The Nightsisters, the Force, and Ritual

SPOILERS: Clone Wars; Darth Maul stuff.

Before you toss this to the Dark Aspect section, read it till the end.

I've always been interested in the Nightsisters and Dathomir(and not just because Obi Wan and Asajj sound like an old married couple in at least one episode of Clone Wars). I'm interested in them because they present an interpretation of the Force that isn't Jedi or Sith orthodoxy. They are closer to literal space wizards, or more accurately, space spirit workers*.

This, to me, means two very important things. First, that there are ways to interact with the force in Star Wars canon outside of Jedi or Sith. Second, that one of those ways is ritual. Now, you might be saying, "Yeah, that might be true but the Nightsisters are evil and besides, why would you want ritual as part of using the Force, anyway?"

I would suggest that the Nightsisters weren't as cut and dry as "good or evil", though they sided with the Sith a lot, I think that their evil was more circumstance than inevitable consequence of using the Force through ritual which, outside of Jedi Realism, has an enormously varied history and has been used for bad AND good. But then you might ask why? Why wouldn't you want to just focus on waving your hands and doing things or studying philosophy or basically anything besides chanting and waving your arms around like a weirdo?

Because ritual, when done well, can bring to almost any path a degree of richness and depth that is challenging to obtain any other way.

Let me show you.

Scenario 1.
Ahsoka, though impetuous and unconventional, was just like every other Jedi that Yoda knew even a little in that she had a morning ritual she did that she learned from him.

She got up and took a sip of water and immediately felt the Force flow around her and set her intention to be the best Jedi she could be. After this she walked over to a small pedestal that contained objects that reminded her of what it meant to be a Jedi. She took a deep breath and, in a mix of song and chant, "I am one with the Force and the Force is with Me". As she did so she visualized her Master, Anakin, his Master, Obi Wan, his master, Qui Gon, and so on, all the way back in a continuous line, feeling her chant turn more and more into a song as her visualization moved on and on.

She ended the ritual by experiencing the Force as pure awareness, free of thoughts good or bad.

Scenario 2.
It was bad for Maul. Very, very bad. He had been in the trash heap for a long time and sometimes had a hard time remembering who he hated and why. But he found a way around it.

Whenever he wavered he would go to a small pile with what looked like a scrap of brown cloth on the top. He would stand above what looked just like a piece of a Jedi robe, from whom was anyone's guess and begin his chant, gutteral and desperate at first.

"My passion is my power."
"My passion is my power."
"My passion is my power."

As he said it he visualized the day he was defeated by Obi Wan. He felt pain and horror as if it was fresh, feeling and visualizing the dark side flow and roil in him like thin lava, burning away his weakness. He then remembered all he had lost. The life of a Sith Lord, the glory of revenge, perhaps some sort of hedonistic pleasure like good food,and so forth. He then allowed the hunger and bitterness to fuel the dark side even more as his chant changed from desperate to confident, almost like a growl.

He ended his ritual with a great scream, terrorizing whatever poor creatures were unlucky enough to be nearby.

So, as I hope to have demonstrated Force rituals can be effective for even the more atheistic Jedi and they don't necessarily have to be light or dark. Even though I have no authority I would encourage you as a fellow practitioner to give writing and performing rituals a try. Here's how I do it.

First, watch rituals. As many as you can from as many sources as you can. Don't look at the theology or anything like that, look at what they are doing. Notice how their word choices and rhythm have a set effect. Make a note of how that works. Also look at ritual objects that are used. How do they contribute to the ritual? Also don't just go to what you think are going to be good rituals. The best mistakes to learn from are other people's at the end of the day. Also, make the effort to go to hard to get to rituals. Try and get an invite to that Wiccan coven, give that Heathen some mead to check out their Blot, etc. Be honest but kind.

Second, be ready for your rituals not to go right. Unless you have written rituals in the past the chances you'll have good ones in your first few are pretty low. That's ok. That's normal. Keep going.

Third, repetition is key. Once you get a ritual you like then do it. If it is a utilitarian ritual(like naming) practice it daily until it's a part of you, then make sure to revisit it often, especially if you know you'll need it in the recent future. If it is something like Ahsoka's morning ritual, it should be done every day(and should be short and not too complicated so that it isn't a burden).

In closing, there are more ways to access the Force ethically than just the Jedi, ritual is one of them, and if you are at all interested, I think you should try them to see if they can enhance your practice.

Anyhow, good night, may the Force be with you, and may compassion guide your way.

*Please don't call them shamans. Also, totally irrelevant sidebar. Alphas aren't a thing. Really. The guy who did the original research came back later and basically recanted. Google it.

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