====== The Istari ======

Maiar of [[church_of_eru|Eru]]

The Wizards, commonly known as the Istari (Quenya) and the Ithryn (Sindarin) was the title assigned to five Maiar in the Third Age of Middle-earth. They formed the Order of Wizards (Q. Heren Istarion) .

Among Men it was initially assumed that the Wizards were also men who, by long and secret study, had acquired great knowledge of lore and arts. However, as the Third Age passed it was marked that the Wizards did not die, so Men began to believe that they were of Elven-kind. However, none except Elrond, Círdan, and Galadriel knew that, in actuality, the Wizards were vassals of the Valar who were sent to assist the Free peoples of Middle-earth against Sauron as he gathered his forces during the Third Age.

Formation of The Order
The five known Istari were:

  * Curumo, a Maia of Aulë, the chief and the wisest of the Order according to Gandalf during the Council of Elrond.
  * Olórin, a Maia of Manwë and Varda (held by Círdan the Shipwright to be the wisest of the Order).
  * Aiwendil, a Maia of Yavanna; also known as Hrávandil.
  * Two Wizards who went into the East and South, and do not appear in any of the main tales of Middle-earth. The names Alatar and Pallando, both Maiar of Oromë are known. However there are tales about two Wizards, perhaps the same two, called Rómestámo and Morinehtar who operated during the Second Age. It is not known whether they are the same spirits as Palacendo and Haimenar.

The precursor of the Heren Istarion were perhaps the Five Guardians, who, under Melian, were tasked by the Valar to protect the first Elves during the Battle of the Powers; the spirits assigned for this corresponded more or less to the Maiar who were sent millennia later.

The Heren Istarion had been created in Valinor. A council of the Valar was called by Manwë which resolved to send three emissaries. Initially only Curumo, chosen by Aulë, and Alatar, chosen by Oromë, stepped forward. Manwë then asked for Olórin and commanded him to go. Curumo took Aiwendil with him because Yavanna begged him to do so and Alatar took along his friend Pallando.

They were clothed in the bodies of old men, restricting their powers so that they would only assist the peoples of Middle-earth and not seek dominion like Sauron, who was also a Maia. They were charged by the Valar to assist the people of Middle-earth through persuasion and encouragement, not force or fear. By inhabiting the bodies of Men they also became susceptible to all of the weaknesses of a physical body: they felt hunger, pain, greed, sorrow, joy, and all other emotions and pains of Men. While they were vulnerable and they could be killed, they aged only very slowly and were immortal.

Arrival in Middle-earth
Círdan witnessed the arrival of the Order in Middle-earth around the year c. T.A. 1000 (though the two Wizards may have arrived much earlier). Their "mission" was to advise and persuade Men and Elves to resist Sauron. Each wizard was assigned a colour for his clothes. The wizard in white was Saruman, regarded by all as the leader of the order, with white being indicative of the chief. The Wizard clad in brown was Radagast and the one clad in grey was Gandalf, seemingly the oldest and the least of the Order. The other two who travelled to the East and South were sometimes said to clad themselves in robes of sea-blue and were known as the Blue Wizards. It is not known if the colour had any special meaning concerning their rank, abilities or nature.

In the northwest of Middle-earth Curumo became known as Saruman to Men and Curunír to Elves; Olórin was known as Gandalf to Men and Mithrandir to Elves; while Aiwendil became known as Radagast.

In spite of their specific and unambiguous goal, the Wizards were nevertheless capable of mortal, even negative feelings. Thus, Gandalf felt great affection for the Hobbits and Radagast for the animals. On the other hand, Saruman fell victim to greed, jealousy, and lust for power; the other two Wizards may have also fallen prey to these temptations during their journeys in the East.

Very few of Middle-earth's inhabitants knew who the Wizards really were, as the Istari did not share this information. Most believed they were Elves or wise Men; the name Gandalf represents this interpretation, meaning Wand-elf, because the Men who gave him the nickname believed he was an Elf. They attracted few questions due to their gentle nature and dislike of direct interference with other people's affairs.