[Lindale]

The Valar feared to interfere with ME matters (what, were they too holy for that?! kidding!!) because they feared that they would make things worse in the long (or rather, the middle) run -- the last time they interfered, Beleriand was ruined, sunk into the ocean. If Sauron had the mastery of all ME and the Valar decided to move against him, what, ME underwater? (Jolly Ulmo would have a wider realm now!)

You'll see that there are two types of evil archetypes: the just-evil, evil is his nature. Corruption, all that stuff. Now the author who resorts to this has seriously run out of imagination.

The second, is the fallen-angel type. Lucifer, Morgoth, Voldemort, Sargeras (from the Warcraft thing), you name it. They were once the mightiest, the greatest of the great, but because they have , shall we say, beautiful minds, somehow it crept to them to rebel.

Sauron.... hmmm hmmm hmmm. Remember the end of the Sil? The paragraph saying that Here ends the SIlmarillion.... there was something said that the seeds that Morgoth planted will continue to blossom and bear fruit even if he's long imprisoned. I think Sauron is one (and maybe the greatest) manifestation of that. And then comes the myth archetype: the fallen angel who rebelled is imprisoned by the good, but after a long long time he breaks free, to continue the destruction of the world, and then the One (the God, the Nous, whatever) allows it so that he can rebuild the whole world (like a New Jerusalem in the Christian traditions).

Sauron is part of it, Sauron is one of the "planted seeds" of Morgoth. Now if ever he did conquer ME and Morgoth is set loose, I don't think he will bow down to his fallen master. But then again, that's my speculation.