Holy Land?

One of my friends recently got back from a birth-rite trip to Israel and was showing me photos. I couldn't help but recognize the striking similarities between the landscapes of Israel/Palestine and scenes in Star Wars.

I made a comment to him wondering if we had a Holy Land of sorts, other than Disney (bad joke that my mom made)! Or if any of you have a land you consider holy to you and your faith. Or any locations you go to to feel the force.

May the Force be with you.

No, we don’t have a Jedi Holy Land. If our community survives a few hundred years, who knows? Maybe we’ll adopt a place for pilgrimage. But for now we are a financially poor religion with no real drive to make a Temple happen because the Path is best cultivated where you are.

Do you Bless the space between us? Then all of the land is holy

I suppose one could argue that some street address in some town in Texas, USA, is the spiritual home of the Jedi :dry:

I'm sure we could upset the local authorities by making pilgrimages there and setting up a tent city.

For my understanding of the Force, to say one patch of dirt is arbitrarily more worthy than another patch of dirt is sort of missing the point. There is no specific area on the planet where the force reached down and blessed the land with it's noodley appendage....

Even in a strictly administrative sense, as we have no physical meeting place, and we are (or at least attempt to be) international, you'd be hard pressed to choose somewhere that is the "centre" of the faith.

As a modern day Jeddist and as my practice goes - any land I am in or am going is Holy to the point it is my practice to leave a drop of grace in every foot step I leave. Places are different. Regardless of label - ever been in a tent or a building or in a crowd and feel AND experience that feeling ? It’s hard to explain- I’ve been in a place where Mother Teresa was set to speak- what was in the air was palpable. Went to a concert one time and you could feel the excitement so much - it was intoxicating. Ever been in a place with others and share that feeling regardless of where credit goes? I’ve stood in other people’s Holy Lands and as a Jediist I share that a experience which makes them - for me - just as reverent as them. Songs - books - ways - to me - freedoms freedom. Some may not be my choice but it’s real and chosen by others so it’s my choice to give the way I do. Like this - I share many Holy places and Sacred. Hope this helps
May the a force we share - seek - and serve be with you every where you go and every where you seek - it will find you.

I think that everyone has their "holy place" in sense of certain admiration, respect, love.
to some country/area.
It is up to everyone what do they consider holy for themselves.
I have few favorite areas:
- Ireland: because of it´s wonderful nature and folklore
- India: because of spiritual meaning
- Celtic oppidum: because I feel like I am home.

JamesSand wrote: I suppose one could argue that some street address in some town in Texas, USA, is the spiritual home of the Jedi :dry:

I'm sure we could upset the local authorities by making pilgrimages there and setting up a tent city.

For my understanding of the Force, to say one patch of dirt is arbitrarily more worthy than another patch of dirt is sort of missing the point. There is no specific area on the planet where the force reached down and blessed the land with it's noodley appendage....

Even in a strictly administrative sense, as we have no physical meeting place, and we are (or at least attempt to be) international, you'd be hard pressed to choose somewhere that is the "centre" of the faith.

I would not argue for it. I live at that street address in Beaumont, Texas. It's only the official physical address with a person listed as required by law. I'd be delighted if anyone wanted to visit. There's a lot of interesting things around here and we are not far from Houston and Louisiana. Many corporations use their attorney's office for that. I do it at no cost so it's no big deal. A misconception I see a lot, in the Jedi Community and elsewhere, is that because we are incorporated in Texas other places are not covered. In the US states regulate most corporations but all states and other countries recognize a corporation no matter what state it's incorporated in. The analogy is getting married. If you get married in Texas and move to Tenessee or Timbuktoo you don't have to get married again. Apple, IBM, General Electric ... they are all incorporated in one state or another. They don't run around incorporating in every state and country they do business. It does not work like that.

Our recognition and privileges are federally granted by the Internal Revenue Service of The United States.

I'm not saying JamesSand says otherwise. I'm sure he knows. This was a handy place to get the information out there since we're discussing our registered address and registered agent.

Beaumont Texas

Well, there are a couple places I've gone to to meditate, where I feel the most at one with the Force. I realize of course that the Force is everywhere and that it doesn't matter where you go. Still, I live in a very rural area, and I've found two particular places in the last 20 years that simply seem to have more pull. Both have been far behind the two houses I've lived in in this time. Both have been at the top of a small hill, where nature is more visible and civilization less so.

As I had been studying the Tao during that time, those locations have been the places I could say I "felt" the Tao. I wouldn't call them "holy lands" but if I needed to feel closer to the Force, that's where I'd go.

I thought I might add one of my favorite quotes by Robert M Pirsig:

The only Zen you find at the tops of mountains is the Zen to bring with you.