Force Inclinations

Ok, heres a topic. I looked at the little survey and took it only to find that my answer seemed to be in the minority of responses. I find that as a military member for the better half of my life I should be and am more inclined to be light. However, also with the military as a backdrop to my history (Father and brother served), I find that I seem to be drawn more to the pageantry of the dark side. Do I consider myself gray or should I do the \"right\" thing and choose once and for all for myself and my path towards becoming a master? Anyone new and old is more than welcome to pitch in and in doing so you could help me and maybe those of you that are also confused could finally make the choice for yourselves. Hope to hear from you!

Well, I think most of us would agree that the Light path is the more noble and worthy of the paths to the Force. On the path of Light you will, over time, begin to understand the Force and its will. You will, with study and meditation, begin to understand your feelings and emotions in order to master them and bring inner peace. Most importantly you will be able to follow the path of light and simply incorporate Jediism into your current Christian Belief system(Knowing that is what you follow from a previous post of yours). Niether the gray path nor the dark side can offer you these benefits. The gray path is more of a study in Balance than peace and will not offer you the opportunity to become the master of yourself as you will constantly be struggling between light and dark and will not be able to spend the time necessary to look within yourself and define your emotions.
The Dark side does seem easier and in that itr offers more temptation, but within the darkside you will not truly be a Master of yourself or your emotions. They will be the master of you.

Obviously it is a choice, one that only you are qualified to make for yourself. But frankly if I had to choose between Enlightenment and Peace or a life of Hate and darkness (which I did) I would obviously choose the light (which I did) However the choice is ultimately yours.

I see, and not to steal a line or anything, but do I miss out on learning everything I can by not embracing all aspects of the Force? I certainly don't see myself truly \"leaning\" towards the dark side, however I feel a pull that more than likely can be attributed as/to temptation but I can't seem to want to turn away. I can freely and legitimately say that I walk in the light, but I don't feel as if the dark side is just some generic evil but another piece of the puzzle that ultimately leads to totality. I admit that as a novice I am probably missing something or maybe I just write (at lengths) to see your answers to my questions. Does one turn away or does one look to everything to learn all there is as in \"how can you know what is good without knowing what is bad? I am obviously so conflicted....or do I choose to be? Hmm...

No, as a matter of fact you miss nothing by not seeking or learning the dark side other than emotional turmoil and periodic sorrow. The second step on the path to being a jedi is as follows:

2. Believe in the Force and its power, a Jedi is devoted to the Force, being committed to the ideals of a Jedi is a pervading tenet. A Jedi does not serve the dark side in any way, in thought or in deed. A Jedi acts in a righteous manner defining the principles of a true Jedi. Knowledge and a relationship will you develop with the Force, it resides within you, surrounds you and flows through you.

The Jedi Code also puts it very plainly

The Jedi 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 dark side has none of these qualities.

Finally, and most importantly, by studying on the path of the Light you will understand the dark. That is part of your self reflection and meditation. When you study your own feelings and emotions, you will learn what it is that the dark side feeds on and how it takes control. As it is said in our basic teachings:

7. Jedi are mindful of the negative emotions which lead to the Dark Side: Anger, Fear, Aggression, and Hate. If we sense these emotions manifesting within ourselves, we must meditate on the Jedi Code and focus on purging these destructive emotions.


You see we all have these feelings, Jedi or Not. However, A jedi will acknowledge them and look inward to study them. The Jedi will analyze and categorize these emotions one by one, viewing them as they purge themselves of them in order to master them. In doing so they then master themselves. As you know from your military training, Discipline is core to a Jedi. The dark side has no such discipline and as such is truly only a drunken persuit of power.

That came sooner than I was expecting, but I am glad. Thank you brother. Is there a zip file or something that encompasses all of these tenets and bits of knowledge that you impart within your postings? I think the more I read and study the easier I can come to a better understanding. Again my thanks and MTFBWY.

Actually you don't need a Zip file or anything of the sort. Everything I quote is listed under temple doctrine on the left side of your screen. You simply have to click on it and all the information is laid out in front of you. Again, If you have need for guidance or council please feel free to let me know at anytime. I am always here to help.

Sweet, thank you. I guess I only thought I had clicked on everything on the page. Off to reading...MTFBWY.

Anytime.

IF your character is strong enough, you will not constantly struggle with the light and dark, if you are a gray, or shadow Jedi. As long as you know who you are, and what your views of right or wrong are, learning and studying to be balanced will actually help you, more than hurt you. Its only those who cannot or will not, control themselves that have to truly worry about falling to the dark side. There are things you may not learn if you do not atleast study the dark side for some time. You wouldn't go to war without understanding your enemy as much as possible, how can you combat (I use the word loosely) evil, or the dark side if you don't understand it truly? Just some extra points of view to give you other insight and give you more choices.

Dhagon Krayt

IF your character is strong enough, you will not constantly struggle with the light and dark, if you are a gray, or shadow Jedi. As long as you know who you are, and what your views of right or wrong are, learning and studying to be balanced will actually help you, more than hurt you. Its only those who cannot or will not, control themselves that have to truly worry about falling to the dark side. There are things you may not learn if you do not atleast study the dark side for some time. You wouldn't go to war without understanding your enemy as much as possible, how can you combat (I use the word loosely) evil, or the dark side if you don't understand it truly? Just some extra points of view to give you other insight and give you more choices.

Dhagon Krayt

These are the words of someone who has not yet chosen a path for himself and very much refuses to. He claims to walk the line between light and dark and truly does not have a path. His oath was as follows
\"I, Chad A. Craig (Dhagon Krayt), hereby profess my allegiance to the Force. I will do all that I can to better the temple, the world and to maintain the balance of the Force. I will follow the path that the Force leads me down, without question. I will not succumb to the call of the Dark side, nor will I unbalance myself by only reveling in the light. I will walk the line where the balance between Light and Dark is all prominent. On this day March 20, 2007 I swear it. \"

I am hoping we can convince him that the light side of the Force is the one Path to peace and truth. But he must first want peace and truth. I want to say that as a Minister of the Force and As he is a brother of the Order I have nothing but Charity and compassion for Dhagon Krayt. I want him to be at peace with himself and with others and hope to aid him in anyway I can. I would ask that anyone who reads this that follows the Path of Light would Aid me in doing the same. MTFBWYA

Whoa; Time Out; Stop The Press:

Here is one of those times where everyone has good intentions and where we have to remind ourselves (Warning - Cliché Ahead) that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

All sunshine makes a wasteland, a desert. I see a Jedi who is very much in harmony with The Force in Jedi Dhagon Krayt. I see another good Jedi, Twsoundsoff, who is reading the same words but getting a totally different meaning than I.

This is not an I'm right your wrong issue but one of misunderstanding. I'm not going to stick an answer to this because then nobody would be learning it; I'd be teaching it.

Here is an excellent opportunity for all Jedi to have a go at it. I look forward to your thoughts and I'm not going to cop out and say no more. I just want to see what The People have to say first.

Br. John

Twsoundsoff wrote:

These are the words of someone who has not yet chosen a path for himself and very much refuses to. He claims to walk the line between light and dark and truly does not have a path. His oath was as follows
\"I, Chad A. Craig (Dhagon Krayt), hereby profess my allegiance to the Force. I will do all that I can to better the temple, the world and to maintain the balance of the Force. I will follow the path that the Force leads me down, without question. I will not succumb to the call of the Dark side, nor will I unbalance myself by only reveling in the light. I will walk the line where the balance between Light and Dark is all prominent. On this day March 20, 2007 I swear it. \"

I am hoping we can convince him that the light side of the Force is the one Path to peace and truth. But he must first want peace and truth. I want to say that as a Minister of the Force and As he is a brother of the Order I have nothing but Charity and compassion for Dhagon Krayt. I want him to be at peace with himself and with others and hope to aid him in anyway I can. I would ask that anyone who reads this that follows the Path of Light would Aid me in doing the same. MTFBWYA

I have a feeling I am about to learn and be humbled a great deal. With that said I also will not falter in what I believe and will express my beliefs in any way possible to explore the general concensus of this temple. I must say though that Br. John, your words do concern me. While i also see a great relationship with the force in Dhagon, I also feel as though it is not of the overall teachings of this temple. Any other vies here would be greatly appreciated.

such an intesting disscussion here.

I am certainly no expert on this so it's all a matter of personal experience and feelings and the teachings of the Force....but i would venture that each side is great. There are always two sides to everything, and then there is that fine line. (as though anyone needs reminding of this..elementay)

Darkside of the force: This comes with a heavy price. Sith are malicious people, who have intentions of pain and fear. Sith are not to be taken lightly. SIth are also (generally) only accepted by other Sith. SO much temptations comes with these teachings. It may seem harmless, but the end results, the consequence are terrible to behold. i much imagine the reprecussions of this doctrine similar to the wrath of god. And i'm not sure about you, but i wouldn't want to envoke that on purpose.

Shadow Jedi (as they are known): These people walk where nothing is visible. A line that seperates the evil from the righteous in this life. I believe that they can exsist. But they to often work for themselves. this i not an organized side of the force. it is not chaotic, but there is no harmony, expect for the harmony the user feels with himself. These people are noble, but are required to have knowledge of both sides of the force so that they can corectly ases situations and how to handle them. It may seem logical, but how to corectly handle situations depends solely on the Shadow Jedi, so they may think that punching Tom in the face is ok, because he punched them first. See what i mean?

Jedi of the Light: These are they that know how to handle every situation because it's all the same no matter what. Never resort to violence or anger..EVER. i do not need to explain this side seeing as how we are all (as far as i know) Jedi of Peace.

I leave it up to you to decide how to respond to this. I mean no offense to anyone or anything. I was merely stating the Force from a young Jedi's point of view.

Well, I am glad to see the survey/poll is stirring up thought.

My take on this:

My studies in ancient egyptian science and hermetic philosophy proved to me many things......

Like, if you really think about it what is Love but the opposite of hate. There is a very thin line between the two as War_beauty stated previously.

With a piece of thread label one end love and the other hate. In the middle you have disinterest.

Paraphrasing the great master Jesus; I would rather you were hot or cold lest I spew you from my mouth.

You must be on one side or the other to benefit at all.

Exactly, what is opposite of? It is an extreme of the same thing. It is easy to see in objects but, less clear to our minds on issues of charity-greed, love-hate, hunger-gluttony etc.

There is NO duality only extremes and interoperability.

Truly I disagree with those who choose balance and the straight and narrow gray path more than those who've chosen the Dark or the Light path.

It is always a matter of perspective but, someone who claims to be Dark could just be feeling truthful and by choosing the Dark rather than Light are humbling themselves and the reverse could be said of someone doing the opposite.


But, choosing to stradlle the fence or be lukewarm --- Gray can be a limbo state and not a path for much length of time as it breeds apathy and disinterest.

I believe the best path is similar to the one Dhagon spoke of, that of a Chaote for here all things are learned; The gods looked down upon them and said, \"Now they are as one of us, truly knowing good and evil.\"

Thank you Jidun for agreeing with and understanding what I have been trying to say. In that last paragraph you possibly put it better than I have in my many posts on this. I am a little confused though as to what your overall post is saying. It sounds like your saying you disagree with anything other than all light or all dark, and then say you think my path to be the right one. I'm not sure if this confuse anyone else, I may just be reading it incorrectly. Is there any way you can elaborate or clear that up for me, I'd just like to understand your views a little better.

Dhagon Krayt

Ok, yeah when I looked it over a second time I understand why you'd have that question.....

Being gray is indifferent, stagnant, inactive, neither agreeing with the Light or Dark side on any given matter but standing in the middle on every issue.

BUT, if one agrees wholeheartedly and freely on any given subject whether it be viewed as Light or Dark will not matter to such a one this would describe a chaote. Such a one has been noted as The 0 or the fool (which should be read as the Jester or Joker as todays connotation of fool is quite derogatory) neither taking only the left or right path but, meandering as his will beckons not as the way of the arrow but the serpent.

well. My friend and i were just disscussing this matter....and i thought of a way to describe the Shadow Jedi.

Someone who believes in God and is atheist at the same time.

I wrote:

Truly I disagree with those who choose balance and the straight and narrow gray path more than those who've chosen the Dark or the Light path.

Because, I follow the clear light or luminous path of the Force so, to speak.

Here, gnosis plays....

Red Lettered Text In The Bible, A.O.S. , Chaos, Dzogchen...... munged together make up my inexplicable picture of the Force.

I've searched incessantly for answers since I was 12 and now I am fast approaching my 4th decade. The more I have learned the more I have found that most Doctrines and Paths such as sutra's, tantra's, occultism, paganism, psychism, Christian, Buddhist, Islamic, Judaism, Kaballah, Mormonism etc., all tend to lead the seeker astray in that the devil is in the details. Time and space are illusions as even modern quantum physics is starting to agree with the views of ancient mystic masters.

Who say we are all one there is no Duality no Subject only Object.

Sometimes I ponder this. Richard Feinman and another well known particle physicist once had a conversation that went similar to this...

\"You know it's kinda strange that all elements have slight variances that kind of lend to uniqueness except the electron it is always exactly the same with no variance.\" Then they laugh nervously and muse, \"Maybe there is only one electron everywhere at once.\" It scares the crap out of them because, none of them can say it's not possible understanding the nature of things as they do.

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To: War_Beauty

Are you considering that Shadow Jedi must be suffering from multiple identity disorders?

well...maybe. Not really what i meant...but hey..you never know these days..lol