Ta'veren

For the chapter in A Crown of Swords called "Ta'veren", see A Crown of Swords/Chapter 34.

"Life is very unsettling with ta'veren for friends."
   —Loial

Ta'veren (pronounced: tah-VEER-ehn) are people around whom the Wheel of Time specifically weaves the Pattern with all surrounding life-threads.

Web of Destiny

The three main ta'veren. (from left Perrin Aybara, Rand al'Thor and Matrim Cauthon

A ta'veren is a central focal point for a Web of Destiny in the Pattern. These people are spun out and used by the Wheel to correct itself when the weave begins to drift from the intended Pattern. Since the purpose of ta'veren is to influence life threads to create change, the destinies of ta'veren themselves are more strictly controlled by the Wheel of Time itself than those of an average person. These Webs of Destiny (or ta'maral'ailen in the Old Tongue) are almost always arduous for those that live through that Age but are an unfortunate necessity for the Wheel. The more change required, the more ta'veren that are born.

"The Wheel of Time weaves the Pattern of the Ages, and the threads it uses are lives. It is not fixed, the Pattern, not always. If a man tries to change the direction of his life and the Pattern has room for it, the Wheel just weaves on and takes it in. There is always room for small changes, but sometimes the Pattern simply won't accept a big change, no matter how hard you try....And sometimes the Wheel bends a life-thread, or several threads, in such a way that all the surrounding threads are forced to swirl around it, and those force other threads, and those still others, and on and on. That first bending to make the Web, that is ta'veren, and there is nothing you can do to change it, not until the Pattern itself changes. The Web - ta'maral'ailen, it's called - can last for weeks, or for years. It can take in a town, or even the whole Pattern."
   —Loial to Rand Al'Thor

Noted Ta'veren

Ta'veren.

• Rand al'Thor - Current
• Perrin Aybara - Current
• Matrim Cauthon - Current
• Mabriam en Shereed - Historical
• Artur Hawkwing - Historical
• Lews Therin Telamon - Historical

"He would not turn away from some of the things that happened to ta'veren in stories. Wealth and fame dropped into their pockets as if from the sky; men who wanted to kill them decided to follow instead, and women with ice in their eyes decided to melt."
   —Mat's thoughts

Present-Day Ta'veren

Ta'veren appear to affect the Pattern based on their own personalities and skills. Perrin Aybara's ta'veren nature tends strongly to manifest in influencing people, causing people to do or say things they otherwise would not. By contrast, Mat Cauthon's twisting of the Pattern manifests as a warping of the laws of chance, and tends to be limited to a fairly local area. It most often manifests as extreme good luck for Mat, as well as apparently warning him of important events to come.

By far the most powerful ta'veren in the present-day world, and possibly the most powerful in history, is Rand al'Thor. His presence in an area causes any number of completely unpredictable and improbable occurrences, from throwing the laws of chance completely askew to two young people who can't stand each other suddenly marrying. This effect is uncontrollable and can extend to cover a wide area, influencing an entire village or a large part of a major city.

The phenomenon of three contemporaneous ta'veren as strong as Rand, Perrin and Mat seems to be unique in known history. There is a definite link beyond the fact of their Two Rivers origin and closeness in birth date. They have been experiencing momentary disorientation and visions of flashing colors whenever each think of the other ta'veren, even momentary glimpses of each other. Each of the three know that they are being tugged toward one another, and that it will be important to reunite in order to fight in the Last Battle.

Examples and Facts

• No one is born ta'veren, they are made so as the Wheel needs them to be.
• Ta'veren changes the probability of something happening, e.g. they can cause a person to fall off a house and then get up without a scratch on them, yet someone else can easily trip over a stick and break their neck. This implies that ta'veren do not make the impossible happen, though the improbable may be perceived as "impossible." Several characters have made comments to this effect.
• Rand al'Thor thinks that for all the "good" ta'veren effects, there are equal amounts of "bad" ta'veren effects.
• It is said that ta'veren can be tracked and located by their effect on the Pattern.
• Certain ter'angreal may replicate or influence the probability-changing effects of ta'veren, such as the six spotted dice ter'angreal used by the Black Ajah in Tear.
• Moiraine speculated that ta'veren attracts the "bubble of evil" due to the Dark One's influence on the Pattern.
• Ta'veren have a mysterious effect in the world of the Aelfinn. One ta'veren is intriguing to the Aelfinn (they comment on "the savor") but the presence of two put a strain of some kind on their world. Bells tolled and the earth quaked as though the world was trying to crumble.

People with Talent to see ta'veren

• Siuan Sanche - sees a glow around Rand in Fal Dara
• Logain Ablar - sees a glow around Rand in Caemlyn
• Nicola Treehill - sees a glow around Mat in Salidar
• Eldest Alar says she feels that Rand is ta'veren even though the Talent does not run strong in the Ogier in Stedding Tsofu

Parallels

Descriptions of ta'veren and their effects on the Pattern resemble that of Strange Attractors.