aboutaessedai

Is Moiraine Sedai dead? Updated!!!
     This is perhaps the question that I get asked most often, and my answer is a resounding no. Given the importance given to Moiraine by Min (namely that Rand will certainly fail without her help), I would believe that our friend Moiraine is not dead.
     In Winter's Heart, we learn that Lanfear (who is has been "born again" as Cyndane) suffered somehow at the hands of the Aelfinn/Eelfinn. Did they kill her, or did Moiraine do it? I don't know, but it is possible that Moiraine either escaped from them or was aided by them. It is also possible that she died and has also been reborn, but I seriously doubt that. (Still, anything is possible.) If she did die, and was reborn, then her power could be considerably weaker, given that the same thing happened to Lanfear.
     She will reappear in the future, but what that means for the other characters (especially Lan and Nynaeve) I don't know. I believe that Thom will have something to do with her return, but that's based only on a vision Min had of him pulling her amulet/pendant out of a fire.
     It has been suggested TrippEndeavor, one of my Scholars and Fellow Fans (TM), that her return could have something to do with the Tower of Ghenjei. Here is what Birgitte had to say about the Tower in The Shadow Rising: "Once entered, the Tower of Ghenjei is hard enough to leave in the world of men. Here [in Tel'aran'rhiod] is is all but impossible
     "....[it] is a doorway... to the realms of the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn... Did you ever play the game called Snakes and Foxes?... The game is a remembrance of old dealings. It does not matter so long as you stay away from the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn. They are not evil the way that the Shadow is evil, yet they ae so different from humankind they might as well be. They are not to be trusted... [TSR: 28, To the Tower of Ghenjei, 323-4]"
     It is possible for her to make her way through the world of the Aelfinn and Eelfinn, and it would seem that this would be the only way to do it alive.

What will Cadsuane Sedai teach Rand and the Asha'man?   Updated!!!
     Cadsuane, speaking to Verin Sedai in Winter's Heart, says: " He [Rand] is turning to stone... and if he doesn't relearn that he is human, winning the Last Battle may not be much better than losing. Young Min told him he needs me; I got that much out of her without rousing her suspicions. But I must wait for him to come to me. You see the way he runs rough-shod over Alanna and the others. It will be hard enough teaching him, if he does ask. He fights guidance, he thinks he must do everything, learn everything, on his own, and if I do not work for it, he won't learn at all."
    Now it would appear that this is a little closer to the mark. Indeed, Rand is not happy, at all, with having to come to Cadsuane, and I'm sure that none of the other Asha'man will like it either if they are all going to have to endure the same sort of lecturing and lessons in humility.

What's the deal with the Aes Sedai agelessness?   New!!!
    It has been brought to my attention that there is some sort of connection between the Oath Rods and the apparent agelessness of the Aes Sedai. I wasn't for sure there was a deal until reading Winter's Heart, where there are some characters debating the possibility. Elayne notes that "neither [Zarya Alkaese or Kirstian] had the agelessness despite their years of using the Power... [Kirstian] was over three hundred, older than Vandene herself, Elayne was sure. [WH: 8, Sea Folk and Kin, 194]" Reanne Corly, also one of the Kin, admitted to being over 600. So, it would appear that there is a connection, but exactly what I still don't know.

Who is "the one who is no longer"?   Updated!!!
     This title, taken from a vision by the Aiel Wise Ones, refers to Setalle Anan, the innkeeper from Ebou Dar. She was the one that introduced Elayned and Nynaeve to the Kin, and without her, they never would have found the Bowl of the Winds. But what does the title refer to?
     I believe that, at one point in time, Setalle was an Aes Sedai. First of all, she has way too much loyalty to the Sisters, going so far as to risk her life to make sure that they escape from the Seanchan. But then there are other, smaller clues.
     Joline Maza Sedai notes how familiar she seems: "Have we met somewhere before? Sometimes, when I cannot see your face, your voice sounds familiar. [WH: 29, Another Plan, 556]."
    And then there are the comments by Setalle herself. While planning the escape from Ebou Dar, she notes: "Not every woman can be a sul'dam. You should know that by now. I have hopes that I can, but better we find out before the last hour [556]." Only a woman who can touch the Source, or has the potential to touch the Source, can be a sul'dam. So, what makes her think that she can do it?
   Also, there is her tirade against Joline: "If you will not listen to [Mat], Joline Maza, you will listen to me... I mean to see you back in the White Tower if I have to walk every step of the way pushing you! Perhaps along the way you will show me that you know what it means to be Aes Sedai [552]." Not every inkeeper would address an Aes Sedai so.

updated 01/25/01