SPECULATION Luke didn't vanish, he made a deal...

I think this is original. And you might be onto something.

I'm glad you acknowledge that Lor San Tekka wasn't left in posession of the map, but he found it.
Also, the map does indeed look like a path that was taken before... Highlighted in red.
But, if there is no ship on ach-to, right? So, luke was dropped there...

Still not sure what to think... But ransom might play into it...

 

It's interesting. How about Artoo. How does he aquire his half of the map if he's not on that 'ship to nowhere'? Also, the FOs version of the map.. they say the aquired it from the Archives of the Empire. Not sure how that fits in.

 

good idea but I don't think so man

 

The one flaw in your theory is that Luke was 'taken' to Ach-To, which doesn't make sense. If he was taken there, there would be no reason for the map. It's not like the First Order would just forget that they dropped him off there. I think it's possible he agreed to leave, but he'd have chosen where to.

 

@techsteveo
Interesting theory... it just seems a bit too complicated.

Luke runs away to somewhere where not even Snoke can find him. The First Order shows no interest in Rey - only Kylo Ren, and later Snoke when he discovers that she was able to resist his mind invasion. In the beginning of the movie, The First Order are searching for Luke to destroy him.

Why would the First Order have made this deal in the first place? What was in it for them?

 

I think it might have been a case of oppression. Leave this land and your loved ones will be spared.

 

See that might work if Luke was the one holding all the cards...
I doubt Snoke would be interested in giving Luke an opportunity to escape.

 

I like your theory but no way Luke made a deal with the devil so to speak. It is something more simple.

 

Definatly on to something here, it explains a lot about Lukes motives for leaving.

 

I think the sentiment is at least half true.
I hope that Luke's exile has abit more to it than simply being a damaged, beaten man and that he *needs* the solitute to grow and maybe needs a fully formed person as a pupil because the whole child indoctrination angle is just a terrible idea both in universe and as a thematic element in the saga.
TFA kinda hints at both things by implying that Luke is indeed at the first temple and in its conflation of stormtrooper upbringing with what we saw of the Jedi in the prequels.
All this hinges on what Snoke is and what Luke knows about him too.

 

If you think about where luke is as somewhere that the empire discovered and erased from the archives years ago, then it explains why R2 and the FO have a map with a hole in it.
If it is a jedi temple, then palpatine would have wanted no jedi to find the place again.
However, the mystery, then, is what the red lines mean, where the missing map piece came from, and how Lor San Tekka knew it was a map to Luke.
I think, at best, we will get some of this is comics and novels.
The movie (episode 8) will brush past it. It has to, in a way, to not dwell on minutiae.

 

What if you are right and Luke defeated him but wasn't able to kill him finaly?
I can't imagine a better reason to abandon the galaxy and seek knowledge than trying to find a solution to a threat far greater than anyone realises.
Anything that happens in between might be casual damage compared to what Snoke might be able to do eventually.

 

JJ explained things with R2, which may be unsatisfactory to some. Basically R2 had random data of star charts with the locations of Jedi temples and such. When BB8 came up and started talking to him he dropped out of low power mode at that point and had to run all sorts of boot sequences and such and did not "come to" until they were back from the Starkiller base. R2 had the imperial charts mentioned by Kylo. They provided context for BB8's section of the map. JJ said it was random info that he picked up from interfacing with computers over the years.

 

Except, at the time this deal would have been made, Luke was already the last Jedi, and if you're theory is correct, Snoke/Ben also had Rey as a hostage. What stopped Snoke from just destroying Luke outright, and why is Kylo Ren now so intent on finding him, even when Snoke is more interested in making sure no one else finds him first?

If Luke couldn't defeat Snoke, it would have given Snoke all of the bargaining power. I just can't believe that Snoke, would accept Luke's terms, especially since he never intended to abide by them. Luke was the last Jedi and Snoke presumably had his daughter hostage, and his nephew at his side.
What did Luke have to bargain with? The promise he won't train anyone? Snoke can guarantee Luke won't train anyone simply by killing him or just keeping him prisoner somewhere.

So in other words, why couldn't Snoke defeat Luke or vice versa?

 

Kyo Ren has his own agenda .