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Revision as of 22:51, 14 November 2003 by T-Money (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Force is a (fictional) mystical power which is the object of the Jedi and Sith religions in George Lucas's Star Wars films.
The Force is described by Obi-Wan Kenobi as "an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together." It can only be harnessed by a minority of beings described as "Force sensitive", and their Force abilities are the result of a culture of internal micro-organisms called . The more midi-chlorians a body contains, the greater the person's force ability. Force-adepts are able to tap into the Force to perform acts of great skill and agility.
The Jedi refer to two sides of The Force, a dark side and a light side. This echoes the concept of Yin Yang in Eastern philosophy, but is not a straight translation, as the emotional dark-side is denoted as a force of evil by the Jedi. Use of the dark side of the force is distinctly frowned upon within the Jedi order, and is strictly considered the domain of the Sith.
Jedi are keen to keep the Force in balance. They attempt to achieve this by destroying the Sith and denying the dark side, as the dark side is considered to be a corruption. This involves the purging of negative emotions such as aggression, anger, and hate since they can easily bring on acceptance of the dark side. In contrast, positive emotions such as love, compassion, and courage nurture the light side of the Force.
Manifestations of Force-skills include telepathy, telekinesis, enhanced physical and metaphysical perception as well as the abilities to bend the will of the weakminded and improve one's own physical ability. The Force can also be used to enhance an adept's skills for a particular task such as Luke Skywalker's use of the Force to help him hit an extremely difficult target on the Death Star in the Battle of Yavin. As a consequence of these skills, the Force has occasionally been associated with the real-life concepts of Taoism and parapsychology.
In addition to the above powers, members of the Sith cult are also capable of aggressive attacks through The Force by producing "force-lightning" from their hands. Apparently, harnessing the dark side increases a person's power, but it also corrupts them and over time wastes away their body (see Palpatine). As a contrast, adherence to the Light Side allows its user to transcend death and become a "force ghost", allowing the deceased to exist as an energy being who can interact with other Force sensitive individuals.
When Alderaan was destroyed in the original Star Wars movie, Obi Wan Kenobi sensed "a great disturbance in the force, as if millions of souls cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced..."
The Force is associated with a phrase used by some characters in (and fans of) the films: "May the Force be with you", meaning something like "Good luck". If the Force exists between all living things in any case, the phrase reflects a misunderstanding of its nature; it's worth noting that the Jedi knight Obi Wan Kenobi always used a different form that expressed a reminder rather than a wish: "The Force will be with you."
As a cult, it has been recognized official in Australia thanks to the large number of worshipers.