Star Wars: Differences Between Jedi & Sith Explained

Throughout the entire history of the Star Wars galaxy, the Jedi and the Sith have been locked in endless wars with one another as these opposing entities are simply two sides of the same coin and are not able to see eye-to-eye with one another. Of course, the Jedi have always been portrayed as the good guys, whereas the Sith are the evil Force wielders that want everything for themselves. But what exactly are the differences between the Jedi and the Sith?

The Jedi are known as the peacekeepers of the galaxy and are never supposed to consolidate power unto themselves. They pursue peace and harmony through the light side of the Force. On the other hand, the Sith rely on passion for their strength and always pursue absolute power and control.

Simply stated, the Jedi and the Sith are so different that there is no way for them to agree on one thing. That is why clashes between the Jedi and the Sith have always been unavoidable, especially when the Sith have something nefarious planned. With that said, let’s look at the differences between the Jedi and the Sith.

Jedi and Sith differences

Side of the Force

The Jedi have always been known to use the light side of the Force. It is believed that the Force, a cosmic energy field that binds everything together in the entire galaxy, is in balance when it is in its natural state, which is the light side of the Force. As such, the Jedi believe in the power of the light side of the Force and are there to preserve the balance in the Force, which is the guiding hand that governs the fate of the entire galaxy.

Unlike the Jedi, the Sith rely on the dark side of the Force, which is the corrupted state of the Force. As mentioned, the Force in its light side is said to be balanced. However, the dark side is what corrupts and forces the Force to go out of balance, and that’s why the dark side of the Force clouds the fate of the entire galaxy and often leads the galaxy into wars and a constant state of turmoil. It is through this that the Sith can thrive.

Source of power

The Jedi find harmony in the Force, where they can find their strength. Jedi are known to find inner peace and harmony by trusting in the will of the Force and by expanding their knowledge of the Force. They disregard personal feelings, emotions, and passion when using the Force, as they know these will only cloud their judgment. This also explains the more rational and disciplined approach that the Jedi are known to take.

The Sith are known to obtain power through their passion. They believe that it is only through passion that they can obtain ultimate strength and power. That’s why the Sith are encouraged to use their negative emotions and their personal feelings and passion because it is through those that they can become stronger in the dark side of the Force.

The dark side tends to feed off of a person’s negative emotions and passion, and that’s why the Sith tend to be strong whenever they give in to their hatred, greed, and anger.

Goals

The main goal of the Jedi Order is to promote harmony throughout the entire galaxy. Jedi seek harmony and serenity within themselves, and that’s why they want to promote harmony and serenity throughout the galaxy and believe that the Force wants the galaxy to be at peace. On a personal level, the Jedi are also taught to be one with the Force and to allow themselves to give in to the will of the Force. And that’s why the Jedi are supposed to be selfless in their pursuit of harmony and serenity.

On the other hand, the Sith’s main goal is to pursue power above anything else in the galaxy because they believe they can only be truly free through the dark side of the Force. The Sith believe that the light side of the Force is what is holding them back and that it is only through their passion that the dark side of the Force will be able to give them ultimate freedom. That’s why the Sith are selfish and untrustworthy people who will always seek their personal goals over anything else in the galaxy. 

Purpose

The purpose of the Jedi Order is to act as peacekeepers in the galaxy, and that’s why they are trained to be strong enough to defend the innocent and fight anyone looking to disturb the peace in the galaxy. But at the same time, the Jedi are taught to be disciplined and wise enough to understand when it is necessary to use violence.

As such, the Jedi are not soldiers or police but should be mediators that promote peace above anything else. It is only when violence is necessary that the Jedi should act and defend those who are oppressed.

The Sith’s only purpose is to obtain absolute power over everything, and that’s why the Sith seek dominion over the entire galaxy. Instead of promoting peace, the Sith want to control everything that they can control, and that’s why concepts such as freedom and democracy are alien to them.

For the Sith, the only way to achieve dominion over everything is to have absolute power over them. And that’s why Darth Sidious’ ultimate goal was to establish an eternal Galactic Empire with him sitting on the throne as an immortal emperor that was supposed to rule for thousands of years.

Who is more powerful: Jedi or Sith?

With all that said, it is clear that both the Jedi and the Sith are on opposing sides of the spectrum. They are so different that it can be difficult to avoid any conflicts between the two orders, as the beliefs of the Jedi naturally clash with the Sith and their pursuit of absolute power. That’s why they have been locked into endless wars that have been waged for thousands of years.

Of course, on paper, the Sith seem more powerful than the Jedi. They indeed have more immediate power at their disposal because their negative emotions can strengthen the dark side of the Force. As such, in most cases, Sith Lords are often stronger than most Jedi Knights and Masters.

However, the catch is that the Sith only rely on absolute power and cannot see anything beyond that. Meanwhile, the Jedi rely on harmony and serenity for their power, and that’s why Jedi Knights and Masters are often more balanced and disciplined than their Sith counterparts.

It is usually due to the Sith’s pride and lack of discipline that they cannot defeat the Jedi, who rely on wisdom and discipline to find ways to overcome their powerful opponents.

There is also the fact that the Sith are naturally selfish. That is why it was very common for there to be infighting within the Sith Order, as the Jedi Order was able to take advantage of this to defeat them a thousand years before the events of the Skywalker Saga.

Darth Bane, the only Sith surviving that war, realized that the infighting made the Sith weak. This led to the creation of the Rule of Two, which limited the number of Sith Lords to only two so that infighting would be kept within those two Sith Lords while also allowing them to become stronger through their pursuit of power.

So, in a sense, the Sith are supposed to be stronger in terms of their immediate power. But the Jedi can bridge the gap between their power using their discipline and wisdom. And that’s why we’ve seen many Jedi defeating Sith that seem more powerful on paper but lack the discipline to overcome their opponents.

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