Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for The Wheel of Time Season 3.
The Wheel of Time‘s power system is complicated. Not only is the One Power divided into saidin, which can only be used by men, and saidar, which is exclusive to women, but different channelers have different levels of strength. In addition, certain objects can increase a channeler’s strength: angreal and sa’angreal. Though rare, these objects are spread throughout the world. The Aes Sedai hold several, as seen in the Season 3 premiere when Viren (Meera Syal) visits the White Tower’s depository of angreal, sa’angreal, and ter’angreal (before they were stolen by the Black Ajah). But more recently, Season 3, Episode 4, “The Road to the Spear,” introduces a new sa’angreal that is more powerful than anything we’ve seen on screen before.
The Wheel of Time Season 3 takes Rand (Josha Stradowski) to Rhuidean, exploring the mysterious city and revealing the Aiel’s past to him. Yet that is just one of the many secrets Rhuidean holds. Not only is the ancient tree Avendesora hidden in the “city in the clouds,” but so are several objects connected to the One Power. Two ter’angreal exist in Rhuidean, the glass columns and the three rings, which play an important role in the episode as Rand and Moiraine (Rosamund Pike) go on separate journeys, yet a third item is set up to do much more this season. In Rhuidean, Moiraine finds Sakarnen, a sa’angreal for female channelers. Sakarnen is notable not just for its potential but for its history, as it plays into the Aiel’s origins. Prime Video’s adaptation of The Wheel of Time has drastically changed Sakarnen from the source material, leaving it unclear what will happen with the sa’angreal next as Moiraine struggles to use it.
What Is Sakarnen, and What Does It Do?
Regardless of its power, Sakarnen is significant because it is a sa’angreal. The key to making sa’angreal was lost in the Breaking of the World, so there are only a few in existence, and they are often hidden. Yet Sakarnen is regarded as the most powerful sa’angreal. Sakarnen is first mentioned in Season 3, Episode 3, “Seeds of Shadow,” though it is considered lost. Lanfear (Natasha O’Keeffe) tells Rand about it, claiming Sakarnen is a powerful sa’angreal for women, comparing it to Callandor, the male sa’angreal sword kept in Tear. Lanfear claims that if Sakarnen and Callandor’s power are combined by a female and male channeler, they could be used to defeat the Dark One, though this could be a lie to manipulate Rand. Though it isn’t clear what Sakarnen is capable of, Lanfear does not seem to be lying about the sa’angreal’s incredible power.
Sakarnen means “causer or instrument of greatest punishment” in the Old Tongue, making the sa’angreal an ominous addition to the series. Though the name sounds threatening, it has equal potential to be a weapon for the Light. In Season 3, Episode 4, Moiraine finds Sakarnen in Rhuidean, taking it from its hiding place in Avendesora and carrying it with her. Sakarnen’s role in the episode is fairly small, yet with Moiraine bringing it back into play after years of being hidden, the most powerful sa’angreal in the world is sure to play an important role in the series — and, in some ways, already has because of its past.
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Sakarnen Is an Important Part of the Aiel’s History
Though, in the main timeline, Sakarnen has just been rediscovered, Season 3, Episode 4 proves that it had an important role in shaping the Aiel. As Rand sees the Aiel’s past through the eyes of his ancestors, he witnesses the Aes Sedai Latra Posae Devume (Katie Brayben) giving Sakarnen to the Da’shain Aiel for safety. Though Sakarnen can only be used by women, Latra fears it falling into the hands of the Dark One’s servants, naming Lanfear as a specific example. While initially, her fellow Aes Sedai, Solinda (Thandi Sebe), disagrees because Sakarnen is so precious, Latra chooses to hide it by entrusting Sakarnen to the Da’shain Aiel and their peaceful ways, in contrast to Callandor, which rests in a fortress of war. The Aiel leave the city, hiding Sakarnen in a chora tree sapling and spending generations wandering with it until it finds a home in Rhuidean.
Sakarnen also plays a role in the founding of Rhuidean. The Jenn Aiel, who keep their peaceful ways, protect Sakarnen until they die out, keeping it out of violent hands. Rand sees the aftermath of this when the much older Latra (Ania Marson) calls the clan chiefs of the Aiel to Rhuidean, charging the truth of their past. With Sakarnen, Latra makes Rhuidean what it is, creating the glass columns that clan chiefs and Wise Ones must use to discover their history before they can lead. As such, the sa’angreal is a vital part of Aiel culture, past and present.
‘The Wheel of Time’ Drastically Changes Sakarnen from the Books
While Sakarnen is not a creation of the Prime Video series, it may as well be, as the show makes it unrecognizable from its book counterpart. The Wheel of Time shows Sakarnen to be a white sphere, simple and easy to conceal, yet in the books, it looks very different. Described as a two-part sa’angreal consisting of a golden scepter and an hourglass-shaped goblet that attaches to it, the book’s Sakarnen is much more obvious. As far as the story goes, Sakarnen is not given to the Aiel, though several wagonloads of angreal, sa’angreal, and ter’angreal are. Instead of being hidden inside a chora sapling, Sakarnen was hidden in two different places and found by the Forsaken Demandred.
Yet the biggest change is who can use it. In the books, Sakarnen was not the female answer to Callandor but another sa’angreal for men. This made it all the more dangerous as it could only be used by male channelers, who would eventually go mad because of the taint in saidin. Likely because it would have been worthless to her, the sa’angreal never fell into Moiraine’s possession, meaning in The Wheel of Time, it is on a much different path. While the show creates a new story around Sakarnen, it keeps the fact that it is stronger even than Callandor — which may be the only thing that carries over. Considering its power, Sakarnen will be a vital resource, or impediment, for the heroes in the series.
The Wheel of Time Season 3 finale premieres Thursdays on Prime Video.
