Shadow Jedi

[JeRegretRiens]

I consider myself a Shadow Jedi, because I identify more with the Shadow Code than the Jedi Code.

Here's my thoughts on the Shadow Jedi code.

The Shadow Jedi Code
I am at Peace; for I know Emotion.
I have Power; for I also have Knowledge.
I have Passion; for I am Serene.
I can embrace Mortality; for I know Death.
I am balanced through the Force.

The Shadow Jedi Passage
I am at peace with myself.
I fear not the darkness, nor the light,
I harness both to my advantage.
I follow my own path.
I know the power of the Dark side,
And the peace of the Light.
I am the serenity of balance.
All the universe is a false-reality,
I pledge myself to my beliefs,
For I have found true life
In the balance of the Dark and the Light.


I am at Peace; for I know Emotion.
The idea of 'suppressing' or refusing to feel my emotions as it is suggested in the Jedi Code is not a good feeling for me. I do not strive to disconnect me from that which makes me human. What I want to do is find a way to coexist with my emotions without letting them rule me. And I believe that is what this line is about. I am at peace, for I understand and accept my emotions for what they are, without letting them become a core of my being and/or direct my actions.
I have Power; for I also have Knowledge.
Acting with power is synonomous with acting with Knowledge. One -has- to understand the situation, the hidden things at work and the emotions of others at play before one can approach the situation with any kind of hope for getting things to work the way you want. So, I think this passage applies to -everybody- really, because to do what needs done, for good or for your own personal desires, one has to understand the situation. Going off half cocked and making decisions based on only half the information isn't acting with power. It's mere foolishness.
I have Passion; for I am Serene.
The ancient Greek Stoics considered "passion" (pathos in Greek) to be a disturbing, unhealthy movement of the soul, hence sickness being termed "pathology". The Jedi code to me seems to take it this way as well. However, the Shadow Code to me takes passion to mean "an intense desire", which can be a very -good- thing. Especially if it's a passion for doing good things, or a passion for helping others; or a passion for studying...there's so many things that passion can be -good- for. But the ability to -have- that passion relies heavily on serenity. To devote your mind entirely to pursuing one thing like that, one has to clear out everything extraneous.
I can embrace Mortality; for I know Death.
We all die. Deal with it. I am going to die. I know it. And I am unafraid of it because I know it's going to happen whether I fear it or not, whether I fight it or not.
I am balanced through the Force.
Western thought and religions see GOOD at one end of a spectrum, with EVIL at the opposite. Eastern thought and philosophy, however, see -both- ends of the spectrum as bad, and good being the balance between the two. This is what I strive for in my life--to balance things, especially myself.



I am at peace with myself.
This is the ultimate goal of a Shadow Jedi, I think--to be at peace with one's self. If you are at peace with yourself, then no matter what action you take, you can pursue it with total dedication. And if you discover that you'd been wrong, you can abandon it and work on something else -without- berating yourself or wasting time justifying it.
I fear not the darkness, nor the light,
I harness both to my advantage.
There isn't a "shadow" side of the Force. It's a state of accepting that both sides can work together and make up for the other's lack in certain circumstances. For example, if my wife was trapped under a burning car, I think my emotions would bolster my strength (Dark Side) enough to rescue her. But if she was sad and crying, using empathy (Light Side) would be more appropriate.
I follow my own path.
The path of a Shadow is to strike a balance, that is in some cases delicate and hard to achieve. For me, I know I have to do certain things to keep me at balance. For someone else, that might tip the balance too far. Balance is deeply personal, and no one path will balance everyone.
I know the power of the Dark side,
And the peace of the Light.
Again, there isn't a "shadow" side to master. Striking a balance is about knowing and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of both sides, and using the appropriate solution in each unique case.
I am the serenity of balance.
A Buddhist teacher once warned me about becoming -too- comfortable in meditation, and falling into a 'false enlightenment'. That point is where one can comfortably sink into themselves so far that they don't come back out again. Balance doesn't allow that. It keeps me from slipping too far into myself that I can't find my way out again.
All the universe is a false-reality,
Reality is defined mostly by your perception of it. Seek and ye will find. It is the simple fact that there is no absolute truth and yet we try to explain our world in absolutes that makes the universe a false-reality. By recognising that the world is only as you percieve it, you take the first steps to controlling it.
I pledge myself to my beliefs,
If you believe in something, you should have no trouble pledging yourself to it. If you can't make the pledge, you don't truly believe.
For I have found true life
In the balance of the Dark and the Light.
A life spent in servitude of one extreme or another isn't really a -life-. It's a tenure or a servitude. By striving for balance, I have freed myself.

[Empress Palpatine]

Palpatine himself used both sides. The Shadow Jedi and the Sith seem to have something in common.

[JeRegretRiens]

I've been thinking about the differences between Jedi and Sith for a bit now, actually.

I believe the Jedi (in terms of the parts where they differ from the Sith, not in general) take their philosophy from the Ancient Greek Stoics and, to a lesser degree, from Utilitarianism.
Utilitarianism, in a nutshell, is the belief that whatever does the most good in relation to the least harm is good--the good of the many over the good of the few and such things.
Stoics believed that all the virtues--wisdom, justice, courage, self-control, piety, and generosity--were really just perfected reason applied to various spheres of conduct.
While the Jedi may or may not see those virtues as stemming from reason, those -are- the Jedi virtues. The Stoic seeks to free himself from all passion, excitation, and frivolity in order to be able to apply his reason reliably. The same could be said of the Jedi.
So to free one's self of emotions for the sake of being reasonable, so that reason can then be turned to the greater good...is hardly soulless. It's a very spiritual decision to put the good of the many over one's personal sense of self. Which ties in with Buddhism, in the idea that nothing can ever be found that is self-existent or that exists by itself independently of other phenomena. Including the self--the Buddhists warn against self-grasping ignorance, or one's belief that they exist under their own power, independently, from their own side.

The Sith, however, take their philosophy from the Egoists. Not the modern negative connotations of being egotistical, but the original Egoists, founded by Max Stirner.
The basic idea is that it is moral to do whatever is in one's best interests to do. Before people think that's a narrow-minded view or paints the Sith into the "bad guy" role they have in the movies with little thought, I want to point out who the most well-known philosophical Egoist is in Star Wars: Han Solo. Definitely one of the good guys. Egoists argue we are all better off in a world where everyone acts out their own self-interest than in a world where everyone is constantly interfering with others. Dedicated egoists also argue we each have an interest in living in an ordered society where conflicts do not lead to violence--therefore, egoism isn't nessicarily -all- about one's self. And Sith -don't- nessicarily need to take the violent route to get what they want. Case in point, Senator Palpatine. While violence was involved in his bid to take over the senate, he didn't just raise an army and take the senate by force. He got himself elected -first-. Rather, a world in which violence is only acted on when it is the last resort would suit the Sith as well as the Jedi. What's the point of having power (as the Sith Code suggests they want!) if you expend all of that power constantly putting down fighting? The ideal world for a Sith, and for an Egoist, is where the people all look after themselves with minimal interference from others or moral 'boundaries' that are arbitrary at best. What the Sith want, though, is power. So their own egoism works with the egoism of the people in the world who want to follow--there are leaders, and there are followers. The Sith wants to be in charge, and will put himself in charge because it's in his best interests to do so. The followers want someone -else- to lead, and will follow the Sith because it's in their best interests to do so.

All in all, there's a place for -both- types. And in a way, the Jedi of the real world could be seen as similar to Sith--the Jedi do what is in THEIR best interests. It's just that a Jedi's best interest is to restrain their emotions and help others.

[Empress Palpatine]

What became evident in the movies was that the Jedi wanted power as much as the Sith. In the Star Wars galaxy, the Jedi were the state religion. They were located right near the power of government and had access and influence on the chancellor and the senators. They even had the power to arrest the chancellor, even kill him. Think about it. What if back during the days of Watergate, church officials marched into the White House to arrest President Nixon. What if one of the church officials killed the president? Would it not be considered unconstitutional for them to do either? Why? Separation of church and state. However, in the Star Wars galaxy, there is no separation of church and state, or at least the Jedi don't think so. The Jedi even contemplated taking over the government completely.

The Jedi fought to hold on to power. They were a ruling institution. Palpatine challenged that power. The Jedi were not pure. They had become corrupted and self serving as much as the church in the middle ages.

I grew up in the church and noticed how people from the church put a wrapper of righteousness over their actions when underneath they fight for money and power as much as anyone else. I am sure you have seen scandals where preachers buy themselves fancy cars and houses on the money they collect for their ministries under the pretense of some righteous goal. The Sith just eliminate the facades. All want power. The Sith will admit it.

[dettam]

I consider myself a Dark Jedi. Simply put, I believe it is possible, although very difficult, to use both sides of the Force, without falling under the control of either one.

[Mrs. Darth Vader]

It may be difficult to use both sides of the Force interchangeably but if you only use one then that one will control your life. If you try to balance the two you might be controlled by one but might is better than will. If you balance both sides of the Force you will get used to balancing it so more likely you will use both interchangeably.

[Lord competent.]

Sometimes it takes me to the point of pain.