The Jedi Code and More! (Baus)

[N'yssa Farifax]

It had been a while since N’yssa las heard from Baus. She didn’t want to pressure the man any more than he already was with his memory loss. She knew such things would take time, and patience, and still hoped that he would regain something of his former life eventually. Until such a breakthrough is achieved, N’yssa was keen on getting the rest of Baus’s training completed.

A message was sent to the Padawan to join N’yssa in one of the spar classrooms the following morning. The classroom had an assortment of desks, chairs, and meditation mats. Upon entering the room first thing in the morning, the Jedi Master moved all the desks to one side of the room, and arranged all the mats in the centre, where she sat down and began to meditate while waiting for Baus to show up.

Philosophy had always interested N’yssa, it had given her a foundation in her approach to the Force and her responsibilities as a Jedi. She knew some had difficulties with the Jedi Code, and the way of life that is expected of them, it was not for everyone, but it was important for all Padawans to grasp the meaning of the life they have chosen.

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

I am going back to Yavin...

He finally followed through on it, even if for a little while. A lot has changed since our hero went on his personal journey that took him away from the Jedi Homeworld for awhile. He was slowly but surely regaining more of himself and who he was. Sure, he wasn't fully aware of everything but he knew who he was for the most part and while he wasn't fully ready to come back to the order just yet, he would never turn down his Master's call. Working some odd jobs gave him some disposable cash so while he wasn't intent on being garish or worry about designer labels, he wore clothes that more fit his style.

Walking into the classroom he slowed down from a brisk walk to a slow step and then a stop and he bowed. It wasn't a traditional bow, more of an acknowledgement but he wasn't traditional, at least not yet anyway, maybe one day. Good Morning, Master. Nice day, isn't it?

[N'yssa Farifax]

“It is.” N’yssa replied back to Baus with a smile on her lips. “It’s been a while Baus, I’m glad to see you again.” She added. It was true, she was always glad to see her students return from a mission or some other issue that took them away from the Temple, far too many haven’t.

“How have you been? I know you’ve taken a trip off world, did you find any answers to your past?”

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

Running his fingers through his hair as if slicking his hair back, all the while in the middle of an inhale he nodded his head "yes". It was enlightening. Sure there was more to the story, a lot more, but he really didn't want to delve just yet into them. Into why he went where he went and did what he did. Sure, she'd probably understand why he did what he did but he wasn't ready to talk to her about it yet, they didn't know each other, or at least he didn't know himself. Now that he did, he wasn't sure what to do just yet.

I've been okay though. Ready to be back. Okay that was a bit of a lie, he wasn't, but he wasn't going to turn away from a call.

[N'yssa Farifax]

N’yssa can sense that something was amiss with Baus, more than that, he was withholding information from her. She didn’t want to think he would lie to her, even though their friendship and relationship was new, she had thought he would confide in her, at least a little. But, the Jedi Master was not one to pry. If Baus wasn’t ready to talk to her, than she won’t push him.

“Good, I thought today we’d work on philosophy and what it means to be a Jedi.” N’yssa said, offering Baus the chance to get comfortable on the floor. “Out of the limited information you may have on the Jedi, and what you have learned through your recent travels. What do you think is required of a Jedi? What qualities do you think one should have to become a Jedi, and what qualities to avoid?”

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

Lifting one leg and falling into a lotus position on the floor in a completely fluid motion, our hero didn't feel the jamming of his spine as he knew how to land. He didn't need the Force or a better connection to know that the woman was disappointed with him. He'd have to live with it for right now as he wasn't ready to talk about himself, she was a Council Member, if he told her what he was she'd throw him out of the Order.

He'd live if she did, but he didn't want to leave, even when he was off planet he had a feeling like he was someone. It was a feeling he didn't want to lose right now. Jedi are cops on a big scale. We chase Sith and we fight criminals and all that. Then he paused for a minute, hesitated and scratched his head a couple of times. I don't know what qualities are good for Jedi. You guys are the good guys, so all of the good things, I guess. Honesty, Trustworthy, Always Prepared, Respectful,helping little old ladies across the street, all that. Don't you guys live a monk's or a Nun's life too? No hookups? He still doesn't feel like he is one.

[N'yssa Farifax]

“You’re partially right.” N’yssa said, letting out a laugh at some of the things Baus said to describe Jedi. “Though you make it sound like we’re some sort of law enforcement superheroes.”

“Simply put, yes, I guess you can say we are cops on a large scale, however we do not force others to follow our ways. The Sith can cause dramatic chaos in the galaxy, it’s not about good guys fighting bad guys, its about protecting the innocent.” N’yssa put mildly. Baus had the right train of thought, which was good. “There is complexities to the Jedi, and our purpose in the galaxy, but I believe you will learn more about that in the future, i’m glad you’ve understand the basic nature though.”

N’yssa then paused before she said what else was on her mind.

“As for the monk’s lifestyle... it is no longer enforced these days. So, in other words, hookups are allowed... however as a Jedi, we can’t let our personal feelings for an individual get in the way of our tasks or missions. You need to remember that if you do plan on making intimate relationships. Do you have any questions about the Jedi order before we continue?”

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

He wasn't really paying attention to her clarifications about the philosophy and so on because she said herself that he had the right idea and that was good enough for him. No, he wasn't trying to be disrespectful but if he was going to learn with experience, then why bother talking about it now, right? Hold on a second... There was something that caught him in her explanation that seemed to stick in his craw. Sucking on his gumline, he couldn't help but wonder about relationships.

Hold on... how can you have a relationship with someone and not have feelings? Sounds cold. He wasn't really looking to hook up with anyone, but he knew a hypocrite when he saw it

[N'yssa Farifax]

“Ah... yeah...” N’yssa said, Baus’s question took her back though she knew it was coming in some way. Taking her right hand and scratching behind her head, she looked upwards for some clarity before giving an answer that would be acceptable.

“It’s a complicated subject manner for many.” N’yssa started off with. “Of course there will be feelings involved with you are in the middle of a relationship. In the past though, the Jedi thought those feelings, those ties and connections would make the person weak and more vulnerable to the darkside, so had chosen the path of celibacy in order to avoid that temptation.

“But, well that didn’t turn out as well as they had hoped. By ignoring those feelings, or forcing them away, they grew into more negative emotions that later came up in some individuals that caused a lot of hardships and almost the destruction of the Jedi way of life permanently. Today... today the rules have been more laid back. We understand now that we can’t just simply push those feelings and emotions away and pretend we don’t feel them, that is just as dangerous as losing control in them. Instead we teach our students how to manage those emotions in a mature way. They are there, and yes, you can dive into them, but you mustn’t let those feelings overpower you or control you.”

N’yssa paused and looked at Baus, a confused look on her own face. “Listen, I myself was once engaged. I fell in love with someone, to the point where I became blinded by the life he chose. There were times when I knew he was doing things I should probably stop, but didn’t. It was a complicated relationship, and one where we both knew that in the end... it wouldn’t last. We lived in two separate worlds, but we hoped and did our best to keep our love strong.... to the point that when he disappeared... I left the Jedi to find him. I was in a dangerous place then, but I knew that if I didn’t go look for him I would regret it the rest of my life.” The Jedi master took a deep breath.

“But for others, it turned out well, my fellow Master Satkia has married to a man in the New Republic, they have a child and are happy. They managed to make it work, while she can still fulfill her duties to the Jedi. It can happen, there can be love between Jedi, it is jus a different type of love... if that makes any sense.”

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

He listened to the stories and respected Master Farifax for how she was willing to admit her faults and open up to him like that, it humanized her moreso and showed even Masters are fallible. The thing is though, it didn't really change or affect his opinion. You're telling me that we can have feelings, but can't let them control us, but at the same time the Jedi of old didn't let themselves have feelings and it wrecked them. You're blaming one Jedi... one powerful Jedi being manipulated on love? No, she wasn't telling him this exactly, but this is what he took from it and how he made sense of it.

I mean come on, you're saying we can experience the good things about feelings and love, but we can't experience the pain? Isn't "Love", "Pain"? I think so. I also think it's a great thing, you just have to open your eyes once in awhile. Sorry, this new approach to me is worse... you're giving people a taste of what they can have, but then taking it away. Realizing that he might have come off as disrespectful again his facial features changed. He wouldn't back down on what he said, but it might have been said a better way.

[N'yssa Farifax]

“What I meant to convey is that Love and Pain are a part of life.” N’yssa said, her face never changing and kept the peaceful, calm and even hopeless look in them. It was a challenge for her to speak of such things to others. Baus was looking for a simple answer, which is never the case.

“Fear is a part of life too, so is hate and anger, joy and sorrow. They make us who we are, without them we wouldn’t be much different from a droid. But it is one thing to acknowledge that pain of loss, or the joy of love, to feel it and understand where those feelings are coming from, and something else to allow it to take control over our bodies, our minds and hearts. The Sith, they revel those emotions, they gain strength and fuel from causing others pain, sorrow and chaos. To them that’s what makes them strong... but it is not the way of the Jedi.”

N’yssa paused, wondering if she could find the words to help Baus understand.

“Have you any memories of hate? Of anger against a particular someone? There are times when people can get lost in those feelings, dwell on them to the point of acting on their darkest desires, that is when they do terrible deeds, ones they regret later when their minds are clear. That is the danger we try to present our Padawans, for them to understand how such strong and powerful emotions can fog our minds, and alter our state of being. We want to teach them to understand those emotions, to find a safe environment to feel them, without being clouded by them. It is through understanding and reflection we can locate the meaning of such things.”

Again, N’yssa paused. “I do not blame the fall of the Jedi on one single person. I do not believe in bottling any emotion or feeling up inside of you. If you feel frustrated, or pain, accept it, feel it, but afterwards let it go, and don’t harbour any ill inside for long periods of time. Meditation can help with that, some find solace in physical activity. Once you learn how to mediate or find that peace with the Force, use it to help you gain a better understanding of your emotions, feelings, love and so forth.”

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

What seemed to be amiss here was that our hero did understand. He got it completely but it still bugged him, that was all. The way she put it initially was to hold back the bad feelings, because he was one to experience everything but he always let things go, that was life when you live in the moment. He didn't want to come across like he was a trope, he wasn't, but when he had nothing to do for so long but read, he read about the history of the Order.

I experience everything, have memories of just about everything but I let everything go so it's not a big deal to me. Guess things were lost in translation. He shrugged, a little defeated.

Definitely not ready to be back here.

[N'yssa Farifax]

“Maybe we should move on?” N’yssa offered, hoping the rest of the class would go by better. She was learning more about Baus though, more on the way he thought and perceived things. He was a good person, N’yssa had no doubt there, but it seemed he was a type of person who lived more in the moment rather than thinking a head, or even on deep, philosophical problems. Philosophy isn’t for everyone, N’yssa knew that, and believed Baus would have a harder time with this class than any other.

“Let’s work on the Jedi Code. Have you had a moment to read it yourself yet?” N’yssa asked. “It’s pretty simple, it goes like this...

There is no emotion, there is peace.
There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.
There is no passion, there is serenity.
There is no chaos, there is harmony.
There is no death, there is the Force.

Do you have any thoughts on these lines?” N'yssa asked.

[Ben-al Gjinobly]

Yes, please. Her offer to move on was very quickly received as he didn't want to get into things that would make him open up before he was ready. He nodded easily enough when she asked about the code but when she went through it, it sounded a little more crazy than the first time he went through the list. No, it's not merely a list but that was his way of looking at things, straight forward, black and white. It didn't always work, but it was who he was and how he lived his life, besides, he was never about analytic stuff like this.

When she asked him about his thoughts, he really didn't have any, but he wanted to give her an answer. Well the "no emotion, peace" part goes back to what we were just talking about. So I still think it's something that I'm gonna have to read up on a little more. The whole "no ignorance, knowledge part goes without saying, you don't judge people, I don't judge people, simple. The "no passion, serenity bit is too simple for me, why can't you have passion for your friends, or your loved ones? Passion is caring about people and things. You're allowed to do it, so why is it bad? The "no chaos, harmony" part makes sense but isn't harmony the absence of chaos? Who's to say my vision of harmony is the same as a friend of mine that's...

He almost called out his new friend Sinead, but stopped short.

... living on Drifter's Paradise? The whole "No death, the Force" thing sounds like you have a deathwish, which is fine I guess... He laughed. When you've seen some of the stupid things I've risked my neck doing, I guess I've followed that for awhile now. He knew that his blunt nature was probably making him sound like a jerk, but he was making an honest effort to try and understand their way of thinking.

Maybe I'll feel like one of them and not just a visitor if I do.

[N'yssa Farifax]

N’yssa smiled and nodded as Baus told her, in a blunt nature his view of the code. There were a few spots where she felt he was unable to grasp the bigger picture, but given their last conversation, it wasn’t a surprise and was mostly just his own interpretation. She did a raise and eyebrow about someone his knew on Drifters. She was also curious over what things he had done that would be considered risky.

“You seem to have a pretty black and white perspective of the code. I can understand some of your confusion over some of those areas. I too had problems understanding parts of the code when I was a Padawan. In the end, it’s up to the individual Jedi to take of the code what they can. Interpretations can vary depending on who you talk to.” N’yssa said, not wanting to get into another debate, but wanting to help Baus.

“Given we’ve already went through the first line with our previous conversation, we’ll focus on the ‘no passion, serenity’ line. You asked why can’t we have passion with our friends and such. I don’t want to sound hypocritical, but there’s nothing wrong with caring and sharing your feelings with friends and loved ones. But some passions can be powerful and strong, they can even lead you down the path of the darkside. Anger, hatred, jealously... these passions can be destructive, it is those that we must be aware and careful of. We are human, so feeling passions and emotions are a part of us, but we don’t have to let them control us.”

She sound like a broken record. She frowned, the no chaos, harmony line may end up being the same debate. “What sort of things have you done that may be risky or stupid?”