The Force?

Hello all,
Well in my time around the Jedi community I’ve came across three views of the force. I’d like to talk a little about these views and share my own view of the force as well.

One holds that the force can be divided in to light and dark sides, this seems to me to be based on the movies more so then the others. In this view the force is very \"Black and white\" having clearly defined sides. Black equaling dark and white equaling light of course. In this view actions, as people, are seen as either good or evil, Sith or Jedi. No evil action is seen as being connected to a good one and vise versa.

The second view is to divide the force in to different aspects. The first of these is the living force. This is the force generated by all living things in the universe. It's the force that the Jedi tap in to and allow to flow through them, or at least that seems to be the general consensus among sites. As has been said, \"Life creates it, makes it grow........Luminous beings we are, not these cruse clumps of matter \"
Then there's the cosmic force. This force represents space and time and is what binds the galaxy together. This is the energy responsible for keep the planets moving, suns burning, and so on.
the last is the unifying force. This can be seen as the \"Glue\" that holds it all together. It keeps the cosmic force and living force in balance and harmony. It's energy exists on the molecular level throughout all matter, \"unifying\" everything in the Universe. It's what connects all things in the universe to everything else. \"Feel the force between you, me, the rock, the tree........even the ship\"

The final one, and the one I personally ascribe to, is that it's all the same force. Everything is a part of the primal force of creation. We are all created from the same stuff, the tree, the rock, the sky, space itself in all it's vastness is a part of you and you a part of it. Everything is connected, all actions, all sorrow, all joy, because we are all bound by this force to absolutely everything else in the universe. It flows though all things because it IS all things. We are, and everything else around us, in constant contact with it because it is us and everything is it.

The ultimate goal as far as I see it is an awakening to the fact that the enlightenment we sought was within us all along. There was never an external force to learn to use or take in because as we awaken we see that all things stem from inside of us. No proof of being one with the force is needed because all things stem from the same primal force of creation, so in their essence all things are from the force and therefore connected to it as they are a part of it.
There's no force outside yourself that your taking in and manipulating to your will.

You ARE your will. From the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad we learn \"As a person acts, so he becomes in life. So we are said to be what our desire is. As our desire is, so is our will. As our will is, so are our acts. As we act, so we become\" And further \"Those that realize the self enter into the peace that brings complete self control and perfect patience. They see themselves in everyone and everyone in themselves\" So union with the force comes not from any external study of it but from a deep study of the self.

In knowing who we truly are inside we begin to see our \"Connectedness\" to everything around us and come to the realization that we are not separate beings in bags of skin but are connected to everything and everyone we see and hear. The tree, the flower, the rain, the rock, the mountain, the distant star, the blackest space, the howling wind, the small bird, the fierce Lion, the unknown life in the universe, the depth of the ocean, the person sitting next to you, all are an expression of the same force of creation and therefore a part of you as you are a part of them. This is the Force, at least to me.

In an effort to meld these i offer the following. Yes, there is most certainly Only one Force. It is the Force from which \"we are all created from the same stuff, the tree, the rock, the sky, space itself in all it's vastness is a part of you and you a part of it.\" as you said. But I think it is a worthy effort to describe the various ways we react or better interact with the Force. This would be the second view as you put it. Instead of describing these as the various parts of the Force (on which we agree it only has one not many) we are more describing how it is that we intereact or Observe the force.

By breaking it down into The Living Force, Cosmic Force, and the Unifying Force it allows us an opportunity to better describe how we are moving within the Force. In this, WE (meaning our singular selves as Jedi) can see how WE best interact with the Force and how to best model our work by defining this interaction as the living Force. The same goes for The Cosmic Force. This allows us to define and describe how other's interact with the Force. Finally, we have the Unifying Force, which allows us to Define and describe how we interact with othersthrough the Force.

Breaking it down even Further we then use the terms \"light side\" and \"Dark side\" to describe How one uses the Force in a Moral sense. and these terms can be applied to THE Force or to one of these interactive description terms such as Living Force. But it provides for us a guide in how to work towards \"Right Action\" based on our various Paths.

Good point, thank you. I still think that breaking it down allows for a sense of division to come in to play in our understanding, like seeing only the apple but not being able to understand that the apple by it's nature implies a tree and all the life that tree and it's fruit come in contact with, and in turn implies more apples and the whole process starting over again. Ido thank you fro sharing your view as this is how we learn. I do hope others....cough cough......will be sharing as well.

Be Blessed,
Merin

Oh of course you are right. It may bring a sense of division. It is important to note that these, for me, must be viewed as simply a method of logical description. Very much like the Holy trinity in Christian beliefs. but it is important to note that there is just the one, for me, and that using this is simply a way of describing, not defining. What I mean to say is that this should not be viewed as how the force is broken up into parts, because there is just the one part or in this case the whole. These are just descriptions of reactivity and interactivity. MTFBWY

I teach that the Force is all inclusive, and that the Light or Dark sides are aspects of the same thing. Compare it to magic(k). What makes magik white or black is your intent, that is to say, how you use it. I have been a student of the occult for many years.

The Force represents the highest form of consciousness that can be reached, but that only happens when we are in harmony with the Force, we as human tend to lean towards the dark side by our very nature. Ever thing is made of energy which vibrates at a given frequency. The frequency varies with respect to the object that is doing the vibrating. The frequency varies from that generated by a stone, all the way up into the purely spiritual realm of the Force itself.

We are to grow and develop spiritually so as to eventually become one with the Force. That can be done in our lifetime or it may take many lifetimes. Our job here on Earth is to learn, to be of service, and to grow in all good ways. We are to free ourselves from a life of darkness, and break through the veil that prevents us from reaching our true potential.

The Dark side of the Force is just that, one SIDE of the Force. It is not literally a side of the Force but a side of our personality, our thinking and life style, and it keeps us from greatness, the(our) Dark side needs to become balanced with the Light side by doing good works and living in the light, but we can and will also burn off negativity (the dark side) through meditation and right living.

More on this later. I am about to time out.

Bro Jack