Jedi The Force History And Structure Of The Order

The Jedi Knights are a brotherhood and organization from the Star Wars series of films by George Lucas.

1 The Force

" The Force" is described as being an energy field that is generated by all living things and permeates the universe and all the things in it. Its principles resonate with those of some real world religions like the shinto religion of Japan and certain Celtic, druidic concepts. In truth, the Force is an amalgamation of religions and philosophies, intended as a metaphor for spirituality itself. Like in real world spirituality (as understood by the George Lucas), there is the potential for a "Light" and a "Dark" side in each person, and in the universe itself. As explained in the movie , Jedi get their ability to understand the Force from symbiotic organisms within their bodies called midi-chlorians (an obvious play on mitochondria.) These organisms allow a Jedi to "hear the Force," and it is said that "without them life could not exist." The higher the midi-chlorian count in their cells, the stronger the Force is with the particular individual. Their presence could be somehow sensed by other Jedis, and measured by gadgets. Anakin Skywalker had a reading of over 20,000 which was even higher than master Yoda's.

2 History and Structure of the Order

The Jedi Knights were an order of individuals that had the ability to touch and use the Force. The Jedi followed the "light" side of the Force. The order began some "thousand generations" before the rise of the Galactic Empire. Many ancient and semi-legendary organizations have been proposed as the forerunners of the Jedi Order, such as the Order of Dai Bendu or the Chatos Academy, but no conclusive links have ever been shown. Likewise, the birth planet of the order is unknown. There are many candidates, including such known worlds as Coruscant, Ossus and Corellia, and mythic, lost planets such as Had Abbadon , Ondos and Utapau .

Initially the Jedi was a contemplative order, however over time the order took a more direct and active role in galactic affairs, eventually centralizing themselves on Coruscant in the aftermath of the catastrophic Battle of Ruusan.

The life of a Jedi was one of sacrifice. Those who showed an aptitude for the Force were taken at birth or soon after to train in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, where the order was headquartered. From the outset of their training they live a life of simplicity adhering to the Jedi Code which forbids having material possessions or emotional attachments. This training was initially done by a venerable, experienced Jedi until the individual was sufficient enough to start the journey of a Jedi. Exceptions were sometimes made, most notably in the case of Anakin SkywalkerAnakin Skywalker is a fictional character from Star Wars''. Anakin is played in the films by Jake Lloyd as a child, Hayden Christensen as a young adult, and Sebastian Shaw as a dying, elderly (and redeemed) person. The name "Anakin" means "warrior. Anakin, but the JediFor over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times. Before the Empire. Obi-Wan Kenobi The Jedi Knights are a brotherhood and organization from the Star Wars series of films found their traditional methods were most successful and were loathe to change.

Their members progressed through three levels of rank: first the Padawan an apprentice who begins training under a Jedi Knight at a young age, about 12 (though Yoda referred to Anakin as being "too old" to be trained at the age of 10, children his age he refers to as 'Younglings'), then Jedi Knight (a fully trained Jedi who has completed 'the trials'), and finally the level of Jedi Master (a Jedi Knight who instructs a Padawan). There are three types of Jedi, the Jedi Guardian, the Jedi Sentinel, and the Jedi Consular. Jedi Guardians are the type of Jedi who focus more on martial training and combat. These, like all Jedi, are keepers of the peace, acting as a kind of special police force under the direct control of the Supreme Chancellor. Jedi Consulars are the type who possess great knowledge of the force but rarely enter combat. They often became members of the Jedi Council or teachers to younger Jedi. Jedi Sentinels try to strike a balance between the two other types and possess admirable combat skills with some extensive knowledge of the force. These are often dispatched to regions across the galaxy to work as ambassadors and investigators for unusual concentrations of the force. Eventually the Jedi formed a central political entity called the Jedi CouncilDuring the Old Republic, the Jedi Council was the group of twelve Jedi Masters elected to guide the Jedi, as well as serve as an advisory body for the Chancellor. The council was made up of five lifetime members, four long-term members, and three limited- which acted as a governing body for the order and an advisor board for the Old Republican Senate. A speculative fourth level also exists following a Jedi Master's passing over to The Force, therein becoming a Jedi Spirit. A Jedi could have only one apprentice at a time, and was required to promote the current apprentice before taking another. Master Yoda's role seems to be of a slightly different character, wherein he trains multiple 'Younglings' at once. It is supposed that upon reaching a certain age, these young Padawans will then be assigned to a Master for further training on the path to Knighthood.

Among other tasks, the Jedi eventually are responsible for law enforcement and peacekeeping in the Galactic RepublicThe Republic is not what it once was. The Senate is full of greedy, squabbling delegates. There is no interest in the common good. Senator Palpatine Galactic Republic Form of Government Federal Republic Official language Basic Capital Coruscant Head of Go (though they would not be considered soldiers until the time of the Clone Wars) At the time of the Clone Wars, in the twilight years of the Galactic RepublicThe Republic is not what it once was. The Senate is full of greedy, squabbling delegates. There is no interest in the common good. Senator Palpatine Galactic Republic Form of Government Federal Republic Official language Basic Capital Coruscant Head of Go, they would act as Generals, soldiers and advisors in the conflict. To that end, they use The Force and extensive training to become extremely formidable in battle. Their traditional weapon was the Lightsaber which in the hands of a skilled wielder, could be more than a match for most opponents even when they are armed with ranged weapons. A common task for the Jedi is to construct their own lightsaber.

2.1 The Dark Side

The power of the Force does not come without a price. The power comes with great temptation to misuse it, and emotions such as hate can cause the Jedi to be overcome by the "dark side" of the force. The dark side of the force is the easier path and at first can seem more powerful, but also is taxing to the body, as is evidenced by PalpatinePalpatine later Senator Palpatine of Naboo His Excellency, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine of The Galactic Republic and His Imperial Majesty, Emperor Palpatine I of The Galactic Empire (84 BBY 4 ABY, spirit destroyed 11 ABY) is a fictional character of the S's appearance by the time of Return of the Jedi. When one goes over to the "dark side", there is little hope of recovery.

The consequences of a Jedi falling to the Dark Side of the Force were quite high, not only for the fallen individual, but for many others as well. Such Jedi were normally referred to as Dark Jedi, some of whom were members of the Sith order.

The Sith order was said to have come into existence some 25,000 years before Palpatine became Supreme Chancellor. Begun by heretical Jedi, this sect embraced the Dark Side of the Force as a means to power, opposed to the philosophy of service and justice in the defense of the common good embraced by the Jedi Order. This caused a split with the Jedi Order and resulted in several galactic wars over the millennia, including the Great Hyperspace War and at least three Sith Wars. 1,000 years BBY, the Sith Order was believed to have finally been destroyed on Ruusan. One Lord, Darth Bane, survived, however, and reformed the Order, restarting the tradition apparently begun by Darth Revan of passing down the name "Darth" to his successors, naming both master and apprentice Dark Lords of the Sith, and beginning the "rule of two." This rule would allow the Sith to remain hidden from the Jedi and to prevent the kind of civil war within the Sith's own ranks which lead to the original Sith Empire's destruction and almost to that of the Order that was all but destroyed on Ruusan. For the next 1,000 years, the Sith order quietly continued on, biding its time until conditions were right in the galaxy for them to resurface.

32 years before Yavin, the presence of the Sith again became known to the Jedi. Two Sith Lords, the Master Darth Sidious, and the apprentice Darth Maul supported the blockade of Naboo. After Darth Maul was killed, the Jedi knew that somewhere in the galaxy there was still one member of the Sith active, but they were unaware of the identity of Sidious. During the next 10 years, former Jedi Count Dooku fell to the dark side, and became the new apprentice Darth Tyrannus. Dooku and Sidious arranged the Clone Wars as a way of consolidating Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's hold on the galaxy. (It's widely believed by fans that Sidious and Palpatine are the same person, but it has not officially been confirmed.)

Sometime at the end of the Clone Wars, the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker fell to the dark side. He suffered grievous injuries during a battle with his master Obi-Wan Kenobi. After the fight, Anakin became Darth Vader, and thus the bloody Galactic Civil War began. The injuries he sustained required Vader to receive cybernetic implants and breathing apparatus to keep him alive.

2.2 The Dark Times, The Empire

At the onset of the Galactic Civil War, the Jedi were almost completely wiped out through the actions of followers of the Dark Side, led by the Sith lord Darth Sidious. Nearly all the Jedi were wiped out. The now corrupted Anakin Skywalker (who, as Darth Vader, initiated the Great Jedi Purge along with Emperor Palpatine), Obi Wan Kenobi (Anakin's own teacher), and Yoda were among the survivors featured in the original trilogy. The expanded universe novels indicate that a few other Jedi aside from those featured in the film also survived the purge.

The novels written after the original trilogy indicate that the Empire took steps to exterminate the Jedi and any family members. Corran Horn's grandfather was a Corellian Jedi named Nejaa Halcyon, who had died in the clone wars. Halcyon's friend Rostek Horn married Halcyon's wife, adopted Corran's father Valin "Hal" Horn, and altered the records concerning the Halcyon family. He did this to protect Hal and his mother from the Empire's Jedi hunters. Hal kept the knowledge of Corran's true grandfather from him, because revealing that knowledge would have made Corran a target as well. As a result, Corran only learned of his true heritage when Luke Skywalker discovered his past, and shared that discovery with Corran.

The Emperor also trained a number of "Hands," or those who had the potential to use the Force as his personal agents. Through the Force, he was able to relay orders to his agents. Mara Jade was one of his agents. She had been discovered to be Force sensitive at a young age, and was taken by the Emperor for training.

The actions of Luke Skywalker and his relationship with the Force were a principle plot device in the films. As a sign of how desperate things had become, Luke was taken into the Jedi fold as a young adult instead of during infancy, or even childhood (as Anakin had been).

2.3 After the Galactic Civil War

In the novels set after the Galactic Civil War, Luke's main task was to reestablish the Jedi order by training a new generation of Jedi Knights. It was not an easy task. Because the Emperor wished to completely destroy the order, just about all the information on the Jedi was destroyed. Only a few histories remained, and they were propaganda pieces used to paint the Jedi in an unfavorable light. Almost all the material on instructing Jedi was eliminated, save a few documents on how to turn potential Jedi to the dark side of the force.

Four years after the death of the Emperor at Endor, Luke had discovered the wreck of the Chu'unthor on the planet Dathomir. The Chu'unthor was a starship that had served as a mobile Jedi academy, which had crashed on Dathomir. Dathomir was the home of Force sensitive "Witches," who were the descendants of a fallen Jedi banished to that world. Master Yoda had left the instruction materials from the ship behind with the rest of the ship. 400 years later, after defeating Witches that had fallen to the Dark Side, one of the natives gave Luke the instruction materials that she had kept safely since the time of the crash.

Due to Luke's lack of knowledge with the old ways of the Jedi order the new generation of Jedi were very unorthodox. He established an academy for teaching many students the way of the Jedi which is much different to the "one student, one master" way used by the old order. The academy was established in the old temples on Yavin 4 that the Rebels once used as a base until the Battle of Yavin. He allowed his students to have personal possessions and had no rule against a Jedi having emotional attachments to friends and family, which was forbidden by the old order. Also, students were taken in at a much older age than previously. Most members were already well in to adulthood before they began training.

What Luke didn't know was that Yavin 4 had been a base for the Sith Lord Exar Kun during the Great Sith War. He wasn't aware that Kun's sprit had been trapped in the temples all that time. As a result, Kun was able to influence one of Luke's students. This student, Kyp Durron, eventually fell to the dark side for a time while under Kun's influence. Durron destroyed several star systems in the Sun Crusher. Meanwhile, the students at the academy were able to finally destroy Kun's sprit. Freed of Kun's influence, Durron surrendered. Durron returned to the light side of the force, and became one of the first new Jedi.

Luke eventually turned the academy into a center that would provide basic training for potential Jedi. He began pairing Jedi who had gone through that training with a more experienced Jedi, much like the master / apprentice system used in the old order.

2.4 The New Jedi Order

This new order grew slowly but steadily. Some Jedi from the first class Luke taught - such as Kyp Durron - were now Jedi Masters. The order had become large enough in time that Luke Skywalker reinstated the Jedi Council to direct the order. Shortly after this was done an extragalactic alien species declared war on the galaxy. Many Jedi died fighting this new threat, but the order did survive the war and once again continues to grow in strength. One of the Jedi casualties of this war was Anakin Solo, the youngest son of Han Solo and Leia Organa-Solo. Before his death, it was widely felt that Anakin would eventually become one of the greatest Jedi of his generation, and that he would eventually take Luke's place.

After the war with the Yuuzhan'Vong was over, Luke realized that the order would have to further adapt in order to survive. His experiences had led him to believe that the Force was not either exclusively light or dark, instead it had many shades of gray. He felt that strong emotions, such as anger, were not in itself evil, that rather it was the intent of the person that mattered most. Luke also had come to believe that nearly everyone had the ability to touch and use the Force, it was not just limited to Jedi. He felt that individual Jedi would need to discover their own paths, that some may be called to contemplative life, while others would be called to take a more active role in galactic affairs.

Luke also felt that the Jedi could no longer be a tool of the government. He felt that the Jedi must remain careful about their allegiance to either the Galactic Alliance or any succeeding governments that followed it.

3 Major Jedi

3.1 The Old Order

3.2 The New Jedi Order

Anakin Solo
Corran Horn
Dorsk 81
Jacen Solo
Jaina Solo
Kam Solusar
Kyp Durron
Luke Skywalker
Mara Jade
Streen
Tionne
Kyle Katarn

4 See also

5 External links

Census 2001, "390,000 Jedis There Are; But did hoax campaign boost response in teens and 20s?". United Kingdom
"The Jedi Order". Databank > organization, starwars.com.

Jedi religion Star Wars *

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