>>365736>>365747The ring symbolizes Power as viewed by someone whose religion professes humility and abnegation and whatnot. It only grants abilities or """"power"""" to its bearer in appearance while exacting a heavy toll.
Always. Systematically.
Just like Power, the ring is seductive and impressive but inevitably leads its bearers to ruin - except those who fight its temptation.
It turned Gollum into a cave gooner, it alienated Isildur from his trusted allies and got him killed, it drove Sam away from his best friend who dived in the river to save his life in the previous movie.
The point of the ring as a metaphorical token was also to highlight how some virtuous characters honorably overcame its temptation: Gandalf's caution, Galadriel's willpower and Aragorn's Gary Stu-tier pure fucking heart.
And because a Christian wrote the story, he also left for weaker characters (sinners) like Boromir and Faramir that were duped by the ring's temptation a path of redemption to attain even greater honor after their fall.
It's really sad to see how many people miss the metaphorical significance of the ring and lose themselves in theorizing the objective historical outcomes of such and such accepting the ring. The point of the story is that it would suck no matter what.
As a maia Sauron can't be killed. He's an eternal threat looming over the hearts of anyone who can potentially be seduced by it (everyone), like a satanic figure so evil that it willingly dissolves itself in its task of seducing and corrupting as many minds as possible.