Hello everyone.

Theory: The reason for this theory is to prove without a doubt, with no reason for skepticism, that Rand al'Thor will survive Tarmon Gai'don.

How: I am going to accomplish this by making six points.

1.HIS UNPROPHESIED DEATH

2.RAND'S MADNESS/LEWS THERIN/MORIDIN

3.THE BEGGAR/TO LIVE, YOU MUST DIE

4.LOGAIN'S GLORY

5.4TH AGE HISTORIES

7.CONCLUSION



1.HIS UNPROPHESIED DEATH

1.1-Min's The Eye Of The World Viewing

-The Eye Of The World, Chapter 15, Strangers And Friends, Page 181

-Rand's POV, Talking to Min just outside of The Stag and Lion, in Baerlon

"What about me?"

Her grin stopped just short of outright laughter. "The same kind of things as the rest. A sword that isn't a sword, a golden crown of laurel leaves, a beggar's staff, you pouring water on sand, a bloody hand and a white hot iron, three women standing over a funeral bier with you in it, black rock wet with blood-"

"All right," he broke in uneasily. "You don't have to list it all."

-Here she mentions black rock wet with blood as one of Rand's many auras that appear around him. Take note it does not mention his dead body anywhere; if it had, in any case, Min would know Rand was going to die, and even if she didn't love him as much as she does now, she would still remember, and know, and not be as firm on him surviving as this:



1.2-Min's Behavior Toward Rand About Death

-Knife Of Dreams, Chapter 18, News For The Dragon, Pages 394-395

-Rand's POV, Talking to Min, Cadsuane, Loial, Logain, ect, in Lord Algarin's Manor house, inside Tear.

"A truce," he broke in. "And a truce with the Dragon Reborn will last only as long as the Dragon Reborn. When I die, everyone will be free to go to war with the Seanchan again if they wish."

Min slammed the book shut and folded her arms beneath her breasts. "Don't you talk that way!" she said, red-faced with anger. The bond also carried fear.

"The Prophecies, Min," he said sadly. Not sad for himself, but for her. He wanted to protect her, her and Elayne and Aviendha, but he would hurt them in the end.

"I said don't talk that way! The Proophecies don't say you have to die! I'm not going to let you die, Rand al'Thor! Elayne and Aviendha and I won't let you!" She glared at Alivia, who her viewing had said would help Rand die, and her hands slid down her arms toward her cuffs.

-So from here we have proof that Min has not had a viewing that says Rand will die, and she also mentions that the Prophecies do not say Rand has to die.

1.3-An Excerpt From The Karaethon Cycle

-The Great Hunt, Header Prophecy

-as translated by Ellaine Marise'idin Alshinn, In the Year of Grace 231 in the New Era, the Third Age

And it shall come to pass that what men made shall be shattered, and the Shadow shall lie across the Pattern of the Age, and the DO shall once more lay his hand upon the world of man. Women shall weep and men quail as the nations of the earth are rent like rotting cloth. Neither shall anything stand nor abide...

Yet one shall be born to face the Shadow...and there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth at his rebirth. In sackcloth and ashes shall he clothe the people, and he shall break the world again by his coming, tearing apart all ties that bind. Like the unfettered dawn shall he blind us, and burn us, yet shall the Dragon Reborn confront the Shadow at the Last Battle, and his blood shall give us the Light. Let tears flow, O ye people of the world. Weep for your salvation.

-Again, his blood shall give us the Light does not mean he will die. It refers to his blood, which is not his dead body. There is no proof in this passage that Rand will die.

1.4-Thom's Knowledge 1

-The Great Hunt, Chapter 26, Discord, Pages 325-326

-Rand's POV, talking to Thom in the Gleeman's room in The Bunch Of Grapes, which is in Cairhien

Rand hesitated. There were things he needed to know, things he was sure Thom knew-the gleeman had once seemed to know a great deal about a suprising number of things-but he was not sure how to ask. "Thom," he said at last, "are there any books that have the Karaethon Cycle in them?" Easier to call it that then the Prophecies Of The Dragon.

"In the great libraries," Thom said slowly. "Any number of translations, and even in the Old Tongue, here and there." Rand started to ask if there was any way for him to find one, but the gleeman went on. "The Old Tongue has music in it, but too many even of the nobles are impatient with listening to it these days. Nobles are all expected to know the Old Tongue, but many only learn enough to impress people who don't. Translations don't have the same sound, unless they're in High Chant, and sometimes that changes meanings even more then most translations. There is one verse in the Cycle-it dosen't scan well, translated word for word, but there's no meaning lost-that goes like this.

"Twice and twice shall he be marked,

twice to live, and twice to die,

Once the heron to set his path.

Twice the heron, to name him true.

Once the Dragon for remembrance lost.

Twice the Dragon for the price he must pay."

-Note that the price he must pay is not told-it does not say he will die. Of course, it dosen't say he will live either, so this is invalid.

1.5-Thom's Knowledge 2

- The Great Hunt, Chapter 26, Discord, Page 326

-Rand's POV, talking to Thom in the Gleeman's room in The Bunch Of Grapes, which is in Cairhien

"So they do." Thom barked a laugh. "There's another comes to mind.

"Twice dawns the day when his blood is shed.

Once for mourning, once for birth.

Red on black, the Dragon's blood stains the rock of Shayol Ghul.

In the Pit of Doom shall his blood free men from the Shadow."

-In this particular prophecy, there are three mentions of Rand's blood.

-Twice dawns the day when his blood is shed.-Does not say he is going to die, only his blood will be shed.

-Red on black, the Dragon's blood stains the rock of Shayol Ghul.-This only says his blood will stain the rocks of Shayol Ghul. Oh wow. He could get a papercut or something. In any case, it does not state he will die and there is no mention of a body.

-In the Pit of Doom shall his blood free men from the Shadow.-Again, this does not say he will die, only his blood will free men from the Shadow.

1.6-Sacfrice For Man?

-The Shadow Rising, Chapter 3, Reflection, Page 71

-Perrin's POV, listening to Rand and Moiraine talk in Rand's room in the Stone Of Tear.

Moiraine frowned. "It still does not respond," she mummered, half to herself. "It will not heal completely."

"That is the one that will kill me, isn't it?" he asked her softly, then quoted," 'His blood on the rocks of Shayol Ghul, washing away the Shadow, sacrifice for man's salvation.' "

"You read too much," she said sharply, "and understand too little."

-Now in this one, again, another reference to his blood being on the rocks of Shayol Ghul that does not say he will die. And neither does the word 'sacfrice' mean he will perish. He will simply sacfrice some blood. Funny how things can have such simple meanings if you just look at it. Also, take notice Moiraine warns him not to take things at face value. I doubt if she is just trying to make him feel better; she doubts his death as well.

1.7-Review and Analysis of Point 1-His Unprophesied Death

-In all of the Prophecies listed above, not one says Rand will die. They mention his blood. Oh wow, big deal. So, from everything listed above, there is not one shred of evidence that Rand will die in Tarmon Gai'don.

-Nothing in this book series is ever said right out. It is always very complex. It would be too easy for RJ to write all this 'blood' prophecy's that make it look like Rand will die. Of course, since almost everyone thinks he will, it seems to have worked.

2.RAND'S MADNESS/LEWS THERIN/MORIDIN



2.1-Semirhage's Knowledge

-Knife Of Dreams, Chapter 27, A Plain Wooden Box, Page 592

-Rand's POV, Semirhage talking to Rand & Company, Near the Altara, Andor bordor

Semirhage saved him the effort of thinking up a lie. "He's insane," she said coolly. Standing there stiff as a statue, Min's knife hilt still sticking out beside her collarbone and the front of her black dress glistening with blood, she might have been a queen on her throne. "Graendal could explain it better then I. Madness was her speciality. I will try, however. You know of people who hear voices in their heads? Sometimes, very rarely, the voices they hear are voices of past lives. Lanfear claimed he knew things from our own Age, things only Lews Therin Telamon could know. Clearly, he is hearing Lews Therin's voice. It makes no difference that his voice is real, however. In fact, that makes his situation worse. Even Graendal usually failed to acheive reintegration with someone who heard a real voice. I understand the descent into terminal madness can be. . .abrupt." Her lips curved in a smile that never touched her dark eyes.

-I believe Semirhage to be speaking the truth here. I think, in the case, cold hard facts would work better then lies. This does, however, give Rand a bit of hope,with a little something called reintegration. I do not think it will be done to Rand. He needs Lews Therin in his head to help him win Tarmon Gai'don, so scratch this off.

2.2-Min's Lews/Moridin Viewing

-A Crown Of Swords, Chapter 33, A Bath, Page 526

-Rand's POV, talking to Min in the Royal Palace in Cairhien

She folded her arms and frowned up at him through her lashes. She chewed her lip and frowned at the door. She shook her head and muttered under her breath. At last she said," There is only one, really. I was exaggerating. I saw you and another man. I couldn't make out either face, but I knew one was you. You touched, and seemed to merge into one another,and. . . ." Her mouth tightened worriedly, and she went on in a very small voice. I don't know which it means, Rand except that one of you dies and one dosen't. I-why are you grinning? This isn't a joke, Rand. I do not know which of you dies."

-This means that after Tarmon Gai'don, Lews Therin will leave Rand in peace.

2.3-Egwene's Dream of the Dying Man

-A Crown Of Sword, Chapter 10, Unseen Eyes, Page 203

-Egwene's POV, Dreaming in the Rebel Camp

"A man lay dying in a narrow bed, and it was important that he not die, yet outside a funeral pyre was being built, and voices raised songs of joy and sadness."

-I thought I'd just throw this in here. This refers to Rand's current situation; it is ongoing, happening right now. I mean, he is pretty beat up.

2.4-Egwene's Dream of the Many Masks

-The Path Of Daggers, Chapter 15, Stronger Then Written Law, Page 308

-Egwene's POV, Dreaming in the Rebel Camp



"Rand, wearing different masks, until suddenly one of those false faces was no longer a mask, but him."

-I take this as meaning that after Tarmon Gai'don, not only will he desert all of his titles (The Dragon Reborn, Lord of The Morning, King of Illian, ect. . .), but that, again, Lews Therin and Moridin will leave him. His tavereness too, by the way. This has to be after the Last Battle because he cannot give up being the Dragon Reborn before that; the pattern won't let him.

2.5-Review and Analysis Of Point 3-Rand's Madness/Lews Therin/Moridin

-It is possible for Rand to rid himself of Lews Therin before Tarmon Gai'don, but he won't. He can't get any more insane (the taint is gone.) After Tarmon Gai'don, he will desert all titles and the two voices in his head.

3.THE BEGGAR/TO LIVE, YOU MUST DIE

3.1-Min's The Eye Of The World Viewing

-The Eye Of The World, Chapter 15, Strangers And Friends, Page 181

-Rand's POV, Talking to Min just outside of The Stag and Lion, in Baerlon

"What about me?"

Her grin stopped just short of outright laughter. "The same kind of things as the rest. A sword that isn't a sword, a golden crown of laurel leaves, a beggar's staff, you pouring water on sand, a bloody hand and a white hot iron, three women standing over a funeral bier with you in it, black rock wet with blood-"

"All right," he broke in uneasily. "You don't have to list it all."

-Notice the beggar's staff in the middle of all that.

3.2-Perrin's Dream Of Rand (One of very few)

-The Shadow Rising, Chapter 53, The Price Of Departure, Page 612

-Perrin's POV, Dreaming In his room in the Winespring Inn

As he scanned for birds, a patch of sky darkened, became a window to somewhere else. Egwene stood among a crowd of women, fear in her eyes; slowly the women knelt around her. Nynaeve was one of them, and he believed he saw Elayne's red-gold hair. That widow faded and was replaced. Mat stood naked and bound, snarling; an odd spear with a black shaft had been thrust across his back behind his elbows, and a silver medallion, a foxhead, hung on his chest. Mat vanished, and it was Rand. Perrin thought it was Rand. He wore rags and a rough cloak, and a bandage covered his eyes. The third window dissapeared, the sky was only the sky, empty except for clouds.

-Take note that Rand is wearing rags and a rough cloak, and also about the bandage on his eyes.

3.3-Moridin's Little Game

-The Path Of Daggers, Prolouge, Pages 34-35 Paperback

-Moridin's POV, Talking to himself while playing sha'rah with himself, near Shayol Ghul?

The Fisher held his attention, baiting him. Several peices had varying moves, but only the Fisher's attributes altered according to where it stood; on a white square, weak in attack yet agile and far-ranging in escape; on black; strong in attack but slow and vulnerable. When masters played, the Fisher changed sides many times before the end. The green-and-red goal-row that surrounded the playing surface could be threatened by any peice, but only the Fisher could move onto it. Not that he was safe, even there; the Fisher was never safe. When the Fisher was yours, you tried to move him to a square of your color beyond your opponent's end of the board. That was victory, the easiest way, but not the only one. When your opponent held the Fisher, you attempted to leave him no choice for the Fisher but to move onto your color. Anywhere at all along the goal-row would do; holding the Fisher could be more dangerous then not. Of course, there was a third path to victory in sha'rah, if you took it before letting yourself be trapped. The game always degenerated in a bloody meelee, then, victory coming with complete annihilation of your enemy. He had tried that, once, in complete desperation, but the attempt had failed. Painfully.

Fury boiled suddenly in Moridin's head, and black flecks swarm across his eyes as he seized the True Power. Ecstasy that amounted to pain thundered through him. His hand closed around the two mindtraps, and the True Power closed around the Fisher, snatching it into the air, a hair from crushing it to powder, crushing the powder out of existance. The goblet shattered in his hand. His grip bordered on crushing the cour'souvra. The saa were a blizzard of black, but they did not hinder his sight. The Fisher was always worked as a man, a bandage blinding his eyes and one hand pressed to his side, a few drops of blood dripping through his fingers. The reasons, like the source of the name, were lost in the mist of time. That troubled him sometimes, enraged him, what knowledge might be lost in the turnings of the Wheel, knowledge he needed, knowledge he had a right to. A right!

Slowly he set the Fisher back on the board. Slowly his fingers uncurled from around the cour'souvra. There was no need for destruction. Yet. Icy calm replaced rage in the blink of an eye. Blood and wine dripped from his gashed hand, unnoticed. Perhaps the Fisher did come from some remnant of a memory of Rand al'Thor, the shadow of a shadow. It did not matter. He realized he was laughing, and made no effort to stop. On the board, the Fisher stood waiting, but in the greater game, al'Thor moved already to his wishes. And soon, now. . . .It was very hard to lose a game when you played both sides of the board. Moridin laughed so hard that tears rolled down his face, but he was not aware of them.

-Now, reread that passage again, but this time, everywhere you see the words 'the Fisher', replace it with Rand al'Thor. See what I mean? This is too amazing to be a coicedence. The bandage on his eyes, his hand on his side with blood dripping thur? Now, for what this means.

3.4-What The Aelfinn Said

-Gather From Knife of Dreams, News For The Dragon

Rand 's Question-How can I win the Last Battle and survive?

Their answer-The north and east must be as one. The west and south must be as one. The two must be as one. To live, you must die.

-The important part of this is 'to live, you must die'. Some would take that as saying that Rand will die, but the Dragon Reborn will live on. What it really means is for Rand to live, he must 'die' from the world, go away, hide. Become beggar-like.

3.5-The Fake Funeral

-The Eye Of The World, Chapter 15, Strangers And Friends, Page 181

-Rand's POV, Talking to Min just outside of The Stag and Lion, in Baerlon

"What about me?"

Her grin stopped just short of outright laughter. "The same kind of things as the rest. A sword that isn't a sword, a golden crown of laurel leaves, a beggar's staff, you pouring water on sand, a bloody hand and a white hot iron, three women standing over a funeral bier with you in it, black rock wet with blood-"

"All right," he broke in uneasily. "You don't have to list it all."

-Three women standing over a funeral bier with you in it. This obviously dosen't indicate he will die, or Min would be upset. It has to be his three lovers, at his fake funeral.



3.6-The Boat One

-Lord Of Chaos, Chapter 14, Dreams and Nightmares, Page 255

-Nynaeve's POV, making full circle with other sisters during a bubble of evil in the rebel camp.

"The lion sword, the dedicated spear, she who sees beyond. Three on the boat, and he who is dead yet lives. The great battle done, but the world not done with battle. The land divided by the return, and the guardians balance out the servants. The future teeters on the edge of a blade."

-It does not matter if the boat is literal or symbolic, Rand will live.

3.7-The Boat 2

-Lord Of Chaos, Chapter 19, Matter's Of Toh, Page 312

-Rand's POV, Avi speaking.

"Melaine and Bair dreamed of you [Rand] on a boat with three women whose faces they could not see and a scale tilting first one way and then the other. Melaine and Amys dreamed of a man standing by your side with a dagger to your throat, but you did not see him. Bair and Amys dreamed of you cutting the wetlands in two with a sword. All three had this dream, which makes it especially significant. Rain, coming from a bowl. There are snares and pitfalls around the bowl. If the right hands pick it up, they will find a treasure perhaps as great as the bowl. If the wrong hands, the world is doomed. The key to finding the bowl is to find the one who is no longer."

-Again, same from above, Rand will survive. The scale is weather they pull the scheme off(they do, see below).



3.8-Review and Analysis Of Point 2-The Beggar

-From the quotes above, we can sucessfully gather that Rand will become beggar-like at some point. Let me define beggar-like. He will only be acting the beggar; after Tarmon Gai'don is over, he will go into hiding, somewhere, where very few know where he is. This can all be garenteed from those three quotes, without a doubt. The beggar-like appearance may also symbolize something else-that nobody will know it was Rand who was the Dragon Reborn. He will survive, TO LIVE, YOU MUST DIE. He will become a beggar, dying as the Dragon Reborn, to live as a beggar.

4.LOGAIN'S GLORY

4.1-Min's Most Mysterious Viewing

-The Shadow Rising, Chapter 17, Deceptions, Page 198

-Min's POV, Talking to Gawyn and Galad in Tar Valon

She barely heard him, because suddenly she was staring at a big man with long, dark hair curling around slumped shoulders, wandering aimlessly down one of the gravled paths through the trees, under the watchful eyes of an Accepted. She had seen Logain before, a sad faced, once hearty man, always with an Accepted for companion. That woman was meant to keep him from killing himself as much to prevent his escape; despite his size, he truly did not seem up to anything of the latter sort. But she had never before seen a flaring halo around his head, radinant in gold and blue. It was only there for a moment, but that was enough.

Logain had proclaimed himself the Dragon Reborn, had been captured and gentled. Whatever glory he might have had as a false Dragon was far behind him now. All that remained for him now was the despair of the gentled, like a man who had been robbed of sight and hearing and taste, wanting to die, waiting for death that inevitably came to such men in a few years. He glanced at her, perhaps not seeing her; his eyes looked hopelessly inward. So why had he worn a halo that shouted of glory and power to come? This was something she had to tell the Amyrlin.

-So Logain has glory and power to come. What exactly is it? This next quote is the most important one in this whole theory, indeed, what this is based on.

4.2-The MVQ

-A Crown Of Swords, Chapter 10, Unseen Eyes, Page 202

-Egwene's POV, Dreaming in the Rebel Camp

"Logain, laughing, stepped across something on the ground and mounted a black stone; when she looked down, she thought it was Rand's body he had stepped over, laid out on a funeral bier with his hands crossed at his breast, but when she touched his face, it broke apart like a paper puppet.."

-Wow. Okay, let's digest this. Logain steps over Rand's body. He is laughing. He dosen't hate Rand, and he want's the Light to win, so if this occured before Tarmon Gai'don, he wouldn't be laughing. The most obvious assumption is that after Tarmon Gai'don, Rand dies and Logain gets credit for defeating the DO, and being the Dragon Reborn. That is half right, half wrong. Logain will get credit, but Rand will still be alive. Notice when Egwene touchs his face, it breaks like a paper puppet. That is what seals the deal. After Tarmon Gai'don, Logain will become the Dragon Reborn as Rand will go into a kinda self imposed exile(one he would greatly enjoy.)

-There is one quote I couldn't find for the life of me. In it Thom tells Mat I think that in X number of years from now, Rand might not be the hero of the story; it could be Mat, or Thom himself. An obvious bit of foreshadowing in any case.

5.FOURTH AGE HISTORIES

5.1-Fourth Age Histories Number 1

-The Eye of The World Prolouge

And it came to pass in those days, as it had come before and would come again, that the Dark lay heavy on the land and weighed down the hearts of men, and the green things failed, and hope died. And men cried out to the Creator, saying, O Light of the Heavens, Light of the World, let the Promised One be born of the mountain, according to the prophecies, as he was in ages past and will be in ages to come. Let the Prince of the Morning sing to the land that green things will grow and the valleys give forth lambs. Let the arm of the Lord of the Dawn shelter us from the Dark, and the great sword of justice defend us. Let the Dragon ride again on the winds of time.

(From Charal Drianaan te Calamon, The Cycle of the Dragon. Author unknown, the Fourth Age)

5.2-Forth Age Histories Number 2

-The Dragon Reborn, End Prophecy

And it was written that no hand but his should wield the Sword held in the Stone, but he did draw it out, like fire in his hand, and his glory did burn the world. Thus did it begin. Thus do we sing his Rebirth. Thus do we sing the beginning.

(from Do'in Toldara te, Songs of the Last Age, Quarto Nine: The Legend Of The Dragon. Composed by Boanne, Songmistress at Taralan, the Forth Age)

5.3-Forth Age Histories Number 3

-The Shadow Rising End Prophecy

And when the blood was sprinkled on ground where nothing could grow, the Children of the Dragon did spring up, the People of the Dragon, armed to dance with death. And he did call them forth from the wasted land, and they did shake the world with battle.

(from The Wheel of Time by Sulamein so Bhagad, Chief Historian at the Court of the Sun, the Fourth Age.)

5.4-Forth Age Histories Number 4

-The Fires Of Heaven End Prophecy

And the Glory of the Light did shine upon him.

And the Peace of the Light did he give men.

Binding nations to him. Making one of many.

Yet the shards of hearts did give wounds.

And what was once did come again

--in fire and in storm

splitting all in twain.

For his peace...

--for his peace...

...was the peace...

...was the peace...

...of the sword.

And the Glory of the Light did shine upon him.

(from Glory of the Dragon, composed by Meane sol Ahell, the Fourth Age)

5.5-Forth Age Histories Number 5

-Lord Of Chaos Header Prophecy

The lions sing and the hills take flight.

The moon by day, and the sun by night.

Blind woman, deaf man, jackdaw fool.

Let the Lord of Chaos rule.

(chant from a children's game heard in Great Aravalon, the Fourth Age)

5.6-Review and Analysis Of Point 5-Forth Age Histories

-None of these mention Fourth Age Histories mention Rand's name or his 'death'. Interesting.

6.CONCLUSION

-From everything above, we can safely realize that Rand will survive to Tarmon Gai'don, Defeat the Dark One, become beggar-like, go into hiding. TO LIVE, YOU MUST DIE. Again, he will die as the Dragon Reborn, giving all the credit to Logain, and live as Rand al'Thor, who he really wants to be.