the chapter of the palantir in The Lord of the Rings even now my heart desires to test my will upon it to see if I could not wrench it from him and turn it where I would this suggests to me either that the power he uses at times is not wholly his own and thus he cannot make his own use of it on a whim or again there have been limitations placed on his power still the latter makes less sense as he expresses that he is less dangerous than Sauron despite debatably showing power beyond sauron's scope which leads to the belief that at times his power is being lent from a source outside of himself he also seems to have a subtle metaphysical relationship with the sun obviously he shines like the sun when first revealed to the three Hunters again it seemed as if the sun had been shining but now it was hit in Cloud again but many have Gandalf the White significant moments are either paired with the bright shining Sun or the Rising Sun match in the hope and wonder he inspires sometimes by his own hand other times it seems as if his timings have been planned impeccably let us just have a quick think of three examples now of this we have when he first returns to the three Hunters his hair was white as snow in the sunshine and gleaming white was his role then when he is freeing theden from worm tongue's poison he lifted his staff and pointed to a high window where the darkness seemed to clear and through the opening could be seen high and far a patch of shining Sky not all is dark take courage lord of the mark and also when he arrives in the battle of the hornburg with erkenbrand in the reinforcements they're suddenly upon a ridge appeared a rider cloud in white shining in the Rising Sun his relationship with the sun is both metaphorical and seemingly literal with the brightness of the sun often even aiding his purposes making him appear brighter supporting his charge at Helms Deep playing some part in this spell at ederas again his eventful moments coinciding with the sun suggests a preciseness beyond what would be expected of him and seems to have a touch of everyone's hand maybe upon his shoulder if you would so this would make it very apparent how Gandalf the White is infinitely more powerful than before because he has a mandate from eru and thus his omnipotent will behind him the easiest way to understand the transition from one to the other is being promoted for going above and beyond the Call of Duty he was understood on sight as worthy to carry the Alvin ring of power Naya that was gifted to him by Kier down the shipwright but Kier down from their first meeting at the gray Havens divined in him the greatest Spirit and the wisest and he welcomed him with reverence and he gave to his keeping the third ring Naya the rat this is reiterated when we later read here Dan's perception that Gandalf was the greatest of them though it is true Saruman was the head of the white Council but so it was only as gandal sought not power nor to increase his standing but to wander the lands of Middle Earth and motivate Shine the Light on the lives of everyone he saw Galadriel put Gandalf forward to lead the order though when the position was offered to him he did refuse and should any doubts remain as to how Gandalf in the white robes compares to the other formerly White Road wizard Tolkien appears to settle this matter Saruman soon became jealous of Gandalf and this rivalry turned at last to a hatred the deeper for being concealed and the more bitter in that Saruman knew in his heart that the gray Wanderer had the greater strength and the greater influence upon the Dwellers in Middle Earth even though he hid his power and desired neither fear nor reverence Saruman did not Revere him but he grew to fear him being ever uncertain how much Gandalf perceived of his inner mind troubled more by his silences than his words what we must understand is that these Wizards are not magicians unlikely to conjure Magic by way of the casting of spells or the use of hexes charms or Alakazam the powers imbued in the astari comes from their nature as part of the order in which they come as emissaries of the Valor endowed with certain traits which allow them to work a type of nature magic the power used is only what is necessary this too is what makes Gandalf much different to Saruman or Sauron to Tolkien the proper exercise of power was defensive and selfless as wisdom knowledge and insight all are powerful tools at one's disposal Gandalf was the wisest of the Maya as we discussed in a previous video Tolkien suggested that Gandalf is the closest match to Sauron and we have further information in the unfinished Tales it was believed by many of the faithful of that time that Gandalf was the last appearance of manway himself before his final withdrawal to the Watchtower of taniquettl but I think it was not so the overthrow of morgoth he sent his Herald aeonway to the defeat of Sauron would he not then send some lesser But Mighty Spirit of the Angelic people one co-evil and equal doubtless with someone in their Beginnings but not more olorin was his name but of all of him we shall never know more than he revealed in Gandalf it is considered that Gandalf was in his earliest hours Apprentice to manwi as Saruman and Sauron were to Ali although he is also associated with Irmo Vada and yina as well learning Great Law from them all there is also a theory and this is drawn from the constant symbols of manue that find their way to Gandalf the Great Eagles for example are descended from the Eagles of manwi whose great king the rondor fought the great dragons of morgoth alongside aerendel in the war of the jewels in The Lord of the Rings the lord of the Eagles guay here a descendant of Thrones carries Gandalf three times but that is assuming that the lord of the egos from The Hobbit is not the same Great Eagle which if it was would actually be at least five times but either way Gandalf has a great relationships with these great Eagles of manly Tolkien also loved comparisons for example Aragorn and Arwin were almost like the reincarnated Baron and luthien was to morgoth what Gandalf was to Sauron while morgoth Sauron might have started with an edge the manue Gandalf replaced their positions in eru's creation and even defeated them manwi started out as second in command of the ainer despite having as deep of an insight into Arrow's music as malcol this is why he led the second theme in fact and later then he became leader Gandalf started out as second in command of the estari and later then became the leader of the Wizards here then give Naya to the member of the istari that he thought was the greatest therefore the most likely to succeed against Sauron it was given his team every advantage that he couldn't Solomon's jealousy of Gandalf speaks to his insecurity and already well-developed ego almost at the moment of his arrival Saruman thought himself as slighted by kierdan for choosing Gandalf over him the great Saruman the white by Gandalf's wisdom and probably by his power as well the line in The Two Towers is fitting though it fails to capture the totality of what we have in this resurrection and transformation Gandalf claims to be saroban but rather man as he should have been of each character Tolkien invests in making an example of doing good in the world Gandalf is the one who carries Middle Earth like arda's own Atlas the weight of the world and suffering of so many had for so long been on his shoulders that they were broken and upon giving his all he was in a word promote it he is shown to be of unique spirit and wholesome character time and again when he is gifted the Alvin Ring of Fire by kierdan when Galadriel suggests he lead the white Council we have a man who would die for the chance to save a friend the way that he halted jiren's Bane at the cost of his own life speaks to the greatness of Ganda greatness unattainable to beings of Sauron and saruman's ilk as their actions serve themselves and themselves only to understand the power of Gandalf and what he does for the side of goodness is more than what physical Force provides gandal of the white is imbued with a power and thinkable and Beyond reach of Sauron that of Hope of faith and of friendship that of something worth preserving worth fighting for in all the world like Sam said that there's some good in this world and it's worth fighting for this is a better motivating factor than Sauron can offer as power derives from fear is fragile and requires the constant abuse of One's Own soldiers which is not a strategically Sound Treatment of one's infantry of particular note is how often Gandalf is compared to the Sun from afar it appears a simple light as a drifting candle far away though the light comes from such great distance that we cannot appreciate the immensity of the power within the Sun the churning unimaginable destructive force and each morning without force or fright the sunrise drives the darkness from the field and Gandalf does the same for the people of Middle Earth as he set over the side of the mountain when he smote the balrog on the Mountainside he was not going to break that promise The Rebirth of Gandalf is the promise of tomorrow being kept the certainty of goodness driving evil out and Away in time regardless of how long it should take Gandalf the Great is this reborn a reminder that the gifts of God in the world of Tolkien are not given veiny and his powers are the endowment of his being the gifts of eru and the Mandate of his rebirth change him from the wandering person who was there to inspire hope and resistance everywhere he went in the years that Sauron spent rebuilding his armies and the 70 years of repairs them to barador prior to the Lord of the Rings being so often linked to the sun it is not so far-fetched to think he has visited Arendelle sometime far into the ancient past or in times more recent though this is symbolic of what Gandalf's power really is and how it works despite not being primarily wielded with Force to inflict violence and tomorrow's promise is not guaranteed to us and as such we can only hope Gandalf is the sunrise that drives off the darkness he is a high note in the song of the Aina a bright ever inspiring and hopeful key that inspires others and protects them with the radiance of his own though he is wise enough to know that it does not belong to him so with that the study of Gandalf the Gray and Gandalf the White we can see how Gandalf the Gray is the unassuming old man who wanders lands and inspires hope in everyone he comes across from the kings of lands to the halflings in hiding when picture is Task olorin had to be persuaded as he admitted the fear he held for Sauron but this was all the more reason mamway wished him to go he would rarely show any hint of real power using his subtle arts and tricks to win the day and show that hope can be found in the darkest of places some of his more fun pastimes would be using his powers to entertain others as we see with his famous firework displays it shows how much of his power comes from fire though and whether this was affected by or enhanced by his possession of Naya is actually never addressed either way though when in dire situations it would be the use of pyrotechnic type moves that would be his go-to form of attack and of course when a balrog would stand in front of him that would be the the time to unleash his full wrath even at the cost of his weak elderly body however when Gandalf the White is returned he is invigorated by the removal of the gray shrouds of wear and tear over his physical form along with much of the doubt and fear that had affected him he had a greater level of Charisma and this most likely came to the confidence that came with that new power he could break saruman's staff with the spoken word compared to his time as the gray when he was kept as a prisoner by that same being it is not like he was ever weak as the crane but when returned he was given more access to his true Maya power along with the permission to do more with it too in a way the training wheels had been taken off and he had a job to do it is said he could have fought Sauron head to head with his power of the white now that is not to say he is the greatest Maya of them all potentially when Sauron had the one ring it would have been a different story but at this point in The Lord of the Rings it is fair to say Gandalf was Was An Almighty power but of all the characters it is meridoc Brandenburg who has a good description of his change in The Lord of the Rings so I will end this now with his words he has grown or something he can be both Kinder and more alarming merrier and more solemn than before I think with that it is now time for my question of the day which is of course which is your favorite version of the character Gandalf the Gray or Gandalf the White let me know all of your opinions on this in the comment section below with the name of your favorite and why and now it is time to shout out our patrons you guys are supporting our short film project and I cannot thank you all enough the divine power tmms of Kevin and Abram the fire demon tmms of nashef Denver Steel 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Channel: The Broken Sword

Views: 340,898

Keywords: The Broken Sword, History of Middle Earth, The Lord of the Rings, Lord of the Rings, Lord of the Rings Lore, Middle Earth Lore, The Hobbit, The Silmarillion, Tolkien Lore, gandalf the grey, gandalf the white, how much stronger is gandalf the white, how strong is gandalf the grey, what is the difference between gandalf the grey and white, gandalf the grey vs the white, gandalf the white vs saruman, gandalf vs saruman, gandalf vs balrog, gandalf vs sauron, gandalf death, lotr

Id: _MA-fgB2Dvo

Length: 22min 34sec (1354 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 17 2022