The meaning of the Sith Code, in war and politics -- By Acoltye Nyrithe

[Sarias]

I have been tasked by Apprentice Valeus Horuset to write an essay on my interpretation of the Sith Code and it's meaning in both War and Politics. This assignment is not an unusual one, many an Acolyte gets given the exact same task but each one's answer is as varied as the would-be-Sith themselves, as is the nature of the Code.
In the following paragraphs I will give my rendition of this assignment, I will go through the lines of our code one at a time, then I shall explain my overall understanding of the line and then it's application in both War and in Politics.

Peace is a lie, There is only
Passion.
Through Passion, I gain
Strength.
Through Strength, I gain
Power.
Through Power, I gain
Victory.
Through Victory, my chains are
Broken.
The Force shall free me.

--

Peace is a lie, There is only Passion.

Is the first line of our code and by extension also the foundation of it, Afterall all the following lines build upon what the individual Sith believes this line means. Because of this it also the line with the most variation in interpretation. Those who see the Sith Code as nothing more but a simple personal creed to uphold see it's meaning as nothing more but to follow their emotions, their passions. That they must always have something to strive for, that they cannot be at peace.
Those who see this line as some philosophical truth about the natural state of being for the universe, that it is by nature always at conflict and that 'peace' is nothing more but an artificial construct, a lie. See this line of the code, and the following lines as just that, a philosophical explanation of the natural state of being in the galaxy and how a Sith must act to thrive in it, by embracing the natural conflict and following their passions.

My own interpretation is somewhat of a mix of these two philosophies, as it can and should be applied in both. Indeed conflict, even if perhaps not the natural state of all things in the universe, is most certainly the natural state of Sith society. Our culture, order and Empire are centered around conflict and strive. The strongest thrive in our society, they are entitled to everything they can claim and because of it only the strong have the means to rule.
Therefore for a Sith to thrive in our Empire they must accept this reality and follow the personal creed to never be content, to always strive for more by embracing their passions, their emotions, their desires and to fight to fulfill them so they too may acquire the means to thrive.

--

In War:

This means that any Sith that finds themselves in battle and seeks to advance their position should always seek out opportunities to grow stronger. Be it by acquiring personal glory on the field of battle or by advancing the position of the Empire, and in extension themselves, by securing victory over our foes. They should never be content, they should never surrender the initiative or allow for the enemy to make a move of their own. They must always be on prowl for an opportunity to strike, they must always have some target or goal in mind they aim to reach or conquer. Only then will our war campaigns, our Empire and in extension the Sith themselves thrive.

In Politics:

This line means much the same, no Sith engaging in diplomacy should ever be content or passive. They should always seek to gain something from engaging in diplomacy. All living beings are to be seen as nothing more but tools to elevate one's own position.
And a successful Sith may do this by securing 'allies' to further strengthen their own position, or by seeking to weaken an sabotage their rivals and foes in order to bolster their own position of strength.
This is the nature of 'politics' in the Sith Empire and can be applicable from even the lowest of Acolytes trying to secure their dominance in their respective groups to the most powerful of Dark Lords seeking to prove themselves superior to their rivals as we have seen with our own Dark Lord and whatever passed for a Darth in the Axiom powerbase.

--

Through Passion, I gain Strength.

Is the next logical step on the path to success within the Sith Empire and follows perfectly the lesson that is learned from the prior line.
Once a Sith understands the reality of the Empire and that the only means to thrive in it stems from their own achievements and merritt they should, as stated before always seek to grow stronger, to advance their position and to be able to claim that which they need to advance their position. And the only way through which they can do this is by the merit of their own strength, their personal martial prowess or their skill in politics to move the people one intends to use to elevate themselves into their proper position. Once a Sith commits themselves to fulfilling their passions and achieving their desires, and is willing to work to overcome the obstacles in their way they will always continue to grow stronger. Afterall, as stated before, a Sith should never be content and there should always be further goals to reach. And to achieve these one must continue growing stronger.

--

In war:

And in conflict in general this required strength comes from the individual Sith's ability to gain both the necessary personal martial abilities as well as their skill in acquiring the needed tools and equipment in order to succeed.
And as stated before, the path to strength comes from following ones passions and their need to fulfill their ambitions. With these goals in mind a Sith should have the found the foundations from which to continue their conflict. They should have the appropriate driving factor to hone their martial skills and understanding of the force. And they should have the appropriate enticement to find success on the battlefield, afterall nothing can be earned without success.

In Politics:

The meaning of this line is just as simple as one would expect. They should always seek to gain something from engaging in diplomacy, to move the people or organisations they are engaging with into their appropriate positions. And to do this one requires skill, experience, and information. These should all be sought after without any hesitation. All Sith should seek to find the appropriate Strengths needed to successfully engage from a superior position in their diplomacy.
Information to give oneself an edge and opportunities to learn and grow more experienced should not be seen as anything less than detrimental to achieving their goals.

--

Through Strength, I gain Power.

Is nothing more but the next step on the path to success, and therefore logically follows the previous line and leads into the next. Some people mistake Strength for Power, that their own abilities, martial prowess, understanding of the force and aptitude in diplomacy make them powerful. And it are those people who will never be anything more than pawns in the games of their betters. For those who actually covet Power know, that while it stems from personal strength, relies on much more but their own ability to be strong. It relies on their ability to use this strength in order to permanently advance their own position, to achieve their goal. Power is a state of being that elevates oneself above others, strength is the means through which they do this.

--

In War

A successful Sith should therefore only play their hand when they have something to gain from it. The strength to personally defeat a rival or to destroy an enemy position in and off itself is meaningless if it doesn't aid in completing a greater strategy. Any strong Sith can wipe out a republic garrison, or defeat their rival in single combat. But only Sith who truly hold Power, or seek to achieve it, do so to achieve their own goals. A republic garrison is wiped out only if their removal is beneficial to the war effort. Be it by providing a new base of operations, securing vital supply lines or by weakening the enemy's front to allow for a breakthrough and so forth. A rival should only be killed if their removal is to serve as a warning to others, and to act as a threat to their contemporaries to scare them into accepting you as their superior, and by doing so gaining influence over them and so forth.
And by doing this their own position in their conflict or war will grow more powerful and force the enemy on the backfoot

In Politics:

This means the same. One should only reveal the strength they hold in negotiations or in their attempt to influence when it serves a purpose. Flaunting strength and knowledge is meaningless. In truth any Sith is capable of acquiring information or engaging in arranging deals with their fellows. But only the powerful Sith know how to use this information to shift the balance in their favour, to use their strength to push the negotiations or even subtle influence others in a position where their own strength grows.
And by doing this successfully their own powerbase, influence and power within the Empire will grow.

--

Through Power, I gain Victory.

Once a Sith knows the difference between Strength and Power and how to use their Strengths to amass said power they will have acquired the means through which their goals can be realised, through which they can achieve victory.
Power is the only attribute that matters in the Empire. It is what determines your station within the Empire, the most powerful are able to achieve the highest of goals and by doing so establishing themselves in the highest echelons of Sith society. The most powerful always succeeds in winning over their foes.

--

In War:

Victory in war is achieved by the same means as it is in all forms of conflict. The side that knows their own strength and the weakness of their foes and makes their moves accordingly will always win. Tactics and raw strength are not what achieves victory, it is the strategic ability to harness one's own strength and exploit the weakness of their foes to bring their enemies to their knees. This is power, and through Power wars are won. This it true from the largest of galactic military campaigns to the smallest of skirmishes and even to 'spars' with fellow Sith and Acolytes. Your own strength does not secure victory. Knowing your strength, that of your opponent and how you can use yours to neutralize theirs is what will secure your victory.

In Politics:

This works exactly the same. Once a Sith knows how to build upon their own power and to expand their own position and power base they will always succeed in politics. Once you know how to play the game it is easily applied to achieving all your goals. And soon enough a sith should find that the more they succeed, the more powerful they become and because of this the easier it will be for them to succeed. In politics power leads to victory as much as victory will lead to power.


--

Through Victory, my chains are Broken.
The force shall free me.

Once a Sith completely and truly understands how they are to go about achieving their goals in order to expand their power, to achieve victory and by extension thriving in the Empire there is nothing that they cannot do. Any and all goals can be achieved by following the philosophy of the code, nothing is out of your reach anymore. No chains our outside forces are left to hold you down and your ambition is only limited by the strength and power you can amass in order to succeed.
This is the state that all Sith should strive to achieve within the Empire. Pure and utter freedom, to be chained down and limited by nothing more but their own ambitions. Once this state has been achieved there is nothing that can hold you back from succeeding in either the fields of War and Politics. They will truly be Sith.



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