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tolkiens legendarium - Why didn't Sauron find Bilbo when he put on the ring like Frodo?


When Frodo put on the One Ring, both the Nazgul and Sauron himself found Frodo. However when Bilbo had the ring and possibly used it many times, Sauron sought Gollum to get a hint on where to look for the ring and send the Nazgul after it.


Sauron sought Gollum before Bilbo wore the ring at his birthday party, slightly after that time, he was very effective at locating Frodo when Frodo put on the ring. So I guess it's not a matter of Sauron gaining any extra powers with time.


Also Bilbo seemed to use the ring without it bothering him at any point, unlike Frodo who seemed to be very troubled when using the ring. How is that possible?



Answer



Sauron doesn't find Frodo when he puts on the Ring.



In the narrative of LotR Frodo puts on the Ring 6 times:




  • In the House of Tom Bombadil: Sauron doesn't find Frodo.

  • In the Prancing Pony: Sauron doesn't find Frodo.

  • On Weathertop: Sauron doesn't find Frodo, but Frodo puts the Ring on in the presence of the Nazgul who are then able to physically harm him.

  • On Amon Hen: Sauron doesn't find Frodo; Frodo's gaze is drawn towards Barad-dur, Frodo feels the Eye, and only at that point does Sauron become aware of Frodo.

  • At the Breaking of the Fellowship: Sauron doesn't find Frodo (it's significant that this is only moments after the previous time).

  • At the Cracks of Doom: Frodo claims the Ring for himself and then Sauron becomes aware of him.


This is not including an unspecified number of times when Frodo may have worn the Ring between Bilbo's party and the Shadow of the Past.




In the above list there are only two times when Sauron is aware of Frodo: the first time is after Frodo explicitly goes looking for Sauron, and the second time is when Frodo is in the heart of Sauron's realm and claims the Ring for his own.


It's very significant that the first of these times happens on Amon Hen, the ancient Numenorean hill of seeing:



He was sitting upon the Seat of Seeing, on Amon Hen, the Hill of the Eye of the Men of Númenor.



And that immediately afterwards, when Frodo resolves to leave the Fellowship, he puts the Ring on again without any similar difficulties. This makes it clear that the Hill and Seat of Seeing were an influencing factor in what happened first time round.


As for the second time:



And far away, as Frodo put on the Ring and claimed it for his own, even in Sammath Naur the very heart of his realm,the Power in Barad-dur was shaken, and the Tower trembled from its foundations to its proud and bitter crown. The Dark Lord was suddenly aware of him...




It should be clear that it's not putting on the Ring that was the main factor here (although it was still a very dangerous thing to do at this particular place), but rather Frodo's claiming of it.



So to answer your questions:



  • The Reason why Sauron doesn't find Bilbo when he puts on the Ring is because putting on the Ring isn't enough for Sauron to find you.

  • Sauron was not effective at finding Frodo; Frodo wore the Ring at least 4 times (out of 6) without Sauron finding him.


  • Frodo's troubles when using the Ring occur in very specific circumstances:



    • in the Barrow (where despite temptation he doesn't use it)


    • in the presence of the Nazgul (where he only used it once: on Weathertop)

    • on Amon Hen, and only at the very end, after Frodo had explicitly gone looking for Sauron

    • at Orodruin, in the heart of Sauron's realm, after claiming it for himself.




  • Otherwise Frodo can use the Ring without trouble - in Bombadil's house, at Bree, at the Breaking, and a possible unspecified number of times in the Shire - in just the same manner as Bilbo did.




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