Sedai keep their own agenda. They still provide aid to any who ask, but it is said that any gift from an Aes Sedai has a price, and often one you never see coming. The Amyrlin Seat, the woman chosen to govern the Aes Sedai, became as powerful as any king, queen or legislative body.
Aes Sedai rank themselves according to a strict hierarchy. Holders of certain positions rank at the top.
The Amyrlin Seat
The Amyrlin Seat is the leader of the Aes Sedai, along with the Hall of the Tower. She, as the public leader of the White Tower, is considered more powerful than any monarch in the land. The Amyrlin Seat does not always act as ambassador to other nations, but has been known to do so. The Amyrlin Seat does not actually need to be full Aes Sedai, as revealed when Egwene is raised to the Amyrlin Seat.
The Keeper of the Chronicles
The Amyrlin’s second-in-command, the Keeper’s duties include being secretary to the Amyrlin and overseeing the official business of the Tower. The Amyrlin chooses her upon being raised. Unlike the Amyrlin, the Keeper does not officially shed her Ajah affiliation; The Keeper wears a stole in the color of the Ajah she was raised from.
Traditionally, the Keeper comes from the same Ajah as the Amyrlin, but there have been exceptions. Two relatively recent Amyrlins, Sierin Vayu and Elaida a’Roihan. Sierin, a Gray “with a touch of Red”, chose a Red Keeper. Elaida had little choice but to raise a White, Alviarin, because of her help in deposing Siuan. Egwene al’Vere, though without an Ajah, also picked a surprising Keeper, choosing a Red both because she respected her choice and in an attempt to heal the rift between the Red Ajah and the rest of the Tower.
The Hall of the Tower
The Hall of the Tower is the deliberative body of the White Tower. It comprises 21 Sitters, three from each Ajah. The Amyrlin Seat presides over meetings of the Hall. The Hall authorizes all official policy for Tar Valon and the Aes Sedai, although some actions originate with the Amyrlin Seat. This functions as a system of Checks and balances for the White Tower. The Hall is also responsible for selecting a new Amyrlin when the office falls vacant, and can remove an Amyrlin or Keeper. In that function, they are similar to the College of Cardinals in the Vatican, which elects the new Pope. Sitters are highly esteemed sisters who have been chosen by their Ajahs to represent their interests in the Hall of the Tower. Each Ajah has its own method for selecting new Sitters, but the Ajah Heads generally have a significant role. The Sitters also vote to raise a new Amyrlin Seat.
Each Ajah has its own ruling council. The women in this council are known as Ajah Heads, and are not necessarily sitters of the Hall. If this is the case, Sitters are answerable to their Ajah heads for their actions in the Hall. Though sitters are public knowledge, the names of the Ajah heads are a closely guarded secret of each Ajah. Ajah Heads have no extra authority outside their Ajah.
Other Aes Sedai
Although Aes Sedai enjoy almost unrestricted power among the wider world, they have their own strict hierarchy that allows little room for deviation. The hierarchy is a custom as strong as law, and failure to defer to a higher ranking can lead to the offended sister setting the other a penance. The hierarchy is based on four factors:
Granted authority: Where the Amyrlin sets one sister to lead a group, all in the group defer to that sister. In the Blue Ajah, and presumably most others, the Ajah Head can set a sister above others within the Ajah in the same way.
Strength in the One Power" Aes Sedai defer to those that are stronger in the One Power than themselves. If there is a large gap in strength, that deferral becomes obedience.
Training Time: Where there is little difference in strength, a woman is deemed higher up in the Aes Sedai hierarchy if she spent less time as novice and Accepted than another. This may be a way of measuring pure ability among Aes Sedai, since training in the Tower involves both skill in the One Power and knowledge of non-Power information s