Monday, 29 January 2007

Elders mainly keep track of witches, watching from the Heavens. They communicate with those on Earth through their helpers and messengers, the whitelighters. The Elders decide who may become a whitelighter, and give and take their powers. A whitelighter's ability to heal is channeled directly from the Elders.

Apparently in the show's universe at least most, if not all, of the Elders were at one time whitelighters themselves. Leo Wyatt was promoted to the rank of Elder after saving the Charmed Ones and the remaining Elders from the wrath of the Titans. Though most Elders have powers much like Whitelighters, the Charmed Ones protect a retiring Elder for a short time whose powers are strictly of the mental sort, and cannot orb or fight.

Though whitelighters are not allowed to kill, the Elders have powerful fighting abilities. An Elders' powers are the same as Whitelighters but with their power level ramped up. Leo is seen using a lightning-like power to kill Gideon . In the episode "It's a Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad World Part I" three elders are shown to kill a mortal with magical flames, although this occurs in a magic-induced hallucination and does not indicate their actual abilities.

When witches need advice on demons they know nothing about, they can ask the Elders by sending their whitelighter. The Elders however are not all knowing, in some cases they are as clueless about something as the sisters are. In the episode Apocalypse Not Leo had to find out who the four horsemen were and what they were up to because the elders could not help. The Elders do not allow witches or any other magical being besides themselves and whitelighters to enter the Heavens. Even the Charmed Ones do not have this privilege, as Piper and Leo have to ask for an audience when they seek permission to have a relationship, and Leo specifically tells Piper she is not allowed there when she comes to see him. The Elders do, however, allow Leo to watch over his son Wyatt and to take him to be with the Elders when he may be in danger.

Paige recently has been using her whitelighter side, and is now able to converse with the elders as she pleases. Though she does not go to the Heavens like the other elders or whitelighters do, they meet at the Golden Gate Bridge and she speaks with one of the few women elders, Sandra.