Have you ever met a Wizard in real life? I have. More than one in fact. And none of them had magical powers (or at least they didn’t reveal such powers to me!). Let me explain.
I’ve been a fan of Tolkien’s writings since I was a young kid. My Dad gets the credit for that one as he would read The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and even Letters From Father Christmas, aloud starting when I was just a few years old. Suffice it to say that my Dad is the real Tolkien fan in the family, but I’m doing my best to follow in his footsteps.
It was through Tolkien’s writings that I was first exposed to the Wizard archetype. Gandalf appears in The Hobbit and in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, as a powerful, mysterious, and widely respected figure. He’s not the main character, but the main character seeks his counsel. He isn’t a king, though he is a capable leader. He isn’t a warrior, though he is a skilled fighter. He concerns himself with putting everything and everyone in their proper place, balancing good and evil so that good triumphs. The role Gandalf plays is complex.
A key piece of Gandalf’s backstory is that he is not a product of the world that he keeps watch over. In Tolkien’s universe, Gandalf was sent to Middle Earth by the creators of the world at the beginning of time. He’s a keeper of Middle Earth. He monitors the goings on in the world and exerts his considerable influence at key inflection points when it seems the world is headed in the wrong direction.
There is much more I could say about Gandalf, but I think the final piece that I’ll add is simply that he takes nothing for himself. No credit, wealth, position, or status. Gandalf is invisible. He can only be seen in the outcomes. The just and rightful transitions of power, the turning of the tides of battle, or the quests that are undertaken and achieved. He doesn’t take anything from the world he watches over because that is not his purpose.
When I say that I’ve met Wizards I mean that I’ve met people who fit the Wizard archetype in some or all of the ways that I described above. These people are exceedingly rare and very difficult to find. By nature, they operate in the background, out of sight. I don’t know how to find these people, and I know even less about becoming one, but in my estimation, you might be in the presence of a Wizard if…
- They tell you exactly the right thing at exactly the right time (hindsight is the only way to confirm this one)
- They make you feel self-assured and hopeful
- They help you clarify your purpose or path in life in some significant way
- You seek their guidance and take it to heart
- Others you know and respect seek their guidance and take it to heart
- They take selfless actions, often unseen, that promote the best outcomes for those around them
Should everyone aspire to be a Wizard? I’m not convinced. We need main characters, questers, and credit-takers. That is, after all, what makes up the world. Moreover, I think the role of the Wizard is fundamentally lonesome and removed. So, no, I don’t think we should all aspire to be Wizards. But it wouldn’t hurt to aspire to be more Wizard-like sometimes.
More than anything, I think we should endeavor to identify and appreciate the Wizards in our lives at those times when they walk our paths with us.
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
“Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement.”
“I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.”
MW 