and the Sky, the last of these, carried by Eärendil the Mariner, becoming the Morning Star. Some of the star's light is captured in Galadriel's Mirror, the magic fountain that allows her to see past, present, and future; and some of that light is, finally, trapped in the Phial of Galadriel, her parting gift to Frodo, the counterbalance to Sauron's evil and powerful Ring that he also carries. At each stage, the fragmentation increases and the power decreases. Thus the theme of light as Divine power, fragmented and refracted through the works of created beings, is central to the whole mythology. Angels The place of Christianity's angels is taken by the immortal Ainur, who are divided into two orders of beings, the Valar and the Maiar. The powerful Valar behave much like the pagan gods of Greek mythology. Flieger calls their role in Middle-earth "eccentric" from a Christian point of view: they are lower than the One God, certainly, but unlike angels they are sub-creators, each with their own realm. So, for instance, Manwë is King of Arda (the Earth), Ulmo is Lord of Waters, Mandos Judge of the Dead, and they were married. This positions them, as Tolkien stated, as demiurges, godlike figures in the Platonic scheme of things with the ability to shape the material world. As with the splintering of light, Flieger writes, the choice of the name "demiurge" implies subdivision, its original meaning including "to do by dividing". Some Maiar, a lesser order than the Valar, were sent by the Valar into Middle-earth in mortal bodies to influence, but not to direct, events there. These Maiar were Wizards or Istari, of whom Gandalf is the best known to readers. Tolkien stated that they fitted the original Greek description "ἄγγελος" (Angelos) meaning messenger. The Virgin Mary Two figures in Middle-earth have reminded commentators of the Virgin Mary: the Vala Varda, called by the Elves Elbereth, and the Elf-lady Galadriel. Wood writes that Sam's invocation of Galadriel's name, however unintentional, caused his Elven-rope to release itself from the knot that fastened it, after letting the Hobbits descend a cliff, quoting Sam's explanation "I think the rope came off itself—when I called". Rutledge notes that Frodo, facing the deadly attack of the "pale King", the Nazgûl on Weathertop, cries out O Elbereth! Gilthoniel!, apparently causing Aragorn to arrive just in time: Frodo is dangerously wounded but not killed. Rutledge