Thousands of years before the rise of the First Galactic Empire, the Jedi Order was
founded as a religious organization, dedicated to the study and worship of the Force. Specifically,
they chose to channel the light side of the force, detaching themselves from strong emotion
and using their gifts to aid others and gain knowledge. Over the course of many years,
they brought their message of peace and justice to several worlds, and eventually claimed
the Ice world of Ilum as their own. Here the Jedi Order discovered Kyber Crystals, which
were attuned to the force and could be used to craft weapons of pure energy. The Lightsaber,
as it was named, became the traditional weapon of the Jedi and the voyage to Ilum developed
into a right of passage for young Jedi, so the might choose their crystal and craft their
lightsaber. This tradition would later become the Gathering, a sacred ritual performed by
Jedi younglings to choose their crystal, build their lightsaber, and prove they were ready
to become an apprentice to a Jedi Knight. Over thousands of years, the Jedi Order developed
its own culture, traditions and values. The basis for their beliefs became known as the
Jedi Code, and it forbade Jedi from forming personal attachments while encouraging them to remain compassionate
towards all, and valuing all sentient life. The code also included a mantra which summarized
their basic belief system 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.
Because the demands of the Jedi Code were so stringent, Mastery of the Force became
a lifelong pursuit. Children were recruited at very young ages and taught
in Jedi Temples, and a hierarchy within the order was formed. The youngest children were
known as younglings. Who were taught Force theory and the basics of its use. Younglings
were then tested on the planet of Ilum, where they would find their Kyber Crystal and build
their lightsaber. If they succeeded they became Padawan Learners, assigned to a full Jedi
who would take on their instruction. After many years as a Padawan, they were tested
through the Jedi Trials which would take them through 9 stages. Focusing on teamwork, isolation,
fear, anger, betrayal, focus, instinct, forgiveness, and protection.
If passed, Padawans became jedi Knights. After many years as a Knight and after having proven
their skill, Jedi were promoted to the rank of Master. Finally the wisest and usually
oldest among the order was granted the rank of Grand Master, and he would serve as a leader
for the order. Assisting the Grand master in administering the Order, would be the Jedi
Council, which consisted of 12 jedi Masters. In addition to the Grand Master, a Master
of the Order would be elected from among the council to serve as leader of the Council.
Roughly 6000 years before Empire, the Jedi Order fractured in what came to be known as
the Hundred years of Darkness. It began when a Jedi Knight started questioning the ways
of the Light Side, focusing on his anger and hate to discover the power of the Dark Side.
This lone Jedi became convinced the Dark Side was the only way for a Force user to reach
his true potential. Yet his ideas were dismissed by the Jedi leadership, who cast him out of
the Order. But his philosophy soon caught the attention of many more Jedi, who decided
to leave the order and follow their new Dark Master. These rogue Jedi formed the Sith Order,
who stood in opposition to the Jedi, believing the Dark Side held the true power of the force,
and where the Jedi used their abilities for the benefit of others, the Sith would use
their abilities for themselves, exploiting others for their own advantage.
These fallen Jedi relocated to the planet of Moraband which would become known as the
Sith homeworld. After growing their numbers and expanding their influence. The sith declared
war on the Jedi, convinced it was their destiny to rule the Galaxy. The Sith became powerful,
developing superweapons said to have the ability to destroy entire worlds. But the Sith, made
treacherous and selfish by their own teachings, would constantly fight among each other, and
as a result were often defeated by the Jedi, who disassembled their superweapons and took
back Sith conquered worlds. But the Sith could never be entirely defeated and so the Jedi
Order would continue to fight against their enemies wherever encountered and did their
best to keep Sith influence out of allied worlds.
And so it would be the Jedi would enter into an alliance with what is now referred to as
the Old Republic. Agreeing with the republic ideals of peace, democracy and justice for
all, the Jedi became proud defenders of the Republic. It was during this time that the
Jedi made Coruscant their homeworld, founding the Jedi Temple over the ruins of an abandoned
Sith Shrine. To adhere to their belief in freedom for all, the Republic outlawed slavery,
and so the Jedi Order went to war with the great Zygerrian Slave Empire, dismantling
their trade networks and spreading democracy and republic values to freed worlds. Many
years after the Zygerrian conflict was settled, a new threat arose that challenged Republic
safety. The warriors of mandalore, had begun conquering neighboring worlds and expanding
the influence of their warlike culture. The Jedi once again went to war, hoping to stop
the spread of Mandalore violence. However, the Mandalorians fought not for riches or
glory, but for the thrill of the fight itself. The War therefore was long and draining, costing
the Republic much in the way of blood and treasure. A Mandalorian general was even able
to sack the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, stealing a Jedi relic known as the Darksaber. At the
same time Wars with the Sith Order were once again rising, and the strain of both conflicts
ultimately collapsed the Old Republic government. Yet even with the fall of their allies, the
Jedi continued on, and were able to defeat both the Sith and the Mandalorians. The Mandalorians
were pushed back to their homeworld, while the Sith were destroyed both by the Jedi and
their own continued infighting. Until only 1 Dark Lord remained, known to history as
Darth Bane, he saw the devastation caused by Sith civil war, and so created the Rule
of 2. Claiming that from that point forward only 2 Sith could ever exist at a time, a
Master to embrace the power of the Dark Side, and an Apprentice to desire that power. In
this way they would seek revenge against the Jedi working in the shadows, secretly to destroy
their order. Darth Bane was eventually killed by the Jedi who became convinced this was
the end of the Sith Order. Yet the work of Darth Bane continued, through his secret apprentice
who escaped Jedi notice. Roughly 1000 years before Empire, with the Sith and Mandalorians
defeated, a Galactic republic was formed out of the ashes of the Old Republic, adhering
to their same values and ideals. The Jedi once again became their defenders,
this time focusing more on diplomacy and peacekeeping then all out war. For a thousand years the
Republic flourished and expanded, stretching far across the galaxy without any major wars.
Local planetary and trade disputes were settled by the Jedi and a policing force that came
to be known as the Judicials, they were more numerous than the Jedi and could settle smaller
disputes throughout the galaxy. Roughly 900 years before Empire, as the Galactic
Republic and Jedi worked to spread their ideals across the galaxy, the legendary Jedi Master,
Yoda was born. Discovered to possess strong Force Sensitivity, Yoda was trained as a Jedi
and spent 800 years teaching other what he had learned to others. Yoda became widely known as the
wisest of the Jedi Order, and for his incredible force powers, and skill with a lightsaber.
Though Yoda was selfless and sage, it would be his final apprentice Count Dooku, who would
ultimately betray the Order, joining with the Sith Lord Darth Sidious, embracing the
Dark Side, and contributing greatly in orchestrating the eventual fall of the Galactic Republic
and Jedi Order.
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