jedi orientationPART 1:
the origin of the orderno doubt the history of the jedi order has been variously explored and explained throughout the EU. I, for one, am only vaguely familiar with the EU so this essay may be redundant or entirely “wrong”. Nevertheless, I am less concerned with the ‘how’ as the ‘why’. I shall try to answer, by comparing examples from the star wars saga to eastern systems of thought, these three basic questions: why was the force first used? why were the ways of the force perpetually taught? and, why was the jedi order formed?
As we have learned, all living being possess, in their cells, a certain amount of midichlorians. Those born with an extraordinary amount of midichlorians gain extraordinary physical and metaphysical abilities. These abilities manifest themselves in several ways, including enhanced reflexes, heightened sense, premonition, and possibly acute perception. It is currently unknown to me how old the recognition of the force is, but presumably every generation of sentient beings produces a number of “gifted” individuals; therefore it is likely that as long as there has been consciousness there has been awareness, in varying degrees, of the force. Over the countless eons of the myriad worlds of the universe, the innate abilities of protojedi were slowly developed until an individual, or group, founded the basic principles of force-wielding. The abilities would have gained in potency as each successive generation of force-wielders discovered new venues for their powers. Like qui-gon was the first to return from the force, there was probably one person who originally realized the vast potential of the force and made unprecedented progress in its applications. The first to take the ‘first steps into a larger world.' the first to recognize fully that the force, like lao tzu’s “way” was what “the myriad creatures depend on (for) life, yet claims no authority.”
but how and why should the ‘first’ go about teaching others? in
the world of myth, David leeming answers, “this doubt assails the buddha, he nevertheless immediately responds to a definite request for guidance; the moment the pupil puts the right questions, the teacher’s doubts are resolved.” in other words, the force-wielder would certainly impress upon others a feeling of awe at his ‘magical’ accomplishments. a few would want to learn this knowledge also, and then fewer he/she would deem worthy. Almost immediately, there would be a rift between those who wanted to aid society and those who wanted to aid themselves with what they had learned. Here we have the separation of the sith and the jedi. Perhaps, by virtue of opposing schools was each school defined. Musashi,
book of five rings, writes of the way of the warrior, “in this way of life in particular, if you misperceive the path even slightly, if you stray from the right way, you fall into evil sates.”
The chief virtue of the jedi would be, above all, compassion. “Whatever you do should be done for the sake of your master nad parents, the people in general, and for posterity. This is great compassion.” writes tsunetomo in the
hagakure. “When one punishes or strives with the heart of compassion, what he does will be limitless in strength and correctness. Doing something for one’s own sake is shallow and mean and turns into evil...the foundation for ruling the country in peace is compassion.”
The abhorrence of, and constant threat of succumbing to, the ‘rival school’ would have led to more and more strict regulations on teaching about the force. To borrow an old maxim, “with great power comes great responsibility.” if the jedi are to take it upon themselves to aid society, then how will they ensure their teachings wont lead to, through their misuse, the downfall of society? The order had to be established so that a council of experienced leaders could decide how best to teach their padawans and to decide what preventative measures could be taken against the darkside. The council’s duty, as munenori, in
the book of family traditions on the art of war says of the samurai, would be “seeing the situation of the states, knowing when there will be a disputation, and healing disturbances before it happens.” the council, in order to limit the influences of the darkside, would have put regulations on many things which could potentially lead the inexperienced down the ‘wrong’ path. In the movies, these repudiations seem to center around attachment and aggression. Attachment leads a host of negative emotions such as obsession, jealousy and the fear of loss. Munenori writes, “there is repudiation of attachment and avoidance of lingering on anything. Not lingering is considered quintessential.”
The Tibetan book of the dead refers to all attachments as visions, “these visions have no reality outside your consciousness.” And it urges one to, “remember the clear light...from which everything in the universe comes, to which everything in the universe returns...no need to be attached to (visions) at all...if you become involved with these visions, you may wander for a long time confused.”
Aggression seems to be an innate quality of most beings, expressing itself from time to time with little enticement, reason, or purpose-and often a by-product of attachment. Aggression itself is a negative emotion that is always harmful to the individual and usually harmful to others. But is also often the cause of sorrow, regret, dissension and grudges. Therefore, it would be indispensable for the jedi, by force of will, to control his aggressive feelings. Munenori, “don’t let your mood become hurried and aggressive, it is essential to control your mood by means of your will, so your will is not drawn by your mood.” Some may say that the jedi order should not be so strict, but, like tsunetomo says of the lotus sutra sect, “it is by reason of its fearsome character that it is the lotus sect. If its character were not so, it would be a different sect altogether.”
qui-gon says “your focus determines your reality.” and obi-wan that, “many of the truths we cling to are based largely on our own point of view.” in the dhammapada we are told, “with our thoughts we make the world.” so it is imperative that the jedi maintain clear and positive thoughts; abstain from attachment and aggression. Lao tzu tells us, “one who excels in fighting is never roused in anger.” But if the jedi are to defend society, then some forms of aggression are unavoidable. The important distinction is, as I said, that negative aggression is that is without catalyst of consideration. So the positive version would be “aggressive negotiation”. Or rather, active pursuit of resolution. In my next post, I will explore the role of the lightsaber in public defense; as a weapon, and as a symbol.
This post has been edited by xenduck: 08 August 2005 - 10:20 PM