Ancient Sith Order

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Code of the Sith
Source: | Star Wars: Wookieepedia's Code of the Sith ''Peace is a lie, there is only passion. ''Through passion, I gain strength. ''Through strength, I gain power. ''Through power, I gain victory. ''Through victory, my chains are broken. ''The Force shall free me.

Analysis of the Sith Code

Some have speculated that the Code of the Sith was created in direct contrast with the Jedi Code, to illustrate the fundamental philosophical differences between the orders. This could certainly account for the first line of the Sith Code discounting the Jedi's proclamation of peace, as well as the similar structure of the two Codes.

The Sith saw themselves as seekers, challengers of old and stagnant ways, in touch with the laws of nature and the universe. They saw the Jedi as denying their natures and afraid of the truth around them. Yuthura Ban gave examples of the tuk'ata and sarkath hunting prey, feeding on weaker creatures. Passions were what kept all creatures—from the most rudimentary to the most evolved sentient—alive. Yuthura Ban explained this to the amnesiac Revan, "To think us creatures beyond the need of simple passions is a delusion." They believed that mastery of their passions gave them strength the Jedi lacked.

The Sith did not believe that victory by any means was desirable, but believed that unless victory proved your superiority, it was an illusion and temporary. Though there might be different types of victories—peaceful victory, victory by sacrifice, even a truce—Sith dogma taught that unless the victory was achieved by demonstrating that one's power was superior it was not true victory. The stronger a Sith became in the Force, the more power he could achieve, but he always had to fight for that power.

The true meaning of the line "…my chains are broken" was a subject of argument among many Sith. The chains represented a being's restrictions; not just a Sith but any being in the universe. The restrictions could be those placed upon a being by someone else, or restrictions that one placed upon oneself. The ultimate goal of any Sith was to free himself from such restrictions, but not (as many failed Sith pupils believed) in the simplistic meaning of just being able to do whatever he wanted. The Sith desired to free themselves in order to reach perfection and fulfill their potential. They wanted perfect strength, perfect power, and perfect destiny, which, in turn, allowed one to do whatever they wanted for the most part. The person who had these abilities was known as the Sith'ari.

The Sith'ari was supposed to destroy the Sith and then make them stronger than ever. This caused many Sith to treat perfection as a goal to work towards rather than a strict state of being, and in that way they were very like the Jedi.

Sith Holocron
Source: | Star Wars: Wookieepedia's Sith Holocron Characteristics Sith holocrons were immediately identifiable with respect to Jedi holocrons, as they were usually pyramidal in shape, and etched with strange symbols and ancient hieroglyphs. Inscriptions usually lined the bottom of the device, and various dark incantations were found all over the smooth surface. At the holocron's apex rested a black crystal, used to power the holocron's store of information.

The design of the holocron was not the only way to discern its affiliation: Sith holocrons emitted a dark presence, creating tremors in the Force upon activation. It took a great deal of willpower for a Jedi to access the dark devices, and some of the more inexperienced Jedi often felt sickly or fell ill merely laying their gaze upon one.

Internally, however, Sith holocrons worked in much the same way as a Jedi holocron. The black crystal of the Sith holocron was made up of intricate lattices and vertices, capable of storing massive amounts of information, as well as the holocron's Sith gatekeeper. The holocron was able to capture the appearance and cognitive networks of the holocron's owner, and transform this into a three-dimensional hologram. This gatekeeper acted as a guide through the holocron's store of information, as a search and recovery engine with a more personal touch. These gatekeepers could relate stories from the holocron's archives to events in the life of the one who activated the holocron.

Unlike their Jedi counterparts, the Sith holocron gatekeepers did not restrict information that might be too advanced and dangerous for a user, usually allowing them unlimited access to its entire dark side repository. Though this isn't always the case. Darth Bane was once limited by the Holocron of Heresies, who refused to teach him the technique he sought due to Bane's inability to learn a few techniques that came before it. In the end it all depended upon its creator, and how much they would choose to share.

Construction

The process by which holocrons were created was a very difficult one. In the days of the old Sith Empire, holocrons were prevalent among the Dark Lords just as Jedi holocrons were among Jedi Masters. Many rare materials had to be gathered, and much meditating on the will of the dark side was necessary to focus the Sith Lord's power. By the time of the Great Jedi Purge, nearly all records containing information regarding the creation of holocrons was thought to be lost. But in the centuries before, the knowledge was apparently still available, should one happen to find it. Darth Bane was one such individual. Bane had tried unsuccessfully for years to store his own essence within a holocron, but when his apprentice presented him with the possibility of finding the secrets on Tython, he set out immediately for that world. On the planet Tython he acquired the holocron of an ancient Dark Lord of the Sith, the Shi'ido changeling named Belia Darzu. Darzu was very knowledgeable in the construction of holocrons, and recorded within the lattices of her own holocron, Darzu explained in depth the required steps one must take to successfully construct the pyramidal Sith holocron.

Crystal matrix

As the Shi'ido form of Belia Darzu explained, the process can take months to finally perfect, though sometimes a holocron could be created within the short span of a few weeks. Each was unique to its creator; one who sought to fashion their own Sith holocron could not use another as the blueprint by which they followed to make their own personal holocron. The inner components were composed of intertwined filaments and strands, forming a crystal matrix that must be fine tuned to prevent device failure. Rare crystal was used in the workings and tunings of the intricate network that would store potentially infinite data. Each holocron matrix had to meet stringent specifications, usually requiring thousands of precise alterations and adjustments on a subatomic level. Only through the power of the Force could one ensure that each crystalline strand was properly aligned.

Rituals of Invocation

Once the crystal matrix inside the holocron was successfully constructed, the creator could then focus on the outer designs of their holocron. Ancient Sith symbols were etched onto the device, and then imbued with dark side power in what were known as the Rituals of Invocation. This ceremony was paramount in maintaining the matrix's stability after it was infused with dark side energy. Again, the symbols must be unique to the individual, and simply copying the glyphs from another holocron will only result in failure. The device will fall in on itself into a pile of crystal-dust. These spells were incredibly painstaking, both mentally and physically. But should this be performed before the Rite of Commencement, the power trapped within the symbols will fade, and the network will degrade to the point of being unable to sustain the crystal matrix.

Rite of Commencement

To trap one's essence within the capstone, they must invoke the Rite of Commencement. Due to its complexity, only the most powerful Sith Masters were capable of performing the elaborate ritual. When the Sith Lord's cognizance was successfully trapped within, a wealth of dark side knowledge and lore could be stored within the almost limitless lattices and networks of the holocron. The cognitive network then served as the teaching element, and also stabilized the interweavings of the holocron. Without the network in place, the device would disintegrate within days.

Capstone

All Sith holocrons had capstones, wherein the creator must capture their own cognitive essence before the fine-tuning stages. This prevented the cognitive network from degrading, and only then could one truly begin to create their own holocron. The capstone was a black crystal, housed within the center of the device. It was a vital part of a Sith holocron's construction. It served the dual purpose of both an energy source for the device as well as a "home" of sorts for the gatekeeper, or the cognitive essence of the holocron's creator.