The Force

The Force was a metaphysical, spiritual, binding, and ubiquitous power that held enormous importance for both the Jedi and Sith monastic orders. Known as the Way in ancient times, the Force was viewed in many different aspects, including, but not limited to, the light side, the dark side, the Living Force, the Unifying Force, the Cosmic Force, and the Physical Force. The first two aspects were concerned with the moral compass of the Force, as manifested by the conduct and emotions of living creatures who were themselves part of the fabric of the Force. The light side of the Force was the facet aligned with compassion, selflessness, self-knowledge and enlightenment, healing, mercy and benevolence, while the dark side of the Force was the element aligned with hatred, fear, covetousness, anger, aggression, jealousy and malevolence. The latter four aspects were defined by prominent Jedi philosophies: The Living Force dealt with the energy of living things; the Unifying Force, with the entirety of space and time; the Cosmic Force, with life after death; and the Physical Force, with anything within one's surroundings. Though the Force was categorized in this way, there were no specific abilities or powers that were only usable by a follower of a particular path of the Force; the Force partially existed inside the life forms that used it, and drew energy from their emotions. Some beings, particularly the Sith, believed that the dark side of the Force was more powerful than the light, though it was possible that the dark side was just more tempting to those who used it (or desired to use it). Others thought of the Force as an entity capable of intelligent thought, almost as a sort of deity.

Four aspects of the Force
The grandiose nature of the Force made it quite difficult to study as a whole; a student could easily become lost in its depths or flounder with the shallows trying too eagerly to focus on a speck in the void. To remedy this situation, the Force had long been broken down into four aspects: the Living, the Unifying, the Cosmic and the Physical Force. In this way scholars may choose to focus on the tangible realities of the world and how the Force manifests in the lives of individuals and within the moment, or to delve deeper, reaching outside oneself to wonder at the mysteries of the universe on an infinite scale. The idea of a Living Force reflects the aspect of the Force which connects all living beings. The tangible Force; the present here and now which flowed about to allow a Forceful being to sense life and death. Scholars of the Living Force like Qui-Gon Jinn espoused a philosophy of "living in the moment," relied heavily on their instincts and concentrated more on sensitivity to living things, rather than fulfilling destiny or looking to the future. They believed that the future's instabilities cause uncertainty, and that the present held the answers to near-future events. The idea of a Unifying Force reflects the aspect of the Force which required a significantly greater amount of understanding than the Living Force, constituting it as a single cosmic power and creating visions of the future that were of particular significance. The idea of a Cosmic Force reflects the aspect of the Force which connected the Living Force to a unifying gestalt, allowing the user to become one with the Force and manifest themselves as ghosts. The idea of a Physical Force reflects the aspect of the Force which allowed one to manipulate objects within his or her surroundings.
 * Living Force
 * Unifying Force
 * Cosmic Force
 * Physical Force

Light Side of the Force
The light side of the Force was concerned with the ideals of good, benevolence, and healing. Followers of the light side strove to live in harmony with the world around them, acting out of wisdom and logic rather than anger and hasty judgment. In order to achieve harmony with the light side of the Force, its practitioners would often meditate to clear themselves of emotion; particularly negative emotions such as aggression, fear, anger, and hatred, since these were thought to bring on acceptance of the dark side.

Dark Side of the Force
The dark side of the Force was considered by the Jedi to be the element aligned with fear, hatred, aggression, and malice toward all living things. Such emotions seemed to increase the strength and abilities of a user of the dark side, providing a path towards personal power and the destruction or control of all opposition. It was generally accepted that use of the dark side of the Force was extremely addictive.