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KYBER CRYSTALS WERE CRUCIAL IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE JEDI LIGHTSABER.
Kyber Crystal:
The Heart of the Jedi
For as long as there has been life in the galaxy, there has existed the Force - the enigmatic, powerful energy that connects and binds all life together. And for as long as the Force has existed, so has the Kyber crystal represented the ability of all life to touch and connect to this energy. But the Kyber crystal, despite its high value, widespread use and legendary properties, remains a source of great mystery - indeed, the crystals themselves resist such study. But of what little can be learned, there is still much to know and understand about these curious lifeforms, responsible for shaping so much of the galaxy.
It should surprise noone that the Kyber Crystal's bizarre properties were known well before the Jedi Order - and well before even the Republic. On the ancient holy moon of Jedha, the Ancient Order of the Whills dedicated their temple to the Kyber, known for growing in extra-ordinary abundance beneath the sands of the world. The name Kyber itself bears striking similarity to a term used commonly in ancient texts of the Order of the Whills - 'Kaiburr', which roughly translates to be equivalent to one's heart and soul, an analogy that was recognised even in Jedi practices millenia after the Order of the Whills ceased to exist.
As study of the Force diversified and spread across the galaxy, use of the Kyber crystal became more widespread due to its well-known properties of channeling and enhancing energy. Though most commonly associated with the Jedi Order, many other mystical sects sought the power of the crystals, and the gems were used as catalysts for many different uses of various practices of the Force or local magics and sorcery.
Perhaps most famously, however, the Kyber crystal was most commonly used in the Jed Lightsaber, a weapon of terrifying and wondrous power that also allowed a Jedi to tap more deeply into the Force in times of need. As a result of this connection, a Jedi was considered incomplete without having created such a weapon, and it is for this reason that the Jedi guarded known sources of Kyber crystals with the utmost of secrecy.
It should surprise noone that the Kyber Crystal's bizarre properties were known well before the Jedi Order - and well before even the Republic. On the ancient holy moon of Jedha, the Ancient Order of the Whills dedicated their temple to the Kyber, known for growing in extra-ordinary abundance beneath the sands of the world. The name Kyber itself bears striking similarity to a term used commonly in ancient texts of the Order of the Whills - 'Kaiburr', which roughly translates to be equivalent to one's heart and soul, an analogy that was recognised even in Jedi practices millenia after the Order of the Whills ceased to exist.
As study of the Force diversified and spread across the galaxy, use of the Kyber crystal became more widespread due to its well-known properties of channeling and enhancing energy. Though most commonly associated with the Jedi Order, many other mystical sects sought the power of the crystals, and the gems were used as catalysts for many different uses of various practices of the Force or local magics and sorcery.
Perhaps most famously, however, the Kyber crystal was most commonly used in the Jed Lightsaber, a weapon of terrifying and wondrous power that also allowed a Jedi to tap more deeply into the Force in times of need. As a result of this connection, a Jedi was considered incomplete without having created such a weapon, and it is for this reason that the Jedi guarded known sources of Kyber crystals with the utmost of secrecy.
KYBER CRYSTALS VARIED IN SIZE FROM A SMALL PEBBLE TO THE SIZE OF A SPEEDER.
A Kyber crystal was more than a simple mineral - it was an intelligent, living creature consisting of organic and inorganic components. Extremely durable, a Kyber crystal was impervious to extreme heat or blunt force trauma, and grew stronger in the presence of Jedi or other Kyber crystals. On a molecular level, the crystals consisted of an intricate lattice network between a 'day and night' or north and south pole. This could be refined through meditation in order to maximise the efficiency of energy flow through the crystal, allowing the owner to tap into the Force via the crystal more readily over time as the Force bond between crystal and Force user grew. The process of attuning a crystal to any individual was an ongoing process that could take decades, even after the initial rites and practices to connect the individual with the crystal.However, for this same reason, a Kyber crystal could also influence a non-Force user over time. Due to the way that a Kyber crystal siphoned and channelled the Force, a non-Force user could, over time, find their skills equally charmed by the continual presence of the gem. For this reason, Kyber crystals were sought after as lucky charms. This did not make the user any more connected to the Force per se, but it did allow the Force to guide one's actions in small, seemingly unnoticeable ways - a practice that was later a codified technique of the Guardians of the Whills - along with several other monastic groups of Force users. Conversely, if the crystal felt threatened - such as if one was to be studied scientifically, it could project an aura that would slowly but steadily destabilise the mind, often causing unsuspecting victims to fall to paranoia and insanity over time. As a result, discovering new methods of applying the Kyber's latent energies to new , modern technology was fraught with risk.
To those particularly sensitive to such things, a Kyber crystal was known to sing on an extrasensory level. While undetectable by typical, human ears, certain species with a particular sensitivity to sound waves - such as the Bith, for example - could detect a faint resonance emanating from a Kyber crystal. This resonance could be trained to be detected through use of the Force, and such mystics trained in these arts suggest that the individual resonance of each crystal was unique and carried a particular character with it. This resonance was unique enough that it could be recognised and identified if one was familiar with it, and this resonance was said to be part of what allowed a Jedi to harness his or her weapon with such finesse. As such, no two lightsabers or Kyber-powered weapons sounded quite identical - there were always minute fluctuations and nuances in the way the Kyber crystal interacted with the air around it that would change the way sounds were perceived by observers.
Naturally, being creatures of life and balance and growth, Kyber crystals were inherently attuned with the Light Side of the Force. A Jedi or Light-Side attuned Force user would be 'called to' by a Kyber crystal, and the pair created a bond within the Force that meant that an individual crystal would always respond most clearly to their symbiotic partner. It was this process of a Kyber choosing its partner that also dictated the colour of the crystal - while most Kyber crystals became green or blue in the hands of Jedi, in truth a Kyber crystal could become any colour of the spectrum at varying intensities if it so decided. Indeed, the Ancient Jedi were encouraged to meditate on their crystal after pivotal moments in their life in order to re-attune the crystal - such a moment that could redefine a Jedi could also be the catalyst for change in hue or vibrancy in the Jedi's Kyber crystal. It was unusual, but not uncommon, for a Jedi to be chosen by more than one Kyber crystal - however, multiple Kyber crystals did not have a multiplying effect on the Jedi, but rather worked in network with one another to perform the same effect.
A crystal that did not naturally choose its owner would prove difficult to work with and would take considerably longer to attune and feel natural in the hands of their new owner. When a Kyber crystal was set into a weapon (or used in said weapon's creation), it therefore made the weapon more or less intuitive in the hands of the owner, depending on whether the owner and crystal were paired. Even on its own, the crystal could be used as a conduit for the Force - though how effective it was at refining the flow of the Force through a practitioner, again, was dependant on the attunement of crystal and Force user.
Those who had fallen to the Dark Side would find a crystal would, over time, respond to them less and less, or would cease to function entirely as owner and crystal came to harness opposing forces. A fallen or dark Jedi would find their lightsaber would feel alien and clumsy in otherwise skilled hands, and the Force would seem difficult to access through the kyber crystal. For a Dark Side user to truly harness the Force with the aid of a Kyber crystal, the gem had to be dominated - forced to twist to the Dark Side, twisted and corrupted as the fallen Jedi had twisted and corrupted themselves. Such a perversion of the Force would cause the crystal to bleed, and it would turn a deep crimson as a result.
RICH DEPOSITS OF KYBER CRYSTALS WERE JEALOUSLY GUARDED BY THE JEDI ORDER.
Kyber Crystals grew in veins of Kyberite, a similar but impure crystal that grew the purer Kybers only in the deepest, densest veins. As a result, Kyber crystals were usually found either in large quantities or not at all. Planets such as Jedha and Ilum were known to be host to some of the richest veins of Kyberite in the galaxy, and these deep caverns were a holy pilgrimage site for many a Force user.
On a molecular level, the structure of Kyberite is identical to a Kyber crystal initially, forming massive crystalline structures in great abundance, often fillign entire caverns given sufficient time. Where the two differ, however, is that Kyberite does not resonate with the Force - Kyberite is, in essence, a non-Force sensitive Kyber crystal and without the Force, the crystal is inert and useless. Over time, Kyberite would 'decay' - the crystal structures growing cloudy and coloured, in contrast to the pure, almost liquid-filled appearance of a true Kyber crystal. Many a foolish would-be thief would be attracted to the larger, colourful Kyberite crystals, leaving the tiny shard-like Kyber crystals behind.
On Dathomir, curiously, it is said that the planet has liquid streams of Kyberite running beneath the surface. This so-called Spirit Ichor is used in a ritualistic manner, though how similar and effective it is compared to a Kyber crystal remains a mystery. The strange liquid is rumoured to be found on other planets as well.
While many have tried over the years- from scientific teams to force cults and even Sith alchemists, the process of creating a synthetic Kyber crystal remains all but impossible. What few synthetic crystals have been fabricated prove to be extremely volatile and completely unsuitable for practical use, and are extremely risky to handle, as they are well known to explode with only the barest of jolts, or even without warning..
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