Omens
General
The Seanchan believe that their lives are governed by omens, which tell them of the weave of the Pattern. Omens do not change according to location (WH, Ch. 14).
Meanings
- An owl calling at dawn
A death (WH, Ch. 14).
- A white winged albatross following a ship
Victory (WH, Ch. 14). - Tuon notes that although the wings on the bird following The Victory of Kidron were black tipped, the omen must mean the same.
- Rain without clouds
An unexpected visitor (WH, Ch. 14).
- A broken nail
Bad luck (WH, Ch. 14).
- Three porpoises sounding once before disappearing
Stay on your chosen course (WH, Ch. 14).
- A bird getting trapped indoors
An ill omen (KoD, Ch. 8).
- A torn spiderweb with a spider still in it
Death of someone close to you within a month (KoD, Ch. 8).
- Flight of birds circling more than once
Storm coming (KoD, Ch. 8).
- Length of time it takes for ants to rejoin their line after being seperated
Number of days of fair weather ahead (KoD, Ch. 8).
- Putting a hat on a table
Bad luck (KoD, Ch. 11).
- A bird circling three times above someone's head
Tuon sees this and interprets it as omen to stay close to Mat (KoD, Ch. 26).
- An owl hooting twice
Some will die soon (KoD, Ch. 27)
- Two dead rats laying on their backs, one with a tail in the mouth of the other
A very bad omen, the worst omen Tylee has ever seen in her life (TGS, Prologue).
- A black dove
Bad news/death. Tuon sees a black dove when she hears of Turan's situation in Arad Doman and believes it means he will not return alive (TGS, Ch. 19).
- A hawk and three Towers
A difficult decision. Tuon sees a pattern like three towers in the sky and a hawk passing between them and takes it as an omen (TGS, Ch. 19).
- Lightning on a day without rain
Tread very lightly and be careful what you speak. Tuon sees this when meeting the Dragon Reborn (TGS, Ch. 35).
- An owl hooting at night that does not fly away when someone looks at it
The next days would be ones of important decisions and great care should be taken. The proper response was to wear jewelry with powerful symbolism (ToM, Ch. 47).
- A hawk with a white head
An omen of great power (ToM, Ch. 47).
- The skull of a small rodent
An omen of danger (AMoL, Ch. 24)
- Peach Blossoms
A powerful omen (AMoL, Ch. 24)
- Twin lines of smoke
A large gamble that would yield large rewards or great cost (AMoL, Ch. 37)
Quotes
"How did these people live, not knowing the omens? Had they no desire to understand the visions of fate the Pattern was giving them?" (Tuon; The Gathering Storm, Chapter 19)
"The omens were all bad, these days. Earlier today, she'd seen two dead rats lying on their backs, one with a tail in the mouth of the other. It was the worst omen she'd ever seen in her life, and it still chilled her to think of it." (Tylee; TGS, Prologue)
"Bloody fool, he thought to himself. Next you'll start thinking like her, reading portents into every little thing, looking for symbols and meaning every time a rabbit runs across your path or a horse lets wind. That kind of fortunetelling was nonsense. Though he had to admit, he now cringed every time he heard an owl hoot twice." (Mat about Tuon and omens; The Gathering Storm, Chapter 20)
