One could easily make he argument that, "not killing" does not distinguish between weapons an, lets say, "tools."  If I intend to smash someone's ankles (as opposed to their head) with a brick, does that make the brick any less of a weapon?

Regardless, I was hoping that there was something that I was missing that cleared this up.  What I think I'm seeing is that at best, this is a gray area.  (How someone could believe that beating someone with flows of air is *not* using the power as a weapon is beyond me.)

Thanks, everyone!

Note: Even though the series has been concluded for years, I just joined this forum and am not sure if I should be avoiding spoilers.   So I'll play it safe and be obtuse about the details...

So my son is reading the series for the first time.  And he's near the end of Lord of Chaos.  At this point, there are some Aes Sedai who have a certain main character as a prisoner.  Every day, this character is beaten using flows of air.  So I have to ask... how in the world does this not violate the three oaths?  We know that *some* of these AS are black sisters.  But some are not.  How can they pull this off?  Surely this constitutes using the power as a weapon.

My wife made the point that they can use the power in defense of the tower.  (I'm not sure that's accurate, but I'll make her point none the less.)  And that this gives the AS a very wide loophole from which to function.  Also, she makes the point that they can use the power when administering discipline to novices.  So if that's not considered using the power as a weapon, then maybe this isn't either.  I don't buy that either.  Even ignoring the use of the power as a tool to administer discipline, beating a defenseless prisoner must qualify as using the power as a weapon.

I've searched the wikis and FAQs for an answer and have come up blank.  If anyone reads these forums this long after the books ended, I sure could use a reference or an answer if you have one.

Thanks!