“May the force be with you” - this phrase is known not only to avid fans of Star Wars. The cult space epic is known all over the world. And with the release of its very first part, millions of children around the world dreamed of one thing - to become a Jedi.
Origin of the word
It was invented by the director of the saga George Lucas. According to him, he took as the basis the name of the cinema genre of Japan "Jidai-geki". This is a historical drama, in the center of the plot of which is the life and formation of a samurai. The creator of Star Wars appreciates Japanese culture, and the image of a samurai may have been taken by him as the basis of his character. Who is a Jedi?
Peace Knights - Warriors of the Light
The Jedi is one of the key characters in the Star Wars epic. He is the defender of the Republic during armed conflicts with hostile forces. The Jedi always try to act exclusively in a peaceful way, therefore they are also called knights-peacekeepers.
The Jedi is not a supernatural being. It could be any humanoid with the ability to control the Force. What it is, in a star epic is indicated briefly. One of the episodes says that all living things in the Universe are connected with certain microscopic creatures that allow you to control living and non-living matter. Those who have many in their blood can become Jedi. According to another version, Strength is an integral part of all life in the Universe.
Children with Power were found and brought up for education and training in the Jedi Order. If they went all the way of formation to the end and successfully passed five tests, then they received the rank of knights. In rare cases, the Jedi became a knight without passing tests - for committing an exceptional heroic deed.
Order of the Knights of the Force
Millennia ago, the Jedi Order was formed, which stood guard over the tranquility of the galactic Republic. The planet Tython became his homeland. Initially, he studied the nature of the Force, but over time he began to take an increasingly active part in the affairs of the Galaxy. It is believed that the order does not have a leader and is governed by a council of Jedi. However, formally there is the title of master, supreme ruler of the Jedi. In Star Wars, Masters Yoda was called the Master several times, and this suggests that it was he who led the Jedi Order during the events in the saga.
The hierarchy of the Order is as follows:
- Younglings are those who begin to take the first steps in learning.
- Padawans are students of knights who have successfully completed the first stage of training.
- Jedi.
- A Jedi Master whose apprentice successfully passed the final test and received the rank of knight.
- The Master is elected by the Council from among the best warriors. In Star Wars, it's Yoda.
Jedi Code
Peacekeeping knights have their own set of rules. First of all, it is needed in order to help the Padawans, young students, to overcome the attraction of the dark side of the Force.
The Code contains only a few commandments: not to use your skills for personal purposes, to act only in harmony with the Force, not to succumb to the fury and anger that lead to the dark side and always try to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict. The Jedi to the last try to maintain peace and only defend themselves. They can attack as a last resort, if this can prevent an even greater threat.
Jedi: war with the Sith
The world created by the brilliant director George Lucas is huge. It contains thousands of different characters. Warriors of the Light could not do without antagonists. In the space saga Star Wars, the Jedi have their eternal and powerful adversary - the Sith. Their appearance is frightening and repulsive - under the influence of dark forces the face of a person who has chosen the path of evil changes. The whites of the eyes turn yellow, and the pupils become feline.
The Jedi who chose the dark side of the Force were expelled. They fled to the planet Korriban, mingled with the local warlike race of red-skinned humanoids sensitive to the Force, and founded their order of the Sith. Since then, they remain the main enemies of the Jedi.
Knight weapon
In fact, the main weapon of the Jedi is himself. More precisely, his ability to control the Force. Thanks to her, he can move objects and hold them in the air. As for military weapons, it is invariable and is an indispensable attribute and a mark of distinction. This is the Jedi's lightsaber, a blade whose blade represents pure energy.
It is used both in ceremonies and in battle. By tradition, a knight must make a Jedi sword with his own hands. The weapon was distinguished by the material of the handle and blade options. The color of the light beam could also be different - white, blue, blue, green and purple, depending on the crystal used in the sword.
"The Return of the Jedi" - the story of the formation of the "star" warrior
Peacekeeping knights are found in the saga from its first part. But information about the Jedi is sparse. It is known that these warriors using a certain Power stand on the side of good and try to maintain a balance in the universe between good and evil. But already in the third part of the epic, the movie “Return of the Jedi”, the viewer will finally be shown how the knights are trained and will be introduced to the legendary head of the Jedi Order, Master Yoda.
In this part of the saga it is convincingly shown that it is not a matter of strength and growth. The tiny grand master of the Order easily defeats the superior size Luke Skywalker.
Cult of the Peace Knights
The influence of Star Wars is so strong that it led to the emergence of not only a huge number of fans of the works of Lucas and ardent fans of the space saga, but also the emergence of a kind of religious teaching - Jedaism. It is more appropriate here to speak not about a new religion, but about a subculture. Jedaism is an officially registered religious movement in the UK. Here the number of its members reaches almost 400 thousand people. Most of them are students of major universities in the country. There are also many adherents of this creed in Australia and New Zealand. In Russia, this movement is not so widespread, although gradually the circle of its participants is growing. Who is a Jedi according to a new religious teaching? The same space saga "Star Wars" is taken as the basis. In it, the Jedi is a knight following the path of the Light and using the Force for noble purposes. As for the new religion, this definition is not entirely correct. Here the Jedi is, rather, the one who follows the path of spiritual and physical perfection, and it does not matter what combat skills he possesses.
George Lucas is revered as a prophet in Jediism.
The Jedi - created by the fantasy of George Lucas , peacekeeping knights, adherents of the light side of the Force, and today remain an example to follow the fans of the famous space epic.