The Rings of Power: Do the Dwarfs of Khazad-dum Awaken a Balrog?

• In the fifth episode “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” we hear the legend about the roots of Hithaeglir.
• The battle of an Elf and a Balrog over the Last Silmaril is said to have created the metal Mithril.
• Could the “Sounding of the Mountains” awaken the slumbering Balrog from the legend?

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A brief commentary by the dwarf princess Disa from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power gives a clue as to how the dwarves might encounter a Balrog as early as the Second Age. The show’s trailer already indicated that Morgoth’s minion will appear in The Rings of Power, but it’s unclear where and when the horrific creature will appear.

Hoping for help in building a forge for Eregion, Elrond turns to his old friend Prince Durin IV. When the Elf is invited to dinner after a heated discussion with his mate, Durin’s wife Disa tells of her special ability to see the mountains to emphasize.

The dwarves sing to the mountains. This allows them to recognize where they are allowed to dig their tunnels and where they prefer not to. This rather inconspicuous note could be a dark foreshadowing of what will happen to the dwarven city of Khazad-dum.

A mountain is like a living being. A long, constantly changing story, made up of nothing but individual parts. Earth and ore, air and water. Sing it right and each of these elements will reverberate in your song and tell you its story, show you its hiding spots. Where to dig, where to mine and where to let the mountain rest.

Princess Disa

As we know, the Balrog, later to be called Durin’s Bane, slumbers deep beneath the mines of Khazad-dum. However, the events of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power could awaken the creature much sooner than previously thought.

According to the Middle-earth timeline, the Balrog was probably active during the First Age before retiring under Khazad-dum. Then, in the Third Age, the Balrog was awakened during the digging for mithril, and reduced the bustling dwarven city to the ruins of Moria.

But Durin’s curse could have been awakened much earlier. The dwarves restarted an old mine in the fourth installment of the series after finding mithril there. Out of sheer greed, the dwarves dug too eagerly, causing the mine to collapse.

The residents of Khazad-dum see this as a punishment from the mountains. Disa then begins to emphasize this so that those buried do not die and are spared. During their chant, Elrond observes an unusually strong vibration on the ground. Is this the mountain’s answer, or possibly the Balrog awakened by recent events?

Is Durin’s Bane the Balrog of the Legend of the Roots of Hithaeglir?

The Balrog shown in the trailer doesn’t necessarily have to be Durin’s Bane. It might as well be a new servant of Morgoth, for there were many of these beings roaming around in the First Age. Through “The Song of the Roots of Hithaeglir” we get to know another Balrog who was up to mischief in the Misty Mountains.

The Maia was engaged in a relentless battle against an Elven warrior. The Balrog wanted to destroy a tree that supposedly held the Last Silmaril and the Elf wanted to protect it. United by the power, the rare ore mithril was created.

After his battle, the Balrog may have retreated into the interior of the Misty Mountains to recover from the grueling battle. This makes it quite possible that the Balrog from the legend and Durin’s Bane are the same monster.

However, it is also possible that two of the beings are hiding below or above Khazad-dum. Durin’s curse was discovered deep within the mountain, while the Balrog of legend fought atop the Misty Mountains. It cannot be ruled out that the Balrog shown in the trailer is the one sung about in the songs.

The dwarves were able to defeat him in the Second Age, but Durin’s curse caused the downfall of the dwarf kingdom in the Third Age.

Whether we get to see the Balrog in the next episode remains to be seen. The new episodes of the first season “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” appear every Friday on Amazon Prime Video.