Why "The Empire Strikes Back" is One of My Favorite Spiritual Movies

Luke carrying Jedi Master Yoda on his back.

If you’ve known me for more than 3 seconds, you know I’m a Star Wars fan. Part of my love of Star Wars is nostalgia, as I can remember watching the original trilogy with my dad growing up, and Star Wars continues to be a thing that we bond over.

But, to me, Star Wars isn’t just a sci-fi franchise. I often tell my clients and students that I liken Reiki energy to The Force. The movies are a great example of the hero’s journey. And there is a lot of spirituality embedded within the movies, with the pinnacle, I think, being “The Empire Strikes Back.” Even if you aren’t a Star Wars fan, I hope you’ll give this a read and maybe see “Empire” in a bit of a new light.

For this blog post, I’m going to focus on Luke’s time spent with Yoda on Dagobah. There are plenty of other comments and dialogue within the rest of the movie that are spiritual in nature, but the meat of what I want to talk about happens after Luke crash lands in the swamp near Yoda’s home. This blog post will be longer than usual, as I will be reproducing a bunch of the dialogue. So grab your blue milk, settle in, and join me for my love of this movie.

When Luke first crashes into the swamp, he is frustrated and says to R2D2 “What are we even doing here? It's like something out of a dream. I don’t know; maybe I'm just going crazy.”

This reminds me of how it feels when we are undergoing our spiritual awakening. We have moments where we question our choices, question our reality, and start to wonder if we might just be having some sort of mental health crisis. We have moments of frustration and overwhelm, and are just over it. We let ourselves freak out a bit, then get our feet back underneath us, dust ourselves off, and continue moving forward.

Inside Yoda’s home, Luke gets pushy and impatient about meeting Yoda and Yoda says "Patience! For the Jedi, it is time to eat as well."

This one always cracks me up a bit, as patience is something that I’m still working on. But this statement is about also remembering to take care of yourself as you are traveling along your spiritual/healing journey. It is important to nurture your physical body so that it can continue to support you as you travel along your path. We have to remember that self-care is a truly vital part of our spiritual growth and our well-being.

Luke’s initial dismissal and disbelief that this little fella in front of him is the great Jedi Master, Yoda.

Humans are often quick to make assumptions. Luke’s quick judgment of Yoda reminds me of how quickly we sometimes make assumptions about our teachers here in this lifetime. We might dismiss folks based on how they talk or how they dress. But if we can look past the surface distractions, we will discover that every single person we come into contact with is our teacher. And the folks we choose for our more in-depth teaching and guidance may look totally different than the expectations society has shoved down our throats. Be open to seeing what IS.

When Yoda is talking to Obi-Wan about why he cannot train Luke, he says "All his life has he looked away, to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was, hmmm? What he was doing."

This is a great testament to the importance of being present. Being here, now. Time is a manmade construct, so the future doesn’t actually exist. We only have this present moment and we should be fully engaged with it, as THAT is the true reality. We should always be focused on what we are doing, now, to help move us along our path. Be present.

Then a bit later as they are talking,
Luke: “I'm not afraid.”
Yoda: “Oh, you will be. You. Will. Be.”

Our spiritual journey and our healing journey can sometimes be pretty damn bumpy. It’s not always going to be puppies and rainbows. Healing work is often difficult, which is why a lot of people refuse to do it. Also, embarking on spiritual growth and doing healing work can bring up a lot of fear of the unknown, as we’re not always sure what we will be uncovering or bringing back into the light to deal with. So oftentimes, people are afraid of moving forward with it. Or something comes to the surface for healing, and people become afraid of facing it. It is okay to be uncomfortable because that is how we grow. There is no growth in our comfort zone.

Later, as they are training, Luke notices the cave.
Luke: “What's in there?”
Yoda: “Only what you take with you.”
Then Luke fights “Darth Vader” in there, but when his mask breaks open, Luke sees his own face behind the mask.

This is a great description of shadow work. Shadow work is facing those “darker” parts of ourselves and learning how to embrace them and heal them. We often want to avoid or ignore those parts, or view them as separate from us. But they are just as much a part of us as the other parts. You cannot have the light without the dark when it comes to our human selves.

A bit later, they are talking about getting Luke’s ship out of the swamp. Luke objects, saying something to the effect of levitating rocks and levitating a ship are two completely different things.
Yoda: "Only different in your mind. You must unlearn what you have learned."
Luke: “Alright, I'll give it a try.”
Yoda: “No! Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try.”
Yoda: "...my ally is the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us, and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere!"
[Yoda raises the ship out of the swamp and on to dry land.]
Luke: "I don't believe it!"
Yoda: "That is why you fail."

Guh. I LOVE this scene so, so much! There is so much juicy spiritual goodness here. First, the idea of unlearning. We often have to unlearn a lot of beliefs that we grew up with because they are just not true, and they do not serve us. This is not a slam on our parents or others in our lives growing up. They did the best they could with what they knew at the time. But a lot of times, those beliefs were limiting, which hold us back. So we need to “unlearn” them. I often refer to this as letting go of old programming.

Next is the idea of trying. Most of us have been raised with the concept of “trying” and even sometimes being encouraged to put in a half-hearted effort (because, hey, “at least you tried”). But really, we just need to go for it with the full intention of DOING it and accomplishing it. Living our life, every aspect, to the fullest.

Yoda also talks about the Force as his ally, which is how we should be viewing the Universe. The Universe is not some vengeful “god” being taught about in organized religion. The Universe IS our ally, and always has our highest and greatest good in mind. We have to learn to trust in that, lean into it, embrace it, and collaborate with it. It is a powerful force that can support us as we navigate both our human existence here on Earth and our spiritual journey. And belief in that is a huge part of our ability to live a life full of joy, ease, and flow. “Luminous beings are we”!

Later on in the training:
Yoda "Concentrate. Feel the force flow. Good. Yes. Calm. Through the force, things you will see. Other places. The future. The past. Old friends long gone."
[Luke starts freaking out about what he sees.]
Yoda: "Control, control! You must learn control."
Luke: “Will they die?”
Yoda: “Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future.”
Luke: “I’ve got to go to them.”
Yoda: “Decide you must how to serve them best. If you leave now, help them you could, but you would destroy all for which they have fought and suffered.”

I also love this exchange because there is a lot to unpack here too. First is the encouragement to lean into your intuition, your Higher Self, and the Universe, as all will help guide you and show you many things. We have to quiet our minds and focus so that we can receive the messages waiting for us.

Also, this shows us that everything is fluid. We all have free will, so all of the details of the future are not set in stone. This also reiterates the fact that all we really have is the present, because what we call “the future” is always shifting and changing based on the choices we make at any given moment.

Finally, the last part is a perfect example of learning how to be a witness to someone else’s journey. And how devastatingly difficult that can be. Every single person has their own journey to travel, and it is not our job to save them. We can support them and be there for them, but we cannot do the work for them. Everyone needs to go through their own challenges and struggles, and accomplish their healing and growth through their own actions and decisions. It is not our job to do that for them. And when we try to do it for them, we only end up causing more suffering for both them and us.

So there you have it! I could’ve written something 5 times longer if I wanted to include every spiritual snippet I see in this movie. I would love to hear your thoughts on my take on the spirituality of Star Wars, so please don’t hesitate to share them with me!

And may the Force be with you, always. 💖