It is arguable if Rand truly understood what he was doing. I mean I seem to remember that his thoughts about the force use descriptors like "strange" and "unknown" and such, rather than calling it the DO-power or the like.

Still, he must have atleast had some idea, even if he did not truly understand how bad it was.



The problem with this approach is that that according to prophecies, Rand is vital for the ultimate defeat of the DO. If Rand dies, he will take everyone else with him to death. Worse than death actually since the DO will apparently not just kill people, but actually unmake the universe.

So one might actually argue that the evil would have been not to use it since by that action Rand would have made it possible for the DO to kill everyone and destroy everything, even when he had the chance to prevent it.

(I realise that there is debate about this, but Rand himself believes that he is vital so from his PoV this is true)



This is what I believe. Rand's usage of TP was nasty but he had no other options. Though he did seem to pay a heavy price for it. I have a suspicion that the TP use made Rand's mental condition far worse, causing him to go totally psychotic.

I wonder if Rand would still have done the things he did if he had faced the same mentral trauma (torture, etc), but been rescued by someone before he had a chance to use TP. Would he still have come close to nearly killing himself and destroying the pattern.



I am pretty sure that unlike with OP which is inherently neutral and where the morality of its use comes from the user, the TP is by its very nature evil. I mean has it not been said somewhere (by BS I think), that by its very nature the TP harms the pattern. Like when Moridin traveled, it is described that the pattern screams in pain from that.

The dark aura around Rand is probably a first subtle sign of TP corruption aswell. And probably the fact that his ta'veren effect went unbalanced and only started doing evil and harmfull things.

What I wonder is if there is a way to cleanse yourself of the negative consequences of TP use. Now that Rand seems to have regained his sanity and become stable and good again, does that somehow remove the TP effects. Or will the improved!Rand still have a dark aura and a purely-negative ta'veren effect.