Nathan Osborne (Blog Post 2/3) Section 12, Group 3

Now that we have gotten a brief overview of the elements of the force, we need to go deeper so we can understand how the three philosophies of taoism, zoroastrianism, and buddhism are used in George Lucas’s films Star Wars, and just how they may be relevant to a personal philosophy. Therefore we need to begin with Taoism.

Taoism is an ancient philosophy which dates back to China over 2,000 years ago. Tao roughly translates to the Way, and it is actually hard to understand the exact manner in which it originally was used. The main principles of Taoism show in a manner of living through a sense of connection. A basic glance at Taoism will show you that all things are connected and unified in the universe. The energy flowing through everything, chi or qigong (Anyone remember Qui Gon Jinn?), is what holds us all together. Therefore it is very important in this belief to understand that your actions affect everything around you, and balance is needed in life. For every action there is a complementary opposite balance in respect. This is the ideal of yin yang. Taoism can be seen in Star Wars in many various aspects, but one of which would be the manner of balance that a jedi must have in living. The other way is seen in the Force itself. The force is described as a life energy moving through all. I believe Yoda says it best: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUKGTkiWik

Practically we may also use this ideal of connectedness in our daily lives. The world would be a much better place if we all attempted to live life with a sense of unity, and were more intentional about all that we fill our lives with. If everyone would think about the consequences of their actions or non-actions then the world that we live in would be an radically different place. If individuals adopt this separately it can still have a great effect in his or her sphere of influence. More information on Taoism can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/taoism/ataglance/glance.shtml.