Aes Sedai
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The Aes Sedai are a society in the fictional universe of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time book series.
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[edit] Brief history
[edit] In the Age of Legends
In the relatively utopian society of the Age of Legends, status and respect were gained from the One Power. Men and women with the ability to channel the One Power aided all of mankind as scientists, healers and philosophers, constantly developing new innovations and technologies to make everyone's lives easier. They were therefore known as Aes Sedai meaning "Servants of All" in the Old Tongue. They convened at the Hall of the Servants in the city of Paaren Disen. The greatest Aes Sedai of the Age of Legends was a man named Lews Therin Telamon, also known as the Dragon.
The One Power is divided into male and female halves, known respectively as saidin and saidar. Men who can channel do so using the male half and women use the female half. The greatest works of the Aes Sedai were always performed by groups of men and women channelling together.
Certain Aes Sedai felt that the separation of the two halves of the Power constrained them. Researchers working at the Collam Daan university discovered what they thought was a new source of power able to be channelled by both genders. Boring into it, they discovered that they had unwittingly enabled the Dark One, formerly imprisoned outside of Time, to influence the world. The former utopia began to slowly decline, until the outbreak of the War of Power, in which many Aes Sedai went over to the Shadow and commanded the armies of the Dark One. The thirteen most powerful 'dark' Aes Sedai were the Forsaken (or the Chosen, to those fighting for the Shadow).
In a desperate move to end the devastating conflict, Lews Therin Telamon and the Hundred Companions led a last-ditch assault on Shayol Ghul, successfully resealing the Bore and trapping the Dark One, as well as (almost) all the Forsaken, outside of the world. However, the Dark One's final counterattack tainted saidin itself, and over time all male Aes Sedai, including Lews Therin, were driven mad. In their madness, they began to channel wildly, causing almost total destruction to everything that hadn't already been wiped out by the war. Some few male Aes Sedai sought shelter in stedding, areas of the world in which channeling was impossible and the taint had no effect, but eventually all male Aes Sedai abandoned the stedding and went mad. By the time the last male Aes Sedai had died, the world map was all but unrecognisable, and the remains of humanity were scattered and destitute. This catastrophic period was called the Breaking of the World.
Among Aes Sedai in the time period of the series, some Aes Sedai, primarily the Red Ajah, believe that male Aes Sedai sheltering in stedding exacerbated the Breaking, making it longer and more damaging than it might have otherwise been. Others, primarily the Blue Ajah, hold that the Breaking might have destroyed the world entirely had all male Aes Sedai gone insane at the same time.
[edit] After the Breaking
On the eastern continent, the remaining female Aes Sedai eventually reorganised themselves on the island of Tar Valon, where, with the assistance of the Ogier, they built the White Tower. The Aes Sedai there became a monastic order, taking in initiates and shaping them into fully-fledged sisters through years of hard training. Their elected leader held the title Amyrlin Seat and became as powerful as any king, queen or legislative body. The Aes Sedai ensured that any man with the ability to channel would be gentled, i.e. severed from the Power. The common people had a tendency to fear the Aes Sedai, knowing that they channelled the same power that had caused the Breaking of the World. As a result, paired with their general aloofness, Aes Sedai have often been the focus of mistrust and even hate, some being convinced that all of them were Darkfriends in service to the Shadow. As a way of making themselves 'safer' and more trustworthy, Aes Sedai began to employ the Oath Rod, taking binding oaths that might make them seem less dangerous.
On the continent of Seanchan, Aes Sedai set themselves up as local governors and rulers rather than establishing a single, united order. During the conquest of Seanchan by the armies of Luthair Paendrag, these Aes Sedai were turned against each other and a device called an a'dam, able to hold women who can channel against their will, was invented. Aes Sedai on the continent were eventually rendered extinct as Luthair Paendrag's successors consolidated control over the entire continent, and Aes Sedai are outlawed in the Seanchan Empire. Instead, all women are tested for the ability to channel at a young age. Those who can channel are made damane and leashed with a'dam, while those who can learn to channel are made sul'dam, who control the damane using a'dam. The Seanchan themselves are unaware that sul'dam can learn to channel, only that they can control damane through a'dam, and it is speculated by characters within the series that, if that discovery were to be made, the fabric of Seanchan society might suddenly collapse. Men and women who cannot channel are unable to control damane using a'dam, while men who can channel or learn to channel die sudden and painful deaths upon contact with a'dam.
[edit] Ajahs
Aes Sedai divide themselves into seven Ajahs. Originally, the Ajahs were distinct sects of Aes Sedai that formed after the Breaking, each separate from the others, but later merged together to form the current Sisterhood. Currently, an Ajah is a sub-society which has representation on the administrative councils for the entire Sisterhood; its own ideology and purpose for its members; its own ruling head or heads; and its own spy network, whose operatives are known as "eyes and ears". The Ajahs are (from largest to smallest) Red, Green, Grey, Brown, Yellow, Blue, and White. There is also an eighth Ajah, the Black, though its existence is hotly denied by all other Ajahs, and, in fact, was only recently confirmed to exist beyond any doubt. Black sisters keep their allegiance a secret and belong to another Ajah in addition to the Black in order to make it difficult to determine if any particular sister is of the Black.
[edit] The Red Ajah
The Red Ajah is dedicated to preventing another Breaking of the World. They have, for millennia, been seeking out men who can channel and gentling them. They do this mostly by detecting the residue of weaves made from saidin. Most Red Aes Sedai despise all men, whether they can channel or not, though some think of the Reds' priorities as their own, and take on the Red Ajah's task, though they rather like men. The Ajah has historically forbidden them to bond Warders. Red sisters generally do not have friends outside of their Ajah. Reds are rarely raised to be Amyrlin; only two known Amyrlins have ever been dethroned, and they were both Red. The last Red to be raised to the Stole was Bonwhin, whose attempt at controlling Artur Hawkwing led to an attempted invasion of Tar Valon by Hawkwing. She was removed and replaced with Deane Aryman, a Blue. Reds and Blues have been at odds ever since. The Ajah is governed by a leader known as the Highest. Elaida do Avriny a'Roihan, a Red, has recently been raised to Amyrlin, causing a division between sisters of all Ajahs. Important Reds include Elaida, Galina Casban (who is also Black Ajah), Tarna Feir, Silviana Brehon, Tsutama Rath, Sashalle Anderly, Teslyn Baradon, Pevara Tazanovni, Duhara Basaheen and Toveine Gazal.
[edit] The Blue Ajah
The second smallest Ajah after the White, but has influence beyond what its size would predict. This is in part due to the fact that many Amyrlins over the years have been of the Blue. Blue sisters strive for causes and justice, and they also have the most extensive eyes-and-ears intelligence network of any Ajah. They are closely allied with the Green, a friendship that has lasted a thousand years, and are on good terms with the Brown as well. The Blues have a long standing feud with the Red Ajah. All Ajahs have traditions; some of the Blue traditions include never wearing red inside the tower, they must wear all blue the first of each month, and they must wear blue stockings when leaving Tar Valon. The Blue Ajah is governed by a leader, known as the First Selector. When Siuan Sanche was removed, the Blues fled Elaida's wrath and organized the rebel faction of the Aes Sedai secretly at Salidar. Not one Blue remained with Elaida. Important Blues include Moiraine Damodred, Aeldra Najaf, Cetalia Delarme, Moria Karentanis, Siuan Sanche, Rafela Cindal, Aeldene Stonebridge, Kairen Stang, Reiko, Leane Sharif (after being Healed from her stilling, she switched to the Green Ajah), Ispan Shefar (she was also part of the Black Ajah), Sheriam Bayanar and Gitara Moroso.
[edit] The Green Ajah
Greens call themselves "The Battle Ajah," as their primary purpose is to prepare themselves for Tarmon Gai'don, the Last Battle, when the Dark One breaks free and must be opposed. They are also the White Tower's counter to the Dreadlords, channellers (both men and women) who have openly gone to the Shadow and sometimes lead their armies in battle. Interestingly, Dreadlords have not been openly seen in recent events, despite the rising of the Dark One's power. Greens are also willing to bond more than one Warder and are known for their love of men; in this way, the Green is almost the ideological opposite of the Red. Greens are also known to marry their Warders; most Greens who do so only have one Warder, although there are rumours that some Greens have married several of their Warders. However, they do not oppose the gentling of men who can channel, as the example of Cadsuane Melaidhrin clearly sets. They have a long history of friendship with the Blue, and generally oppose the Red, although they were siding with them in many issues before the Tower broke. While many Greens did side with the rebel Blues, many stayed with Elaida in the Tower. The Greens are governed by a single woman known as the Captain-General. Important Greens include Elayne Trakand, Cadsuane Melaidhrin, Alanna Mosvani, Myrelle Berengari, Joline Maza, Kiruna Nachiman, Adelorna Bastine, Vandene Namelle, Bera Harkin, and Leane Sharif (formerly of the Blue).
[edit] The Yellow Ajah
The Yellows dedicate themselves to the art of Healing, a Talent which not all sisters possess, but which is considered a requirement for entry into the Ajah. The best Healers are always Yellow sisters, and it is said they will try to Heal anything, except death, which cannot be Healed. Their form of Healing only consists of using weaves of Water, Air, and Spirit. Also their form of Healing draws energy from the body and will of the recipient for the Healing. So while they may be perfectly healthy a healed person will be feeble, ravenously hungry for a time, and in danger of severe malnutrition if not fed to their content. If the Healed ailment is severe enough the shock of Healing could kill as effectively as leaving the wound or illness unattended. Infants and small children often die from the shock of Healing, and often aren't Healed. Until recently it was thought that stilling could not be Healed, although a new sister, Nynaeve al'Meara, has discovered a cure as well as used all five powers with Healing, giving a new role to the Yellow Ajah. They are a smaller Ajah and have a minimal eyes-and-ears organization, since normal medicine and homoeopathic remedies are vastly inferior to Healing. Their leader is called the First Weaver. Important Yellows include Nynaeve al'Meara, Narenwin Barda, Romanda Cassin, Salita Toranes, Corele Hovian, Samitsu Tamagowa, Nisao Dachen, and Amico Nagoyin who was later discovered to be of the Black Ajah. Ryma Galfrey, a former Yellow, has been captured by the Seanchan and made damane. She is now completely broken and has been renamed "Pura".
[edit] The Brown Ajah
The Browns dedicate themselves to knowledge and history and generally forsake the mundane world. They can be usually found in the Great Library in the White Tower (which they administer), looking for something new to study, and when out in the world they take notes and sketches of nearly everything they come across. Min Farshaw's viewings and Perrin Aybara's status as a Wolfbrother have come under their scrutiny more than once. They are the wisest concerning Tower and One Power history, although not infallible. For the past few centuries they have been at odds with the Blue Ajah, but they are not enemies. They are not governed by a sole woman, but by a ruling council. Important Browns include Verin Mathwin, Demira Eriff, Kumira, Masuri Sokawa, Morvrin, Jesse Bilal, Nesune Bihara, Adeleas Namelle, Danelle, Takima, Saerin Asnobar and Theodrin Dabei.
[edit] The White Ajah
The White Ajah is the smallest Ajah in the Tower and the only Ajah without eyes and ears. They ignore the social causes that define the Blue, Grey, Green and Red Ajahs and also have no room for the worldly knowledge that the Browns and to some extent the Yellows seek. They preoccupy themselves with questions of philosophy, truth, and logic, and it is said that they have no room in their hearts for passions. (Coincidentally white is the color of mourning for the world of the Wheel of Time.) It was White sisters who first made the connection between the Reds' gentling crusade and the dwindling numbers and strength of female channellers, as half the people with the "channelling gene" were being exterminated. They proposed to the Tower that male channellers should, either before or after gentling, be allowed to mate with Aes Sedai. The Hall of the Tower refused the idea (especially after one Green Sister joked that, since the Whites had come up with the idea, they should be the ones to bear the children, which the Whites flatly refused). Whites are friendly with Blues and generally oppose Reds; however, when Elaida became Amyrlin, it was a White, Alviarin, who became her Keeper of the Chronicles. The Head of the White Ajah is called the First Reasoner. The First Reasoner in Tar Valon is Ferane Neheran. Important Whites includes Alviarin Freidhen (also first of the Black Ajah) Sarene Nemdahl, Seaine Herimon, Norine Dovarna, Daigian Moseneillin and Falion Bhoda.
[edit] The Gray Ajah
The diplomats of the White Tower are Grays; they are ambassadors, conflict mediators, and treaty drafters. They also provide justice through the law, whether it is in a palace or on a farm. Little else is known about them, although their leader is called the Head Clerk. Worth mentioning is that the Grays tried to hold together the coalition of nations that fought against the Aiel during the Aiel War but failed. Though it has not been confirmed, it is logical to assume that Grays are skilled at political manoeuvring. Important Grays include Merilille Ceandevin, Annoura Larisen, Andaya Forae, Beonin Marinye, Merana Ambrey, Yukiri and Delana Mosalaine.
[edit] The Black Ajah
The Black Ajah is an unofficial and secret Ajah, comprised of sisters which hide in other Ajahs and who have forsaken their Oaths as Aes Sedai and have sworn to serve the Dark One. Until recently Aes Sedai not only denied fervently the existence of the Black, but were angered at its implied existence. The Black Ajah is administered by a Supreme Council of Thirteen. It is thought that the Black Ajah was founded by Ishamael himself, who was not bound completely into Shayol Ghul as the rest of the Forsaken were. Reports of its existence were only recently accepted by other sisters, and not even by all sisters, when Liandrin Sedai fled the Tower along with twelve other sisters which were: Temaile Kinderode, Rianna Andomeran, Eldrith Jhondar, Joiya Byir, Chesmal Emry, Berylla Naron, Jeaine Caide, Asne Zeramene, Amico Nagoyin, Marillin Gemalphin, Falion Bhoda and Ispan Shefar- stealing several ter'angreal and killing a number of Tower personnel. The Ajah is currently controlled by Mesaana, who is living in the White Tower in disguise and gives orders in secret. Black sisters are not bound by the Three Oaths, having forsworn them at some point after becoming Aes Sedai, and swear three currently unknown oaths in service of the Shadow. Their meetings are shrouded in secrecy and they meet hooded and cloaked. The highest-ranking member of the Supreme Council of the Black Ajah is Alviarin Freidhen, who observes that only a few other Black sisters know her identity within the Ajah. Alviarin Freidhen knows the identity of every member of the Black Ajah. Other Blacks include Galina Casban, formerly second highest-ranking Black sister until her capture at Dumai's Wells, Talene Minly, Katerine Alruddin, Elza Penfell, and Careane Fransi.
Black sisters are organized into units called "hearts," each of which consists of a group of three women who all know each other as members of the Black, and who each know one sister in another heart.
[edit] Becoming Aes Sedai
[edit] Novice
Traditionally the White Tower only accepts girls for training who are between sixteen and eighteen years old, though the rules are bent sometimes for a novice of great potential. Becoming a novice is known as being "put in white", because they are held to a strict dress code - white dresses, stockings, shoes, and even hair ribbons.
Recently among the rebel (Salidar) Aes Sedai the age restrictions have been lifted, and there are novices of all ages, even as old as grandmothers. This is causing consternation among some traditional sisters, but most are happy that the number of Tower initiates has ceased dwindling.
A novice's life is deliberately harsh, in order to prepare her for the difficult life of an Aes Sedai. Her room is tiny, the bed uncomfortable and hard, and she must wake every day before dawn to scrub the floor and sweep the room. Meals are taken in silence and are extremely brief, so the novice must eat quickly or go hungry. She will have lessons and classes; some on learning to channel but just as many on history, the Old Tongue, geography, politics and philosophy, and if needed reading and arithmetic - to all of which she must pay strict attention or face punishment. However, most of her day will be taken up with such chores and duties as labouring in the kitchens, scrubbing floors, doing errands for Aes Sedai, and working in the gardens.
Novices are not permitted to channel except when supervised by an Accepted or Aes Sedai (though many do so anyway in secret), and must do all their chores by hand. The idea is that the hard work builds character, though it is likely that there is a desire to keep them too busy, and too tired, to start playing around and experimenting with the Power. Novices are strictly confined to the Tower, and there are no days off, except for occasional freedays.
Novices are subject to strict discipline, decided and handed out by a sister appointed to the post of Mistress of Novices. She is both disciplinarian and confidante, punishing those who have broken the rules and comforting those who are finding novice life too tough to handle. It is she who decides when a novice or Accepted is ready to be tested, or if the girl will be put out of the Tower for good. Punishment ranges from a lecture to a severe switching, and extra chores are usually involved. Although it is known what happens in the study, no one ever makes references to the punishment a person receives. For all that Aes Sedai act like they rule the world, within the Tower there are hierarchies and rules, and discipline and obedience are instilled from the earliest days. In addition novices are carefully cloistered from men. It isn't that the Tower disapproves of intimacy, but that they don't want their novices thinking too much about heart and family-especially if they are successful they will outlive all their relatives and friends. If two novices get into a relationship, the Mistress of Novices will usually turn a blind eye.
Understandably some novices find the pressure too much, and resolve to run away. They rarely get away with it, usually being caught and returned. Life for a captured runaway makes ordinary novice life look pleasant, with anything less than perfection being swiftly and harshly punished. The reason given is that a half-trained channeller is a danger to herself and those around her, which is not untrue, but it is also the case that the Tower considers itself to have absolute right over all channellers, and does not permit them to leave until it is finished with them.
The novices studying under the rebel Aes Sedai have been arranged into "families" of seven or eight women, making them much easier to organise and also establishing close friendships that help novices to get through the day. This new development has meant that this faction has almost no runaways to deal with.
The expected time spent as a novice for most girls is ten years. Those showing greater potential might be raised Accepted after five or six years, and there have been cases of novices being raised after only three. When the Mistress of Novices decides that a girl is ready, she arranges for her to face the Arches.
[edit] The Arches
When a novice is raised to the Accepted, it is after completing a trial in a ter'angreal deep in the lower levels of the White Tower. It consists of three silver arches which, when the ter'angreal is activated, are filled with odd flickering light. The novice is warned only at the actual testing that if she enters the arches, she might not come back, and is given the option to refuse the test. She may refuse twice, but at the third time if she does not go on she is put out of the Tower.
The workings of the Arches is not completely understood, though they are known to involve tel'aran'rhiod. When the novice walks through the first arch she is faced with a fear from her past, one she must conquer to return back through the arch. The second arch is a fear of the present, and the third a fear of the future. Each is harder to fight than the last. The novice must enter completely naked and unprotected, and the arch somehow removes her memory of being a novice and knowing how to channel. Traditionally what is experienced in the Arches is not spoken of to anyone, but many novices come out weeping or furious, which can last for weeks, so it is known to be a terrible experience.
Should she be lucky enough to return through the third Arch, she will be given a banded dress and a Great Serpent ring, proclaiming her to be one of the Accepted.
[edit] Accepted
Where novices wear plain white, Accepted wear the same dress with seven bands of colour at hem and cuffs - the colour of the seven Ajahs. She must wear her Great Serpent ring on the third finger of her left hand.
Being Accepted is both better and worse than being a novice. Her room is larger and more comfortable, and she is trusted to channel alone and direct her own studies. However, the Accepted also has a lot more responsibility. Greater demands are made of her own studies, while at the same time she is expected to prepare and teach novice lessons on a wide range of topics (the purpose of doing so is to learn how to manage and control others, and she can expect to be reprimanded if she runs to the Mistress of Novices for every little problem). Being Accepted does not mean a whisker less deference to Aes Sedai, and while she has more freedom - she is allowed to visit the city, for example - if she does break a rule, her punishment will be all the harsher.
By the time she reaches Accepted, a lot of the indoctrination will have taken root. Accepted can talk at meals, but generally don't, or are very quiet. They could use the Power to do their chores, but usually won't, feeling like they've done something wrong if they do. Accepted also start to show the arrogance and haughtiness that characterise Aes Sedai. It has been theorised that the long training period is actually as much for this conditioning as it is for actual learning.
An Accepted must learn much, as the Tower will not permit ignorant Aes Sedai. It is expected that she will be ten years in the banded white before being tested for the Shawl, though again there are exceptions to this. Elaida a'Roihan, Moiraine Damodred and Siuan Sanche all spent three years as novices and three as Accepted before being raised Aes Sedai.
[edit] The Test for the Shawl
Long before she is ready to be tested, the Accepted will learn by heart a sequence of one hundred complex weaves, often whose purposes are just for the testing. The test for the shawl is to perform all these weaves, perfectly, in order, while maintaining outward serenity. The exact nature of the test is kept secret, but Accepted do what they can to try distracting each other while practising the weaves. She enters a spinning ring structure, and the sisters conducting the test create illusions to try and break her concentration and serenity. These illusions are far from harmless, involving anything from armies of Shadowspawn to frigid temperatures, from minor embarrassments like having all her clothes disappear, to heart-wrenching choices and decisions. For every weave, a separate illusion is created, and if there is any hesitation, or any break in composure, the Accepted fails. And that's if she's lucky, as many women die in the test for the shawl.
Should she manage to complete the hundred weaves, she will certainly be badly injured. She is given Healing and sent off for a night of meditation. She is expected to stay awake all night, despite her certain exhaustion, and reflect on her new duties.
[edit] The Oath Rod
Once an Accepted passes the test, she is brought to another ceremony with the Amyrlin Seat and representatives of all seven Ajahs present. They are presented with the Oath Rod, a ter'angreal that binds Aes Sedai to whatever oaths they swear while channeling into it. The Accepted then swears the Three Oaths. The Oaths were not always a part of the Aes Sedai tradition, and some sisters wish it still wasn't. The Rod was discovered some time between the Trolloc Wars and the War of the Hundred Years. Unknown to the Aes Sedai is that the Oath Rod is in fact a ter'angreal which was used in the Age of Legends to bind criminals against further acts of law breaking.
Even though all sisters were bound to their respective Ajahs, they needed a common set of goals and principles to bind sisters of every Ajah together. The Accepted swears to:
- Speak no word that is not true
- Make no weapon for one man to kill another
- Never to use the One Power as a weapon, except
- Against Shadowspawn (Darkfriends also qualify),
- To save her own life, or her Warder's, or the life of another sister
Sisters physically cannot break these oaths, though they can be circumvented - for instance, an Aes Sedai may deliberately put herself in danger to remove the constraint on using the Power as a weapon, or she could make a statement that is misleading but technically true (giving rise to the saying An Aes Sedai never lies, but the truth she tells you isn't the one you think you hear). Once she has sworn the oaths, the Accepted is an Aes Sedai and is allowed to choose her Ajah.
There are several side-effects to the use of the Oath Rod. The most apparent is a tightening of the skin, which eventually leads to the appearance of agelessness commonly associated with Aes Sedai. Unknown to most channellers is that the Oath Rod also has the facility to unbind, useful for those sisters who become members of the Black Ajah and swear new oaths to the Dark One. Channellers are also freed from the oaths when severed from the Power.
Recent evidence has come up that shows that the Oath Rod might in fact also lower the life expectancy of a channeller bound by it. Continued use of the One Power seemingly ensures an extended lifespan reaching into centuries. When Elayne was in Ebou Dar, however, she came across a group calling itself the Kin which was mainly comprised of women who failed, at some point or another, in their training to become Aes Sedai and were put out of the Tower. Some of these women have lived up to a hundred years longer than the longest recorded Aes Sedai lifespan and still have much life left in them. Egwene has declared, as Amyrlin Seat, that any woman who wishes to be part of the White Tower must swear the oaths on the Oath Rod and some fear that this might hasten the death of those potential sisters who have so exceeded the normal Aes Sedai lifespan. This seems to indicate that, though a look of agelessness is given to Aes Sedai who have sworn on the Oath Rod, the oaths might be shortening their lifespans considerably. Egwene has plans to allow older sisters to retire into the Kin (freeing them of their Oaths, but no longer considering them true Aes Sedai) in the hopes that this will allow them to live the longer lives enjoyed by those who have not sworn on the Rod.
[edit] Recent exceptional cases
Since the Tower became divided against itself, certain women among the rebel faction, beyond reach of any of the aforementioned ter'angreal, have become Aes Sedai by exceptional means. The first was Egwene al'Vere, who is technically Aes Sedai by virtue of having been raised Amyrlin Seat, despite never having tested for the shawl. After becoming Amyrlin, she had several other Accepted raised to the shawl (including Elayne Trakand and Nynaeve al'Meara) by proclamation, a move that most sisters objected to. Needless to say, none of these women are bound by the Three Oaths, though Egwene in particular is extremely keen to get her hands on the Oath Rod.
[edit] The Hall of the Tower
The Hall of the Tower is the administrative body of the Aes Sedai and White Tower. It is composed of twenty-one Sitters, who act like senators, three from each Ajah. There is also the Amyrlin Seat and the Keeper of the Chronicles. The Hall creates all official policy for Tar Valon.
[edit] The Amyrlin Seat
The Amyrlin Seat, or simply the Amyrlin, is possibly the most powerful woman on the continent. She is appointed for life by the Hall, and sheds any affiliation she has to her Ajah. The Amyrlin is from no Ajah, and from all. She wears a stole with all seven Ajah colors, although Elaida do Avriny a'Roihan removed the blue from hers upon becoming Amyrlin. She is the head of all Aes Sedai, and they refer to her as Mother and she to them as Children ("Daughters"). She is assisted in her duties by the Keeper of the Chronicles, who is second in command, and usually from the same Ajah as the Amyrlin. Her full title is "The Watcher of the Seals, the Flame of Tar Valon, the Amyrlin Seat" (in reference to the seven seals used to shut the Dark One's prison, though until quite recently, no-one knew where any of the seals were). The actual chair from where the Amyrlin rules over the Hall is also called the Amyrlin Seat. The Amyrlin's relative power depends on her political power and ability. Some Amyrlins have been able to bend the Hall to their will, while others have found themselves subject to it. Although the Amyrlin is bound by Tower law and custom, any proclamations she makes are usually considered (depending on how powerful the Amyrlin is) law or as good as. But almost every time an Amyrlin proved so incompetent or otherwise problematic that she threatened the future of the Tower, sisters have risen up to remove her.
[edit] The Keeper of the Chronicles
The Amyrlin's second-in-command, the Keeper's duties include being secretary to the Amyrlin and overseeing the official business of the Tower. What is known is that the Amyrlin chooses her and that she, too, is appointed for life (either hers or the Amyrlin's, whomever passes away first). Traditionally, the Keeper comes from the same Ajah as the Amyrlin, but there have been exceptions. Recently, Elaida a'Roihan (of the Tower) has chosen Alviarin Freidhen, a White sister, as Keeper, although Elaida herself is a Red. The Keeper wears a stole to indicate the Ajah she was raised from, but legally she is no longer a member of that Ajah, serving only the Amyrlin. Recent Keepers include Leane Sharif, a Blue sister, for the former Blue Siuan Sanche; Alviarin Freidhen, a White sister, for the former Red Elaida do'Avriny a'Roihan; Tarna Feir, a Red sister, also for Elaida; and Sheriam Bayanar, a Blue sister, for Egwene al'Vere. Elaida's former Keeper, Alviarin, was replaced by the Hall of the Tower after her frequent absences from the Tower were deemed to be interfering with her duties.
[edit] Sitters
Sitters are highly esteemed sisters who have been chosen within their Ajah to represent their Ajah and its interests in the Hall of the Tower. Typically, the leader or head of the Ajah is not a Sitter. The Sitters often jealously defend the Hall's power, and an Amyrlin's reign is often judged by how well she manages to keep the Sitters under her control.
Each Ajah has three sitters.
[edit] Male Aes Sedai
[edit] The Hundred Companions
The Hundred Companions was a group of the most powerful male Aes Sedai of the Age of Legends. Numbering one hundred and thirteen, the companions were led by Lews Therin Telamon himself to seal away the Dark One. The plan originally required a circle of men and women, placing seven seals on specific points of the Bore into the Dark One's prison at Shayol Ghul. The women refused the plan on the grounds it was too risky, but Lews Therin had such power he secretly assemble an raiding force, and pressed ahead
Although they succeeded in sealing him away, the Dark One launched a final counter-stroke, the taint of his touch on saidin. The Hundred Companions and Lews Therin went insane immediately, and began (along with every other male channeler) what became known as the Breaking of the World.
In the present day of the series, the Hundred Companions have been reborn, in a way, in the form of the Asha'man. In Winters Heart, Rand al'Thor and Nynaeve al'Meara cleanse saidin, (and destroy Shadar Logoth) using access keys to the Choeden Kal, the two most powerful sa'angreal ever made. The cleansing does not remove the effects already there, and any sickness or insanity already caused by the Taint remain.
