The Lord of the Rings is a fascinating piece of literature and cinema that many authors attempt to emulate. It has become a piece of culture that may never fade away with time. It shows the readers and its audiences the struggle between good and evil with good characters resisting the temptations of poor bad influences.They also see one character, thought to be above the wickedness of the world, turn to the dark side and attempt to claim absolute power for himself. Saruman the Wise, as Gandalf once called him. Gandalf unfortunately learns that his ally took a turn somewhere along the way.
Gandalf and Saruman were both influential in the events of The Lord of the Rings. It's difficult to understand how Saruman could turn against his allies in a bid for the One Ring when Gandalf shows a completely different side of the wizards of Middle-earth. He's wise and compassionate while Saruman seems cold and calculating. However, everyone's favorite pastime when it comes to fandoms, is arguing about who is stronger. For example, could Superman defeat Goku in a battle to the death? TikTok influencers have settled and reignited the debate time and time again. Then there's Saruman and Gandalf.
LOTR: Gandalf's Real Name, Explained
Gandalf has many names across all of Middle-Earth and they all have different meanings. What are they?
Who was Saruman the White?
The most fascinating aspect of the five wizards in Middle-earth is that they're celestial beings known as Maiar who were around for the world's creation. Some even helped create it along with the Valar. At the behest of Ilúvatar and the Valar, five of the Maiar took a physical form and walked among the people of Middle-Earth. They went to Middle-earth to defend and assist the free people against their fallen brother, Sauron. Saruman wasn't only selected as one of the five Maiar to take on a physical form, he volunteered with great eagerness.
This eagerness to face Sauron head-on made Saruman -or rather Curumo, as he's known by the other spirits- the leader of the five wizards. Even Gandalf refers to him as "both wise and powerful" in The Fellowship of the Ring movie. Upon first coming to Middle-earth, Saruman traveled a lot. Just as often as Gandalf did. In the appendix of The Return of the King, it's written that he "often journeyed into the East." That happens to be where the two blue wizards, who are never seen or given a name in text or cinema, traveled. Perhaps Saruman was checking in with them as their leader.
However, unlike Gandalf, Saruman eventually settled down and established a home in the Orthanc tower, given to him by the steward of Gondor. This is the first decision Saruman makes that pulls him away from his mission in Middle-earth. While the steward of Gondor enjoyed a wizard protecting a region of his land, residing in a tower reveals a sign of hubris in the wizard. The second sign of him straying from his path is the discovery of a Palantir, a seeing stone. Saruman found it and kept it secret from the rest of his kin.
Eventually, Gandalf formed the White Council and made Saruman the leader. Galadriel, a member of the White Council, would have preferred Gandalf as the leader, seeing the potential for wisdom in him that Saruman could only hope to attain. Unbeknownst to the council, according to the writing in The Silmarillion, "Curunír had turned to dark thoughts and was already a traitor in heart." It went on to say, "He desired the Great Ring, so that he might wield it himself and order all the world to his will."
How Powerful was Saruman?
Each wizard had a level of power that outmatched most in Middle-earth. However, there was a vague hierarchy of power amongst each of the five wizards as well, and Saruman the White was at the top of that hierarchy. In his early years, walking among the people of Middle-earth, he earned several names. One such name was Curunír, meaning "the man of skill" or "man of craft." Even the movies make it clear that Saruman is a talented being capable of great feats.
He commissions the creation of the Uruk-hai, which took some knowledge of biology and anatomy to devise. In The Two Towers, he shows Wormtongue gunpowder and creates a bomb for the Uruk-hai to use against Helm's Deep. These are not easy tasks anyone could accomplish. Furthermore, Saruman is known to bend nearly any mind to his will through the use of his words. He could have been a truly great wizard who fought against the dark forces. Unfortunately, he was not powerful enough to resist Sauron's temptations.
Was Saruman More Powerful Than Gandalf?
In terms of Saruman being more powerful than Gandalf, the movies actually answer that question. Initially, yes, he's more powerful than Gandalf the Grey. The two wizards have a short bout within the tower of Orthanc, which renders Gandalf a prisoner of Saruman's. It's worth noting that Gandalf held a lot of self-doubt before becoming the new White wizard. Even before coming to Middle-earth, he was reluctant because he was afraid of Sauron, which is partially why Gandalf was unable to defeat Saruman at the time of their battle. He couldn't help but see Saruman as a more powerful opponent.
Audiences and readers didn't get to enjoy only one fight between the two wizards, lucky enough. After Gandalf died fighting the Balrog, he returned as Gandalf the White. Eru, the creator, returned Gandalf to Middle-earth as the new White wizard with the strength of all five wizards within him as a gift for being the only wizard to follow through with their task.
While Saruman cowered inside of his tower when the ents attacked Isengard, audiences got a glimpse of Gandalf's newfound confidence and power. Gandalf banished Saruman from the order of wizards, the White Council, and broke his staff, rendering the wizard powerless. If the two were to have a final showdown and Saruman got to keep his staff, Gandalf would have undoubtedly won. Saruman's power, whether fading or not, could not have stood up to a reincarnated Gandalf.