Summary
A thrilling newStar Warstheory makes George Lucas' original plans for the Jedi key to their origin. Theorigins of the Jediare shrouded in mystery, with the ancient Order somehow tied both to cults born within the Galactic Core and first temples established on the Outer Rim. This is all the stranger giventhe Prime Jedi lived roughly 25,000 years before the Skywalker saga, at a time when hyperspace technology was in its infancy.
All this means there’s tremendous excitement aboutJames Mangold’sDawn of the Jedimovie(not the official title), which is confirmed to reveal the origins of the Force itself. This will be set some time before the founding of the Jedi, and Mangold has hinted the name may not be used in the script; still, the ideas will surely be there, meaning viewers will finally understand how the Jedi came to be. In the meantime, a thrilling theory weaves together the origins of the Jedi with recent revelations fromAhsoka, and it feels like the best fit for all the contradictions to date.
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George Lucas' Original Vision Of The Jedi Is Still Official Canon
The original Jedi Bendu explained
This theory draws inspiration fromGeorge Lucas' first Jedi plans, which referred to the order as the “Jedi Bendu,” described as “the most feared warriors in the universe” and “the personal bodyguards of the Emperor.” So many people buy into Lucas' claims he had the whole story figured out from scratch, but the truth is very different, and this description gives a sense of how much his ideas changed with time. Surprisingly, though, the Bendu are indeed still a part ofStar Warscanon.
The Force cult known as the Bendu appear to have originated in the Galactic Core; one of the Coruscant days of the week is “Benduday,” in their honor. According to theStar Wars: Force & DestinysourcebookNexus of Power,the Bendu are canonically the “precursor” of the Jedi Order, although they appear to have existed until just a thousand years before the Skywalker saga; theStar Wars: The Rise of SkywalkerVisual Dictionaryreveals the Bendu left the Republic at that time, establishing the relatively lawless planet Kijimi.
Little is known of the Bendu, who appear to have disappeared from the galaxy by the prequels. That said,Star Wars Rebelsintroduced a creature called Bendu who believed himself to be neither light nor dark in the Force; rather, he claimed to be the one in the middle. There’s presumably a connection between this creature and the Bendu, because there’s evidence the first Jedi consideredbalance an aspect of the Forceas well, perhaps inheriting that philosophy from the order that served as their precursor.
Ahsoka’s Intergalactic Retcons Make The Jedi Origin Possible Again
The ancient empire has been revealed
TheAhsokaDisney+ TV show rewrote the history of theStar Warsgalaxy, with its heroes and villains traveling thepathway to Peridea- a distant planet situated in another galaxy. They discovered a Force cult known as the Nightsisters were even older than the Jedi, hailing not from Dathomir but from Peridea, learning to travel across the intergalactic void by harnessing the power ofStar Wars' space whales, the Purrgils. Even more excitingly, though, inscriptions on Peridea hinted thatthese early Nightsisters became part of an intergalactic empire.
There really was a powerful emperor in the days before the Jedi.
These inscriptions were written in ur-Kittât, a language sometimes called the “Old Tongue” that became used by the Sith due to its connection to the dark side of the Force. They praised the ruler of this intergalactic emperor, Kujet; the name was familiar to players ofJedi: Fallen Orderas a Force-sensitive from a race known as the Zeffo who had fallen to the dark side, and who would ultimately be buried on the Nightsister planet of Dathomir. It seems he was the ruler of this intergalactic empire; there really was a powerful emperor in the days before the Jedi.
How The Bendu Could Connect To Coruscant & Peridea
Were the Bendu the guards of Kujet?
Ahsoka’s revelations raise the exciting possibility that some of George Lucas' earliest ideas about the Jedi could yet be canon. Kujet’s empire ruled many planets in theStar Warsgalaxy, and Coruscant - already a prominent city-planet in the Galactic Core over 25,000 years ago - can be identified on a Peridean starmap. If the Bendu originated on Coruscant (explaining why one Coruscant weekday is named after them), then Kujet’s empire would likely have ruled over them.Could the Bendu have actually been the emperor’s guards, fulfilling the role Lucas originally intended for the Jedi?
InAhsoka, Baylan Skoll hinted that Peridea was the place where the relentless war between the light and dark sides of the Force began. Perhaps some of the Bendu traveled to Peridea with the Purrgil as part of Kujet’s retinue, ultimately turning on him when they realized he was a creature of pure (or, rather, impure) darkness. According to this theory,these rebel Bendu were the true first Jedi, champions who stood against the darkness… not in the name of light, but in the name of balance. Peridea, then, is the birthplace of the Jedi Order.
After The Bendu Uprising, The Prime Jedi Would Move… To Ahch-To
The ancient Jedi Temple seen in Star Wars: The Last Jedi
This newStar Warstheory fits withAhsoka’s retcons, even incorporating some of Lucas' unrealized ideas into the canon. Even more excitingly, though, it also explains how the Bendu originated in the Galactic Core, while the Jedi Order was born far from that sector of space. The nascent Jedi would have known how to travel across the intergalactic void using Purrgil, and they’d have sought uncharted territories for fear of reprisals from Kujet loyalists. The Purrgil seem to seek outplanets rich in the Force, and they found their way to Ahch-To, where these early Jedi established their first temple.
This is, of course, only a theory; James Mangold’sDawn of the Jediwill give us a lot more solid information, revealing what came before the Jedi (and, potentially, what came before the Bendu). Until then, it really does seem like the best fit for the strange, contradictory information we’ve had so far. It feels as though it pulls so many of the pieces together like a jigsaw puzzle, finally allowing viewers a chance to figure out the ancient history of theStar Warsgalaxy.
July 19, 2025
Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi
Announced at Star Wars Celebration in 2023, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi is a prequel focusing on the first-ever Jedi. Taking place 25,000 before Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Dawn of the Jedi will explore the events set prior to the Old Republic and the Disney+ series, The Acolyte.
