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the wheel of time - Do we know who is THE VOICE in Rand's head in the Eye of the World?


In The Eye of the World there is a passage that has long stirred up theories and controversy among Wheel of Time fans.


A voice reverberates inside Rand's head, speaking in distinctive italicized all caps.



IT IS NOT HERE.
It was not Rand’s thought, making his skull vibrate.
I WILL TAKE NO PART. ONLY THE CHOSEN ONE CAN DO WHAT MUST BE DONE, IF HE WILL.
“Where?” He did not want to say it, but he could not stop himself. “Where?” The haze surrounding him parted, leaving a dome of clear, clean air ten spans high, walled by billowing smoke and dust. Steps rose before him, each standing alone and unsupported, stretching up into the murk that obscured the sun.

NOT HERE.



Since the Companion has been released, and a corresponding book tour has been run, I was wondering if any further, more concrete information on this subject has been released. Theories abound, but I'd like a Word of God answer.


Please note that in the Wheel of Time community, a Word of God answer could have come from Robert Jordan, Harriet McDougal, Brandon Sanderson, Alan Romanczuk, or Maria Simons. (The latter 3 only if they were referring to notes of Jordan's the read, or things they were told, and Sanderson also for parts he specifically wrote about.)


Do we know the source of THE VOICE?


If "No", then please provide a reasonable showing (by quotes or excerpts) that the information isn't available/released. (It needn't been an essay, but there have been times when Jordan has flat-out said "I'm not going to say, ever", and if nothing new has come up since the Companion book tour...)



Answer



TLDR; According to Sanderson, while we may speculate, it appears that RJ intended for us to go insane. There is no answer.



QUESTION



The Dark One seems to be conscious and aware of the events in the world. Is the Creator also conscious of world events?


BRANDON SANDERSON


Brandon said that's left up to the reader. He then said that many people think the voice in all caps in The Eye of the World is the Creator, which might indicate the Creator was, but stated it really wasn't known even in-world. (paraphrased from interview)



-Wheel of Time Interview Database, "The Voice" #8


It looks like Jordan never released this tidbit of info even to his crew, as in this interview, 1 month after the last books release Sanderson changes from RAFO to essentially "I dont know."


a few days later we get this:



QUESTION


Did the Creator speak in ALL CAPS at least once or twice?



BRANDON SANDERSON


The same voice spoke in all caps in the series.



-Wheel of Time Interview Database, "The Voice" #140


Makes us assume that the any voice in all caps is the Dark One.



QUESTION


So, at the end of The Eye of the World, the all caps voice? Will we ever find out who it was, or what they were looking for?


BRANDON SANDERSON


The all caps voice at the end of Eye of the World makes an appearance in A Memory of Light.




-Wheel of Time Interview Database, "The Voice" #148


This brings us to a voice in all caps in AMOL.



IT IS TIME. LET THE TASK BE UNDERTAKEN.


The voice spoke with the inevitability of an earthquake, the words vibrating through him. More than sound in the air, far more, the words spoke as if from one soul to another. Moiraine gasped, eyes opening wide.


Rand was not surprised. He had heard this voice once before, and he realized that he had been expecting it. Hoping for it, at least. “Thank you,” Rand whispered, then stepped forward into the Dark One’s realm, leaving footprints of blood behind.



So in a mater of 2 weeks, Sanderson states that in-world we never truly know who the voice was, that the same voice that speaks in caps throughout the whole series, and finally that the voice that spoke in the EotW, also appears in AMoL. This leaves us with a completely unclear answer, and unless he or others decides to clarify we will never know.


Finally:




JAMES STARKE Is Nakomi the person that Rand encountered at the mouth of Shayol Ghul? And is she the embodiment of The Creator?


BRANDON SANDERSON


This is one that I'm not answering, I'm afraid. RJ wanted some things about the ending to remain ambiguous.


Did we ever meet the Creator in the series? If so, who?


BRANDON SANDERSON


I'll preface this with a warning. Even though the series is done, and I can speak more freely, some things are intended to be vague by RJ's own intention. This allows dreaming and thinking about the world to continue. For example, I can't answer question 2 for these reasons. For question one, I think RJ himself was vague. (Maybe a Theorylander can speak here.) This isn't one I'm capable of answering, because I don't want to make an answer canon one way or another, as I don't think RJ wanted that.



-Wheel of Time Interview Database, "Creator" # 103 from 2014


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