Been on a lord of the rings kick lately, and I keep thinking about this.
I realized not only wasnât Gimli tempted by the ring, but he achieved everything the ring had tempted others with, in his own right, and without evil to taint it.
Gimli became Lord of the Glittering Caves. Something he earned through kindness because he offered to help refortify Helmâs Deep, after it was attacked.
He also helped reforge the gates of Gondor with mithril!Â
Thereâs no way he became a ruler, and was able to use things like mithril in the quantities needed for Gondorâs gates, without having access to a lot of money.
His actions through the war of the ring brought him into contact with tons of powerful people, both during, and before their reigns. Gimli was friends with Aragon, king of Gondor, the new rulers of Rohan, Gandalf, Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin. With the exception of Sam, the Baggins, Tooks, and Brandybucks, were some of the more prestigious families. And Sam, while not from some big family line like the others, basically was the starting point for the Gamgees being seen that way. Both because of his adventure, and he was elected as Mayor of the Shire four times. So his own exploits in the war would have brought him fame, but so would his association with others.
Though the relationships that probably earned him the greatest renown, and brought the most peace, was Gimliâs friendship with the elves. Because of Aragon, I think it makes sense Arwen would have seen Gimli as a friend and ally. Meaning Elrond would have also regarded him better than most dwarves. Thereâs his meeting and friendship with Galadriel. Who gave him three of her hairs, when he had only asked for a single strand. Something she wouldnât even give the elf who made the similarions. He took those and by his own words, would put them in imperishable crystal, to serve as a symbol of peace between their people, and heirloom of his house.
Where Galadrielâs golden hair was a symbol, Gimli and Legolasâs friendship was that peace playing out. Thatâs something that would have gotten around to others too. That Thranduilâs son, Legolas prince of the woodland realm, and Gloinâs son Gimli from the line of Durin, were hanging out together, going on adventures to caves, and forests, and neither tolerated anyone talking shit about the other in front of them. This is even more incredible considering Thranduil held Gloin as a captive for awhile, and was willing to go to war with the dwarves once.
Now their sons are inseparable, and Gimli is literally named âElf Friend.â
First, Gimli lives a LONG life. To top that off, he sailed west with Legolas.
Nobody, aside from the elves, ring bearers, or Maiar like Gandalf, were allowed to cross the sea into the undying lands. When the numenorean (Aragons ancestors) tried it, their boats got sunk and they got their whole island flooded! There were two other humans who went at one point, and the only reason they werenât instakilled, was because they had shown up asking for help, not out of selfishness. But they certainly hadnât been invited.
Gimli was the only one who didnât fit into the mentioned categories, and wasnât just allowed, but welcomed, into the undying lands. I donât know if whoever goes there lives forever, but thereâs no way his life didnât extend even longer, if not indefinitely.
Overall, Gimliâs friendship, love, compassion, refusal to back down, humility, his willingness to let go of old prejudices with the elves, and his strong sense of self, all came together so that in the end, he got everything the ring, Sauron, and even Morgoth, had once used to tempt others. But because he didnât use evil to obtain any of it, he actually got to enjoy everything.
Gimli is one of the absolute best!!
