Private Clouds of Witness

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS
​

This was an interesting line of argument, Sela thought. Promising, even. Intellectually stimulating.

"That is an interesting perspective," she conceded to her former Padawan, trying not to sound too proud. He was only back a few minutes and she couldn't have him getting a big head already. Not when there was plenty of time for him to see how impressed she was by how he had grown since he'd left into the great big galaxy on his own.

"In some ways, this is why I felt drawn to the Shirayan Code," Sela said, her tone somewhere between one she'd use in a classroom setting and the casual conversation of a friendly chat. "It is less... restrictive is not the correct word," she mused aloud, looking at the ceiling as she searched for the right one. After a moment she ventured forward: "It respects a certain -- reality -- rather than insisting that we all live in unreality and then be punished for not conforming to it."

Another sip of tea burned along her tongue, and Sela set the tea on the table. "There again, there is still structure, so -- "

She fell silent, a faint darkness coloring her cheeks when she realized she was doing it again. That very Sela Basran thing of blowing straight past the guardrails and into an intellectual discussion even when one was neither called for nor desired. She cleared her throat and took out a kerchief to dab her lips. "Itching powder, Delphis? Really, you cannot think me so uninspired. I will say the mucking-out was a punishment that fit the crime. A few of my fellow delinquents and I released three of the enclave's farm's bantha calves into the Padawan dormitories -- shaved with the numbers 1, 3, and 4. The fourth calf we stashed in seed storage shed. There was quite a to-do in the enclave that day, I can assure you."

After a sensible chuckle, Sela took another sip of the tea. "I am endlessly curious about this Living Force. I have heard of it, of course, but I cannot pretend to be an expert. Could you enlighten me, please?"

Delphis Argoli


​

 

[Delphis Argoli]

„The Living Force" Delphis mused, "It´s a complicated thing."

The order had made him into something like a scholar whether he had liked it on not,m whether he had asked for it or not and like all scholar (present company excluded of course) he loved to rant about his favorite subject.

The Living Force and medicine were Delphis special pets. He would ave to be careful when he cut loose about it. Otherwise he would have to shave before he was finished.

"From my experience it is highly personal. It is like a song we never hear because the music has been played since the moment w were conceived. It comes to me and nudges me through a gut feeling, a tingling in the nerves or a dream. Sometimes just by knowing what is right. That was the case when the Force called me to coming back here. It is the whisper in the back of your head. It is just … there."

Even after so many years with the Living Force – or perhaps because of them - Delphis had trouble articulating this mysterious presence in mere words. That was its nature.

"The Living Force is a wisdom that cannot be expressed in words. It exists beyond words and reasoning. And I am convinced it should be the guiding light of every Jedi. More than a council of elders, more than a rulebook. Certainly more than any chancellor of any government. "

He listened to the Force for a moment, looking into the now empty tea cup and guidance came as the cozy feeling to keep ranting.

"We spoke about politics already and yes, of course abny social interaction is a form of politics. But as Jedi we should not answer to any mortal political structures even if they are well-intended. The Force should be our guiding light and what we answer to. We are guardians of the Force, its messengers too and its instruments, not the lightsaber wielded by a king, no matter how benevolent."

"The Living Force is the universe in all its glory and cruelty, in all its splendor and decay."

Sela Basran

 

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS
​

Sela listened intently, leaning forward, elbow on the armrest of her chair.

It was an interesting discussion, Sela had to admit. And she had lots of thoughts about it.

"That sounds very promising on paper," conceded the Jedi Master. "And it is very tempting to think that all ought be answerable only to one's own conscience, rather than to have one's conscience as merely one layer of a regulating structure. And for present company -- our youthful indiscretions notwithstanding, for the sake of argument -- that would work splendidly, I am sure. But think back on your colleagues and your classmates. Maybe tyrannical old masters... not necessarily me. Not necessarily not me." She winced. "Are all to be thus trusted, to interpret the Force accurately?"

Her head tilted to one side, as if looking back on her long history herself. There were some scattered therein that were too impulsive to be trusted to fully consider the moral implications of their choices. Some that were simply too stupid. None that were evil per se, none that were galloping at the dark side like a pantomime villain. But most days that ended in body counts never had a Palpatine or a Vader, never had an Organa or a Skywalker. Ordinary people -- even ordinary Jedi -- were not infallible, even when they could swear the Force was calling to them.

"I am... uncomfortable," Sela said, settling on the word that hit closest to the truth, "with the idea that Jedi are possessed of the power that we are, and yet should not be answerable to those we seek to exercise power on behalf of. It is an imperfect system, to be sure, but I cannot say that I know of a better one. What would such a world look like in practice, Delphis? Have you experienced it yourself?"

Sela Basran spoke as an academic here, rather than a moralizer or an ethicist. Call it her information-gathering mode.

Delphis Argoli

​

 

[Delphis Argoli]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY

MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS​

Delphis leaned back and exhaled deeply while he considered what the master had said.

Finally he nodded slowly.

"Your arguments are very valid, not that I´m surprised. It seems I have unlearned already the need for precision when it comes to a mind that bears some resemblance to a steel trap."

"I do not question the relationship between master and padawan. In fact, I consider this relationship highly sacred which may be one reason why I dodged the responsibility of teaching so far. Before you can listen to the Force you need to understand it first and there is no better way to understanding than the guidance of someone who already walked the path. Second, the best teachers are the inconvenient ones because they push the student to grow and expand which is an absolute necessity. The Living Force knows how much I learned from you, self-discipline ad analytical thinking being just two virtues. For that reason I do not question the existence of a Council of Elders either or the existence of a Jedi Order as an organized structure. What I find highly disturbing is the entanglement in grand-scale political games, a council answering to a government and an order being the executive arm of a chancellor, basically a police unit with strange powers."

Delphis closed his eyes briefly, trying to push back mental image of an utopia that never was and probably never would be.

"I admit that this might be naïve ad idealistic rather than realistic. A fully trained Jedi wields power. Period. That makes the Jedi attractive to nobles, politicians, corporations and anyone who thinks ad acts in terms of power, influence and wealth. A Jedi Order is an endless well of opportunities for such parties but it should not be that way. The order, o matter in what shape and size it comes, should act independently, answering only to itself and the Force."

Sela Basran

 

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS
​

Sela considered it a win to find consensus. She did not engage in her (probably very annoying) means of communication -- interrogation, some would call it; gentle questions, Sela would say -- to win, to force a concession. Well -- that was usually true, but there were exceptions to every rule. Here, it was not to win. She was interested in the ideas. The thoughts behind them.

"I am pleased to say we can agree at least that far," Sela told Delphis gravely. "If I were queen of the forest, I would seek to find some happy medium between -- accountability before the laws of a place, like a nation or a planet or a city, and servitude toward its political leadership. We have seen where such a ploy leads many times. The intentions always start out pure, but look where such roads often lead."

She folded her arms across her middle, her tight smile becoming broader, less constrained.

"And the idea that nobles and magnates ought to have some priority access to the services of the Jedi is, frankly, immoral as far as I am concerned. What is the point of us if it is not to reach out where the need is most desperate, without regard for the means to pay? It is rather a filthy business, I think."

Sela finished her teacup, and found herself rather regretting the end of it. It had quite grown on her.

"Would you be able to recommend me some reading material on the Living Force, Delphis?" Sela asked as she set down her teacup. She rounded her desk and picked up a stylus, prepared to jot the names he might recommend before looking up at him quizzically. "Or is this one of those things one must experience for oneself?"

Delphis Argoli


​

 

[Delphis Argoli]

"Of course it is always best to experience the Living Force first hand." Delphis agreed, "In fact, I think it is ultimately the only way to truly understand it because every teaching from an outside source will remain second-hand academic knowledge. I believe there are records of the ancient Jedi Master Avar Kriss who perceived the Living Force as a great symphony with everything in existence being a singe note, a music we never hear because it is always there from the moment we come into existence."

He looked down into his now empty cup, the spicy tea creating a warm cozy feeling inside him. Or perhaps it was not the tea at all. Maybe it was the casual effortless closeness he suddenly felt between him and his former master, a closeness not ordered and not artificial but one that just had haqppened naturally.

"I´m afraid it is something that words and rationality cannot fully cover, a truth that can be understood but not put into words. But then, you don´t understand the Living Force. You experience it. It is an almost visceral thing. Not orderly or predictable at all.."

Sela Basran

 

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS
​

"You know how I love my chaos," Sela said dryly. "But I will look into the archives for more about this Jedi Master Avar Kriss. If you feel as strongly about this as you say, then it is worthy of my time and attention. I am almost through with my research into my next scholarly work -- a comparative analysis of Jedi Codes, or I suppose the first of several volumes -- and I think such a discussion might well make for a fascinating addition."

She set her teacup down and went around her desk to pick up her pen, jotting herself a note quickly on a piece of scrap.

"Do you need a refresher on where everything is around here?" Sela asked after she had stuck the note on her computer keyboard. "I would be more than happy to show you around if you've forgotten. Introduce you to some people. You know -- the things old friends do, like bringing exciting new tea recipes to share."

Delphis Argoli

​

 

[Delphis Argoli]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS​

The term friend struck a chord in Delphis and struck it deep. Progressing from Padawan to friend was a special honor, seldom bestowed among the Jedi. It was certainly he had not seen coming.

It warmed Delphis inside more than any tea ever could. Maybe he had done something right after all.

His voice was raw and raspy when he answered, laced with a emotions he should have overcome long ago and never would.

"Yes, I would love to see the places again, especially those where a Padawan was never supposed to be unsupervised. Marble and glass have a resonance in the Living Force as well and I wonder how they will feel today. Certainly different I´m sure. And yes again, I love to get to know the people, the old faces if there are any left and even more the new ones. It will be an education for me what the Living Force reveals about them."

He rose slow and measured somehow containing the warm energy that hummed within him.

"I thank you very much for the offer and I thank you even more for the friendship. Take it as a lack of wisdom how much it means to me."


Sela Basran

 

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS
​

"Then I will be pleased to be your guide," said Sela cheerfully. She collected the cups and brought them over to the small sink by the tea station, gave them each a rinse before setting them to the side. "One thing you must know, Delphis, is that my door is always open to a Jedi in need -- no matter the need, or how great or trivial he or she may think it. There are others in this enclave who take a similar approach."

She gestured toward the door, then followed him out and into the broad colonnade.

"If I did not know any better, I might take that as flattery," she answered his comment, smiling sidelong at him. "Now, let us see, where first... Well, the library is here, of course, right next door to me. What a blessing. And then the research rooms. And just past there..."

So Sela proceeded, taking Delphis through the important places of the Sanctuary, where he would find what he needed and who to ask if he couldn't.

Delphis Argoli

​

 

[Delphis Argoli]

It was a strange mix of feelings, sensations and impressions as Delphis walked the temple again with his former master.

The place looked, smelled, tasted familiar yet different at the same time, touched and infused by the ever-changing Living Force. As beings evolved and places evolved their energy changed, the note they played in the great symphony of life sounded different but always beautiful.

And Master Basran had changed too. Or rather naturally progressed. It was not a forced change, just an advance on a trajectory determined a long tie ago before she had even been born. That was one of the greatest mysteries of life that Delphis still pondered. What was predetermined from the start of a life? What was decision and free will?

"Master, I would not call it a need for help right now, but there is a question I have often asked myself and I wonder what your opinion on it is. The legendary grandmaster Yoda left us the wisdom that difficult to see is the future. Always in motion. Yet some things and events seem to be inevitable in our lives just like a cosmic order has carved them in stone no matter what. The Living Force while anchored in the present moment is still so wonderfully balanced and harmonious that it cannot be random. Sometimes I think our lives are like riverbeds. The course of the river is predetermined, yet enough water can – given enough time – carve a new riverbed. What do you think about predetermination?"

Sela Basran

 

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY
MASTER BASRAN'S QUARTERS
​

"It is an insightful question," Sela said quietly, her head half-turning toward her former Padawan, eyebrows furrowing in recognition of a difficult question when she heard one. Not difficult because it was unpleasant, but rather because it was open-ended. Questions that called for a yes or a no -- if they even truly existed -- had that comforting guardrail around them. This question was far too broad for that.

Sela tucked her hands into opposite sleeves, as was her habit, warm skin against warm skin. "I suppose you will find it very boring of me to question the premise of your question, rather than answer it, hm?" she asked with a knowing smile. "I think that predetermination relies on hindsight, and we -- sentient beings -- have a bias. Not for reality, heaven knows not for reality, but for a kind of fatalism. That that which is, must be. Because it already is. Did the river curve this way because it must? No, it curved this way because some critter or another dug a hole on that bank rather than the other."

"But that is only the river example. Take -- take events that the wizened Yoda would have observed. The rise of the Empire. Did forces of nature dictate that it happen exactly as it did?" She shrugged, untucking her hands so she could speak with her hands, too. "Was it predetermined that Skywalker would fall? You would need to ask many hundreds of similar questions. Was it predetermined that the Jedi Order would leave his mother to the tender mercies of slavery and the barbarity of life on Tatooine? Was it predetermined that a Naboo Senator would allow herself to fall in love with him?"

She sighed quietly, her lips turning down at the corners. "Obviously the Sith had a long-standing plan, but I would not confuse that for predetermination. They planned and plotted and obfuscated and, frankly, outmaneuvered the Jedi of the day. I don't consider that predetermination either." Sela paused a moment. "Have I answered your question, or did I get off on a tangent again?"

Delphis Argoli


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[Delphis Argoli]

Delphis lowered his gaze, let the words sink in for a moment, and then gently shook his head

"No master, you have not missed the tangent at all."

And with a smirk he added, "It seems that you arrived at the same conclusion easily and quickly tht I struggled with for a while. The I Do Not Know which seems like the beginning of all wisdom."

Delphis eyes briefly wandered the room like he was looking for a fixed point to anchor to or perhaps some advice from the Living Force.

"I agree that the machinations of Palpatine were not predetermination as such. Nature always seems to strive for balance because too much of one thing – even a good thing like the Jedi – becomes a poison. So I guess – and it is just that a guess, more or less educated – that nature would have somehow restored the balance in the Force between light and darkness when the light became too harsh. But Palpatine? No he was not the inevitable outcome. More or less he was more like the best tool to get the job done. If not for Palpatine, Count Dooku might have stepped forward to fill the niche. He had after all removed himself from the order far enough on his own already and might have started the Clones Wars even without the Sith. For all I know he was not short of ambition, pride or anger. Or even Mace Windu might have become the cause of the change one day. He was infamous for always walking the thin line between light and darkness and harboring enough aggression inside. He could have torn apart the council from within, perhaps starting a civil war among the Jedi."

Delphis looked at his former teacher, his eyes somewhat misty all of a sudden. The Force did not speak to him. It made him feel. Sadness, a glimpse of the pain of bygone days and worry of the future.

"Who knows? Maybe the fact that this order is once again walling up behind rules and dogma and once again rubbing too many shoulders with politicians is a sign that a new trial is coming, a new time of balancing the scales. Iff so, I hope it can be achieved with less bloodshed."

His smirk was back although it could not claim his eyes.

"But then, they say fear is the road to the dark side. So what is the point in being afraid, except perhaps as an early warning?"


Sela Basran

 

[Sela Basran]

SHIRAYA'S SANCTUARY

​

"Is that what we are doing?" Sela asked in response to her former padawan's observation regarding the Order. The question and tone was not meant as a contradiction, a challenge, or a rebuke. It was simply a question this time. Walling itself up behind doctrine didn't seem to be a natural conclusion to draw to her, but there again Sela believed that it was a matter of perception. And what outsiders perceived, as framed by those like Delphis returning after some time out in the wilderness, could prove to be valuable information.

"It is a very dangerous time for the Jedi Order," Sela went on, her voice low. "It rather feels that the Sith are on the ascendant once again. While I am an advocate of us doing more -- reaching out into the galaxy more -- I do not begrudge an order for looking at its numbers and deciding that to fling itself into the maw is not a successful strategy in the long or short erm. I do not necessarily agree in such restraint and caution in every case."

"But," she went on with a resigned tone. "Appearance and perceptions matter. If we are seen to be what you said -- retreating, hiding, hobnobbing with politicians -- then that is what we will be. What do you suppose the solution is, Delphis?"

Delphis Argoli


​

 

[Delphis Argoli]

Delphis exhaled deeply. H took his time t answer, something he had not been known for while studying under Master Basran.

"The solution?" he mused "Not sure if one head - much less one bound by the constraints of a physical body – can come up with that. If what I can imagine is a solution o begin with, it might look like this…."

Suddenly Delphis seem to look at something far far away, an image, a mirage beyond the walls of Sela´s quarters, beyond the temple beyond Naboo, something somewhere in infinity where even parallels meet.

"Listen to the Force, obey the Force and not the chancellors, take action or stay passive as our instincts tell us. Be vigilant of the Sith ad go with the ebb and flow of the universal energy."

He signed.

"We may like it or not but ultimately light and darkness will always balance each other out. There will be a time when the Sith rise again and the Jedi decline until the eternal pendulum swings back in the opposite direction. Chaos and blood rule one end of the spectrum, stagnation and decadence the other. Paradise can only be found in that brief heartbeat in the middle when everything is just right. And while we perceive the rule of the Sith as tyranny and mayhem, the swing of the pendulum must never stop."

Sela Basran