The power to work magic sets the limits of that power

The principle that the power to work magic sets the limits of that power is a foundational law of Earthsea's magical system, articulated by the Master Namer Kurremkarmerruk at the Isolate Tower on Roke. It states that a mage can control only what is near him and what he can name exactly and wholly, and that this limitation is necessary to preserve the Equilibrium of the world. The principle is demonstrated throughout Ged's story, from his first use of a witch's rhyme to his final confrontation with the shadow, and it shapes the entire ethical framework of wizardry in the book.

Definition and Articulation

The principle is most explicitly stated by Kurremkarmerruk, the Master Namer, during Ged's year of study at the Isolate Tower on Roke. The Master explains that magic consists in the true naming of a thing, and that "that which gives us the power to work magic sets the limits of that power." A mage can control only what is near him, what he can name exactly and wholly. If it were not so, the wickedness of the powerful or the folly of the wise would long ago have sought to change what cannot be changed, and Equilibrium would fail. The unbalanced sea would overwhelm the islands where men perilously dwell, and in the old silence all voices and all names would be lost. This is not a restriction imposed from outside but an inherent property of the Old Speech, the language of dragons and of Segoy who made the islands of the world. The sea's name is inien, but that word cannot be used to lay a spell over all the ocean, because the Inmost Sea has its own name, and every bay and strait beyond counting bears a name of its own. A spell of storm or calm over all the ocean would require not just the word inien but the name of every stretch and bit and part of the sea through all the Archipelago and all the Outer Reaches and beyond to where names cease.

Demonstration Through Ged's Early Magic

The principle is illustrated from the very beginning of Ged's magical education. When he first uses the witch's rhyme "Noth hierth malk manhiolk han merth han!" to call the goats, he does so without knowing its use or meaning, and the goats come to him, but he cannot control them—they crowd around him, and he becomes afraid. The witch of Ten Alders, who teaches him, knows nothing of the Balance and the Pattern which the true wizard knows and serves, and which keep him from using his spells unless real need demands. She has a spell for every circumstance and is forever weaving charms, but much of her lore is mere rubbish and humbug. When Ged later uses the fogweaving charm to defend Ten Alders from the Kargish raiders, he must adapt the spell to his own ends, interlacing the words of a spell of concealment with the fogweaving charm, and the working of the doubled incantation drains his strength so severely that he falls speechless and stupid, unable to eat or sleep. His aunt, the witch, says, "He has overspent his power," but she has no art to help him. The principle that power has limits is thus demonstrated through the physical and mental cost of exceeding one's knowledge.

Application in the School for Wizards

At the School for Wizards on Roke, the principle is taught by the Masters in various forms. The Master Hand explains to Ged that to change a rock into a diamond, one must change its true name, and to do that even to so small a scrap of the world is to change the world. It can be done, but one must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until one knows what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium. A wizard's power of Changing and of Summoning can shake the balance of the world. It is most perilous. It must follow knowledge, and serve need. "To light a candle is to cast a shadow," the Master says. The Master Summoner teaches that the weatherworker's and seamaster's calling upon wind and water are crafts that must be used only at need, since to summon up such earthly forces is to change the earth of which they are a part. "Rain on Roke may be drouth in Osskil," he says, "and a calm in the East Reach may be storm and ruin in the West, unless you know what you are about." The Master Namer's entire curriculum is built on the principle that the power to work magic sets the limits of that power: the lists of true names are endless, and no man could learn them all, because there is no end to that language.

Consequences of Violating the Principle

Ged's violation of the principle—his attempt to summon the spirit of Elfarran from the dead without the knowledge or need that would justify such an act—leads directly to the loosing of the shadow. He had read the runes of the Spell of Summoning in Ogion's book two years earlier, in darkness, and never since had seen them. Now in darkness he reads them again, but he does not fully understand what he reads. The spell works, but with it comes a thing not summoned, a shapeless clot of shadow darker than darkness, which tears at his flesh and nearly destroys him. The Archmage Nemmerle must spend all his power to drive the shadow off, and the effort costs him his life. The principle that power has limits is thus demonstrated in the most catastrophic way possible: the attempt to exceed those limits brings ruin not only to the wizard but to those around him.

The Principle and the Resolution

The principle ultimately governs the resolution of Ged's quest. When he finally confronts the shadow on the Open Sea, in the dry land beyond the world, he does not try to overpower it with a greater spell. Instead, he speaks the shadow's name, and in the same moment the shadow speaks without lips or tongue, saying the same word: "Ged." The two voices are one voice. Ged reaches out his hands and takes hold of his shadow, of the black self that reaches out to him. Light and darkness meet, and join, and are one. The principle that the power to work magic sets the limits of that power is here fulfilled: Ged cannot destroy the shadow because it is part of himself, but by naming it with his own name—by knowing it exactly and wholly—he integrates it into his being and becomes whole. The principle is not a restriction to be resented but a truth to be understood: the limits of power are also the conditions of its proper use, and within those limits lies the possibility of true mastery.