The Power of Ego

‘Which is more frightening? A large quiet dog or a small, ferocious one?’
- Grendok

You are no more powerful than you make yourself. If you see yourself as having a weakness, you are simply increasing the problem. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Standing in combat against another with the confidence begat of one who is convinced of their immortality is in itself a fierce weapon. How might a man stand against a god? What mortal can not be unnerved by the snarling power of an immortal? Do not underestimate the power of your attitude or sell yourself short.

Never allow yourself to be pushed, let there be no doubt in your enemy’s mind that they are up against a superior force and that they will be defeated. The greatest of training can falter when your opponent fears you.

Make them fear you.

- Lord Mal’kith

The Masks We Wear

The knight is born with his goals and strategy to achieve those goals. Now he must study his surroundings. On the one hand he wishes to understand the rules of society that have appeared to him as laws for so long. To understand this, you must first realize that social interaction is a game and not a reality. We were or are all young; we know that every school class has the greatest boy and the prettiest girl. We notice the hierarchy of this. We are forced to take our place as dictated by the group, depending on how well we befit their demands of a certain physical appearance and a certain social behavior concerning a striving towards given goals.

We watched the hierarchy of girls, ruled by looks, by being with the cheerleaders, by being the girlfriend of a certain guy with a certain rank in the social subculture. How much money she has, what kind of clothing she wares. But when you listen to what they speak of you will notice that they talk about all kinds of topics, but never does anyone ask: Who are we? What is there to know? What exists behind that which we perceive as reality? Not only to achieve power to control our surroundings and to change our stand in this subculture, but especially to search for knowledge in the plain desire of wishing to know and to understand.

When we look at the boys, it is usually the one with the strongest muscles or the best looks rules. Usually they make rank by behaving stupidly in class, by playing football, by having a good looking girlfriend, buy telling how many women they have fictionally slept with, by carrying on about how they are going to “get” someone for something. But do they ever speak of true values? Of honor, of having real principles that don’t change as soon as someone decides that something new is now cool? Do they ever appear as if they would die for something they truly believe…We all know the answer. And this is the reality we are caught in.

Where the mass suffers on account of pseudo rule making, we see no way to change these things for we perceive it as reality. Yet that is a mistake. A Dark Knight must look into the face of truth. He must look at himself and decide why he has the ranking he does. He must decide what he wants, and he must find out how to achieve this with the subtlety of a mastermind. And here begins the study of our society. What rules exist, what happens if I do this? Which reaction will result from it? What interactions exist? What rules? And then you begin to construct your theories on this subculture.

Be hard to yourself, be ruthless towards yourself, be mindful, and always seek the face of truth no matter how uncomfortable it is. For this is the path of the strong. When the Knight has built and tested his theories, when he has reconstructed and tuned them, he will have an instrument of mundane power. And with this power he can achieve the social peace he needs to turn towards other studies. But always keep in mind, that mundane power is the first of armor. It is the offensive part of the mask you carry towards the countenance of the world. And all weapons are to be collected, sharpened, and used when it helps you to achieve your goal.

When examining a certain sheep, you will notice the mask that they carry around with them. The mask is what a human wishes another human to see. It is to secure our privacy and to make sure that no one comes closer to you than you would prefer at any moment. It is to hide the fear of the sheep. And the sheep carry these masks towards the inside, meaning that they hardly ever have knowledge of it. Granted, they know to a slight degree if they are making small talk or if they are talking about something truly important to them. Yet, the mask is also what protects them from thinking about mystical aspects, what protects them against feeling afraid. It is what would make them not believe you if you told them you had mystical power or knowledge. And it is what holds them a spiritual prisoner. It is what allows or forces them to live their little lives and to never think of anything truly greater than themselves.

The Dark Knight, by aiming towards self recognition and balance, destroys this inner mask. He frees himself from it allowing him to perceive reality on a broader scale. Yet there is one aspect of the mask that shows value. The aspect of hiding that which is behind it. A warrior caries an outward mask, meaning that he, in full recognition of the functionality of a mask, tunes his behavior towards outsiders that have no right to his personal thoughts. It is the acting in everyday life to allow the sheep to believe that you are one of them, for the truth would make the heard nervous and cause aggression against you. And while the sheep are weak, there are many of them. The greater your understanding of society, the better your acting will be. The more perfect your mask is the easier can you implement your will under the usage of your understanding of society; until you easily fit into any subculture, leading the sheep to fulfill your desires.

Together they meld to the armor of the warrior; to hold off all that is unappreciated and to help shield him from his opponents. 

-Darth Moor, Sith Lord

Symptom or Cause?

As part of our wonderful convenience culture that I so love and adore, the packet of paracetemol seems to be a permanent fixture in medicine cupboards all over the western world. A simple sequence of events occurs.
Step 1. Subject gets headache.
Step 2. Subject walks to medicine cupboard and opens it.
Step 3. Subject takes a (probably excessive) number of paracetemol to relieve said aching head.

To my (admittedly less-than-sane) mind, this seems to indicate something about our culture. Certainly, we have a problem, we look for the solution; nothing wrong there. However, it seems to me that it is not the problem we address, but the symptom. We understandably see the fact that we have a headache as a problem. However, we don�t think to address the reason why we have a headache. We look for the short term, immediate solution, that is, the paracetemol, rather than addressing the reason we have a headache, for example stress in the workplace or lack of sleep.

When we take a step back, it seems commonsense; why constantly shove pills into our mouths, no doubt doing us harm, when we can look for the real cause and resolving that, and hence alleviating the problem at its root? Well, I�d say that we mainly choose the fast quick-fix solution because it requires time and effort to take a step back and look at the root cause.

And of course, this applies to far more than headaches. Look at our emotional responses. We are angry. Society tells us this is bad bad bad. So we seek to brush these emotions under the carpet; perhaps we seek advice on anger management from a therapist, those gurus of modern society. But trying to hide these emotions does little except make steady progress towards eventual and inevitable implosion. Our emotions are in many cases symptoms of a problem. It is not good enough to say �I am angry, and this is a problem� or �I am afraid, and this a problem�. These emotions are signals. In my personal opinion, if there is a key word in the Fatum Operandi, it is �why?� Like the curious child seeking to understand his environment, question everything around you, and some of the most important things you can question with a desire to understanding are your emotional responses; this way you can see what they are trying to tell you.

If a baby cries, a parent don�t usually say �what a terrible noise- let�s gag the child� (although I�m sure many are tempted!). They say �the child is crying, therefore he must be hungry/ uncomfortable�, etc. Treat your emotions in the same way; don�t shut them up with the immediate response that they are dangerous and should be suppressed; find out what they are trying to communicate to you.

Which more or less concludes what I am trying to say, although by way of an appendix of sorts, I thought I�d address James Bugental�s (1978) views on levels of therapeutic goals.

Level 1 is Adjustment. This is basically the �take a paracetemol� solution- the minimal removal of symptoms without any real change of outlook. In terms of emotional responses, this is �getting rid� of your emotions, if this is possible; more likely brushing them under the carpet.

Level 2 is Coping Effectiveness. Here, rather than taking the paracetemol, you grit your teeth and cope with the headache. Self explanatory, really; you improve your ability to cope with the problem rather than solve it. In terms of emotional responses, you accept that your emotions are there, and just learn to exist without dealing with them.

Level 3 is Ego Renewal. You get rid of the symptom and raise your morale and outlook by doing so. In terms of emotional response, this is crushing your emotions and replacing them with more �positive� factors in a �think happy thoughts� kind of way.

Level 4 is Growth in Personal and Interpersonal Actualisation. This is looking at your symptom in a far more positive light, and hence stopping it being part of the problem, and starting to let it be part of the solution. The person has moved on from one outlook to another, and has grown in doing so. In terms of emotional response, this is seeing that your emotions have a positive role to play in your life.

Level 5 is Existential Emancipation. This is the discovery of the real self. It is understanding the fuller picture, that the symptoms are a result of a problem within your environment, and not isolated factors. In terms of emotional response, it is finding the reasons of your response, examining them and dealing with them if appropriate.

Level 6 is Transcendence. Having examined and understood the situation, we begin to move on in our psychospiritual development.

Don’t see these levels as further attempts to pigeonhole, but just another perspective on the various stages of response to a symptom. Do you feel that you are on one of these particular levels? Where do you wish to be? How can you help yourself improve your response? Keep on asking these questions.
-Richard Irvine, Krath Lord

Mental Warfare

Any pursuit that you wish to partake in, whether it is persuading the opposing target through psychological or through the force can be judged on five fundamental factors by which your quest shall succeed

1. Moral Influence
2. Environment
3. Distance (Relative/Non-Relative)
4. Command
5. Doctrine

We shall look at each of these in detail:

1. Moral Influence

This does NOT mean you go out and change your needs to suit the needs of another. You do, however, want to find a common through which you can identify your subject. To speak of the art of persuasion; allowing your subject to get comfortable and secure with you breaks down their defense. You can always catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.

2. Environment

If you are trying to bend another to see your point if view, make sure your immediate surroundings are not distracting and your subjects attention is never diverted. If she is cold lend her your jacket. If she is thirsty offer her a drink. Take into consideration whether she is disturbed by loud noise or is uncomfortable with silence. Use these findings when you feel her attention wander. Be sure to also inventory the weather and its effects on you and your subject.

3. Distance (Relative/Non-relative)

�How far away � is your subject from the ideas of which you speak. Is he open and willing to accept your ideas, or is he close-minded and stubborn? Can you use smiles and metaphors to attract his attention? Is his mind really on the conversation at hand, or is he dwelling on other affairs? How can you link his thought of the moment to your goal at hand? Build a bridge only to where you can cross!

4. Command

Before you even attempt to speak your ideas, etc to a subject, examine yourself closely. How knowledgeable are you on the subject on whom you speak? If you are trying to persuade someone to see your point of view you had better be sincere about how you feel about it. If you do not you insecurity will be flayed open for your subject to see, and he may take advantage of it. You must know when to treat your subject with sympathy with out bending to his way. You must be prepared to seize upon any opportune moment, and once your subjects attention is won, don�t lose it.

5 Doctrine

Organize and outline the basis of your �speech� beforehand if possible. Have a wordsmith aid you if need arises. If a comrade would be more in tune with your subject assign the former to the task, Delegate your resources in the manner that they suited. Your ideas should be preented in a controlled way: an introduction, middle, and an ending. Be sure to allow your subject access to the other (pre-selected ) resources so he may sense security in the fact you can �back up� what you say.

-Paimon/Darth Taranis/Darth Wraith 

Smarter Than They

Through intelligent use of two simple techniques, stimulating Anger and acquaintance
with the hierarchy of the concern of which you are dealing, a man can be comfortable
and serene in his dealings. A man can practice getting angry after a few minutes of
trying on different expressions and rates of breathing, you will find that you can put it
on and take it off just like a hat. You will be surprised how people tend to propitiate
the person who is infuriated.

 You can do some quiet behind-the-scenes preparation. This homework may consist of
finding out the names of the people that can affect the outcome of your plan. The
preparation suited to you needs will be evident to you after a moment of reflection.
What concealed weapon can you pull out of your sleeve to win your way, if you but lay a little groundwork? This is a most Dark Approach: the weapon in reserve, concealed, unsuspected, employed only when its use is warranted.

You may have spent hours today in wasted effort or day dreaming. Why don’t you spend that amount of time tomorrow in planning your major undertakings? Remind yourself that constantly that you are smarter, that you have more inherent power and knowledge than the person you are dealing with. If it looks like you are not going to win in a given situation then break it off. Go away. Think of an attack that that will let you win, an attack that probably approaches the whole problem from an entirely different direction. There is always another angle. By spending time quietly thinking about it, you can find the angle; then you control the transaction.

Remember something else, too: Do not use a full charge of gunpowder when just a
little will do. You don’t need a sledgehammer to kill a flea, tailor your conversation to
the level of the person with whom you are dealing, and you will always win.

—Talos Perdix,

The Storm

We are constantly busy, so busy that we are seldom noticing how time passes before our eyes. Is that what life is all about? Wake up, rush there, then there, then there. Is that what life’s about? What makes us do it? The need to survive? The desire for material things?

…The will to power.

Power, knowledge, and enlightenment; it is them that we seek. But we also want our Will to materialize, because other people – they want it too – which leads to conflict. Yet conflict is movement, and movement is that which makes us manifest our Will.
For what we want goes against inaction. It requires a storm.

And so a storm we try to make.

So do the forces of life, the currents of force swirl more vigorously around us? Do our storms grow and speed and consume?

We don’t dwell in the storm.
We ARE the storm.

We are the storm and the sight and the struggle. We are made of energy, we are a part of the energy, and energy flows and it moves and it changes. We are the matter that awoke. So why not interconnect things in our favor? Everything that exists exists only because it has the strength to.

Remember your hates and your loves.

Our quarry, the “Force,” it is everything from the tiniest spark to the greatest star and it is all that lies between, including the nothingness. Look at it this way, the Force, or God, is not something external and separate, it is existence itself, it is everything and everything is the whole.

Thou art the Force and the Force is everything and all around you. The Force is life and a lack of life united. Schopenhauer was on the right track when he said that life was just a very rare form of death. In the moment we are born we already start to die; in the moment we die we are born into a new existence. Nothing matters, everything matters; the answer is found in that same paradox. And it means that it is us that assign value to things. Maybe because they feel to be having value for us, they aid us in some way. Yet something has a value depending on the power of those who assigns it because in our interaction with the rest of the universe, we are submitted to the eternal conflict of movement and change. Where one’s power to fight and win is that which will make the thing he values indeed, to truly manifest and be born.

Because of this conflict, of these clashes of wills, and in the same time the interaction and interconnectivity between everything, your path, more or less automatically, no matter who you are, becomes a path within the herd. We are species that operate like a herd and that means a lot of what we do we also do for the herd. We are bound to the material world and to society and yet the material world is in fact also an energy, and society is energy too: energy that changes, energy that moves and grows, following the same laws of All that is the Universe.

The herd/society, it makes it a great deal easier for us to survive, yet the disadvantages being that it can and does result in its members becoming over-reliant, losing freedoms…and individuality.

Be aware and be mindful of the causes and the effects, the actions, and the reactions. We are initially free. But the way things are set creates an equal chance to dwell, carried by the storm wherever it chooses to, or be that storm, manifesting our Will to power. 

—The Dark Council at Force Academy

The 48 Laws of Power

Law1: Never Outshine the Master.

Always make those above you feel comfortably superior. In your desire to please or impress them, do not go too far in displaying your talents or you might accomplish the opposite—inspire fear and insecurity. Make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power.

Law 2: Never put too Much Trust in Friends, Learn how to use Enemies.

Be wary of friends—they will betray you more quickly, for they are easily aroused to envy. They also become spoiled and tyrannical. But hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend, because he has more to prove. In fact, you have more to fear from friends than from enemies. If you have no enemies, find a way to make them.

Law 3: Conceal your Intentions.

Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions. If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defense.  Guide them far enough down the wrong path, envelope them in enough smoke, and by the time they realize your intentions, it will be too late.

Law 4: Always Say Less than Necessary.

When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control. Even if you are saying something banal, it will seem original if you make it vague, open-ended, and sphinx like. Powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less. The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.

Law 5: So Much Depends on Reputation – Guard it with your Life.

Reputation is the cornerstone of power. Through reputation alone you can intimidate and win; once you slip, however, you are vulnerable, and will be attacked on all sides. Make your reputation unassailable. Always be alert to potential attacks and thwart them before they happen. Meanwhile, learn to destroy your enemies by opening holes in their own reputations. Then stand aside and let public opinion hang them.

 Law 6: Court Attention at all Cost.

Everything is judged by its appearance; what is unseen counts for nothing. Never let yourself get lost in the crowd, then, or buried in oblivion. Stand out. Be conspicuous, at all cost. Make yourself a magnet of attention by appearing larger, more colorful, more mysterious, than the bland and timid masses.

Law 7: Get others to do the Work for you, but Always Take the Credit.

Use the wisdom, knowledge, and legwork of other people to further your own cause.  Not only will such assistance save you valuable time and energy, it will give you a godlike aura of efficiency and speed. In the end your helpers will be forgotten and you will be remembered. Never do yourself what others can do for you.

Law 8: Make other People come to you – use Bait if Necessary.

When you force the other person to act, you are the one in control. It is always better to make your opponent come to you, abandoning his own plans in the process. Lure him with fabulous gains—then attack. You hold the cards.

Law 9: Win through your Actions, Never through Argument.

Any momentary triumph you think gained through argument is really a Pyrrhic victory: The resentment and ill will you stir up is stronger and lasts longer than any momentary change of opinion. It is much more powerful to get others to agree with you through your actions, without saying a word. Demonstrate, do not explicate. 

Law 10: Infection, Avoid the Unhappy and Unlucky.

You can die from someone else’s misery—emotional states are as infectious as disease. You may feel you are helping the drowning man but you are only precipitating your own disaster. The unfortunate sometimes draw misfortune on themselves; they will also draw it on you. Associate with the happy and fortunate instead.

Law 11: Learn to Keep People Dependent on You.

To maintain your independence you must always be needed and wanted. The more you are relied on, the more freedom you have. Make people depend on you for their happiness and prosperity and you have nothing to fear. Never teach them enough so that they can do without you.

Law 12: Use Selective Honesty and Generosity to Disarm your Victim.

One sincere and honest move will cover over dozens of dishonest ones. Open-hearted gestures of honesty and generosity bring down the guard of even the most suspicious people. Once your selective honesty opens a hole in their armor, you can deceive and manipulate them at will. A timely gift – a Trojan horse – will serve the same purpose.

Law 13: When Asking for Help, Appeal to Self-Interest, Never to Mercy or Gratitude.

If you need to turn to an ally for help, do not bother to remind him of your past assistance and good deeds. He will find a way to ignore you. Instead, uncover something in your request, or in your alliance with him, that will benefit him, and emphasize it out of all proportion. He will respond enthusiastically when he sees something to be gained for himself.

Law 14: Pose as a Friend, Work as a Spy.

Knowing about your rival is critical. Use spies to gather valuable information that will keep you a step ahead. Better still: Play the spy yourself. In polite social encounters, learn to probe. Ask indirect questions to get people to reveal their weaknesses and intentions. There is no occasion that is not an opportunity for artful spying.

Law 15: Crush your Enemy Totally.

All great leaders since Moses have known that a feared enemy must be crushed completely. (Sometimes they have learned this the hard way.) If one ember is left alight, no matter how dimly it smolders, a fire will eventually break out. More is lost through stopping halfway than through total annihilation: The enemy will recover, and will seek revenge. Crush him, not only in body but in spirit.

Law 16: Use Absence to Increase Respect and Honor.

Too much circulation makes the price go down: The more you are seen and heard from, the more common you appear. If you are already established in a group, temporary withdrawal from it will make you more talked about, even more admired.  You must learn when to leave. Create value through scarcity.

Law 17: Keep Others in Suspended Terror: Cultivate an Air of Unpredictability.

Humans are creatures of habit with an insatiable need to see familiarity in other people’s actions. Your predictability gives them a sense of control. Turn the tables: Be deliberately unpredictable. Behavior that seems to have no consistency or purpose will keep them off-balance, and they will wear themselves out trying to explain your moves. Taken to an extreme, this strategy can intimidate and terrorize.

Law 18: Do Not Build Fortresses to Protect Yourself – Isolation is Dangerous.

The world is dangerous and enemies are everywhere—everyone has to protect themselves. A fortress seems the safest. But isolation exposes you to more dangers than it protects you from; it cuts you off from valuable information, it makes you conspicuous and an easy target. Better to circulate among people, find allies, mingle.  You are shielded from your enemies by the crowd.

Law 19: Know Who You’re Dealing with – Do Not Offend the Wrong Person.

There are many different kinds of people in the world, and you can never assume that everyone will react to your strategies in the same way. Deceive or outmaneuver some people and they will spend the rest of their lives seeking revenge. They are wolves in lambs’ clothing. Choose your victims and opponents carefully, then—never offend or deceive the wrong person.

Law 20: Do Not Commit to Anyone.

It is the fool who always rushes to take sides. Do not commit to any side or cause but yourself. By maintaining your independence, you become the master of others—playing people against one another, making them pursue you.

Law 21: Play a Sucker to Catch a Sucker – Seem Dumber than your Mark.

No one likes feeling stupider than the next persons. The trick is to make your victims feel smart, and not just smart, but smarter than you are. Once convinced of this, they will never suspect that you may have ulterior motives.

Law 22: Use the Surrender Tactic: Transform Weakness into Power.

When you are weaker, never fight for honor’s sake; choose surrender instead. Surrender gives you time to recover, time to torment and irritate your conqueror, time to wait for his power to wane. Do not give him the satisfaction of fighting and defeating you—surrender first. By turning the other check you infuriate and unsettle him. Make surrender a tool of power.

Law 23: Concentrate Your Forces.

Conserve your forces and energies by keeping them concentrated at their strongest point. You gain more by finding a rich mine and mining it deeper, than by flitting from one shallow mine to another—intensity defeats extensity every time. When looking for sources of power to elevate you, find the one key patron, the fat cow who will give you milk for a long time to come.

Law 24: Play the Perfect Courtier.

The perfect courtier thrives in a world where everything revolves around power and political dexterity. He has mastered the art of indirection; he flatters, yields to superiors, and asserts power over others in the mot oblique and graceful manner.  Learn and apply the laws of courtiership and there will be no limit to how far you can rise in the court.

Law 25: Re-Create Yourself.

Do not accept the roles that society foists on you. Re-create yourself by forging a new identity, one that commands attention and never bores the audience. Be the master of your own image rather than letting others define if for you. Incorporate dramatic devices into your public gestures and actions—your power will be enhanced and your character will seem larger than life.

Law 26: Keep Your Hands Clean.

You must seem a paragon of civility and efficiency: Your hands are never soiled by mistakes and nasty deeds. Maintain such a spotless appearance by using others as scapegoats and cat’s-paws to disguise your involvement.

Law 27: Play on People’s Need to Believe to Create a Cultlike Following.

People have an overwhelming desire to believe in something. Become the focal point of such desire by offering them a cause, a new faith to follow. Keep your words vague but full of promise; emphasize enthusiasm over rationality and clear thinking.  Give your new disciples rituals to perform, ask them to make sacrifices on your behalf. In the absence of organized religion and grand causes, your new belief system will bring you untold power.

Law 28: Enter Action with Boldness.

If you are unsure of a course of action, do not attempt it. Your doubts and hesitations will infect your execution. Timidity is dangerous: Better to enter with boldness. Any mistakes you commit through audacity are easily corrected with more audacity. Everyone admires the bold; no one honors the timid.

Law 29: Plan All the Way to the End.

The ending is everything. Plan all the way to it, taking into account all the possible consequences, obstacles, and twists of fortune that might reverse your hard work and give the glory to others. By planning to the end you will not be overwhelmed by circumstances and you will know when to stop. Gently guide fortune and help determine the future by thinking far ahead.

Law 30: Make your Accomplishments Seem Effortless.

Your actions must seem natural and executed with ease. All the toil and practice that go into them, and also all the clever tricks, must be concealed. When you act, act effortlessly, as if you could do much more. Avoid the temptation of revealing how hard you work—it only raises questions. Teach no one your tricks or they will be used against you.

Law 31: Control the Options, Get Others to Play with the Cards you Deal.

The best deceptions are the ones that seem to give the other person a choice: Your victims feel they are in control, but are actually your puppets. Give people options that come out in your favor whichever one they choose. Force them to make choices between the lesser of two evils, both of which serve your purpose. Put them on the horns of a dilemma: They are gored wherever they turn.

Law 32: Play to People’s Fantasies.

The truth is often avoided because it is ugly and unpleasant. Never appeal to truth and reality unless you are prepared for the anger that comes for disenchantment. Life is so harsh and distressing that people who can manufacture romance or conjure up fantasy are like oases in the desert: Everyone flocks to them. There is great power in tapping into the fantasies of the masses.

Law 33: Discover Each Man’s Thumbscrew.

Everyone has a weakness, a gap in the castle wall. That weakness is usually an insecurity, an uncontrollable emotion or need; it can also be a small secret pleasure. Either way, once found, it is a thumbscrew you can turn to your advantage.

Law 34: Be Royal in your Own Fashion, Act like a King to be treated like one.

The way you carry yourself will often determine how you are treated; In the long run, appearing vulgar or common will make people disrespect you. For a king respects himself and inspires the same sentiment in others. By acting regally and confident of your powers, you make yourself seem destined to wear a crown.

Law 35: Master the Art of Timing.

Never seem to be in a hurry—hurrying betrays a lack of control over yourself, and over time. Always seem patient, as if you know that everything will come to you eventually. Become a detective of the right moment; sniff out the spirit of the times, the trends that will carry you to power. Learn to stand back when the time is not yet ripe, and to strike fiercely when it has reached fruition.

Law 36: Disdain Things you cannot have, Ignoring them is the best Revenge.

By acknowledging a petty problem you give it existence and credibility. The more attention you pay an enemy, the stronger you make him; and a small mistake is often made worse and more visible when you try to fix it. It is sometimes best to leave things alone. If there is something you want but cannot have, show contempt for it.  The less interest you reveal, the more superior you seem. 

Law 37: Create Compelling Spectacles.

Striking imagery and grand symbolic gestures create the aura of power—everyone responds to them. Stage spectacles for those around you, then full of arresting visuals and radiant symbols that heighten your presence. Dazzled by appearances, no one will notice what you are really doing.

Law 38: Think as you like but Behave like others.

If you make a show of going against the times, flaunting your unconventional ideas and unorthodox ways, people will think that you only want attention and that you look down upon them. They will find a way to punish you for making them feel inferior. It is far safer to blend in and nurture the common touch. Share your originality only with tolerant friends and those who are sure to appreciate your uniqueness.

Law 39: Stir up Waters to Catch Fish.

Anger and emotion are strategically counterproductive. You must always stay calm and objective. But if you can make your enemies angry while staying calm yourself, you gain a decided advantage. Put your enemies off-balance: Find the chink in their vanity through which you can rattle them and you hold the strings.

Law 40: Despise the Free Lunch.

What is offered for free is dangerous—it usually involves either a trick or a hidden obligation. What has worth is worth paying for. By paying your own way you stay clear of gratitude, guilt, and deceit. It is also often wise to pay the full price; there is no cutting corners with excellence. Be lavish with your money and keep it circulating, for generosity is a sign and a magnet for power.

Law 41: Avoid Stepping into a Great Man’s Shoes.

What happens first always appears better and more original than what comes after. If you succeed a great man or have a famous parent, you will have to accomplish double their achievements to outshine them. Do not get lost in their shadow, or stuck in a past not of your own making: Establish your own name and identity by changing course. Slay the overbearing father, disparage his legacy, and gain power by shining in your own way.

Law 42: Strike the Shepherd and the Sheep will Scatter.

Trouble can often be traced to a single strong individual—the stirrer, the arrogant underling, the poisoned of goodwill. If you allow such people room to operate, others will succumb to their influence. Do not wait for the troubles they cause to multiply, do not try to negotiate with them—they are irredeemable. Neutralize their influence by isolating or banishing them. Strike at the source of the trouble and the sheep will scatter.

Law 43: Work on the Hearts and Minds of Others.

Coercion creates a reaction that will eventually work against you. You must seduce others into wanting to move in your direction. A person you have seduced becomes your loyal pawn. And the way to seduce others is to operate on their individual psychologies and weaknesses. Soften up the resistant by working on their emotions, playing on what they hold dear and what they fear. Ignore the hearts and minds of others and they will grow to hate you.

Law 44: Disarm and Infuriate with the Mirror Effect.

The mirror reflects reality, but it is also the perfect tool for deception: When you mirror your enemies, doing exactly as they do, they cannot figure out your strategy.  The Mirror Effect mocks and humiliates them, making them overreact. By holding up a mirror to their psyches, you seduce them with the illusion that you share their values; by holding up a mirror to their actions, you teach them a lesson. Few can resist the power of Mirror Effect.

Law 45: Preach the Need for Change, but Never Reform too much at Once.

Everyone understands the need for change in the abstract, but on the day-to-day level people are creatures of habit. Too much innovation is traumatic, and will lead to revolt. If you are new to a position of power, or an outsider trying to build a power base, make a show of respecting the old way of doing things. If change is necessary, make it feel like a gentle improvement on the past.

Law 46: Never appear too Perfect.

Appearing better than others is always dangerous, but most dangerous of all is to appear to have no faults or weaknesses. Envy creates silent enemies. It is smart to occasionally display defects, and admit to harmless vices, in order to deflect envy and appear more human and approachable. Only gods and the dead can seem perfect with impunity.

Law 47: Do not go Past the Mark you Aimed for; In Victory, Learn when to Stop.

The moment of victory is often the moment of greatest peril. In the heat of victory, arrogance and overconfidence can push you past the goal you had aimed for, and by going too far, you make more enemies than you defeat. Do not allow success to go to your head. There is no substitute for strategy and careful planning. Set a goal, and when you reach it, stop.

Law 48: Assume Formlessness.

By taking a shape, by having a visible plan, you open yourself to attack. Instead of taking a form for your enemy to grasp, keep yourself adaptable and on the move. Accept the fact that nothing is certain and no law is fixed. The best way to protect yourself is to be as fluid and formless as water; never bet on stability or lasting order. Everything changes.

—Robert Greene and Joost Elffers, The 48 Laws of Power

Attaining Power

Attaining power through Light and Dark and the differences in the two ways.

I will start with the Light. The Light has rules or codes that they expect the followers to abide by. Whether it is the Bible or the Wiccan rule of three, whatever light path there is a code to how one must live. The way that the light followers gain their power is by strict adherence to the rules or code. It is much like a promotion of sorts in a mundane working environment. The employer does the work follows the rules, sets a good example for the others, and can do the job that is asked of him/her. The boss then gives the employee more privileges, better pay but also more responsibility. This scenario can be directly seen as how the light gains its power. It is given to them for a rewarding of a job well done. The more power given the more responsibility and the more confined to the rules they become.

Looking at this is interesting because it shows a carefree lifestyle at first and then continually progresses into a strict one with the more power that is gained. With more power the more responsibility and duties are given to it. Just as in the scenario of a working mundane job, if these activities are not performed in the way that the boss wants them done demotion will occur and the job will be given to someone else along with the power that was once yours.

The Dark is very much the opposite. Power is not given to anyone. It has to be fought for or gained by themselves. In the beginning it is very strict because having hardly any power greatly limits what the dark are able to accomplish. They must learn how to gather it and acquire it. It is not given to them they have to learn how to do all of this. With more power that is gained the more freedom the Dark have. More power equals more options. Because the power was never given to them by a higher source no one can take that away or ‘demote’ the worker.

-Guardian

Power, Arrogance, and Corruption

Sith seek power for powers sake, we are drawn to it(speaking for myself, mostly). Power, if we aren’t cautious and mindful can lead to over-confidence and arrogance. What is so great about power? Well, for starters, if you have a goal you desperately need to reach, the more powerful you are, the easier it will be to obtain your objective, and to gain power, you must first gain strength, and for that, passion is needed(this will soon be explained in my holocron). Like the Dark side Logic lecture in the Great Jedi Holocron, one thing leading to another is not definate, but in this case, it is the likely series of what will happen.

If you powerful, and have been for a time you may become arrogant in the belief of you own invincibility, this over-confidence can destroy the power that you’ve worked so hard to control. If control is lost over you power, you can diminish yourself in every aspect, along with all those close to you. Knowing you can’t lose is one thing, but relying on such a fact can quickly mutate it into opinion. You must work for victory, it doesn’t just happen.

Destruction can be avoided, but if arrogance is not avoided as well, being crushed by your own power may be the better choice. Corruption shows and if you become corrupt, I doubt you’ll see it that way. Corruptionn is part of what makes a tyrant what he is.

Be aware that all you do, every small action you take, every decision you make, has echoes; cause and effect, for every action, there is a result, be it consequence or reward. If you set in motion events that will benefit you and can be manipulated to your advantage, do so. There are uses and harms of these echoes and if you can learn to use the reverberations I speak of, the possibilities are limiteless.

-Darth Draconis