His Compassion for You Will Be His Undoing

Originally posted on October 26, 2006

His compassion for you will be his undoing. Palpatine to Vader, ROTJ

I have been thinking about this line for a while, and a recent entry by FAN4YRS inspired me to organize and complete my thoughts. Now, Emperor Palpatine, who we all know as the "Master Sith Lord," did not believe in compassion or, for that matter, in unconditional love. During the PT era, we saw him gaining power and influence over the galaxy. Sure, he had passion for what he was doing, but did he really ever have compassion? Did he truly understand what that meant? My guess is no.

Enter Anakin Skywalker...at first, a young boy with love for his mother and then a man with love for Padme'. His statement to Padme' on the transport to Naboo was this: *Attachments...forbidden. Possessions...forbidden. Compassion, which I would refer to as unconditional love, is essential to a Jedi's life. So you might say we are encouraged to love.* Anakin understood the importance of compassion and love, but that was contradictory to the Jedi beliefs of no attachments, no love. He was expected to "bury" these feelings, to control them, to channel them to the Force. However, he could not do that...being taken by the Jedi at an older age, having known compassion and unconditional love from his mother. He did not get those feelings from the Jedi...he got them from Padme'. When visions of her dying in childbirth began haunting him, he could not sit idly by and watch them transpire. He did what he thought was right...turining to Palpatine for help. He let his compassion and love for Padme' to cloud his vision of what was right and what was wrong...and the power he gained from giving in to his fears, his hatred, only clouded this even more.

Fast forward to ANH, where we meet Luke, Anakin's son. He was taken in by his aunt and uncle, Anakin's step-brother and his wife, on Tatooine following the rise of the Empire. They did not have to do this, but they did...and I am sure that they showed him the compassion and unconditional love parents give to their children. They wanted nothing more than to ensure his safety and his innocense...to protect him from the truth of his father's true identity. Once the Emprie hit too close to home for Luke, he turned to Ben...Anakin's former mentor...for guidance.

Throughout the OT, the influence of compassion and unconditional love on Luke are apparent...he puts his heart out there, risking rejection, in the hopes of acceptance. He finds that acceptance, that compassion, in Han, Chewie, Leia, and, eventually, Lando. He forms bonds with these individuals that cannot be broken, and they are there for him in times of need. When the truth of his father's identity becomes known, Luke slowly begins to accept it. Padme's dying words of *there is still good in him* begin to surface, and Luke starts to believe in Anakin. Luke begins to love Anakin...unconditionally.   He sets out to *save* Anakin from the Dark...to turn him back to the Light...despite others' hesitation to believe that the good is there.

In the end, Luke was able to save Anakin...not through fighting Palpatine or totally giving in to his hatred...but through love, the unconditional love he had developed for his father, Anakin  . To quote FAN4YRS: *His father, Anakin Skywalker locked inside the Darth Vader carcass, could stand no more, and destroyed the Emperor, the embodient of hate, predjuice, and evil, to save his son, who, towards Anakin, was nothing but love.* I could not agree more with this statement. It is the essence of what occurred on that second Death Star...and the reason Anakin resurfaced. So what was the "lesson" to be learned by Palpatine? Do not underestimate the power of compassion...or what should be known as unconditional love.

As always comments are welcome

May The Force Be With You All