This article contains spoilers for season one of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. It is also a discussion of the series as it stands on its own, though Tolkien’s texts are used for support when necessary. While elements of Tolkien’s lore add depth to the stories as told on-screen, the series itself is not canonical or authoritative. Read more of my thoughts on the distinctions between the series and Tolkien’s legendarium here.

The Rings of Power: A Tale of Three Alloys

At the core of season one of The Rings of Power lies the theme of an alloy. The concept of an alloy is understood within the series as two opposing substances brought together to complement, to strengthen, and to create something altogether new.

McKay: The title of the [finale] is “Alloyed,” and there’s a rich metaphor there of things that don’t belong together being coaxed together, and complementing one another, and balancing one another. That’s very much what’s going on emotionally with Galadriel and Sauron. That’s his pitch. “If you and me do this together, you’ll balance my dark side, and I’ll give you the power that nobody wants to give you.” He’s pitching an alloy to her. And that’s what is happening with the rings.
Payne: Even the mithril itself, we’re saying, is a certain kind of alloy, because we tell this potentially apocryphal backstory about it. Whether people want to treat it as canon or not, it’s this struggle between good and evil that was fused together in a moment of lightning. So even mithril has this sort of duality to it as well. (Source: Vanity Fair)

In the quoted interview with Vanity Fair, the series showrunners highlighted three “alloys” at work in season one. This article will explore each of them in light of the season as a whole, taking a careful look at the apocryphal Mithril origin story which I will argue is actually a lie of Sauron.

The three alloys of season one:

Mithril (Good & Evil)
The Raft (Sauron & Galadriel)
The Rings (Sauron & Celebrimbor)

Mithril: An “Alloy” of Good and Evil

Here I will seek to analyze perhaps the most puzzling aspect of season one of The Rings of Power: Smithril (the Silmaril Mithril Unification Theory). When taken at face value, this tale creates the impression that the showrunners do not understand Tolkien’s philosophy concerning evil and have taken a massive liberty in creating their own origin story for this ore. However, should this Song be later revealed as a lie of Sauron, I will instead applaud the showrunners for communicating Sauron’s deception in such a clever way. If this story is meant to be true in-universe, well, I will be disappointed. For the time being, I hold the belief that it is indeed a Sauronic lie.

A Note on The Season

While I have enjoyed theorizing about The Rings of Power, I believe that these theories would have been much easier to come by had the season not been cut from its original ten episodes down to eight. Much was clearly lost in editing, and the story suffered dearly because of it.

There’s a profound frustration in knowing that the season would have likely made much more sense if it would have had enough room to breathe. Due to the unprecedented circumstances surrounding season one (specifically the pandemic as well as the late-stage recasting of Celebrimbor), I’m willing to give a lot of grace to this season. However, my expectations for season two are only higher because of this.

Image: The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir. Copyright Prime Video.

Analysis of The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir

The apocryphal origin story for Mithril is detailed in episode five of the Rings of Power, in conversation between Elrond and Gil-galad:

“It speaks of a battle, high among the peaks of the Misty Mountains. Not over honor or duty but over a tree, within which some claim was hidden the last of the lost Silmarils. On one side fought an elven warrior, with a heart as pure as Manwë, who poured all of his light into the tree to protect it. On the other, a Balrog of Morgoth, who channeled all his hatred into the tree to destroy it. Amidst their duel unending, lightning ensnared the tree, forging of their conflict, a power.”
“A power as pure and light as good. As strong and unyielding as evil. They say it seeped down the roots into the mountain depths, where for centuries now, it has waited.”

According to the showrunners, this myth was created to unify the various tales of the Legendarium, from the Trees of Valinor to the Silmarils all the way to the Rings themselves.

J.D. Payne: We knew the rings needed to have a special power to them. Some of that could be in what Sauron inculcates from the unseen world and what Celebrimbor is able to do in terms of beauty. But we thought it could be interesting to play with the kind of power they have. What if there’s a grand unification theory that could connect the light of the Two Trees of Valinor, which went into the Silmarils, to the rings? The three elven rings were at least partially made of mithril; what if there’s something in mithril that could connect to the Silmarils? What if the Silmaril that went into the earth was connected through the roots of a tree that could become mithril? It was a way to connect many parts of the canon, including the elves fading, in a way that incorporated other parts of the legendarium. (Source: Vulture)

However, it is also emphasized by the showrunners that this tale is considered apocryphal (of doubtful authenticity, although widely circulated as being true) by Elrond who is a lore-master.

Patrick McKay: But also, we know Elrond is a lore master, and he is aware of this tale. He says in that fifth episode that it’s apocryphal. I would trust his read on a piece of lore. Mithril is unusual in Middle-earth... We know from canon that mithril is in at least one of the rings, Galadriel’s ring. We felt there were possibilities to hint that maybe there’s a little more to it — but maybe not. (Source: Vulture)

Seeing the Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir as a Lie of Sauron

Given the nature of the Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir and the fact that the door has been left open for doubt, it is my belief that it does not represent an in-universe truth and is instead a lie crafted by the great deceiver Sauron.

“You have been told many lies. Some run so deep even the rocks and roots now believe them. To untangle it all would all but require the creation of a new world, and that is something only the gods can do. And I am no god. At least, not yet”. - Adar

The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir is a dualistic story which misrepresents Tolkien’s worldview but perfectly represents Sauron’s mind.

It is my belief that Sauron had spoken to Celebrimbor long before the events of season one, during which he first whispered the Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir.

In Tolkien’s framework, evil does not exist as its own force, rather it is the deprivation or distortion of goodness. In Middle-earth, goodness and evil do not seek perfect balance or collaboration; instead, goodness strives to resist evil. The notion that two opposing forces might work together for the benefit of Middle-earth comes directly from the mind of Sauron, and is seen in several ways throughout season one. Through the Providence of Eru, evil deeds may be folded into the plans of Fate and bring about goodness (while the evil deeds still remain themselves evil).

The notion that two opposing forces might work together for the benefit of Middle-earth comes directly from the playbook of Sauron. We see this perspective illustrated most clearly in Sauron’s manipulation of the Noldor in Eregion, as told in The Silmarillion.

"Alas, for the weakness of the great! For a mighty king is Gil-galad, and wise in all lore is Master Elrond, and yet they will not aid me in my labours. Can it be that they do not desire to see other lands become as blissful as their own? But wherefore should Middle-earth remain for ever desolate and dark, whereas the Elves could make it as fair as Eressëa, nay even as Valinor? And since you have not returned thither, as you might, I perceive that you love this Middle-earth, as do I. Is it not then our task to labour together for its enrichment, and for the raising of all the Elven-kindreds that wander here untaught to the height of that power and knowledge which those have who are beyond the Sea?" - The Silmarillion

Image: Sauron Reveals Himself. Copyright Prime Video.

A Tale Mirrored in Halbrand’s Raft

In episode two, Galadriel finds herself adrift in the midst of the Sundering Seas with a stranger who calls himself Halbrand. Later revealed to be Sauron in disguise, Halbrand represents a Sauron who has been brought low after the defeat of Morgoth. His character outwardly wrestles with his own fate, duty, and power throughout the season. Their meeting is described by the showrunners as a Tolkienian chance meeting, which will ultimately shape the future of Middle-earth for better or worse.

While adrift on their small raft, a great storm suddenly threatens to halt to both Sauron and Galadriel’s plans. Upon a rewatch of the season, a careful viewer will see the strongest parallels to The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir on display in this scene. Visually, these scenes form a beautiful parallel; thematically, they serve as a foreboding warning against the Noldor’s partnership with Sauron.

Image: The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir (Ep. 105). Copyright Prime Video.

Image: Lightning Strikes the Post to Which Galadriel has Tied Herself (Ep. 102). Copyright Prime Video.

Much like in the Song, an Elf and a Maia are striving against one another.

Galadriel is determined to return to Middle-earth, while Halbrand is attempting to flee. Halbrand recognizes that the wind is too strong, that the raft is falling apart, and yells that they must tie it together. At the same time, Galadriel instead begins to tie herself to a beam of the raft.

Ultimately, at the height of the storm, Galadriel calls to Halbrand, urging him to bind himself to her — and the beam to which she is tied is immediately struck by lightning and she is cast into the Sea.

Here, the lightning is the key — for it is the first crack in the facade of Sauron’s lies.

In the Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir, the lightning represents a divine intervention which brings these two powers together to form the alloy of Mithril. The strength of both good and evil have been combined through the power of the lighting; the union has essentially been given a divine blessing in the form of this lightning.

In the case of Galadriel and Halbrand’s raft, the lightning can instead be seen as an act of divine intervention meant to prevent these two powers from joining.

Throughout The Silmarillion, wind and lightning often represent an act of intervention coming from the Vala Manwë. Later in this series, while Sauron is in Númenor, we may see him defy this lightning once more as he does in The Silmarillion.

This mirroring tale reaches its culmination in episode eight when Halbrand is revealed as Sauron, and Sauron enters Galadriel’s mind to return the two of them to the raft. Here, now that all lies have been laid bare, he openly pitches this “alloy” to her. Just as in the Song, Sauron proposes a partnership between his own “dark” power and Galadriel’s “light”.

When this proposal is rejected, lightning strikes from the right-hand side of the scene as a demonstration of Sauron’s wrath and power, and Galadriel is left to drown — and this time Halbrand will not save her.

Image: Lightning Strikes Near Halbrand’s Raft as a Demonstration of Sauron’s Power (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil

In light of both Tolkien’s religious faith and the religious background of the series’ showrunners, the similarities between these Sauron’s manipulation and the story of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as told in Genesis is worth examining.

To make a Biblical connection, the Mithril deception follows the same strategy taken by the Serpent in the Garden of Eden. The Song is an inversion of the story of the Garden of Eden, or the story if it were told from the Serpent’s perspective.

In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, showrunner J.D. Payne referenced Adam and Eve in discussion of Sauron’s character, likening him to Satan as depicted in Paradise Lost. This quote stood out to me for two reasons: first, it demonstrates that the writers were indeed thinking of the story of Adam and Eve whilst crafting Sauron’s deception; second, here they have made clear their intent to deceive the audience alongside their characters.

“There’s something that Milton does in Paradise Lost that we talked about a lot. Where he makes Satan a really compelling character. In some ways, he’s the first antihero where he’s compelling and you can’t take your eyes off of him. Milton did that on purpose because he wants you to fall along with Adam and Eve. He wants Satan to be so persuasive that he also seduces [the reader] and you’re unconsciously won over, so that you perceive your own fallenness and your need for redemption.” - JD Payne (Source: Hollywood Reporter)

Both tales recount a tree at the center of conflict between good and evil, albeit in different ways. And when approached from the mind of Sauron, the voice of the Deceiver speaks most clearly: Can it be that those in authority are preventing you from prospering? Should we not reach out together and take this gift as our own? Can we not live as the gods themselves?

Essentially, the “fruit” of The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir is Mithril. The mining of mithril has been deemed too dangerous and is therefore forbidden, and yet the Elves have become convinced that they need this new ore — without it, they are unable to remain in Middle-earth.

And yet in the Song, it is good — necessary— to take the fruit. The moral is turned on its head and Good is encouraged to touch the Darkness.

Image: “Touch the Darkness Once More” (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

In the Biblical narrative, the Serpent has convinced Eve that she would not die and would instead become like God (or, in the King James Version, “ye shall be as gods”) were she to eat from the tree.

In this analogy, both Celebrimbor and Eve may be meant to represent Eve who takes the story at face value and shares it with the rest of the Noldor, unintentionally bringing about their fall. While the series chose to emphasize Galadriel’s deception in this season, it is my hope that season two will focus more directly on Celebrimbor’s deception as I believe Tolkien intended.

Both Eregion and Valinor as Eden

Image: The Garden of Eregion as a Visual Call to the Garden of Eden (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

Sauron’s confrontation of Galadriel in the Gardens of Eregion also calls to mind an image of Eve tempted by the Serpent. Perhaps Eregion can be seen, in many ways, as a type of Garden of Eden. A place of otherworldly beautiful and abundant natural growth now poisoned by the whispers of deception, through which a great Fall occurs.

“Sauron found their weak point in suggesting that, helping one another, they could make the Western Middle-earth as beautiful as Valinor. It was really a veiled attack on the gods, and incitement to try and make a separate independent paradise…” - JRR Tolkien, Letter 131

When Sauron enters into Galadriel’s mind, she remain physically in Eregion but is presented with a vision of Valinor during her childhood, the Years of the Trees — a place and time which represents in many ways an unfallen world (though imperfectly). Yet another Garden of Eden.

Sauron takes upon himself the form of Finrod and leads her to sit beneath a tree where he employs all of his subtlety to sway her. The imagery in this scene is incredibly subtle, which creates an unsettling tone. Sauron appears just as Finrod did in episode one, though his hair is styled differently — almost in “devil horns”.

Once again, and all at the same time, Eve is tempted by Satan.

Image: Sauron’s Temptation of Galadriel in Valinor (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

Image: Sauron’s Disguise as Finrod (note the hairstyle) (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

Galadriel as both Eve and “New Eve”

This theme is further explored in Galadriel’s relationship with Sauron throughout the season and I suspect will continue through the remainder of the series. (We will likely see the same manipulation with other characters as well, such as Pharazôn.)

In the Biblical narrative, Eve is separated from her husband at the time of her temptation. I believe the showrunners chose to remove Galadriel’s husband Celeborn from her storyline to isolate her in this temptation. Were this the case, it would make Celeborn into a sort of Adamic figure.

However, Galadriel is both like and unlike Eve. She rejects Sauron’s proposal at the end of the season, but she also allows the Elves to continue in the creation of the Rings of Power. To continue the Eden allegory, perhaps these Rings can also be seen as “forbidden fruit”. So she both rejects and accepts him at the same time.

Galadriel will accept her Ring, Nenya, knowing full well that its creation and power are tied to Sauron.

It won’t be until the end of the Third Age that Galadriel rejects Sauron utterly, when offered the Ring by Frodo. At this point, she has passed the test — she is no longer “Eve” in a sense, but an “anti-Eve” or a “New Eve” as we might say. She is both fallen and redeemed.

As an aside, if this is the direction the showrunners are indeed taking Galadriel’s character, then one can infer that Celeborn may be depicted as an “anti-Adam” when he is finally reunited with his wife: meeting her with understanding and empathy rather than condemnation and blame. If this is the case, I’ll be relieved.

Celebrimbor the Deceived

Image: Celebrimbor Sees the Elven Rings (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

My theory proposes that Sauron himself whispered The Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir into the hearts of the Noldor long ago while appearing in a different form. This story must have been in circulation for at least a few hundred years, as indicated by Elrond’s awareness of it. It is also possible that this story is a lie passed down from Morgoth, but it seems to be more aligned with Sauron’s philosophy.

Sauron, who covets Mithril, has devised an apocryphal tale to encourage Celebrimbor (the grandson of Fëanor) to pursue Mithril by connecting it to a Silmaril. The oath of Fëanor is reawakened in his heart, and he begins to see this new ore as the answer to his problems. Sauron could have attempted to manipulate the dwarves directly, but Tolkien writes that he preferred to corrupt the Eldar (the Elves).

“For long he paid little heed to Dwarves or Men and endeavoured to win the friendship and trust of the Eldar.”

Throughout the early Second Age, the Elves have become obsessed with fading. This weakness becomes Sauron’s opportunity to offer them a way to “master their fear”.

“In the fourth episode, [Galadriel] asks him for advice, and he says basically, “the way you beat your enemies is to figure out what they need and figure out how to give it to them. Help them master their fear. And then you can master them.” And that’s exactly what he’s doing to her the entire season—maybe what he’s going to do to everybody over the following seasons. - JD Payne (source: Vanity Fair)

Elf-Lords Only: Sauron in Lindon

Interwoven with this theory is also my belief that Sauron may have been present at the “Elf-Lords only” meeting referred to in episode one. Here, he would have appeared in a different form to propose collaboration with the Noldor, but was rejected.

Sauron, having grown impatient after his rejection in Lindon, then hastens their apparent fading by poisoning their great tree on the way out. The seed that had been planted in Celebrimbor’s mind is now bearing fruit, and Sauron’s plans are now in motion.

This is also likely connected to Galadriel’s pursuit of Sauron, though I won’t venture off in this direction quite yet.

A Power Over the Flesh

In episode six, Adar explains that Sauron had been seeking a power over the flesh but had yet to succeed in his experiments. Perhaps Sauron believes that Mithril is the key to his craft.

While in truth, Mithril is not connected to the Silmarils in any way, it does contain a “magical” quality (at least in the show’s canon). When placed near a leaf of Lindon’s great tree, the leaf’s ‘sickness’ is immediately cast away. It can also be suggested that the Mallorn tree growing in Khazad-dum is thriving because of its close proximity to the Mithril deposits within the mountain.

The timing of the arrival of The Stranger via Metor is also worth noting. It is my belief that he is indeed meant to be understood as Gandalf, and that he was sent by the Valar as they sensed Sauron’s power beginning to stir. While this doesn’t quite work with Tolkien’s timeline for the Second Age, we know that we are working with a compressed (or more accurately, reorganized) timeline for The Rings of Power and so it seems generally plausible within their framework.

The Elven Rings

Ultimately, the final Alloy we are presented with in season one is the Forging of the Elven Rings. This is seen most obviously through the actual forging, of coaxing the mithril to join with the other ores. But it is also seen in Celebrimbor’s partnership with Halbrand. Once again, I hope the relationship between Annatar and Celebrimbor will be explored more fully in the future as it was rather neglected in season one.

Image: The Three Elven Rings Forged (Ep. 108). Copyright Prime Video.

Will Season Two Bring Answers?

Ultimately, the origin of the Song of the Roots of the Hithaeglir may never be revealed. It is my hope that season two will confirm my theory that Sauron is indeed the craftsman of this tale, but as it stands we have no choice but to wait and see. Until then, I’m dearly enjoying theorizing with all of you. If you’d like to connect to chat about this or other Rings of Power theories, you can find me on twitter or discord.

Sources for Further Reading

Acknowledgments

My most heartfelt thanks to the wonderful folks within theOneRing.net discord server for their help in working through these theories over the past year or so, especially Webcrawler and DrNosy. Thank you as well to my discord moderators for their time spent reading my rambling thoughts and feedback as well.