SPECULATION How do we define the force

I think there is a mysterious element to the Force in so far as it allows people to do crazy blast with it.
And yes, peoples perspectives and views change as they get older and this in turn impacts upon how they use the Force.
But the Force itself doesn't change. The moral absolutes that are on either side of the good and bad spectrum do not change.
What I mean is that there is a pool of energy created by all living things. And those that tap into its power with hatred and greed and anger etc are using the Dark Side.
Those that listen to its will and respond with compassion, love and selflessness are maintaining the natural order of things.
People that do good create good energy. People that do bad things create bad energy.

I always took it that the Dark Side isn't really an external thing per se or at least not at the source (although using the power of the Force through the Dark Side conjures physical powers that are the physical manifestation of evil). The Dark Side is the darkness that is in us all. We all have the potential for evil. It's seductive. It grows easily.
The Dark Side are those bad emotions within us and when we release them and use them then the energy we create is thus dark.

For me the Force has always just been a metaphor for the power within us all.
The propensity for good and evil. We all have the power to do both. We all have a choice.
And our choices impact on EVERYTHING and EVERYONE else.

I'm an atheist. But I believe in the Force (not the crazy powers bit) in terms of life being interconnected.
It's a large part of why I am a vegetarian. It's why we should all care about the environment. It's why we should treat others as we wish to be treated ourselves.
The Sith are the opposite to this kind of view. They instead look to use the power of the Force for their own greed and desires.

 

A+

 

The Force is in balance when the galaxy is at peace.

 

My take on The Force (growing up in the 80's) was a neutral mystical energy field that people could draw on for abilities outside of themselves or outside of what would be considered normal - if one was sensitive enough to tap into it.

In my imagination it might account for everything from intuition and de ja vu through to telekinesis and physical manipulation of matter. These abilities could be cultivated by anyone (with enough time and practice and to wildly varying degrees) but was especially strong in certain rare individuals and would often be passed on/skip generations like other hereditary characteristics.

I loved the abstract and philosophical aspects of The Force and that it was still relatively unknown and mysterious to all but a few sensitive or dedicated adherents who committed their lives to studying, cultivating or applying it's art. The notion that being calm, respectful and in a state of defense encouraged "good" Force use and angry, fearful and hateful states of mind lead to corruption and ultimately "evil" Force use resonated strongly with me as a child.

The neutrality of The Force was an important aspect in my interpretation - the real battle to me seemed primarily within the Force user to maintain control/channel it's power toward constructive ends while not become arrogant, addicted or seduced through exercising the power for selfish or violent ends.



This permeates into my current interpretation of The Force as a general metaphor for power. Human power can be used to heal and help but also - especially when exercised as power-over others - can lead to suffering and exploitation. As a rule us humans have a poor record when accumulating more power than others - in my mind the Jedi's greatest dilemma.

I don't mind today's midichlorian references, the confusion about "balance" (I still struggle a little here), The Church of The Force and the canon of Mortis and Yoda's Force Planet - so long as I can reconcile these concepts with my early impressions.

In the end I just hope The Force doesn't get defined into a nutshell to a point where it loses it's broad appeal. I'm guessing Disney Corp doesn't either.

 

Ok...My definition of the FORCE is:
The FORCE(IS INSIDE YOU) is ONLY ONE thing BUT is divide in TWO sides.The Light and Dark side.I believe that BOTH are against each other.Is like water and earth.They are different BUT one thing holds the other.Is like night and day.They together BUT is the LIGHT what make them apart.GOOD and EVIL exist.From your point of view(YOU ARE neutral) you can understand what is GOOD and BAD.Is the FORCE(YOURSELF)what take you to ONE side.The FORCE is inside YOU and EVERYTHING around YOU has ENERGY.You have the choice to pick your side....

 

The Force is "CHI", meaning "Energy Force" (chinese is "Qi")

There are no theories or hidden meanings, this is exactly what it was in 1977, George Lucas tried to pull the Indian version of this but it ended up playing just like CHI in all the physical and phylosofical meanings.

Check here for more https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi

Edit:
There are absolutely no side or sides to this, neither is it a good thing or a bad one, is just an energy that exists in everything, something people could use to help others or in their own benefict. Such things like Light and Dark are just ridiculous.

The Sun is the sun, an energy that is, he does us right giving us energy to live but it causes death with the radiation, high energy, that kill everything.

 

Interesting. I have friends who apply themselves to Chi Gong cultivation and I have seen many positive physical and emotional effects resulting from practicing their positions and meditations. (Some of the most fit and mentally balanced people I know.)

I have also read some source material and writings from founders of some of these Chi cultivation methods (their creation myths could have been written by Terry Pratchett or GL!) though I am yet to see any manifestation or evidence of the specific "super powers" the founders and some adherents claim. (Unless the use of the word "super-powers" was a mis-translation or was meant to taken very lightly.)

 

What does The Galaxy have to do with The a force ? And

 

The prevalence of mysteries in the Force, from the Dark to Light ends of its spectrum, enable only aspects of it to be finally defined and understood completely by those who choose to dedicate themselves to it, as did the Jedi or the Sith.

Not one Jedi, not even Yoda, nor the Sith, much less Palpatine, had a total grasp of it.

Even worse, the inverse perspectives of the Sith and the Jedi prevented them from fully understanding and using the Force from the other's perspective.

This is why the Force often appears to find expression in the polarizing, if not overly simplistic dichotomy of Good vs. Evil.

Like knowledge, the Force can be used or regarded in any number of ways. There can be ranges of Force understandings and practices which can go beyond what the Jedi and Sith know or accept. The knowledge of the Force itself seems foremost to be experiential, and therefore personal in the building of one's knowledge of it.

Teachings and traditions can be passed on, as they were for generations among the Jedi and Sith, but teachings can and do get lost, misunderstood, abandoned, reformed, and rejected in favor of new ideas and/or in the presence of new conditions demanding new thinking.

This is why the understanding of the Force is largely a mystical pursuit and not merely a science, something potentially open to all those who seek its knowledge and guidance but not something that was so widely understood and universally accessible that it would be taught in Republic or New Republic schools and widely practiced throughout the galaxy.

The Force is an interactive medium, often defined in terms of energy, very much so in terms of the Living Force during the Prequel Trilogy, but clearly there was always more to it than that.

Midichlorians helped establish one of the more scientific and quasi-quantifiable aspects of the Force, but it fell well short of defining the Force, because quantity clearly did not necessarily dictate quality or ability.

For all his midichlorians, disciplinary lifestyle, and total commitment to learning and teaching the Force, Yoda was unable to sense clearly and anticipate what would become of Palpatine and Anakin. Yoda could, at best, achieve a stalemate with Palpatine at the end of Revenge of the Sith, but then he placed himself in exile after recognizing the dangers were too vast for even him.

Yoda needed to regroup, as did Obi-Wan Kenobi, and later they would begin learning even more of the mysteries of the Living Force and the prospect of immortality (i.e. how to become Force Ghosts) by becoming padawans again under the tutelage of Qui-Gon Jinn.

Beyond the Living Force is the Cosmic Force, and very little seems to be known about that.

If the Force, as it is collectively known and referenced, is primarily or solely energy-based, let us consider our own Electromagnetic Spectrum (c.f. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_spectrum#/media/File:EM_Spectrum_Properties_edit.svg), wherein a very limited range of that energy continuum constitutes what we consider visible light.

The EM Spectrum reveals to us there is always more than what we see.

And so it is with the Force: there is always more to it beyond perception and knowledge, and, furthermore, the Force is not nearly as linear and two-dimensional as a line.

This means that much of the Force, at any given time by any given group or practitioner, remains in an enigmatic state, guiding actions by its will yet partially accommodating commands.

It might very well be the Force is actually reluctant or resistant to definition: how can we define what is essentially indefinable, especially given that, etymologically, define at its root means to limit.

I suggest the Force is virtually limitless in scope and not reducible to human logic or will, and this is why it seems to have its own will, memory, reacting within and beyond its physical manifestations and consequences: push it too hard, physically, mentally, or ideologically, and it will likely push back. Left alone, it might not even be known the Force was there.

While the Force is its name, perhaps it does not prefer to be forced to do anything other than what it would do. When such forceful thoughts or acts occur, it responds, and that could manifest in subtle or potent ways.

Perhaps one is truly strongest with the Force when one is simply living symbiotically within its presence, aware of it, its ebbs and flows, its crests and depths, the infinite oceanic essence of it all, and existing in an unforced manner that gives one greater power than if one were to try to seek and exploit powers more directly and impetuously.

Often, when I consider the Force, I take into consideration the Tao -- The Way (readable via Project Gutenberg at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/216), as in Taoism, which shares many ideas with the Force.

Here is one of many quotes in this text to give you an idea of what this entails:

26. 1. There was something undefined and complete, coming into
existence before Heaven and Earth. How still it was and formless,
standing alone, and undergoing no change, reaching everywhere and in
no danger (of being exhausted)! It may be regarded as the Mother of
all things.

2. I do not know its name, and I give it the designation of the Tao
(the Way or Course). Making an effort (further) to give it a name I
call it The Great.​

Here is a line which speaks volumes about the fatally flawed Sith approach to the Force: "he who (relies on) the strength of his forces does not
conquer."

And here is another line written, it would seem, expressly for the Palpatines of the Star Wars galaxy or any other: "When wealth and honours lead to arrogance, this brings its evil on itself." (echoic of Luke's statement Return of the Jedi to Palpatine: "Your overconfidence is your weakness.")

That the Force offers us a seemingly inexhaustible contemplative realm for reflection is incredible. In fiction and in cinema, it makes for great visuals, exciting effects, and intriguing characters. But there is something to it that transcends novels and screenplays and relates back to our own reality in meaningful and illuminating ways. This is why I believe so many of us find it fascinating and worthy of extended discussions and consideration.

Our own early quantum science hints at interactions (i.e. observers and observations literally affecting outcomes), "entanglement," "spooky action at a distance," the "uncertainty principle," "quantum teleportation," and more. Scientifically, there is already this basis for something underlying the surface reality of the perceptible world. And there is so much more to be explored, psychologically, mythologically, philosophically, and so on. We are only just learning about our universe and our place in it.

Perhaps one of the greatest reasons we continue to find the Force such a fascinating field is because aspects of it already seem to have somewhat of a real presence, or at least an appreciable and ready analogue in our own world. The Force is very much a useful tool, a nexus, a metaphor, metaphysical, a poetry beyond language, something capable of connecting us with greater aspects of ourselves, our reality, and our universe.

May we all become a little wiser in reflecting on the profundity of the Force.

JediMasterRobert

 

The Force is the 'One' from Neoplatonic philosophy. Your heads may now:

......................the force is a mystery and it is what you think it is. Don't allow yourself to be belittled by these new age fundamentalists.

 

as longs as it's all defined a the FORCE and not midichlorian mumbo jumbo...

 

The whole midichlorian thing was an effort at definition. Even worse, a modernist definition. Let me check your blood! Oh I see it, you have a lot of microscopic lifeforms. You will become a Jedi.

 

I figure you're being tongue in cheek here but I'lL bite!

My impression was that the "m" word (lest I arouse abuse) was indicative of a high likelihood of force sensitivity and nothing more hence the other tests and trials needed before further Jedi training was considered. Qui Gon observed Anakin's Force tell's long before any blood tests and I'm assuming, based on Obi-Wan's reference to Qui Gon's unusual relationship with the council, any further evidence corroborating Qui Gon's assertions would be most welcome.

(I guess like my dubious claims here should probably be backed with available evidence of GL quotes and factual SW references. Excuse my laziness!)

 

Yeah that is probably true. But it is still kind of weird. Why can't Qui Gon just sense it? He does sense it, I know. But why does he have to deliver scientific proof to the council. The Jedi distrust each others observations on the spot? How can they be decent ambassadors and peacemakers when the Jedi are distrusted by their own leadership

 

Simply put, it's a magical fantasy spin on spirituality.

 

The force is in balance when force users don't split it into light/dark or good/evil by choosing one side and vilifying the other. The light side and the dark side are not "sides" at all, just 2 aspects of the same unified force. When force users choose one side (suppressing the other) they cause an imbalance, which the force tries to "fix". Ex: the Sith managed to rise right under the nose of the Jedi and wiped them off, Vader's son turned out to be an exemplary Jedi, and a random scavenger become just as strong as the grandson of the chosen one. The force keeps trying to balance itself out, but no one in the galaxy (except maybe for old Luke) had understood that yet. The dark side will rise again and again if light force users keep being afraid of it. Which means that the wars will never end. That's how I see it.

As for what the force actually is...I like how it's still a mystery after all these years.

 

Direct correlation with Midichlorian count... lol