Editing Bene Gesserit (section)

==Weaknesses==

===Addiction to melange===
Reverend Mothers are dependent on [[Melange (fictional drug)|melange]] to give them their abilities. Any person who consumes melange regularly becomes addicted to it and requires it for survival; however, one who has gone through the agony has a far greater need. Though the effects of melange are highly favorable, including vastly increased lifespan and mental powers, withdrawal results in death. Melange is expensive and thus is a continual drain on the Sisterhood's wealth; the most significant threat to the Bene Gesserit is the potential loss of their supply. Paul Atreides and then his son Leto II assert control over the Bene Gesserit and keep them in check by grasping control of the planet Arrakis and the spice supply in a show of [[Hydraulic empire|hydraulic despotism]].

===Abomination===
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A Bene Gesserit who survives the ritual spice agony gains access to Other Memory, the combined ego and memories of all her female ancestors. An adult Reverend Mother can manage the presence of these subordinate inner voices because she has a full personality of her own and a solid sense of self. However, if a Bene Gesserit undergoes the agony while pregnant, the fetus will also experience it, acquiring full consciousness and access to Other Memory. Since the child has not yet developed a sufficiently strong ego before being exposed to her tide of ancestors, she is more susceptible to their influence, and there is a danger that she will ultimately be overcome and [[spiritual possession|possessed]] by a strong ancestral ego. The Bene Gesserit call this "'''Abomination'''", and such children are killed immediately. They are also referred to as "'''pre-born'''" in ''Children of Dune''.

In ''Dune'', [[Lady Jessica]] is pregnant when she undergoes the spice agony while among the [[Fremen]]; her resulting daughter, [[Alia Atreides|Alia]], is born a full Reverend Mother, the mind of an adult in a child's body. She pretends to be a child, but others notice that she is different. The Bene Gesserit are eventually outraged and horrified by Alia's existence, but she is out of their control. Mohiam says, "I've said too much, but the fact remains that this child who is not a child must be destroyed. Long were we warned against such a one and how to prevent such a birth, but one of our own has betrayed us." In ''Children of Dune'', an adult Alia eventually succumbs to the ancestral ego of her grandfather, the Baron [[Vladimir Harkonnen]], who wants nothing more than the destruction of the [[House Atreides|Atreides]], and is given another opportunity, from the inside, to realize it.

[[Paul Atreides]] and [[Chani (character)|Chani]]'s twins, [[Leto II Atreides|Leto II]] and [[Ghanima Atreides|Ghanima]], are also pre-born, but before they become possessed, they stumble across solutions: Leto, forced to undergo a radical spice agony, constructs an executive of benevolent ancestral egos (such as Paul and Paul's father [[Leto I Atreides|Leto I]]) who protect him; Ghanima, as part of their plan to fake Leto's death, consciously blocks the memory of Leto and their plan, inadvertently developing a mental discipline capable of protecting her undeveloped ego.  She also uses the ego of her mother, Chani, as a "door guard" of her alter egos, only "peeking behind the door" when she needs advice from Other Memory.