Jurda parem, a drug that gives Grisha the power to control others’ minds, to walk through walls, and to transform lead into gold, drives the plot of Six of Crows as well as illustrating the dangers of absolute power and greed. The mercher Jan Van Eck explains that jurda parem “seems to sharpen and hone a Grisha’s senses,” so that “things become possible that simply shouldn’t be” (48). A Grisha under the influence of jurda parem can compel a man to chop off his own finger; the drug becomes an ominous, inhuman element that inspires fear and dread. Anyone who controls parem can control the world. Although Kaz and his crew agree to retrieve the scientist with the formula for parem for their personal gain, they also understand that the fate of the world hangs in the balance.

The symbol of jurda parem becomes even more formidable as “the drug clearly came with a price” (48), and a high one: The drug can cause addiction with only one dose, making it almost inconceivably powerful, and withdrawal symptoms usually lead to death. This contradiction—a Grisha made inhumanly strong by the drug then left desperately weak without it—adds complexity to the drug as a symbol of power.