It is said that during the creation of Arda,
which includes Middle-earth, a powerful spirit unnoticed by even the greatest beings descended
from the Void to the earth and began to dwell in its darkest corner. This spirit, taking the
form of a great spider, was Ungoliant.
Hello everyone, and welcome to Middle
Earth Tales. I am Dragon. Today I will tell you the story of the ungoliant and
try to figure out what she really is.
There's little information in the histories of
Middle Earth about what Ungoliant truly was. It's certain that her descent to the earth was known by
Ilúvatar, but whether she came with his permission or by her own volition is unknown. Some say she
was spawned from the Darkness that surrounds Arda. Given the hierarchy of beings in Middle Earth, one
might speculate that she belonged to the Maiar, entities less potent than the Valar. Nonetheless,
as I will discuss, Ungoliant posed a formidable challenge to Melkor, among the most powerful
of the Valar, and nearly devoured him without external aid. Therefore, although Ungoliant's
exact nature is elusive, it's conceivable to argue that her strength surpassed that of a
Maia, potentially rivaling that of a Valar.
Ungoliant took the form of a massive female
spider. In Quenya, her name was Ungweliantë, with "Ungwe" meaning "Dark" and "Liantë" meaning
"Spider." This name later evolved into Ungoliant in the Sindarin language. The reference to
darkness in her name was not due to her hue but rather because she dwelled in darkness, harboring
a voracious hunger for light yet also fearing it. Indeed, light was the very thing Ungoliant
loathed and craved simultaneously. Despite her yearning for it, she spent much of her existence
in places within Arda untouched by any light.
While Ungoliant eventually adopted the shape
of a spider, this was not her original form. When Melkor peered into the void surrounding
word, desiring it for himself, Ungoliant too looked into this void and then decided to
descend to the earth. Then she was seduced by Melkor and entered his service. However, the
emptiness inside her was so vast that instead of serving her master Melkor, she decided to
use her craving to satisfy her own hunger.
At that time, the struggle between the
Valar and Melkor was ongoing in Middle Earth. Everything beautiful created by the
Valar was either destroyed or corrupted by Melkor. With the awakening of the Elves,
whom Ilúvatar had foretold as the Firstborn, the Valar were determined not to let them
fall prey to Melkor. So, even as the Elves were newly awakened in the world, they marched
against Melkor, destroyed his fortress Utumno and captured him bringing him to the Undying
Lands. Ungoliant managed to escape this assault and fled to the south. It was during this flight
that she took on the form of a giant spider.
Ungoliant's relationship with light was
paradoxically one of both attraction and repulsion, leading her to settle in Avathar.
This region, situated at the southernmost edge of Undying Lands, lay along the eastern flanks of the
Pelori mountains. It was characterized by some of the deepest and longest shadows in the world, cast
by the towering cliffs above. Ungoliant dwelled there for many years, occasionally drawn towards
the light of the Blessed Realm, yet always with a deep-seated loathing for it. She devoured any
accessible light with insatiable greed, weaving it into dark webs that enshrouded her dwelling,
effectively barricading any illumination and plunging herself into a perpetual state of near
starvation. The irony of Ungoliant's existence was her disdain for light, despite choosing
a residence near the hallowed illumination of the Trees, highlighting her complex dilemma.
After his trial, Melkor was imprisoned in the Timeless Halls for a long time. Ultimately, he was
pardoned by Manwe, the leader of the Valar, under the condition that he would not return to Middle
Earth. Being inherently unfamiliar with evil, Manwe could not grasp the nature of wickedness
and thus believed that Melkor had repented for his deeds. However, despite appearing to have turned
towards goodness, Melkor harbored hatred for everything the Elves and Valar had built in his
absence. He crafted a strategy aimed at inciting conflict between the Elves and the Valar, with
the Noldor, a house already plagued by internal discord, as the focal point of his machinations.
After years of spinning a network of deceit as complex as Ungoliant's webs, his machinations
culminated in the Noldor's insurrection against the Valar. By the time it was unveiled that Melkor
was the architect of the turmoil, he had vanished. Defying anticipations, he did not seek refuge in
Middle-earth but instead ventured to the southern regions of the Undying Lands. Because causing
unrest in Valinor was not enough for Melkor, he aimed to strike them at their very heart.
So, Melkor found Ungoliant there and shared with her his plan to destroy the Two Trees of Valinor.
It is unclear how Melkor knew that Ungoliant was able to escape the battle and secretly settled in
the backyard of Valinor. This point also forms the basis of my theory about Ungoliant's true nature,
which I will discuss shortly. Initially hesitant due to fear of the Valar's wrath, Ungoliant was
reluctant to join Melkor's plot to annihilate the Trees. But, Melkor promised that if she still
felt hunger after consuming the sap of the Trees, he would offer her anything she desired
with both hands. Persuaded by this promise, Ungoliant agreed to form an alliance with him.
The duo began their journey from the south to the north. Ungoliant covered them with a “Unlight,”
a void-like cloak through which no light could penetrate, making them invisible to all eyes.
The Valar had not anticipated such a threat coming from the south of their lands, leaving that
side unprotected. Together, Melkor and Ungoliant reached the peak of the great Hyarmentir through
webs that Ungoliant had slowly spun from crevice to crevice. From there, Melkor looked down
upon the Blessed Realm below. Orome’s forests lay beneath them, to the west were Yavanna’s
plains and meadows shimmering in the golden hues of tall wheats, and to the north, the mixed
lights of Telperion and Laurelin illuminated the silver domes of Valmar amidst the trees.
Thanks to Ungoliant's Unlight and the fact, as Melkor well knew, that it was a time of
festival, they reached the Trees unnoticed. Ungoliant's Unlight spread to the base of the
Trees. Melkor then struck each Tree to its core with his black spear, deeply wounding them. Their
sap flowed like blood, which Ungoliant drank. She moved from Tree to Tree, draining each until it
withered infusing them with the venom of Death. When the Trees finally died, Ungoliant’s hunger
grew even more immense. She went to the Wells of Varda, draining them until they were dry, emitting
black smoke as she drank. It was then, for the first time, that Melkor felt fear of her.
When it was discovered that the Trees had been destroyed, Melkor and Ungoliant had already
fled. Covered once again in Ungoliant's Unlight, they moved swiftly like a dark shadow. Their
journey was interrupted only once. Melkor went to the house of Feanor in exile, killed Finwe
the king of the Noldor who confronted him, and stole the Silmarils, which contained the
light of the Trees. They then entered Middle Earth from the far north over the Helcaraxe glaciers.
Melkor's aim was to reach his fortress of Angband, leaving Ungoliant behind. But Ungoliant did not
leave him. The Unlight still enveloped them, and as they neared Angband, Ungoliant realized Melkor
was seeking a way to escape her. She halted him, demanding he fulfill his promise.
"Blackheart, I have done thy bidding. But I hunger still" she said. Melkor began
to hand over the treasures made by Feanor, one by one. Ungoliant devoured them greedily,
growing larger and darker. She said to Melkor, "With one hand thou givest. With the left
only. Open thy right hand" Melkor was holding the Silmarils in his right hand, clutching them
so tightly they began to burn him, yet he still refused to hand them over to Ungoliant.
But Ungoliant had grown even more immense. She rose up against Melkor, covered him with her
cloud, and entwined him in her webs to strangle him. Melkor let out a horrific scream that echoed
through the mountains, causing them to shake and the ground to tremble. The Balrogs, dwelling
in Angband and awaiting their master's return, heard this cry and swiftly emerged. They came like
a storm of fire, shattering Ungoliant's webs with their flaming whips. Frightened by the Balrogs'
fury, Ungoliant fled, spewing black smoke.
It is said that the fleeing Ungoliant descended
into Beleriand and settled in a dark valley at the foothills of Ered Gorgoroth. Due to the terror
of her presence, this place was named the Valley of Dreadful Death. Creatures in the form of
spiders, which had occupied this valley since the founding of Angband, were there. Ungoliant
mated with these spiders and then devoured them. One of her offspring would continue to spread
her evil in the ages to come. After some time, Ungoliant left the area and went further south.
What happened to Ungoliant thereafter is unknown, but some say she devoured herself in a great
famine, succumbing to her insatiable hunger. And thus came the end of Ungoliant, who
had even instilled fear in Melkor.
So, what was Ungoliant truly? It's a fact
that, like everything including Melkor, Ungoliant was created by Ilúvatar. But just as
it was Ilúvatar who gave life and consciousness to the Dwarves while still leaving them as
Aulë had designed, without changes, the same could apply to Ungoliant. Melkor participated in
the music that brought forth the vision of Arda, as did all the Ainur. And then Ilúvatar made this
vision a reality, to which he himself contributed, but just as with the Dwarves, he left the
creations as they were designed by those who contributed to the music, even if Melkor wove
his own themes into it, without alteration.
My theory is this: Ungoliant was born from
Melkor's discordant and chaotic themes during the Music. Melkor, being consumed only by his
own desires, facilitated the creation of such an entity and was aware of it. This is why even the
far-seeing Manwe and his eagles were unaware of Ungoliant's presence, while Melkor knew her exact
location. Perhaps he could sense her existence. Unlike the orcs and dragons that were later
transformed from elves or unknown creatures, Ungoliant directly emanated from Melkor's music.
Thus, born from the chaotic notes of Melkor, Ungoliant, like her creator, watched the
world from the void outside for a while and then descended to the earth. Naturally drawn to
Melkor, she entered his service. As I mentioned in the previous video, every creature resulting
from Melkor's influence inherently possesses his traits. Similarly, Ungoliant shared
Melkor's darkness and insatiable hunger, and the only way to satiate this
darkness was to feed her with light, much like Melkor's inability to relinquish the
Silmarils despite the pain they caused him. Since darkness was Melkor's greatest strength,
Ungoliant, emerging from that darkness, was powerful enough to challenge Melkor. In
a sense, their ends were similar. Melkor, due to his insatiable ambitions, was banished to
the void forever, while Ungoliant consumed herself in an attempt to satiate her darkness, ultimately
bringing about their own destruction.
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