A comparative analysis on the concept of the

Dao and the “Force” from Star Wars, and the use
of Oriental concepts in the Western world.

Thiago Ferreira de Melo Dias

CNA: 300397753

The Dao

The Star Wars movies, created and imagined by George Lucas, is one of the most

famous and influential cinematographic masterpieces of the 20th and 21st

centuries. This fictional world is set in a “long time ago in a galaxy far away”, but

brings to the spectator some ideas, philosophies and concepts that are not

fictional at all, and may feel inspired by some Earthly religions, such as Daoism.

In the original trilogy (Star Wars: A New Hope; Star Wars: The Empire Strikes

Back; Star Wars: Return of the Jedi), George introduces us to a futuristic reality,

where good and evil are in constant battle and disagreements, and where the

main characters must find their path and get in touch with the “Force”, defined

by the character Obi Wan Kenobi as: “An energy field created by all living

things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together”

If a person has studied enough about World Religions, she will immediately and

correctly relate this fictional Force to the ancient concept of the Dao, an all-

encompassing energy that is the source and central to the indigenous Chinese

religion of Daoism.

Daoism was founded by Laozi, in the 6th century BCE in what is now China. Laozi

also wrote the sacred text of this new religion, the Dao de Jing (The Book of the

Way and its Virtue).

Dao literally means “the way”, but unfortunately it is not as descriptive and

logically explained and defined such as its fictional energetic counterpart. Since

it is such an ancient concept and throughout the passing of time and Chinese

history, its definition became clouded and surrounded by mystery and doubt.

But looking into the Dao de Jing we can shed a light in this discussion. It is said

in the Chapter 1:

“A Dao that may be spoken is not the enduring Dao. A name that may be named

is not an enduring name.

No names – this is the beginning of heaven and earth. Having names – this is

the mother of the things of the world”

For us, citizens of the Western world, the idea of not believing in a central god or

deity is hard to grasp on. For the vast majority of our religions are based in a

centralized power (such as Allah for Islam, God for both Christianism and

Judaism), with anthropomorphic characteristics and all powerful.

And for this reason, it is seen in the Star Wars movies the creation of a more

logical and tangible definition of the Force (Dao), but in reality, at its core, the

Dao cannot be described, for its name and definitions “are not the enduring

Dao”.

So, by introducing us to the Force, George Lucas was in reality, doing a simple

adaptation of a more ancient and complex philosophy, but bringing to us a more

physical and Western way of understanding it.

The Wu Wei and the concept of non-action

One of the many teachings that Laozi wrote in the Dao de Jing, was one called

the Wu Wei, presented on Chapter 3 of the book:

“Engage in non-action (Wu Wei) and nothing will go unruled.”

In the movies, this idea is shown in many forms, here I will use the example of

the fall of Emperor Palpatine, the main villain of the movies.

The Emperor, fearing that his power and domain over planets and people was in

risk because of the Rebellion, tries desperately to avoid its demise.

But by doing so, he shows his real face, which ultimately leads to his death by

Darth Vader, his most loyal servant, which I will talk about more later.

In that sense, one can take as the influence of the Dao de Jing, because Laozi

preached that by doing nothing, no chaos/problems will happen if they are not

meant to.
Trying to control and dominate the Dao is going against a natural force that

rules over all of us. Trying to avoid the Dao to act, is the same as of trying to

stop a strong body of water, impossible and chaotic.

But if we bring the concept of non-action to our globalized, capitalist Western

reality, it is seen as delusion and should be laughed of. Because we interpret the

wu wei as if we are supposed to sit and wait, do nothing and everything will fall

into our hands. As John M. Porter said in his book “The Tao of Star Wars” (2003):

“You wait… you feel… you harmonize, and the right action appears. That is wu

wei”

By saying that, John states and clarify for us Westerners, that practicing Wu Wei

is not being lazy, but instead, is feeling the Dao moving through you, around

you, vigilantly awaiting for the right moment and the right time to act and do

what you must do.

Basically, in my understanding, wu wei is defined by feeling the Dao,

understanding what it asks of you, get in touch and peace with it, and act on it.

Always aware of the right time to act.

Yin Yang and the sides of the Force

Good and bad, white and black, male and female, fire and water, right and

wrong. One is the opposite of the other, they will not always go together, and we

should respect this solid and defining universal law, right?

No. Not for Daoism.

Amongst all of the symbols and teachings that Laozi left for us before leaving

his corrupted country, the Yin Yang is the most recognizable and famous of

them all.

But do we really understand its meaning? Or we just think that it is the moral

definition of the universal opposites?

Well, Lucas portrays this brilliantly in the movie “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi”

from 1983.

Along all of Star Wars story, there is always the old division of good (represented

by the Rebellion and the Jedis), and bad (represented by the Empire and the

Siths). And again, he does a very good job in simplifying a not that complex, but

yet not that easy concept of Yin Yang from Daoism.

By dividing the factions in opposite colors such as black/white, red/green etc., he

explicitly portrays who are the “good guys”, and who are the “bad guys”. And for

us, it worked and we never asked anything more of it.

But again, here George Lucas is showcasing the idea of the Yin Yang, the good

that exists in bad, and the bad that exists in good.

In this movie, we see the death of Darth Vader (bad/red/Empire), killed by his

son Luke Skywalker (good/green/Rebellion). And throughout all of the previous

movies, we see Luke trying to make his father to see and remember that he still

has some goodness inside of him, that he is not all bad and dark.

And in his last moments, Darth Vader finally recognizes and sees that, indeed he

had goodness within him, he just needed to find it again, get in touch with what

was lost.

So, yes, this is for me one of the best ways to portray the concept of Yin Yang,

where we see good within bad, and vice-versa.

And one of the main teachings from Laozi is that the Dao does not decide your

future as one could think. No. Instead, the Dao gives you everything that you

need to achieve your goals and dreams, the result of that will be determined by

how your soul chose to act and think to be successful.

In the West, fate is something that is highly debated and doubted of. And most

people believe that we have the power to choose and change the course of our

lives.

Conclusion

In this paper, I analyzed and showed how did George Lucas portrayed the ideas

of an ancient and philosophical religion such as Daoism in the Western

imagination and tastes.

The Way. Dao. Force. Whatever names we give to this energy that has created

everything that exists and will ever exist, we will never fully understand it, but
instead of logically thinking and trying to fin a mathematical definition to it,

Laozi teaches us the most precious of all of his teachings.

Feel the Dao. Get in touch with the Dao by going with its flow, avoiding

overthinking and hunger for power. And everything will fall into place.

Chinese people have been applying this philosophy into their lives since the 6 th

century BCE. And just with George Lucas’s films that the common people of the

Western world are learning about this. This ultimately teaches one thing for me

personally… that studying Oriental religions can be one of the paths to our

dreamed and most wanted world peace and understanding. For it ask of us to

think outside our patterns, to feel instead of think, and respect and understand

people’s cultures.

This is how Daoism and the Dao were represented in the Star Wars movies as the

Force and introduced to the Western world.

 Works Cited

Porter, John M.: The Tao of Star Wars, Humanics, 2003

Johnson, Judy A.: Traditions of Asia. Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2004

Jr, Wetmore, Kevin J.: “The Tao of Star Wars, or, cultural appropriation in a
Galaxy Far, Far Away”. Studies in Popular Culture, Vol.23, No.1 (October 2000),
pp. 91-106

“This is the Way: Daoist Themes in Star Wars”. Uchicago.com 2023. University of
Chicago, May 3 2023 https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/articles/way-daoist-
themes-star-wars

Kirkland, Russell: Taoism: The Enduring Tradition. Routledge. 2004

MacMullan, Terrance: Balance through struggle: Understanding the Novel

Cosmology of the Force in The Last Jedi. Journal of Religion and Popular
Culture, Volume 31, Number 1, Spring 2019, University of Toronto Press.