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I have always had an impression that Sauron was innately more powerful than Saruman hence his rise to prominence.
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Not necessarily, I think. Remember, Sauron was Morgoth's lackey/
lieutenant/whatever, while Saruman was in Aman as, presumably,
a significant maia- since he seems to have been considered the
head of the istari (granted, mostly a ceremonial title). And once he
decided to go agaionst the prohibition put on the istari of
imposing their will on others he may well have been Sauron's equal
or superior (especially a Sauron without the Ring).
As for a Middle-earth mystery---what was the nature of the
"magic" the woodelves used on the dwarves in The Hobbit
that seems to have paralyzed them and made them unconscious
(at least Thorin).