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=The Ways of the Sith=

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(**This information found at the sith order, sith resource, written by __ Darth Draconis __. All credit is his**.) http://sithresource.wetpaint.com/page/Sith+Philosophy
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=Sith Philosophy= Sith Philosphy has several aspects you may wish to focus on, or you can choose to attempt concentrating on all aspects...but that is for you to decide. The following subjects will offer a short summarization and explanation of the most commonly known aspects of Sith Philosophy. The areas explained here will be hints, they will show you a direction in which you might wish to direct your studies. You must keep in mind that the materials presented to are meant to be applied in your everyday life.

**Conflict, Struggle, Hardship**
Conflict is acknowledged to be a part of life, and is emphasized in the teachings of many Sith. Conflict forces people to change, adapt, and grow. Those who emphasize conflict usually have a belief that only the strong survive, and survival is said to be a trait most Sith possess, but that will be elaborated on elsewhere. Without struggle and hardship, you cannot advance, and if you do not advance, you stagnate.

//"Without stryfe, your victory has no meaning. Without stryfe, you do not advance. Without// //stryfe, there is only stagnation."// //- Yuthura Ban, fictional Sith Disciple//

However, some would say that there is such a thing as unproductive conflict, such as bickering between two or more people unwilling to change their views on a subject of discussion.

//"I mention conflict often, and I can be seen calling some struggles productive conflicts// //while I am also known to say that other struggles are unproductive conflicts. If you wonder// //how the difference may be seen, perhaps you should properly dedicate yourself to the// //path you walk…but for those who don’t know how struggles differ from productive to// //unproductive, allow me to offer my perspective…

In all honesty, both types of conflicts are simple to determine as costly or beneficial. Productive conflict is a conflict you can genuinely learn from, a struggle that offers knowledge and experience. Proper debates are excellent examples of this, but you must remain open-minded or a debate quickly degenerates into an argument. An argument is an example of unproductive conflict…some may wonder what makes arguing different from debating, and that too is simple: Debating involves thought out points being made and offered for scrutiny between two or more parties, proper debating is a method of learning from each other in a systematic and civilized manner, and it brings all involved closer toa possible truth pertaining to the subject of examination. Arguing is best described as a situation in which two or more people narrow mindedly try to convince each other that their views are correct, and that any other views are wrong; it is a pointless, costly struggle that only grants you a possible enemy. Hopefully this illustrates the two types of conflict I am aware of, if not…my apologies in advance." -Excerpt, Holocron of Darth Draconis//

This seems to offer evidence that some Sith choose to abandon morality, as some believe it hinders an individuals ability to seize or create oppurtunities for him/herself. Those who decide to believe that morality is an obstacle attempt to make decisions based on the concepts of benefit and cost. Others choose to integrate morality into their philosophies, relying on the concepts of good and evil to make decisions. Conflict ensures growth, harming and destroying those considered to be weak, and further strengthening those considered to be strong.

//"A Sith is an individual devoted to constant growth. This growth, in almost every form, is// //aimed at becoming stronger. To me a Sith should be near proficient in everything. Of// //course this is not possible to the fullest extent, but the Sith does not acknowledge// //possible failures when and where growth can be achieved, no matter what the size. A Sith// //swims in the chaos that is life, but unlike the sheep, he is not swept away. Instead, he// //directs the flow, in sometimes minute ways, to achieve his ends. Once again, this is not// //always something that can be done naturally, but a good Sith acknowledges his weakness// //and strengths and builds upon them."// //-Excerpt, Holocron of Darth Necrom//

Conflict is a central part of chaos, but can also be found where there is order and stability. And why? Because it is often the cause of both stability and chaos. Just as the two are intertwined, conflict is bound to both states of existence.

In teachings involving conflict, struggle, and hardship, some choose to put an emphasis on chaos, that conflict is a part of chaos. This, however, is a matter of perspective, just like everything else in this article. To offer an example of alternate perspective, the fictional Darth Revan sought stability through conflict, attacking the Republic he once fought to defend. He did this so that the Republic or his Sith Empire would triumph, so that the strongest society would survive and the weaker would perish. This would again bring us back to the subjects of survival and strength. Other fictional Sith, such as Darth Caedus, sought order and peace through love and pain, wanting to bring society under one iron fist for the purpose of a stable, safe enviroment for the citizens of his government. As can be seen easily enough, each individual Sith, fictional or real, has his own personal ethics, views, ideals, beliefs, and convictions; at times, these views are contradictory.

**Survival, Strength, Power**
As mentioned earlier, survival is something believed to be a trait of most Sith. Through struggle, hardship, pain, suffering, and conflict, strength is gained. You may not feel that way, but if strength is not gained through enduring such states of being, then ask yourself how your still alive enough to read these texts. In such situations, you must be strong or die. Much of the time, the death may be metaphorical, you snap, unable to cope with the struggle and pain of your situation. But when death is metaphorical, you can be reborn as some of the Sith are well aware. This is evident in the tradition of claiming a Sith name, a tradition that is meant to mark a point in time that an individual Sith decides that he is no longer who he once was, he discards his old identity in favor of a new one, effectively becoming spiritually reborn. Many Sith incorporate beliefs and teachings devised for survival, and some of them address survival specifically. Survival is often necassary in the world we inhabit, people are out for themselves.

//"Ultimately, the Dark Side is about strength. Strength of body. Strength of mind. Strength of will. Without strength we are weak, and being weak we are dead. The Dark Side offers strength and is strength. Merely another of the myriad reason why one should embrace the Sith Teachings and the Dark Side."// //-Excerpt, Holocron of Darth Necrom//

Strength is often regarded as a means of survival. This is a belief most often taught by those who support the theory that the Strong survive, while the weak serve the strong or die. And those considered to be, or considering themselves as strong often think that servitude is just another form of death. How you define death, strong, weak, etc. is entirely up to you. Point being that there are numerous Sith place value in Darwinistic theories such as "survival of the fittest".

There is also the issue of power. Some would argue that their power gives them the right to act as they wish, others would say that power gives them the responsibility to use it wisely. It depends on what yoour goals are, as well as your personal ethics regarding other people.

**Freedom, Passion, and Individuality**
//"You are not your clothes. You are not the appearance you dress yourself in the morning. You may dress in black and red claoks and black leather boots yet not be more of a Sith than a person who dresses in white clothes. You are not your property or your belongings. You are not your collection of movies, games, or your nice car. You are not your nice house with its chosen interior design."// //-Darth Kryptos, Sith Lord//

When you are stripped of your home, of your family, of your friends, and of everything else, what is left? That is for you to decide, though the commonly accepted answer is "You". Passions are a necessary aspect of life and are considered to be very important among Sith Practitioners. The way you percieve these passions is also a very personal experience, which seems to emphasize that, assuming you place value in passion, individuality is of some importance. Freedom is believed to be a very relevant point of interest by most Sith. As said previously, some Sith choose to abandon morality. This is theoratically a means to an end, that end being freedom, for the most part. Freedom would seem to be necessary to explore your passions, and is often desired for the purpose of becoming a more complete, more independent individual. The pursuit of freedom can be viewed as a core to most Sith Teachings, though not all Sith share this perspective.

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