Jedi

Jedi, also known as Jedi Knights or the Jedi Order, are important characters in the Star Wars stories. They are special guardians who help keep peace and order in the galaxy. Through training and a powerful ability called the Force, Jedi can do amazing things like moving objects with their minds, seeing distant events, and connecting with others' thoughts.

George Lucas, who created Star Wars, described Jedi as "warrior-monks" who keep peace in the universe. They only use force as a last resort, working to make sure planets govern fairly. Jedi are often seen in brown robes and use special weapons called lightsabers, which have colorful blades made of plasma.

The Jedi Order has existed for thousands of years and includes many different kinds of people. They train in martial arts and work closely with the galaxy's government. Their main goal is to protect all life and use their powers for knowledge and defense. However, they often find themselves in battles, especially during times like the Clone Wars. The Jedi believe in compassion, mindfulness, and meditation, focusing on what they call the "light side" of the Force. Their enemies are the Sith, who follow the "dark side" and seek power through aggression and hate. Unfortunately, during the rise of the Galactic Empire under Darth Sidious, many Jedi were outlawed and killed, but some later tried to bring the Order back.

Etymology

The word Jedi has several possible origins. It may have come from Japanese jidaigeki, meaning 'period drama' movies about samurai, or from words like "jed" (leader) and "jeddak" (king) in the Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It could also be from the Arabic word for 'master of the mystic-warrior way.' Another idea is that it comes from a Hebrew term meaning friend. Inside the Star Wars story, "Jedi" comes from Jedha, a planet that once had a Jedi temple and was home to special kyber crystals that power lightsabers.

George Lucas said the Jedi were inspired by many things, like knighthood, samurai, Buddhism, and more. Lucas explained that Jedi are taught to love others without forming attachments, because holding on too tightly can lead to fear, anger, and suffering. Instead, the Jedi focus on compassion and kindness, living without fear of losing what they care about. Lucas described the Jedi as being like Buddhist monks who are also skilled fighters.

Depiction

The Jedi are characters in the Star Wars stories who use a special power called the Force to help and protect others. They believe in defending people who need it and solving problems without fighting unless necessary. They train both their minds and bodies to get stronger and better help others.

The main weapon of the Jedi is called a lightsaber, though anyone can have one—it's just a tool like any other weapon. In the stories, characters like Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi talk about the Force as an energy field made by all living things that connects everything in the galaxy.

The Skywalker Saga

The Jedi were once very powerful, working from a temple on Coruscant and dealing with the return of a dark power called the dark side. In the first movies, young Anakin Skywalker is found and begins his training, eventually falling to the dark side and becoming a powerful enemy. Other Jedi like Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi continue to guide and protect others, even after many of their order is destroyed.

Later stories show attempts to rebuild the Jedi order, but faced with new challenges and dark forces, the journey to restore peace and balance continues through new characters like Rey and others who carry on the legacy of the Jedi.

Members

Some important Jedi include Yoda, a wise and powerful teacher; Mace Windu, a strong Jedi master; and Obi-Wan Kenobi, who trained many including Luke Skywalker. Other notable Jedi like Ahsoka Tano and Cal Kestis show the ongoing efforts to keep the Jedi spirit alive even in difficult times.

Force-sensitive organizations

Not everyone who uses the Force is a Jedi. Some people use the dark side for their own purposes and are not part of the Sith organization. Others, called Force-sensitive outcasts, live their lives using their abilities without being part of any formal group. These individuals often find their own paths, balancing between the light and dark sides in unique ways.

Description

Main article: Star Wars sources and analogues

The Jedi Code

The Jedi Code was a set of rules for the Jedi Order. It taught followers not to give in to anger, which helped them resist fear and stay away from the dark side of the Force.

The Code:

There is no emotion, there is peace.
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.
There is no passion, there is serenity.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
There is no death, there is the Force.

— The Jedi Code

The Four Councils

The Four Branches of the Jedi Council were important groups in the Star Wars universe. They helped manage the Jedi Order and its activities.

Jedi High Council

The Jedi High Council was the main leadership group of the Jedi Order. Made up of experienced and wise Jedi, they guided the Order. The council had twelve members, including leaders who served for life and others with shorter terms.

Council of First Knowledge

The Council of First Knowledge managed the Jedi Temple's academy and library. They protected important knowledge and supported research.

Council of Reconciliation

The Council of Reconciliation worked with the Galactic Senate to help solve conflicts and support peace.

Council of Reassignment

The Council of Reassignment organized work for Jedi who were not yet full Knights, giving them special tasks and missions.

Ranks of authority and educational progress

Jedi were trained at Jedi Academy. They moved through different levels as they learned and grew.

Initiate

Initiates were young Jedi learners, taught basic control of the Force and self-defense. They learned to focus and let go of strong emotions.

Padawan

Padawans were learners who had completed basic training. They studied under a mentor and prepared to become Jedi Knights.

Knight

Jedi Knights had finished their training tests. They were ready to serve the Republic and travel the galaxy.

Master

Jedi Masters were the most skilled members of the Order. They used their knowledge to teach, lead, and guide others.

Specializations and occupations

Jedi could choose different paths based on their skills and interests. Some focused on combat, others on learning and diplomacy.

Resources and technology

Jedi wore simple robes and carried special tools for their missions. The most famous tool was the lightsaber, a glowing blade used by Jedi.

Weapons

Main articles: Lightsaber and Weapons in Star Wars

The most notable instrument wielded by a Jedi is the lightsaber. Both Jedi and Sith use lightsabers, though the former regard them as a tool, the latter, a weapon. The Jedi's lightsabers emit cool colors, usually blue or green blades (sometimes yellow, or purple, as seen in the case of Mace Windu), while the Sith emit warm colors (red). Lightsabers can be of many different colors depending on the crystal fixture and reflective of the wielders' psychological profile. Most Jedi use naturally formed crystals, frequently ranging between blue, green and yellow; whereas Sith tend to use corrupted or synthetic crystals, which are usually red in color. Although rare, spear-like, whip-like and multi-bladed lightsabers can exist, especially among Sith such as Darth Maul's double-bladed lightsaber, the Inquisitors' double-bladed/rotating ones, or Kylo Ren's crossguard-bladed one (due to a cracked kyber crystal).

Vehicles

Eta-2 Actis Jedi interceptors first appeared in Revenge of the Sith. Delta-7 Aethersprite Jedi starfighters appear in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, while the Delta-7B variant appears in The Clone Wars film. In Attack of the Clones, Obi-Wan Kenobi travels via Jedi starfighter to Kamino to investigate the attempted assassination of Padmé Amidala; he also flies a Jedi starfighter to Geonosis in an attempt to track down the bounty hunter Jango Fett. Lacking a hyperdrive, the starfighter relies on an external sled to propel it through hyperspace. Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) fly updated Jedi starfighters (called Jedi interceptors) in the opening sequence of Revenge of the Sith. Later, Plo Koon (Matt Sloan) flies a Revenge of the Sith-era starfighter when he is shot down by clone troopers carrying out Darth Sidious' (Ian McDiarmid) Order 66.

The Jedi starfighter's triangular shape in Attack of the Clones stems from the shape of Imperial Star Destroyers in the original Star Wars trilogy. Industrial Light & Magic designer Doug Chiang identified the Jedi starfighter as one of the first designs that bridges the aesthetic between the prequel and original trilogies. Chiang noted that viewers' familiarity with the Star Destroyer's appearance and Imperial affiliation gives added symbolism to the Jedi craft's appearance and foreshadows the Empire's rise to power. The starfighter seen in Revenge of the Sith is a cross between the previous film's vessel and the Empire's TIE fighters from the original trilogy. Hasbro's expanding wings in the Attack of the Clones Jedi starfighter toy inspired the opening wings in the Revenge of the Sith vessel. The starfighter in the Revenge of the Sith is called a Jedi interceptor.

Jedi Archives

The Jedi Archives, known as The Great Library of Ossus or The Great Library of the Jedi, contained the galaxy's most priceless and ancient of texts sacred to Jedi scholars and archaeologists. Among these were Sith artifacts, considered by the Jedi Order to be the most dangerous artifacts in the galaxy, that were accessible only to those able to control the Dark Side of the Force.

The Jedi archives of the Jedi Temple in the movie Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones bear a startling resemblance to the Long Room of the Trinity College Library in Dublin. This resemblance resulted in controversy as permission had not been sought to use the building's likeness in the film. However, Lucasfilm denied that the Long Room was the basis for the Jedi archives, and officials from Trinity College Library decided not to take any legal action.

Jedi Academy

"Jedi Academy" redirects here. For other uses, see Jedi Academy (disambiguation).

The Jedi academies were established to train Force-sensitive beings accepted into the Jedi Order in the ways of the Force. Overseen by the Council of First Knowledge, each academy was governed by an advisory Council appointed by their superiors on Coruscant. Mainstreaming the majority of teachings at the Temple, certain practices were permitted to vary from world to world. However, at all sanctioned academies, a group of Jedi Masters would instruct Initiates to the Order in the ways of the Force. The size of the school varied from world to world; the smallest consisted of a single clan of younglings, and the largest was the main academy housed within the Jedi Temple of Coruscant. Most academies had been established during the Old Sith Wars and were located in the Galactic Rim. Some were located on or near Force-wellsprings or places significant to the Order like crystal caves or nexuses of dark side energies that needed constant monitoring.

In addition to the traditional academies established by the Order, the Exploration Corps maintained several spacefaring mobile academies such as the Chu'unthor so that roaming the galaxy and exploring new worlds could be achieved while still teaching traditional doctrine.

By the fall of the Galactic Republic in 19 BBY, many of the ancient academies had been shut down for decades, with the Council of First Knowledge preferring the central teachings of the Coruscant Temple. After the dissolution of the Order during the Great Jedi Purge, all orthodox Temples and academies were routed and burned in order to prevent any more Jedi from learning the secrets of the Force. However, the Galactic Empire's chokehold on Force-education did not last and the Order was reformed following the conclusion of the Galactic Civil War. After Grand Master Luke Skywalker's New Order became a single class of twelve students including his nephew Ben Solo, it was reduced to only himself when his nephew turned to the dark side and became Kylo Ren.

Jedi Temple

In the prequel trilogy, the primary Jedi Temple is located on the Republic's capital planet of Coruscant. As the chief administrative headquarters, the Temple served the Order in three capacities: a monastery and library for the Jedi seeking enlightenment and to reflect on the will of the Force; an academy and training center for Jedi younglings and Padawans who endeavored to join the ranks of the Jedi Knights; and government, in which the Masters of the Jedi High Council guided the Order's direction. It was originally built atop an old "dark-side nexus" shrine during the birth of the Republic, so as to be symbolic to the Coruscant people that the tyrannical rule of the Sith was over.

In Revenge of the Sith, the Jedi Temple is attacked by clone troopers of the 501st Legion, led by the newly christened Darth Vader, who butchered the Jedi within and set the Temple alight. After the fall of the Jedi Order and the Galactic Republic, the Temple became the Palace of the Emperor and a location for his dark side artifacts. It would serve as Sidious' residence for over two decades until his death at the battle of Endor. The Temple is visible in the celebrations on Coruscant at the end of Return of the Jedi. After the destruction of the Sith, Luke Skywalker—the last of the Jedi—recovered fragments of a Force-sensitive tree that was once located at the heart of the Jedi Temple.

Architects' Journal rated the temple third on its top-ten architecture of Star Wars list behind the second Death Star and Jabba the Hutt's palace on Tatooine, and ahead of Coruscant, the capital city of the Old Republic. The temple is described in the article as adapting "the robust typology of Mayan temples, with durasteel cladding specified for the external stone walls for improved defensive strength" and said to be a ziggurat that "is built above a Force-nexus and has ample room for training facilities, accommodation and the Jedi Archive". The temple has five towers, the tallest being Tranquility Spire, that are stylistically similar to the minarets surrounding the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. Star Wars Insider listed it as the one hundredth greatest thing about Star Wars in its one hundredth issue special.

Legends depiction of the Jedi

Further information: Star Wars Legends

When Lucasfilm became part of The Walt Disney Company in 2012, many old books and comics about Star Wars made before 2014 were called Star Wars Legends. This means they are not part of the main story anymore.

In these older stories, Jedi were shown as a group that followed strict rules and worked closely with the government of the galaxy. They were very careful about forming close friendships or family ties, as their teachings said this could be a problem.

Je'daii

Further information: Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi

Long before the Jedi we know, there were the Je'daii. They lived on the planet Tython and studied special powers called the Force. They tried to keep these powers balanced. The Je'daii began their traditions over 36,000 years before the main Star Wars movies.

The New Jedi Order

Further information: The New Jedi Order

After the big battles shown in the movies, a man named Luke Skywalker helped bring the Jedi back. He formed a new group called the New Jedi Order. This group was different because it included some government leaders as well as Jedi. After a big war with the Yuuzhan Vong, the Jedi moved to a planet called Ossus.

Luke Skywalker changed how young Jedi were trained. He thought all Jedi should learn from each other, not just from one teacher. In these stories, the old Jedi Temple on Coruscant was rebuilt into a large pyramid-shaped building.

Cultural impact and critical response

See also: Cultural impact of Star Wars

In the early 1980s, some officers in the United States Army supported new battle tactics called maneuver warfare. Other officers, who preferred older methods known as attrition warfare, teased them by calling them Jedi.

Some writers have compared the Jedi to ancient thinkers called Stoicism. They share many good qualities like patience, calmness, and wisdom.

Jedi ideas have appeared in popular culture in fun ways. For example, a famous singer made a song parodying an old hit, calling it "The Saga Begins". In a movie about military spies, a character called himself a "Jedi warrior".

Religion

The Star Wars story inspired some people to treat Jedi ideas as a modern way of thinking or even a belief system. This led to movements like Jediism and people listing Jedi as their belief in official counts.