The Ainur and their physical forms

[Lalwendë]

Most odd. I was reading some Blake and the quote used by Neithan reminded me strongly of the images from his work

Then Sauron shifted shape, from wolf to serpent, and from monster to his own accustomed form; but he could not elude the grip of Huan without forsaking his body utterly...and said that he should be stripped of his raiment of flesh, and his ghost be sent quaking back to Morgoth; and she said: "There everlastingly thy naked self shall endure the torment of his scorn, pierced by his eyes, unless thou yield to me the mastery of thy tower."

This last sentence in particular is very biblical, symbolic and vivid. And as to the question of the chains used to bind Melkor - could these be metaphysical chains? Indeed, could they be "mind-forg'd manacles"? Blake used the image of metaphysical, moral and political chains throughout his work; The Marriage of Heaven and Hell includes this line which struck me in particular:

The Giants who formed this world into its sensual existence and now seem to live in it in chains, are in truth the causes of its life & the sources of all activity, but the chains are the cunning of weak and tame minds which have power to resist energy, according to the proverb, the weak in courage is strong in cunning

Chains do not have to be purely physical, they can take many forms, and the chaining of Melkor's spirit would have needed something very different to the metal chain we would normally think of; it is a very striking and effective image however.