Nynaeve's Arc

[Lacanos]

Plus, Rand says that it's the Taint that gives him access to Lews Therin's memories. Without the taint and the web of light, he might no longer be the super-dragon

[kristineaskada]

The ethical/philosophical problem of the Oath Rod is that when a person is forced to behave a certain way, it allows them to avoid understanding why they should act that way.

 

We see the most obvious result of this in how the Aes Sedai routinely twist the truth. It's become about being unable to speak a direct lie, not about being honourable and trustworthy.

 

The Oath against making weapons was introduced when the One Power had been recently used in a world-wide civil war and the breaking. Yet it's really about not using the Power to further mankind's destructive impulses, not to prevent the creation of power-wrought weapons to fight the Shadow.

 

The Oath against killing is actually the most insidious, because on the surface it appears reasonable. It was likely intended to keep Aes Sedai out of battles, and to make normal people feel safe around them. Yet the very nature of this oath strikes at the core of the whole problem: why should an Aes Sedai need anything extra to keep her from needless violence?

 

I do think the Oath Rod is doomed, if not the Oaths themselves. The binding will fall out of favour once the lifespan reduction is widely known, and once the Aes Sedai mingle more with women not so bound.

 

-- dwn

 

 

I know this is a thread for Nyneave, but the oath rods are a double sided sword. I think that, like above, the oath against killing is one of the most odd requirements. It came about nobly but in practice it doesn't really work. Like with the Seanchan, who aren't bound not to kill, it puts the Aes Sedai in a really bad situation. And there are more than Shadowspawn to deal with in the world since the bore was drilled, much less in TG. And it really isn't practical that a sister would have to directly put herself in harm's way in order to defend anyone.

 

But, it has given them the aura of safety and that has it's advantages, too. I think either they are going to make amends to the oaths, or they may go away or at least change the way the WT recruits.