Star Wars movies as "Sacred Texts"

So there is a lot of discussion on the new mythology being created through the new Star Wars movies coming out. I have also seen that in general many Jedi regularly either refer to components of movies or actually use some of the philosophical and spiritual aspects of the movies to explore and explain their Jediism. It got me to wondering whether people consider the movies as sacred texts or not.

Most religions have sacred texts of one sort or another, some of them are very steeped in mythology. These sorts of "sacred texts" are not so much divine inspiration but more a path towards divine inspiration. For example Heathenry sacred texts are the Norse prose and poetic Edda's, Dianic paganism has "The White Goddess", Even the bible could be considered a collection of mythologies. Followers of those religions use those respective texts through metaphor etc to explore and define their spirituality.

The Star Wars movies could also just be considered modern day myth - one being created in our lifetimes, right? The only difference between the Star Wars mythology and some of the previously mentioned ones is that the intent of the movies is not to inspire/explain a spirituality... or is it? That's what I'm wondering - is there a component of intended spirituality in these movies and whether there is or not can we consider the Star Wars movies as "sacred texts"? Why or why not?

Havent seen the new movies

Wouldnt expect much from disney

Wisdom can be found in a myriad of places.

I think it would be unwise to limit oneself to a particular set of doctrine, and I realize that is not what is being proposed, to gain wisdom from or take examples from. That in part is probably a contributing factor as to why so many members of other religions feel incomplete or quit or bounce from one church to another. Looking for something they are finding. ( I have seen my own parents do that exact thing )

But as to using movies as part of a divine text… I would be against that personally.

I believe a better solution would be to look toward our own clergy and ask them to provide/create a text, or tome, that we could use. It would be incomplete of course and we would want to add to it over time. Maybe creating additional tomes or more advanced books. But it would be something where they could pull wisdom from various other sources and compile it into useful lessons for Jedi to read or study.

And then we would have something that could accurately reflect our own belief structure and be our own. We just have to remember that wisdom is found in more places than just the text or tome that is created. That it is merely reference or a starting off point for a lifetime of personal exploration and reflection.

When I was asked about it, I replied that everything is sacred. This is a Buddhist teaching that I bring to my practices; Everything around us is sacred and thinking like this, our worldview changes completely.
About the myth, this is also everywhere, because it is the journey of the hero, we can see in the SW, but in other places too, as Joseph Campbell speaks in his interviews. Moreover, by studying Aristotle and his writings on the soul, the philosopher says that by reaffirming Campbell's dialogue that the perception of being captures the intelligence of nature, that is, the ancients learned from animals, plants and the functioning of the World and this is reproduced and adapted to us by other stories until the SW. For example, we can easily pick up the history of SW that is futuristic and take it to the Middle Ages with few adaptations without problems.

From the Moyer's interviews:

"BILL MOYERS: What do you make of the fact that so many people have interpreted “Star Wars” as — as — as being profoundly religious?

GEORGE LUCAS: I don’t see “Star Wars” as profoundly religious. I see “Star Wars” as — as taking all of the issues that religion represents and trying to distill them down into a — a more modern and more easily accessible construct that people can grab onto to accept the fact that there is a greater mystery out there. When I was 10 years old, I asked my mother — I said, ‘Well, if there’s only one God, why are there so many religions?’ And over the years — I’ve been pondering that question ever since. And it would seem to me that the conclusion that I’ve come to is that all the religions are true, they just see a different part of the elephant. A religion is basically a — a container for faith. Faith is the — the glue that holds us together as a society. Faith in our — in our culture, our — our world, our — you know, whatever it is that we’re trying to hang on to is a very important part of, I think, allowing us to — to remain stable. Remain balanced.

(Excerpt from “Star Wars”)

BILL MOYERS: And where does God fit in this concept of the universe? In this cosmos that you’ve created? Is the Force God?

GEORGE LUCAS: I put the Force into the movies in order to try to awaken a certain kind of spirituality in young people. More a belief in God than a belief in any particular, you know, religious system. I mean, the — the — the — the real question is to ask the question, because if you — if you — having enough interest in the mysteries of life to ask the questions, is — is there a God or is there not a God?, that’s — that’s, for me, the worst thing that can happen. You know, if you asked a young person, ‘Is there a God?’ and they say, ‘I don’t know. ‘ You know? I think you should have an opinion about that.
[/i"

Besides Lucas actually making a point to include it, as well as other things like Politics, Economics, and Social Injustice, I guess it must be related how we consider something sacred. The sacred can be spoken of as "that which reveals"; the bigger the revelation, the deeper the faith in its sanctity.

I would consider them sacred in the sense that they help guide me to "a higher spirituality", but the path TO THERE is my religious expression. We all have an inborn sense of the sacred, even though it manifests slightly differently.

Star Wars occurred in a different age and different place, but it points to the same thing as "this day" and "this place"- harmony, balance, and the relationship between things, both big and small. It does this through a general cast of archetypes, who's spiritual apex is found in the Jedi- and they happen to be who the story is mostly about, so I would consider it a spiritual movie in this sense.

Likewise, norito are considered highly sacred, not because of any hints of ancient indigenous ritual or the exact sounds or any sort of mantric formulae they may represent, but for the fact that they "reveal" the feelings associated a deep sense of natural spirituality. And the interpreters of modern Shinto are as "distant" from their sacred source as anyone else on this forum.

Honestly, I consider some of the fiction to be very spiritual and fit for exegesis- especially Rogue One, but not every single aspect is meant to take it to that level. Much of it I think is backdrop- like how the real world acts as the arena that inspires faith or spirituality to grow.

When I took my vows as a Freemason, I was actually encouraged to place a copy of the SW script on the altar in lieu of a the Bible. They recognized my belief in the Force and that the Mythos of SW as the vehicle for that, making it a 'volume of sacred law".

I think the underlying question is: Should we have a sacred text?

My answer: absolutely not.

As I mentioned in another post in the forums, rules and texts have caused many of the world's religions much strife over the years. I think one of the great things about the Force (or whatever you may call it) is that it is to be interpreted individually. It is the thing that connects all things and guides them on their respective paths. What, when, where, and how is completely up to how you understand it. For each person that will be different and that is one of the best things about what you all have going here. That it is ok to be different and see things differently. I think a sacred text or even too rigid of guidelines/rules would only serve to obstruct that.

So of course my answer to this specific question is that we should not consider any of the movies as sacred texts. I do not believe we should have one to begin with.

I would like to specifically call out Wescli Wardest's idea:

I believe a better solution would be to look toward our own clergy and ask them to provide/create a text, or tome, that we could use.

Obviously, I disagree with this idea. More so than I disagree with using the movies. It would begin as a collaboration of only a few members views and ideas. Amending it would lead to exponentially more issues.

This is my opinion.

I encourage response. Please do. What do you think?

@Anison

well, the difference between a "sacred text" that originates from a piece of entertainment and a text which originates from a religious tradition is time and seriousness - while disney might draw on universal or archetypal themes to put their movies together, they are first and foremost in the entertainment business, and their ultimate aim is to make money off of a commercially successful product

texts which emerge from long standing religious communities serve deeper purposes, like keeping societies and families together, offering individuals a sense of belonging, and tools to keep their sanity in times of real duress

i am a product of my times as much as anyone is and i ascribe to the "bruce lee principle" i.e. "absorbv what is useful, discard what is useless, add what is uniquely your own" (which is why im drawn to jediism) and in my opinion each of us does actually develop a sort of sacred text regardless of whether it is deliberate or conscious or not, insofar as we pursue certain things over others, and if you dont dedicate a very serious amount of energy and effort in said pursuit, you basically end up drifting around the bottom of the economic and social ladder, which is a pretty bad place to be

its not really possible NOT TO prioritize, which imo is the essene of what it means to have a sacred text, and so in my opinion it is a good idea to make it a conscious act where we really think about and select which principles we want to live by in an overt and formal way

its also useful to compare notes with others so that we can get feedback which hopefully will help keep us grounded in reality

so, i kind of agree and disagree: i dont think there should be too precise of a universal text for jediism, but i do think here are some core principles that we agree on, even if we each approach and pursue those principles in different ways

I don't believe in middle mans and sacred things outside of myself.

This is not to mean I see myself as a Higher/sacred power.....It just means that I am my own best spiritual guardian.

When I find something inspiring, Like in Star Wars, It calls to something already within me. It just provided a means of tapping into it. A light switch that put words, emotion, thought, and ideas to what I previously couldn't explain myself.

The movies, books and sources of Star Wars are not Sacred Texts.

But they are great tools that tap into the spiritual power of.....Me.

Just don't forget:

"There is no secret ingredient."

- Kung Fu Panda

Hm... I was thinking about this the other day. I can think of a number of resources that influenced the concept of the Jedi, resources we use to develop our philosophy, which I may consider "sacred texts." And while I certainly think there's a place for Star Wars as our mythology (and a good deal of it is very good for influencing the philosophy - Rogue One was fantastic for that, in spite of a lack of Jedi), I think it's a bit difficult to call them either sacred or texts.

They are sacred in the fact that they lead to a deeper meaning for jedi and they are texts in the loosest of modern day terms. Media of today can be called a text just as any written work.

It seems there are opinions on both sides of this topic.

@OBI - You should not so redily discount the new movies based on simple bias. As one who grew up with the originals as they evolved and never thought they could be topped, i have been pleasantly surprised, especially by this latest installment. I consider it thee best of any of the movies by far.

@trisskar - i really appreciate your views on this. I think its important for each of us to take these mythologies and interpret them in our own ways that work best for us personally in our lives.

Finally in general i was most surprised by the ideas put forth that we should abandon these works altogether in favor of something else. If these movies have been of such deeply profound inspiration that an entire functioning spiritual movement has been build from their teachings why would we then turn around and abandon that very source of inspiration? What was even more disturbing to me in this was the idea that we put this path into the hands of a few individuals to create new doctrine. This seems a path rife with corruption not unlike catholicism. Why would i ever give control of my sprirituality to another in this way? This is where Trisskars idea really comes home. We are each responsible for our own path. Given this concept I wonder why we would have to create new myth when we already have such profound works?

Anison wrote: As I mentioned in another post in the forums, rules and texts have caused many of the world's religions much strife over the years.

No, individual interpretations of those texts--some intentional misinterpretations--have caused strife. The problem with religions isn't in the religions, it's in the adherents.
[hr]

Wescli Wardest wrote: I believe a better solution would be to look toward our own clergy and ask them to provide/create a text, or tome, that we could use.

I think that would require at least some fundamental agreement on how we view the path at its foundational outset, regardless of how people deviate from it individually. Which is something I've been suggesting for a bit, but didn't think was possible.
[hr]

Xiam wrote: I certainly think there's a place for Star Wars as our mythology...

I think this is the most accurate way to describe the canon films in regard to general Jediism. They're a mythology, not a holy text. They are metaphors and examples, not static dogma.

Kyrin Wyldstar wrote: Finally in general i was most surprised by the ideas put forth that we should abandon these works altogether in favor of something else. If these movies have been of such deeply profound inspiration that an entire functioning spiritual movement has been build from their teachings why would we then turn around and abandon that very source of inspiration?

Heh....been arguing that for years

I love the fiction. In fact I learn more about myself through fiction then I ever did through philisophical/religious works. It really sits well with my more artistic mind frame. AND THAT IS OK. Some people like my husband are purely logical and get divine inspiration doing Math problems to rap (I have no idea please don't ask) while others see it through imagination and fantasy.

I think honestly the biggest problem is that we all tend to expect others to learn the same way you do. We forget that there are many various ways to learn and not one of them is better than the other.....just different. Heck...Even in Fiction this we recognized and younglings were divided into teams to assist these variance of learning.

Jediism finds its roots from the star wars universe, not from the movies. The movies themselves only show the force as a form of magic, the philosophy behind it is rather weak. Kreia, a character from Knights of the old republic II, is what converted me. The philosophy of that character (botched jobs from the rushed release and strange background excluded) is deeply existentialist, and so is my take on Jediism. I find the other philosophies of star wars simply at odds with the real world.

Considering many do not believe in the Force as described on the Doctrine, I don't see what it is they actually have in common other than a few words taken from star wars. Jedi sacred texts seem far far away....

steamboat28 wrote: They're a mythology, not a holy text. They are metaphors and examples, not static dogma.

In the first place I did not say holy text, I said sacred text. Holy text implies a perfect goodness and righteousness while sacred implies simply being worthy of veneration. My point in the original post was that mythology and sacred texts are not exclusive to each other. What I was asking was can we consider the mythology AS sacred texts that can be studied in and of themselves as metaphor for a real life spirituality in Jediism.

If you consider mythology as sacred in this way it becomes something living that grows over time. In ancient times these mythologies were not even written down but passed from generation to generation orally and thus evolved and were added to over time. I'm proposing the idea that this is what is also happening today to the Star Wars Mythology as it relates to Jediism, only in a different format.

ren wrote: Jediism finds its roots from the star wars universe, not from the movies. The movies themselves only show the force as a form of magic

have you seen the latest movie, Rogue One? Cus that movie blows your comment out of the water I think.

I believe that Jediism is a praxic religion, not a doxic one. That is to say, it is focused more on right practice than right belief. Sacred Texts inevitably steer a religion in towards orthodoxy, that is to say right belief. Your worth as a member of said doxic religion is how in-line you are with the "right" (read: most widely accepted) interpretation of the beliefs of a group. Going down that course would be rather contrary to the core principles of Jediism, and many would leave the Temple if they felt like it was going in that way.

Kyrin Wyldstar wrote:

ren wrote: Jediism finds its roots from the star wars universe, not from the movies. The movies themselves only show the force as a form of magic

have you seen the latest movie, Rogue One? Cus that movie blows your comment out of the water I think.

Actually even in Rouge One the Force was still Magical even in the religious connotations. Which I honestly believe was added in there for our benefit - I have no doubts Disney and its makers kept our strange community in mind when they developed that. They purposefully made sure the movie adapted to ALL "Fans"

Not a luxury or care when George Lucas and various authors of the past did their works.

Trisskar wrote: Actually even in Rouge One the Force was still Magical even in the religious connotations. Which I honestly believe was added in there for our benefit - I have no doubts Disney and its makers kept our strange community in mind when they developed that. They purposefully made sure the movie adapted to ALL "Fans"

Not a luxury or care when George Lucas and various authors of the past did their works.

Well considering any religious following is also a devotion to a form of magic i would agree, but at least in rogue one there were no "magic tricks" performed (mind tricks and force lightening as so forth) It was a more subtle form of interaction that might have been coincidence or might have been divine.

"Well considering any religious following is also a devotion to a form of magic..."

Thats an awfully broad assumption...:huh:

J. K. Barger wrote: "Well considering any religious following is also a devotion to a form of magic..."

Thats an awfully broad assumption...:huh:

That has no relevance on the truth of the statement.