Ishamael matched Lews Therin in strength, and Aginor was just a tiny bit weaker than both of them.

And yet, by the END of book 4, Rand only matches Asmodean in strength. Asmodean was the weakest of the male Forsaken.

And during Book 5, Rand still says that he is growing STRONGER as a result of Asmodean's teachings.

Now, if he already matched Ishamael and Aginor in Book 1, how could he still be growing stronger 5 books later? Because then he was already as strong as Lews Therin back in Book 1.

It is obvious that the scene at the end of Eye of the World was written before the One Power system was fully fleshed out.

We know that male strength increases in jumps rather than gradually. And this is influenced by how often they channel the Power.

Now, Rand only really starts channeling regularly in Book 4. In fact, at the beginning of Book 4, he can't even hold onto the Power every time he tries to reach for it.

It is clear that he is still growing in strength well beyond Book 5. In Book 6 he mentions Lews Therin's voice was becoming clearer the stronger he grew in the Power.

In that case, he must have been increasing in Power right up to Book 12, where Lews Therin became one with him.

In any case, what is undeniable, is that Rand is still growing in strength long after Book 1. In fact, in Book 7, he says Dashiva is holding almost as much of the Power as he is. That's seven Books after the scene at the Eye.

So either the scene at the Eye is being misconstrued, or all references to Rand growing in strength after that point are false.