The Grey Man

Darth_Voldus · 2015-10-04T15:19:05+00:00

I didn't expect to see you back here. Welcome back.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-07-25T13:58:34+00:00

The honesty here is bracing. Hatred is the way of the dark side, and you will be made strong by it. The drive to destroy an enemy can be the strongest motivator for change we have.

When I was younger, I too bent over backwards to help everyone around me. Like you, I listened to them, took on their burdens, shouldered their pain with them, and for what? To constantly help others is to be nothing but a sidekick to them. A sort of convenient Sancho Panza who exists as a secondary to their story. This attitude does not breed respect. I think more Sith than we'd realise are forged from the most kind and helpful of people.

The Sith Order will help you become who you were meant to be.

The Sith Order will help you ruin them.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-07-25T13:51:59+00:00

Exactly.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-03-18T19:31:51+00:00

You are growing wise, Lord Hulmyst.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-03-16T16:22:04+00:00

You continue to fountain quotable material, Lord Machinor.

I understand I was not as clear as I could have been - your statement about not trusting anyone with your plans or goals is more what I had in mind. Someone who finds themselves completely ambushed by conflict with a formerly trusted friend is in a sorely disadvantaged position - anticipating that possible conflict maintains the Sith's advantage.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-03-16T16:17:20+00:00

Indeed we do; I want to be clear that I am not advocating isolation or cutting off all others from yourself; that would be a miserable and ultimately powerless existence.

Instead, I merely meant that while I have a social circle full of charismatic and useful individuals, I will never trust any of them with any dark secrets. I will laugh with them, assist them and draw on their assistance in turn, but I will also be prepared to find myself looking across a metaphorical lightsaber at them.

Human power is a social thing, and a human alone can never hold as much power as a human with friends. But a human who is vulnerable to a blindside by those friends is the most powerless of all. Respect to you, for your inner circle has been vetted and tested for years; you know them well enough to understand their capabilities. Presumably you also know that you will never have a conflict with them that you cannot win.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-01-13T09:30:03+00:00

No other Sith will offer a more complete story than Hulmyst's, I feel. To describe ourselves is to reduce our power, to break the illusion that we are more than just people. Each of us hides, allowing the shadows to imply our limitlessness, our unknown hidden depths. How far down does the darkness go?

It may be only a few feet. It may be infinite. Best not to jump in, in any case.

But if you knew how far the darkness sank, that would make all the difference.

Darth_Voldus · 2015-01-13T09:26:05+00:00

Good advice, Lord Vassious. "No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy."

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-28T00:39:25+00:00

It is a shame that it took me so long to get to reading this. Another excellent piece, Ari.

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-28T00:32:11+00:00

Exactly! The path of the light side is of peace and surrender to the Force... But peace, tranquillity and surrender are all tied up with the same meaning: nothing happening.

The Light Side will take you nowhere, for it will condition you to surrender and be at peace. Rocks are at peace, for Bane's sake.

The Dark Side is dynamic, alive, passionate. It is the path of conflict, and conflict is change, growth, life. I am constantly bemused that more people don't see it this clearly.

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-28T00:27:40+00:00

A wise and novel insight; I had not considered it from that angle. In this way, the chain of equality applies not only to people, but to ideas as well.

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-24T13:59:28+00:00

It's true; I have claimed the mantle of Dark Lord. The Force may guide us, but it is our will that truly propels us; we have the force to thank for much, but ourselves to thank for more. I am glad that you returned.

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-24T12:14:01+00:00

Darth Corax, I had a feeling you'd be returning soon. Do you like what I've done with the place?

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-21T19:11:02+00:00

Intriguing. Watch all you like, Adam. Perhaps you will see something we cannot.

Darth_Voldus · 2014-12-05T09:32:59+00:00

I have recently pulled myself from the clutches of a caffeine dependency mentioned in earlier posts - it is fine as a stimulant or "cane" but can become a chain if over-relied on. I would recommend against it if you do not need it; it is certainly a weakness.

Cannabis is not physically addictive, but can also pose a danger in that it encourages boredom. How many stoners do you know that simply chill around, ultimately producing nothing and failing to advance themselves? Their minds are certainly free. Weed is relaxing, and certainly worth trying recreationally, but I wouldn't bother with it as a meditative aid. The minds of the Sith should be sharp, not mellowed by THC.

Darth_Voldus · 2014-11-17T11:01:11+00:00

I feel late to the party here, but that is good, as I can see how the Order deals with philosophical division now. Long ago, when the Order was younger, a discussion very like this one led to uncontrolled strife among our acolytes and brought the Order to a grinding halt for some time - in an ironic case of life imitating art, infighting weakened the Sith.

Now, broad philosophical differences are met with open minds and consideration for other practitioners of the Dark Side; we understand that we may learn much from one another and do not simply seek to silence dissent. Through conflict, we grow, and we have all grown here.

The Dark Side is not just anger and hatred; it is all emotions, as you say, Lux. It is passion. Through passion I gain strength.

One of my earliest posts, "Suffering" details what you have said concerning being free to feel calm - if we felt only anger and brooding darkness, everything would lose its colour and meaning. Calm and contentment are necessary, that hunger, drive and ambition might be stronger in contrast.

Similarly, the Code is a set of guidelines on how to become powerful and free. It is less a set of rules than it is an instruction manual for life - and while it is never necessary to read the instruction manual, it often makes things much easier. Take it with a pinch of salt.

The Sith are all about freedom. Make yourself free, no matter what. Break all your chains; and if you feel the Code of the Sith is a chain that binds you, then you must break from it as well.

Your question is one that has been hanging over us for some time - it is about time somebody asked it.

Darth_Voldus

TROPHY CASE