Dark Side

12 Step Jedi Dark Side

“When you look at the dark side, careful you must be. For the dark side looks back.” – Yoda

Everyone has a Dark Side. To never encounter your own Shadow and come to know it is to never become fully integrated as a human being. Most people are too afraid to peer into the dark recesses of their psyche. They do not want to know what dark secrets exist there. They remain strangers to themselves as a result.

When the Dark Side does come out in force it is overwhelming. You can find yourself doing things you could never imagine doing before. Horrors that you thought were beyond the pale now no longer seem deplorable, they also become desirable. The Dark Side becomes you and it consumes you utterly.

No one is entirely light or dark, we are all of us shades of grey. Humans are without exception full of fears, doubts, and flaws. All of us have biases which shape out thoughts and judgements on things. We surrender to base emotions and act on them when confronted with monsters only to become monsters ourselves. This is when we surrender to the Dark Side.

“Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny.” – Yoda

The policemen in Nazi occupied Poland, Ukraine and France who arrested Jews and Gypsies for deportation to the concentration camps were only following orders. Perhaps many were fathers with young children and were merely trying to survive. Were they evil? They did evil deeds which seemed justified at the time but otherwise they may have lived virtuous lives. Even the Confederate soldiers who fought to keep separated from the union and perpetuate a system of late slavery were men only doing their duty as they understood it. A quick browse of the internet and you will be bombarded with images of people of all kinds doing horrific things and condoning atrocity while justifying them or deflecting blame to others.

We are each responsible for our own actions. If I am capable of evil deeds, then so are you. The question is what would push you to the Dark Side to make that choice? What perceived horrors and injustices would compel you? How much force would need to be exerted on you to abandon reason and commit a crime against your soul? That’s a question only you can answer if you dare to know the truth.

Through alcoholism I lived in the twilight of the Dark Side for many years. The “Cave of Dagobah” yawned before me, threatening to swallow my soul. I dared to stare into it my Dark Side and it grinned back. Eventually I had to invite the Dark Side out to play, to look deep within it and stare it down. I had a choice. That was the path to salvation. Not any other way, that way.

“The dark side clouds everything. Impossible to see, the future is.” – Yoda

What has this to do with Star Wars?

Star Wars is a saga of Heroes and Villains. There is conflict, struggles to overcome and the ever-present tension between the opposing sides of the Force. There are those that follow the Dark side who oppose those on the Light side of the Force. The story of epic struggle between light and darkness, good and evil is as old as time. The Epic Gilgamesh was the earliest tale of where a man embarks on an adventure where in the end, he finds peace and redemption by overcoming his darker side.

The Greek legends, Beowulf, Nordic sagas, and the Indian Vedas all share the same theme of the struggle of the hero to not only overcome the monster, tyrant or evil before him but also the darkness in his own heart. Overcoming his struggle, the Hero returns home redeemed and reborn. In the ancient world the Gods played out the eternal saga of birth, death and rebirth as the sun bought life and hope with Spring, rose to fully glory in Summer and then was dragged to the underworld to battle with dark forces through Winter only to arise anew in the following Spring to allow the sowing and the Harvest.

Always the struggle between light and dark. Darkness tries to snuff out the light and eclipse it from existence. Fear and despair prevail. Light shines forth and beats back the darkness bringing hope and salvation. A cycle, until, like Ragnarok or the Kali Yuga, the end of days comes and brings with it a harvest of blood.

“Remember, a Jedi’s strength flows from the Force. But beware anger, fear, and aggression. The dark side are they. Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny.” – Yoda

The Star Wars prequels presented the fall of the Divine Child, the promised one, into darkness. The original trilogy introduced a New Hope. This time the dim flicker of light would prevail against the darkness and not falter. The Darks Side would be beaten back into the shadows. Darth Sidious would be cast down, Anakin redeemed, and Luke Skywalker would bring balance to the Force…for a time. Every story end is a new beginning.

Like the seasons the story repeats in the sequel trilogy. The light has dimmed, the Hero has grown old. The sky darkens and hope struggles against despair. A new Hero steps forward and holds a candle to the darkness once again. The forces of Light always prevail in myth. They must. The myth gives hope to the living that the darkness can be beaten back, that life can prevail over death.

“To be Jedi is to face the truth and choose. Give off light, or darkness, Padawan. Be a candle or the night.”– Yoda

Yoda said, “Fear is the path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering”. Despite his warnings Anakin succumbed to the Dark Side. Luke overcame the temptation to join his Father and submit to the Dark Side however in an alternative ending to “Return of the Jedi” by Lucas, Luke does take up the helmet of Darth Vader and surrenders to the Dark Side. Many years later in a moment of folly and rage Luke fails his nephew Ben Solo who turns to the Knights of Ren embracing the Dark Side. Luke later redeems himself as does Kylo Ren in the final chapter.

Were Dath Vader and Kylo Ren evil? No. Did they suffer? Yes. The Sith claimed that the Dark Side gave them freedom and power to control natural laws and life. The Sith did not claim to be evil but believed that the means justified the ends. Morality was relative and open to debate. Is nature not cruel and indifferent to suffering? Is evolution not evidence that the weak must perish and the strong prevail for the benefit of life? The Sith offered the Galaxy safety and security in exchange for liberty and justice. No surprise they were met with resistance. No one wants to be a slave to darkness.

“In a dark place we find ourselves, and a little more knowledge lights our way.” – Yoda

What is your Dark Side? Have you faced it? Do you recognize your Shadow? Are you willing to accept that it exists, that you are capable of horrible and dark things? Life is a struggle between the Dark and Light sides of your nature. Which side prevails is the question you must resolve in your own personal Hero’s Journey. Remember that what you sow you shall harvest later. Whatever you decide, choose never to forsake your humanity in that quest.

Community

12 Step Jedi Community, Compassion, Uncategorized

One World

The Jedi believed that the Force was a kind of universal consciousness that manifested itself in life. Obi-wan Kenobi in a “New Hope” described it as  “an energy field that is created by all living things. It surrounds us; it binds the galaxy together”. In Star Wars, the idea of a unitary system is often imagined. The Force was seen as the spiritual and natural balance regulating the order of all existence in the Universe and beyond. The reach of the Force transcended the physical plane in to the spiritual spheres, creating a bridge between life and the afterlife. The Force binds life together as a community.

Star Wars is obviously a work of fiction but does offer a parable to the real world. If we look at the Star Wars mythology we see how the Force, the fictional archetypes and the greater community of life interacted as a whole. The struggle depicted in the Star Wars saga is one between unity and disunity, balance and imbalance, light and darkness.

 

“The Force is an energy field that is created by all living things. It surrounds us; it binds the galaxy together” – Obi-wan Kenobi

Reach

Our physical form is limited. We live but a few decades and most of us never travel far. In our generation at least few people will venture outside of Earth’s orbit. Our reach with people is also limited despite the advances in technology. We might be able to reach the masses through social media but we actually only ever meet and get to know so many people. We will only ever get to reach a minuscule fraction of those that live. Most of us will also realize that we only have a few intimate friends while the rest are acquaintances whom come and go.

Despite our limited reach we have a natural sense of belonging to something far greater than ourselves. We look at the stars in the milky way galaxy and feel a deep connection as if we are looking back in time to our own past and destiny. A sense of the spiritual can be felt when we consider the enormity of the cosmos and the span of time. We are conscious and alive and the mystery and purpose of life pulls something deep within us. We also feel part of the global community, a unique member of humanity.

In our lives we are constantly reminded of our identity. We are given labels that assign us to a race, a country, an ethnic group, a sexual orientation and a religion. We are tuaght to seek out and identify with our tribe and we build walls around us to protect what it safe and familiar. All of these labels are human constructs that have evolved over time to enable the survival of one group over the other. The division that boundaries create lead to the separation and estrangement of  one human from another. In fact all of the differences that exist are mere illusions. All people essentially have the same hopes and aspirations and all people feel the same pain and suffer the same fate. We are all part of an indivisible humanity.

Cosmopolitan

The Star Wars universe represents a “Galactic Cosmopolitan”. The sentient beings that resided within the reaches of the Galaxy were seen as citizens of one large community. The same constructs and problems that plague our world also plagued the Star Wars Universe. There was conflict and hatred between different star systems and confederate groupings of planets.

The role of the Jedi was to bring a resolution to conflict and peace to the Galaxy. The Jedi wanted to restore balance to the Force. Each of the myriad of intelligent life forms represented were seen as part of a whole. While seeking unity, the Jedi also sought to preserve the identity and freedom of self expression of the individual. Perhaps George Lucas was trying to hold a mirror to the world through his work. Through the parable of Star Wars we can see vestiges of our own society, how we are and how we could be.

The word “cosmopolitan” comes from the Greek literal meaning “citizen of the world”. The Ancient Greeks did not have the same level of understanding of the cosmos as we did but they understood the concept of a universal citizen. The Stoics took this further and while they understood that a person could be patriotic and loyal to their tribe they could also welcome all people as fellow humans sharing the same nature. City States and Empires went to war and the Stoics fought in these wars but they never saw their enemy as less than human. The Stoics looked past the apparent shallow differences between people and saw the common rationality and humanity that still exists in all people.

The United Nations was originally built on the premise of unity among people and nations for the betterment of all. In many ways the UN has failed in its mandate and continues to fail being a victim of old bureaucracy and pulled by vested interests. So have our leaders. As individuals, as Jedi, we can still do our part to foster unity and partnership between people. To do so is to express the Force and our own humanity.

 

One Family

The 12 Step program is a good example of grass roots unity between people. We are all seen as sufferers of the same disease. Political opinions are absent, in fact the traditions exempt the fellowship from siding with one opinion or another outside of the fellowship in order to avoid controversy and conflict. In the fellowship we are all the same regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, religion or sexuality. We all have a shared experience and a common history and we all desire the same thing. In a way we are members of the same family. We are made to help each other.

Imagine if the world was like that; a true global community? If all nations could put aside their differences and embrace our common and shared humanity war and poverty would be rare. If all people began to work together and truly care for one another the world would be a far better place.

 

Reach Out

Most of us live in a bubble. We are surrounded by family and friends that are familiar to us. We keep close to home. Some of us get wander lust and break out of the bubble deciding to travel and open ourselves to new experiences. Those that reach out in to the community and volunteer or work with people can also appreciate the idea of “one humanity”. This is all it takes; a willingness to step outside your comfort zone and to get to see and understand how others live. Be willing to help the person who comes seeking help. Act in small ways to make the world a better place through gestures of kindness and compassion.

There is less of a difference between people than we are sometimes led to believe. Fear keeps people apart and drives a wedge between them. It should not be that way and it does not have to be. Look past your current horizons and reach past your boundaries, be ready to help your fellow human. We are all in this together and our survival as a species depends on it.