What is the Force?

The story behind the answer

Obi-Wan describes it as something created by all living things that surrounds and binds the galaxy; Jedi and Sith attune to it to perform feats like telekinesis, mind influence, and heightened awareness. It isn’t a religion—Jedi and Sith orders are the belief systems built around it. It’s not an electromagnetic field tied to planets; it permeates all life. And midichlorians aren’t the phenomenon itself; they’re symbionts that allow beings to sense and commune with it, explaining differences in sensitivity.

Context: The Light Side emphasizes selflessness and harmony, while the Dark Side draws on passion and aggression. Canon and Legends also speak of the Living and Cosmic aspects, linking individual life to a vast universal current—an idea that underpins much of Star Wars’ philosophy and storytelling.