The Definition of the Force

[Jarai Telo]

Long read comin'...

The Force was a metaphysical, binding, and ubiquitous power that held great importance for the Jedi and Sith orders, which revolved aroudn their veiws of The Force.

The Force User's potential was revolvant around their midi-chlorian count.

Some saw the Force as al iving Entity capable of sentient and intelligent thought, moving and controlling all life the Galaxy. Some though of it as only a tool to be used to accomplish their own ends.

Nevertheless, The Force is divided into four aspects:

• Light side
  
• Dark Side
  
• Unifying Force
  
• Living Force

[Krai H'voc]

Light Side

"A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense. Never for attack."
―Yoda

The light side of the Force was concerned with the ideals of good, benevolence, and healing. Followers of the light side strove to live in harmony with the world around them, acting out of wisdom and logic rather than anger and hasty judgment. In order to achieve harmony with the light side of the Force, its practitioners would often meditate to clear themselves of emotion; particularly negative emotions such as aggression, anger, and hatred, since these were thought to bring on acceptance of the dark side.

The largest group of proponents and teachers of the light side were the Jedi Order, who strove to maintain peace and justice throughout the galaxy.

The Jedi and others referred to two sides of the Force, a dark side and a light side. The dark side was not made up of specific "parts" or "abilities" of the Force: the dark and light sides of the Force existed inside of the life form which used it, made from their emotions. A follower of the light side tried to live in harmony with those around him. Mutual trust, respect, and the ability to form alliances gave the Jedi their distinct advantage over the Sith. In contrast, a follower of the dark side was only interested in him- or herself. To strike down a living creature with the Force out of anger, fear or another emotion was of the dark side. To refrain and clear one's self of these emotions was of the light side. Use of the dark side of the Force was forbidden within the Jedi Order, and was strictly considered the domain of the Sith.

Traditional Jedi were keen to keep the Force "in balance". They attempted to achieve this by destroying the Sith and denying the dark side—essentially "keeping balance" by restoring the Force to its natural state, as they viewed the dark side as "corruption". This involved the purging of negative emotions such as aggression, anger, and hatred, since they could easily bring on acceptance of the dark side. In contrast, positive emotions such as compassion and courage nurtured the light side of the Force. The Jedi Code compared such feelings and provided insight into the ethical use of the Force.

Passion was considered dangerous, as it could lead to strong emotions that could unbalance the Jedi and lead them to the Dark Side. Love was, curiously enough, seen as something both Jedi and Sith avoided. While the Jedi espoused a broad, all-encompassing, self-sacrificing love for all beings, love for another being—romance, a possessive love by nature—was shunned. Possession of all types was shunned in the post-Ruusan Reformation era Jedi Order, save for the individuality of a Jedi's lightsaber. The Jedi viewed love as a danger best left untouched. While the passion that came with love could lead to hatred and anger—as Anakin Skywalker demonstrated in becoming a Sith because of his love for Padmé Amidala; it could also lead to pity, self-sacrifice and compassion, emotions the Sith did not see as beneficial, as demonstrated by Darth Vader in sacrificing himself to save his son from the Emperor at the end of his life.

One might speculate that this indicates that love was the true binding factor between the light and the dark. Neither the Jedi nor the Sith accepted the views of the other, however.

It seems most Jedi were proponents for the Unifying Force, wherein they focused on the past, present, and future as a whole (however, visions of the future were of particular significance in the conservative Jedi mindset), ignoring primary use of the Living Force. Voices for the latter espoused a philosophy of "live for the moment" and heavily relied on their instincts. This viewpoint might have allowed the Jedi Order to stave off the conflict that gave rise to the Galactic Empire, as its members lost themselves in looking forward rather than analyzing the unfolding events before them.

The organizational goal of the Jedi Order was to maintain peace and justice in the galaxy.

[Krai H'voc]

Dark Side

"The strength of the dark side lies with the power of the individual. The Force comes from within. You must learn to draw on it yourself. I will not always be there to teach you."
―Darth Bane to his apprentice[src]

The dark side of the Force was considered by the Jedi to be the element aligned with fear, hatred, aggression, and malice towards all living things. Such emotions seemed to increase the strength and abilities of a user of the dark side, providing a path towards personal power and the destruction or control of all opposition. However, it was thought that use of the dark side of the Force was extremely addictive.

The Dark Lord Darth Bane considered the Force to be finite and thus ideally for exclusive use by the Dark Lord. He eliminated the practice of having vast numbers of Sith at the same time, thereby aiming to concentrate the dark side of the Force into two individuals: a Sith Master and his or her apprentice. This tradition, or "Rule of Two," later underwent a small reformation by Dark Lady Lumiya, following the deaths of Darth Sidious and Darth Vader (the Sith Lords at the time) in 4 ABY. The Rule of Two was later rejected by Darth Krayt, who instituted the Rule of One, using "One" to refer to the Sith Order itself and encompassing many minions, acolytes/adepts and lords, led by only one Dark Lord of the Sith (or Dread Lord). Darth Krayt believed he gave the Sith and their power a purpose, unlike Darth Bane, who believed that power was its own purpose.

The Rule of One called for cooperation and even some level of loyalty between the Sith, an outlook and tactical view perhaps resulting from Darth Krayt's Tusken Raider upbringing. However, the Rule of One did not represent the Sith as a whole, and Krayt was even labeled a heretic by the holocrons of Darth Bane, Darth Nihilus and Darth Andeddu. It is possible that other Sith Lords from before Darth Krayt's time would have shared such disapproving sentiments.

[Krai H'voc]

Unifying Force

"The reality is that there is only the Force. It is above such petty concepts as positive and negative, black and white, good and evil."
―Darth Sidious

The Potentium view of the Force, considered heresy by Old Republic Jedi, held that the Force and the galaxy in general were given a master plan which was inherently good, and that there was no dark or light side to the Force. Also, Luke Skywalker stated in his days as Master that "the Force doesn't flow from us, but through us", which strongly suggests that it is the Force that creates life and not the other way around. Never passing beyond the Padawan level and refusing to become a Jedi Knight, Jolee Bindo saw "everything gray" and left the Order, allowing emotion to guide his actions. Leor Hal and his followers were expelled by the Jedi for their belief in the Potentium in 132 BBY. This view gained greater acceptance under the New Republic, mostly due to the influence of Vergere, a surviving Jedi from the days of the Old Republic.

Emperor Palpatine (Darth Sidious) claimed that there was only one Force: the only difference worthy of note was that the Sith saw the Force as a means to an end while the Jedi saw it as an end in itself. This view was echoed by what Vergere taught Jacen Solo; she told him that there was no light side or dark side of the Force—only the Unifying Force. Vergere also told Solo that "the Force was everything, and everything was the Force"; that the Force did not have sides and never took sides. Later, it was revealed that the living planet Zonama Sekot supported the Potentium theory of the Force. However, it was later suggested that Vergere was a Sith. The Potentium view of the Force could possibly lead either to manipulation by the dark side, or a means to serve it.

Many Jedi were thought to be proponents of the Unifying Force, wherein they focused on the flow of time as a whole, ignoring primary use of the Living Force. Visions of the future were of particular significance to most Jedi. Yoda was one of the most adamant proponents of the Unifying Force, yet he was a staunch opponent of the Potentium.

[Krai H'voc]

Living Force

"The ways of the Living Force are beyond our understanding... But fear not. You are in the hands of something much greater and much better than you can imagine."
―Qui-Gon Jinn

The Living Force was thought to be present in most living beings. The Jedi had the ability to sense the Living Force inside of life forms. The connection to the Living Force apparently also allowed Jedi Masters to retain their identity when they became one with the Force.

Proponents of the Living Force view, such as Qui-Gon Jinn, espoused a philosophy of "living in the moment," relied heavily on their instincts and concentrated more on sensitivity to living things, rather than fulfilling destiny, which was one of the main tenents of the Unifying Force philosophy. Had the Jedi Order adopted this stance, it might have allowed them to prevent the war that gave rise to the Galactic Empire, as many of its members lost themselves in looking toward the future rather than observing the occurrences unraveling in front of them. After this, Jedi Masters such as Yoda appeared to have adopted the notion of the living force, as he is shown dismissing the future in The Empire Strikes Back.

[Krai H'voc]

Manifestations of the Force, which were mentally-based abilities and tapped through the practitioner's willpower, could take many forms, and included telepathy, psychokinesis, and enhanced physical and metaphysical perception. The Force could be used to bend the will of weak-minded beings and guide an adept's body. Users who were very good at using the Force could cease merely reacting to their surroundings and actually predict events in the very near future, such as the next blow in a duel. Guidance like this enabled Luke Skywalker to launch a proton torpedo into an extremely difficult target on the Death Star in the Battle of Yavin. The Force can also be used to sedate. Qui-Gon Jinn use this power on Jar Jar Binks when traveling the dangerous underwater path to Theed. Qui-Gon placed a hand on Jar-Jar's shoulder and asked him to relax causing the Gungan to almost lose consciousness. Obi-wan, observing the extreme change in Jar Jar's behavior, tells Jin, his master, "You overdid it."

In addition to enhancing their own skill, Force users were capable of channeling the energy of The Force directly into the world around them. The Sith were infamous for making heavy use of this ability to conjure Force-lightning, or Force-choke enemies by constricting their windpipes. The Jedi preferred to use their abilities to heal and protect; closing wounds and shielding others with barriers of Force energy. Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn discovered that Jedi could achieve near-immortality through the Force by existing as a Force ghost after death.

Some Force users even learned how to transfer their spirit into another body. Palpatine used this technique in order to prolong his life, and evidence suggests the legendary Dark Jedi Set Harth, who fell to the dark side in the aftermath of the New Sith Wars, used this power to leapfrog his essence between hundreds of clone bodies, lingering in the physical realm up until the Yuuzhan Vong invasion and beyond. Later Callista Ming transferred herself to the body of a dying friend so that she could stay alive. Callista, unlike Harth and Palpatine, lost her ability to touch the Force in the process of transference.

Others, like Darth Nihilus, could use the Force to feed off other Force users. Nihilus' power could encompass entire planets and drain them of life, like the Miraluka colony world of Katarr. Some dark side users could use a different and weaker form of this technique to drain the strength of others into themselves, occasionally to fatal results. Darth Nihilus' ability to do this where from a "Death Echo" which is essentially a rip in the fabric of the force itself.

Palpatine mentioned that the Force can help one cheat death, or create life, a secret mastered only by Darth Plagueis. Another Sith Lord, Darth Sion, used a more indirect method to cheat death. As he could call upon his pain to strengthen his will and allow him to rise up again as strong as he was beforehand, he was arguably immortal.

The Force played a major part in the Jedi use of a lightsaber, in that their heightened awareness kept them from accidentally injuring themselves while using the weapon in combat, as the blade had no relative weight, making it difficult to judge its position. Similarly, the Force allowed a Jedi to use his/her lightsaber to deflect incoming blaster bolts. The Force also came into play during the construction of a lightsaber, both in assembling its intricate innards, and the initial charging of the power cell.

Manipulating the Force is not without risks, however. When a person uses the Force beyond their body's ability to sustain it, the individual could suffer physical damage, accelerated aging, or in the most extreme case, certain death by burning their own body cells from the inside out. Luke Skywalker, Jacen Solo, Palpatine, and Dorsk 81 are prime examples of excessive Force usage and the consequences.