"Always look away from illusions and toward the Universal mind." - Nai Amyet
"Do not impinge upon the Sacred Primacy of others." - Jedi aphorism
Compare this with: "An it harm none do what ye will." - Wiccan rede
- A reasonable rule of thumb. A bit vague, as the Universe is complex and projecting whether or not a course of action may harm one or many in the long term is a bit like deciding whether to approve a drug without being able to perform clinical trials. But by living and acting simply and with grace, and practicing ego loss, we can get around the trap of obsessing over this. The Force is not to be manipulated for petty reasons involving ego projection such as material gain or power; these are delusional practices. An important distinction here is that Jedi seek union with the Force, not objectification or manipulation of it.
Absolutes seldom represent reality. "You need not bow to the wishes of others, but at the same time you need not force your personal beliefs upon others. It is freedom; freedom to chose what you wish to believe in and follow."
- No blind following. The Jedi way is the Manifold Path; there exists exactly one path between each individual and the Universe. No two paths are the same, just as no two snowflakes are the same. Ones own path cannot be taught or dictated by rote; it is the product of active seeking and experience.
On Law
- Laws are necessary only in unruly cultures lacking high levels of self-discipline. There are cultures that have abolished formal jurisprudence because they no longer need it as a crutch. Today human society uses law darkly, as a system for exploiting the many for the exultation of the few. This is delusional practice, another form of centripetal power.
"I haven't seen a single religious organization in which the adherents got to elect the 'priest'."
- Jedi have monks, knights and masters: no priests. Masters are not masters of others; they are masters of themselves. Traditionally, they are temple keepers. Monks elect masters, who in turn may appoint knights, in the right circumstances.
Authority
As an unreligion, we have a flat hierarchy. We recognize neither superior authority the way dogs or chickens do, nor gods. We recognize only individual sovereignty and the grandeur of the Force. Our masters are often likened to beggars; by definition, they must have no material possessions but their clothes. The monks give them a place to live, which is the temple.
"I'm not interested in pleasing people and I am not interested in people who try to please me."
Exactly. Becoming a sycophant or toady to centripetal power empowers delusion. Where there is no ego, there is neither self-aggrandisement nor blind following. Merely the self universalized to Nature. Beware of all trappings of centripetal power (that is, exultation of the few or the one at the expense of the many). This is the way of darkness. There is no balance there, and the Universal mind is far from it.
Respecting Other Cultures
Tolerance and respect, while polite, can be excuses to follow blindly. It is the Jedi role to peacefully question everything that comes between the sacred primacy of the self and the Universe. What need is there for pride, respect or tolerance, when there is no self? These are primitive and egocentric concepts. By definition, "tolerance" separates the tolerator from the tolerated. Tolerance is an expression of annoyance. Instead, meditate upon coexistence, necessity and channels of influence. Tolerating the intolerant is spiritually wasteful.
Racism
Exclusion is a form of centripetal power, which is delusion. It only becomes just to practice exclusion when the body must be defended from a known pathogen, or else lose its health ... i.e., therapeutic exclusion or quarantine. Racism is primitive bias inherent in most, if not all, humans. It can be overcome by sublimating the ego to the Universe, which is big enough for all forms of expression. More important than form is intent, or the patterns of being within a person. What is there to fear, when there is no self? Racism goes both ways. There are those who believe that certain human races are and always will be oppressors, whereas others are and always will be victims. This is also delusion, as it seeks to empower some at the expense of others. Hold on to the center, and be impartial in such matters. Equality doesn't have an "-ist". Like justice, equality is blind. Meditate upon love to find it.
Good and Evil
There is a major qualitative difference between progressive and regressive behavior. Progressive behavior agrees with the ultimate goal of the Jedi: the peaceful and harmonic unity of all consciousness. Regressive behavior is that which detracts from this. If you are looking to diagnose regressive behavior, then follow the entropy.
Good and evil are largely Medieval concepts attached to much polarizing cultural baggage and imagery. Real and universal morality is more economical (thermodynamic) and less imaginative than this.
The Sacred Primacy
"I am me and in my immediate sphere of influence and ability to enforce them, my judgment is absolute."
This speaks of the Sacred Primacy, the inviolate relationship between the self and the Universe. Just remember that the self is a placeholder. We are holons of the All. We are "good" people to the extent that we sublimate our egos to the Universal mind, and "bad" people to the extent that we project our own nous or mind in order to suppress and control the natural, individualized expression others; this impinges on the integrity of the very real relationships between conscious beings and the Universe. As Jedi, we are supporters and even guardians of this integral relationship in each and every person in our lives.
Subjectivity and the Will
"Good/Evil Right/Wrong these concepts actually have no real arguments, as they are subjective."
Good and evil, right and wrong are indeed subjective and circumstantial. From the universal perspective, these may be construed as ecological arguments. If the Universe is a garden, then are we Jedi the self-anointed weeders? In my experience, master gardeners regard certain weeds as ornamental. They use native plants that fit the location and climate of the garden, and plant them in complementary ways. Dandelions were brought to the Americas as a prized Victorian flower; now most lawn rangers are at war with them. What was once perceived as good is now perceived as evil.
If it is agreed that as holons of the All we have some hand in the ultimate fate of the Universe, which in the grand scheme of things should probably be a theoretical motivator for Jedi (i.e., we can make a difference), then we must be careful regarding what sort of difference we aim to make. There is productive and progressive difference to be made in gardens; there is also neglect or outright destruction. Benign neglect isn't so bad after one gets over losing the fruits of one's labor; in this case, a garden simply renaturalizes. How can the arguments of civilization be made more efficient, and less harmful or senseless, by concurring with the naturalization process while preserving the useful aspects, or fruits, of civilization?
It is here where we begin to turn our inquiries, to join reductionistic "modern" methodologies with primitive holism and the Universal mind.
Progression and regression are objective realities. Their definitions may be manifold, but their outcomes, in the grand scheme of things, as logical conclusions, are quite different.
We must choose whether to be agents of natural progress in tune with our evolutionary Universe, or agents of artificial regression. The process of writing a sentence may be subjective, but language exists to join subjective individual mind with objective universal mind. Both subjective and objective are in play to create qualia, the patterns of individual experience—and collectively, civilization—through spacetime.