Several major powers keep the “Dune” universe running. The Great Houses and the Emperor command attention in public, while other factions prefer to shape events from the shadows. The Bene Gesserit belongs to the latter category—but its discreet political methods should not be mistaken for weakness. This secretive order of women is among the Imperium’s most formidable political and economic forces.

The Sisterhood, whose early history was partially explored in the rushed prequel series “Dune: Prophecy,” operates behind thrones, manipulates bloodlines, and influences entire cultures. Its members are highly trained and technically united by a common plan to steer humanity toward what they believe is a better future. Yet noble intentions do not make their methods innocent. Like many of the powers they manipulate, the Bene Gesserit has left plenty of blood behind.

To understand the Sisterhood, it helps to examine its origins, its layered structure, and the extraordinary abilities its members use to advise, influence, and control events across Frank Herbert’s science-fiction universe.

The Bene Gesserit’s earliest roots reach back into humanity’s history on Earth, preserved through the collective Other Memory carried by the Sisterhood. The details are uncertain, but the closest explanation links the group’s distant beginnings to the Priestesses of Jowf on Old Earth, a fictional variation on early Assyrian history. As humanity spread across the “Dune” universe over thousands of years, women known as “sorceresses” became the first recognizable forms of an organized sisterhood. At this point, their story still belongs more to myth and legend than to recorded history.

The Bene Gesserit enters established “Dune” history after the Butlerian Jihad, the anti-AI conflict also known as the Great Revolt. In the aftermath of that universe-shattering war, the Sisterhood gained momentum as an organized political force. For centuries, however, it remained largely hidden—operating even further behind the scenes than the order depicted in the first “Dune” novel and Denis Villeneuve’s first two films.

Instead of relying on open displays of power, the expanding order quietly infiltrated positions of influence. Bene Gesserit members were placed within prominent Great Houses, allowing the Sisterhood to build authority over time. Its services in mediation, negotiation, and other imperial affairs also became indispensable, creating a dependence that strengthened the order without drawing unnecessary attention to it.

The Bene Gesserit is one of the most compelling—and frightening—forces in the “Dune” saga. Unlike the Great Houses, whose motives are usually easy to identify—wealth, revenge, survival, or limitless power—the Sisterhood’s objectives unfold over much longer timelines. It may manipulate a marriage, destabilize a dynasty, or influence a trade dispute, but those individual conflicts are only pieces of a larger plan: guiding humanity, after the defeat of artificial intelligence, toward a more capable future under the Sisterhood’s direction.

Reverend Mother Mohiam explains the order’s philosophy in the first “Dune” novel by emphasizing its political purpose: “The original Bene Gesserit school was directed by those who saw the need of a thread of continuity in human affairs. They saw there could be no such continuity without separating human stock from animal stock — for breeding purposes.”

Her explanation follows a discussion of the Great Revolt, the struggle in which humanity defeated the “thinking machines”—sentient artificial intelligences that sought to dominate their creators. After that catastrophe, the Bene Gesserit devoted itself to developing human potential without depending on such machines. For millennia, that mission took the form of a program to breed more capable humans. Before examining the program’s consequences, it is important to understand how the order is governed and how it uses religion as one of its most effective tools.

The Bene Gesserit’s hierarchy is led by the theologically titled Reverend Mothers and the Mother Superior. Beneath them are several levels of authority. Proctor Superiors manage individual chapter houses, while ordinary Sisters form the main body of the order.

Reverend Mothers oversee these members and chapter houses. The best-known is Lady Jessica, who becomes a Reverend Mother during her exile with the Fremen in the first “Dune” novel and in “Dune: Part Two.”

Countless other Reverend Mothers operate throughout the Known Universe. These regional leaders supervise the Sisterhood’s quiet work, from breeding strategies and cultural programming to the collection and transmission of vital information. They can also access the personalities and memories of those who came before them, as Lady Jessica does after drinking the Water of Life and gaining Other Memory. Above every chapter and Reverend Mother stands the Mother Superior, the order’s supreme matriarch and highest source of authority.

Ritual, tradition, and secrecy define the Bene Gesserit. To outsiders, this closed community of influential women with seemingly supernatural abilities can look like a cult. The Sisterhood insists that it is not a religious order, yet it operates through many of the same symbols and practices—and willingly encourages that impression when useful. In “Dune,” this religious groundwork helps Paul Atreides assume the role of a messiah among the Fremen, a role the Bene Gesserit prepared for long before he arrived.

In “Children of Dune,” Paul’s daughter Ghanima describes the Bene Gesserit’s view of religion while reciting its credo. She calls it “the emulation of the adult by the child” and “the encystment of past beliefs,” combining mythology, assumptions about the universe, declarations made for personal power, and fragments of enlightenment. She also notes that conventional religion often carries an unspoken commandment: “Thou shalt not question!” The Bene Gesserit, she argues, is different because it questions everything, seeking to free the imagination and direct it toward humanity’s deepest creative abilities.

The Sisterhood may resemble a religious institution, but it has no hesitation about breaking religious rules or using faith as a political instrument. That blend of mysticism and calculated manipulation produces one of its most consequential projects: the attempt to create the messianic Kwisatz Haderach.

Bene Gesserit agents are fixtures of imperial politics and aristocratic intrigue. They build economic influence, work alongside the most powerful figures in the Known Universe, and interfere in major geopolitical decisions. Yet their most famous form of influence is their effort to breed humanity toward a single extraordinary individual.

For generations, the Bene Gesserit carefully pairs selected bloodlines in pursuit of a superhuman male known as the Kwisatz Haderach. In theory, this messianic figure would bridge the divide between male and female experience, uniting the distinct ancestral memories carried by each side of humanity. The result would be a being capable of guiding the species into its next stage of development. But in the morally complicated world of “Dune,” the project is also about control. If the Sisterhood successfully created a human savior, it could determine the direction of humanity by placing that figure under its influence.

This breeding program drives the events of “Dune: Part One.” Lady Jessica, played by Rebecca Ferguson, was expected to give birth to a daughter as part of the plan. Instead, she chose to have Paul—a decision Bene Gesserit women are capable of making because they can determine the sex of their children. Her choice disrupts a program nearing its multigenerational conclusion and sets off the upheaval explored in “Dune” and “Dune: Messiah,” the stories being adapted in Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune” film trilogy.

In “Dune,” Lady Jessica and her unborn daughter, Alia, gain access to Other Memory. This collective inheritance contains ancestral memories and, for Reverend Mothers, a succession of experiences, personalities, and knowledge passed from one female leader to the next.

Carrying those inner voices is one of the central burdens of becoming a Reverend Mother. Other Memory allows the women to consult the distant past and recover knowledge even when written records have been destroyed or forgotten. It is an extraordinary mental resource, but it comes with a heavy cost: every Reverend Mother must learn to manage the countless voices and identities living within her.

Other Memory can come through a ceremony where past memories are transferred to a new Reverend Mother via a special narcotic. In Lady Jessica’s case, that substance is the (super gross) Water of Life that she consumes in “Dune: Part Two.” This transfer ceremony is always a “live or die” test — one where the consumer can perish in the trial. If they emerge, they can hone the ability to hear the portfolio of memories that they personally contain, as well as those the previous Reverend Mother is passing along to them. While Other Memory is a terrifyingly nifty superpower, it’s just one of several exceptional capabilities that the Bene Gesserit unlock over the millennia that their Order develops.

The Bene Gesserit Reverend Mothers may be the main ones able to house the distant past through Other Memory, but there are other skills that all members of their order can tap into. One of these is the Voice. In the movies, this is depicted as a creepy, low-tone growl. Orders are barked at someone, and hey, presto! They obey.

The Voice isn’t magic, though. The Bene Gesserit use religion and mysticism as a cloak, but in reality, most of their abilities are explained through things like training and physiology. In the case of the Voice, members of the Sisterhood (and occasionally others, like Paul Atreides) simply use a specific vocal register. By hitting this frequency — which is different for each person and requires expert understanding and attention to detail — they tap into a physiological response that forces compliance. Think of it as a much creepier and more understandable version of a Jedi mind trick (which, in reality, is one of the more messed up parts of the “Star Wars” franchise, anyway). By understanding the Voice, Sisters are also able to resist its bone-chilling charm.

Along with the guttural siren-like compliance of the Voice, the Bene Gesserit can tap into Truthsense. This is a more advanced part of a Sister’s enhanced ability to generally sense detailed emotional messaging. In essence, it turns them into human lie detectors and has a variety of useful applications. That more attuned awareness also allows Sisters to judge if someone is putting on a fake accent. It can also help detect concealed weapons. Through their overall heightened sense of awareness and observation, the Bene Gesserit can even detect if an individual has ulterior motives or is hiding a secret.

One of the quieter but more impressive advantages of being a member of the Bene Gesserit is the training that gives you Prana-bindu control. Prana means “muscle,” and bindu refers to “nerves.” In other words, Prana-bindu training gives you more control over your muscles and nerves — and in the case of the Bene Gesserit, extraordinary control.

By learning the art of Prana-bindu, a Sister can survive in extreme weather conditions by regulating their temperature. They can also slow metabolism to avoid starving and can even take a single bite of something, break it down in their mouths, and understand the individual ingredients involved in the dish. Another side effect of Prana-bindu is that it turns the Bene Gesserit into some of the most well-trained hand-to-hand combatants. They are able to develop advanced capabilities, like faster attack speed, and when this is combined with trained fighting techniques, it gives them a unique edge in any violent engagement.

Prana-bindu also gives the Bene Gesserit more sophisticated control over their bodily functions. The most famous of these is their ability to menstruate on command and choose the gender of a conceived child. But there are other advantages. If a Sister is poisoned, they can control how their body reacts to the unwelcome substance. In theory, they can even control the aging process, although actually doing so would expose their members through an outward appearance of immortality.

The Bene Gesserit thrived for millennia in the background of the “Dune” universe. They cultivate elaborate individual abilities and created a shadow organization with impressive power that reaches into Major Houses and even Imperial households. But there is another side to the Bene Gesserit, one focused on the dollars and cents. The Order is also involved in the economic powerhouse known as CHOAM.

Combine Honnete Ober Advancer Mercantiles, or CHOAM for short, is the ultimate commercial organization (and something that “Dune” movies have managed to get wrong from the book more than once). The group monopolizes commerce across the Imperium, controlling what goods move where. Its members openly include the Landsraad (a parliamentary group made up of the Great Houses) and the Emperor. But there are silent partners as well, including — you guessed it — the Bene Gesserit. By owning a stake in the biggest trade conglomeration humanity has ever known, the Order creates a tangible tool they can wield as they operate behind the scenes.

The economic element of the Bene Gesserit’s involvement in CHOAM mainly serves to underpin the Order’s primary focus, which is and remains political influence. The Bene Gesserit use this covert combination of economic and political power to guide humanity long before the main “Dune” books take place, and they continue to do so in the post-Atreides era. That’s when their order scatters across the universe and threatens to devolve into chaos without strong leadership.

As the later books unfold, this brings them into conflict with other groups (like the Bene Tleilax, who are behind many of “Dune’s” creepiest creatures) as well as a hostile enclave spun out of their own ranks: the Honored Matres. This violent and aggressive manifestation of their order eventually reunites in an uneasy alliance with the Bene Gesserit, helping them re-establish a sense of purpose.

However, as the known part of Frank Herbert’s story ends, the revived order is still tinged with a distinct lack of control over the future they had so long tried to manipulate to their own ends. From there, it’s either up to your imagination, or on a path laid out by the many books (many only dubiously accepted by hardcore fans) offered by Herbert’s son, Brian, with the assistance of Kevin J. Anderson.