The Jedi Knights of Star Wars were not simply the figment of George Lucas's most fertile and provocative imagination. Those who have grown up coveting the powers of the Jedi will be pleased to learn that Masters of the Force did indeed once exist. Records of them survive in certain countries, such as Egypt and Persia, where they were magician priests and the guardians of powerful priest kings similar to the "Emperor" of Star Wars, albeit without his predilection for the "Dark Side."

In ancient Egypt, the surviving histories reveal that the Jedi manifested as the Djedi — a sect of the priesthood and Masters of the Force that protected the Pharaoh. In Persia they were the Narts, guardians of a Holy Grail called the Nartmongue and the protectors of enlightened priest kings who lived at least one thousand years before King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.

The remarkable history and wisdom of these two early sects of "Jedi" Knights was first introduced to the West by the Knights Templar, who upon returning from the Middle East in the 13th and 14th centuries, distilled "Jedi" histories learned from the Sufis into a series of lengthy Holy Grail legends. Within these legends the Templars synthesized the powerful emperors and priest kings of the past into the enigmatic figure of the Fisher King — the resident of a Grail Castle and the owner of various manifestations of the Holy Grail.

Wolfram von Eschenbach in Parzival specifically referred to the Fisher King's Holy Grail Knights as Templars — boldly proclaiming that the Knights Templar were themselves a latter-day version of "Jedi" Knights. From at least one perspective, the formation of the Knights Templar in 1118 CE could be historically entitled "The Return of the Jedi."

The Djedi of Egypt — Awakening the Serpent

The Djed of Djedi denoted "column," while the root sound Dj denoted "serpent." A Djedi was one who had awakened the serpent at its seat and raised it up the Djed column or spine to the head. Those Djedi who succeeded in this inner ascension could potentially become immortal — another meaning of Djedi. As the Serpent Force rises up the spine, its alchemical fire moves within every cell of the body and raises the frequency of human flesh to that of immortal pure energy.

The Djedi of the Westcar Papyrus who possessed the key to the secret chambers of Thoth was said to have acquired the power to reattach the severed heads of animals at will. Other Djedi traversed the scorching Egyptian sands with only their magical staffs, or became powerful magicians in service of the Pharaohs. When Moses and Aaron confronted the Pharaoh, his Djedi magicians turned their staffs into live serpents — representing the serpent power each Djedi possessed. Aaron's staff also turned into a serpent, but a much larger one that consumed theirs, proving the superiority of his power.

The Nart Knights of Persia

The order of "Jedi" Knights known to the Templars included the Nart Knights, Masters of the Force of the ancient Persian Empire. Possibly as old or older than the Djedi of Egypt, the Narts may have existed as early as King Jamshid during the Persian Golden Age, placed by some historians as early as 20,000 BCE.

King Key-Khosrow, the "Persian King Arthur," possessed knights — the Narts — associated with a Holy Grail, the Nartmongue, and conducted their meetings around a table similar to Arthur's Round Table. The mystical legends of Key-Khosrow and his Narts were compiled into the Nart Sagas, regarded as Persian counterparts to Europe's Holy Grail legends.

Authors Littleton and Malcor in From Scythia to Camelot suggest that King Arthur and his Knights may themselves have been Sarmatian soldiers — members of a Roman Legion stationed at Hadrian's Wall. This alternate history was made into the major motion picture King Arthur starring Clive Owen.

Hassan-i-Sabah & The Order of Assassins

In the 11th century CE, Hassan-i-Sabah, founder of the Order of Assassins, revived the ancient Nart tradition and resurrected the Secrets of the Force. He chose for his court the castle of Alamut — the "Eagle's Nest" — high in the Albourz Mountains. After mastering nine mystical degrees of a Sufi mystery school in Cairo, Hasan founded his own nine-degree mystery school, his alchemical manual providing a step-by-step guide to awakening the inner Force and acquiring gnosis.

The greatest promoter of these teachings was Assassin Grand Master Rashid al-din Sinan of Syria — said to have acquired the power to see into the past or future, and to go for indefinitely long periods without eating or drinking. When a letter was delivered to him, Sinan would hold the unopened envelope against his third eye for a moment, then promptly write and dispatch his reply. Through encounters with Sinan, the Templars — who had nearby castles in Syria — learned some of the Assassins' Secrets of the Force. They came to call Sinan the "Old Man of the Mountains."

The Force as the True Holy Grail

The Knights Templar also inherited the gnostic teachings of the Johannite Gnostic Church, passed down from a series of Grand Masters beginning with John the Baptist, Jesus, John the Apostle and Mary Magdalene. They subsequently created their own Holy Grail mystery school tradition comprised of numerous levels.

The Force, the Knights Templar discovered, was the true "Holy Grail." What made an object a Holy Grail was its accompanying Force or Holy Spirit power — it was this Force that activated the process of alchemy within a Knight and eventually opened him to gnostic wisdom and supernatural powers.

The Templar's Secrets of the Force eventually passed into certain Secret Societies of Europe, including the Rosicrucians and Freemasons. But this wisdom would eventually become grossly distorted, hidden or completely forgotten, and the era of the "Jedi" Knights came to a grinding halt. Now, certain Templar organizations are making a concerted effort to resurrect this wisdom. The old gnostic and alchemical rites are beginning to be observed again and hidden alchemical texts are being pursued in places like Rosslyn Chapel and Languedoc in France.