Ood Bnar: The Neti Jedi Master Who Guarded Ossus

1. Who is Ood Bnar?

Ood Bnar was a Neti Jedi Master with Force sensitivity who lived for more than five thousand years, from 5000 BBY before the Great Hyperspace War to 10 ABY. Before he joined the Jedi Order, Bnar, who was born on the planet Ryyk, spent his early years trapped on Myrkr.

He developed into one of the most admired and esteemed Masters of his day throughout time. Though he frequently gave more martial Jedi advice on how to fight the dark side, Bnar, who was an expert in Sith history, preferred to stay out of conflict. He created a Holocron based on his extensive knowledge of Jedi and Sith lore, which was handed down through the families for ages. Eventually, Bnar worked at the Great Jedi Library on Ossus as an understudy to Head Librarian Odan-Urr.

Bnar was the Head Librarian for a brief period after Odan-Urr was killed by Exar Kun during the Great Sith War in 3996 BBY. Bear was one of the Jedi who realized they had only a short window of time to flee before a Sith-engineered supernova in the neighboring Cron Cluster destroyed Ossus.

Bnar tried to safeguard a collection of antique lightsabers in the hopes that they would withstand the upcoming shockwave as other Jedi frantically tried to preserve what they could. To loot any surviving relics, Exar Kun arrived on Ossus. When Bnar realized he couldn't destroy the Dark Lord of the Sith, he changed into a vast, unyielding tree that prevented Kun from using the lightsabers.

After Ossus was destroyed, Bnar went into a millennium-long slumber. He gained the respect of the indigenous Ysanna people, who for 4,000 years carried out the ascending ceremony at his site because they thought he was the origin of their magic.

When Bnar awoke in 10 ABY, he saw Luke Skywalker and Kam Solusar facing Sedriss QL, a Dark Side Elite who had kidnapped a native girl. Bnar ensnared Sedriss with his roots and set the girl free. Bnar retaliated by using the strength of Ossus's deep roots to counter Sedriss's attempt to harness the evil energies of Ossus's skies against him. In the end, Bnar gave his life to vanquish Sedriss and preserve the two Jedi and the indigenous girl.

2. What Challenges Did Ood Bnar Face as a Young Neti, and How Did the Jedi Order Find and Train Him?

Ood Bnar was a member of the Neti, a rare species that resembled trees and could change and reshape their bodies at will. He was abandoned and left adrift on Myrkr after starting his life as a little seedling on the planet Ryyk. His early years were spent on the earth, which may have lasted more than a century given the Neti's lengthy lifespans.

Several millennia before the collapse of the Sith Empire, the Jedi Order found the Force-sensitive Bnar and trained him as a Jedi trainee.

3. How Did Ood Bnar Rise to Become a Renowned Jedi Master?

As a result of his exceptional training, Bnar was promoted to Jedi Master. He was a Jedi Scholar of great renown who was especially curious about the dark side of the Force. Even though Bnar studied the Sith and the dark side in great detail, he was never seduced by it. He had the rare capacity to fully disengage from the subjects of his studies, such that he could study the Sith without falling under their sway.

Centuries of study turned Bnar into a revered Jedi knowledge base, and the Jedi Order often turned to his extensive knowledge when facing the evil side. Indirectly assisting in the resolution of many crises during his time as a Jedi Master, Bnar's profound understanding of the Sith allowed him to counsel his companions on their adversaries' vulnerabilities and the most effective ways to take advantage of them, despite his lack of tactical prowess.

However, Bnar's close friend, the young Jedi Knight Odan-Urr, took part in the Great Hyperspace War of 5000 BBY. Odan-Urr and Bnar, who both had remarkably long lives, became good friends and frequently trained new Jedi together.

Odan-Urr, like Bnar, was a Jedi Scholar who, in memory of his late Master Ooroo, built a Great Jedi Library on the planet Ossus after the war.

The Library included a Sith holocron that Odan-Urr had recovered following the Great Hyperspace War, along with a plethora of Jedi knowledge. He appointed Bnar as his trusty assistant and Odan-Urr as Head Librarian and Keeper of Antiquities.

Bnar's fellow Jedi eventually urged him to build a Jedi Holocron to save his extensive knowledge for upcoming generations. When he was a thousand years old, he created a holocron with a wealth of Jedi knowledge and a thorough history of the Sith.

The Neti Master inserted a picture of himself as the holocron gatekeeper in order to protect this knowledge. It was handed down through the generations until it reached Master Arca Jeth after he gave it to a fellow Jedi. Later, Jeth lent the Holocron to Bnar's close friend Thon of Ambria.

Shaela Nuur, a young Human woman, was taken as Bnar's apprentice prior to 4000 BBY. He taught her how to make lightsabers and other Jedi skills. Bnar was impressed by Nuur's quick development and her exceptional academic performance. He chose to give her his precious and rare Solari crystal because he was sure she would never go to the evil side. Despite her initial amazement and feelings of inadequacy, he gave it to her in the gardens of Ossus after she finished her lightsaber.

Yet Bnar reassured her of her value and that she would accomplish great things. Once her training was over, Bnar was left without a pupil for the remainder of his Jedi Master career.

The Neti race was almost wiped off by a devastating supernova that destroyed Bnar's home world of Ryyk some 4,000 years prior to the Battle of Yavin. Most of his species died, but Bnar, who was teaching on Ossus off-world at the time, survived. Only shards of Neti culture survived after that, and knowledge of the species became incredibly limited.

4. What Was Ood Bnar's Role in Warning the Jedi About the Dark Side?

Head Librarian Odan-Urr called a significant convocation of the Jedi Order on the planet Deneba in 3997 BBY, and Ood Bnar was one of thousands of Jedi who attended. Recent attacks on the Galactic Republic by the Krath, a dark side cult, and the Republic's failure to respond to them had Odan-Urr growing increasingly alarmed.

The Krath had traveled to Onderon, a planet with a strong dark side tradition, where they acquired elemental dark side talents under the leadership of cousins Satal and Aleema Keto, who were members of the Titan elite.

Due in significant part to Aleema Keto's abilities, the burgeoning cult had already successfully defeated a Republic/Jedi task group and boldly proclaimed war on the Jedi Knights. The two leaders of the unsuccessful Republic mission, Ulic Qel-Droma and Nomi Sunrider, were summoned by Odan-Urr to offer a strategy that they believed would defeat the Krath.

But there was a lot of resistance to Qel-Droma's plan. In order to defeat the Krath from within, the young Human planned to infiltrate them by pretending to be a turn to the bad side. He was cautioned against this by both younger and more experienced Jedi, who understood that if he followed this course, he would actually succumb to the dark side.

On Deneba, in the meantime, the Krath were already plotting against the Jedi. Beneath the other ships above the planet, a Titan Corsair released a swarm of life pods, each containing hundreds of freshly made combat droids, onto the rocky landscape below.

Meanwhile, the Jedi's aided service droids turned against them, igniting a full-scale conflict. The highest ranking Jedi in the room was the objective of the droids' programming. Not all Jedi Masters were as lucky, but Bnar was unscathed. A war droid killed Arca Jeth in front of Ulic Qel-Droma, his padawan.

Despite the cautions of his fellow Jedi, Qel-Droma decided to carry out his plan since he felt guilty for his Master's death, even though the Jedi eventually annihilated the Krath droids with little fatalities. Determined to keep Qel-Droma from slipping into the evil side, Bnar tried to talk him out of it once more.

Bnar and his longtime companion Odan-Urr encountered Nomi Sun-rider and Qel-Droma in the Great Jedi Library on Ossus. In an attempt to help Qel-Droma during his tenure in the Empress Teta system, the ancient Neti gave him a book written by the mighty Empress Teta centuries ago.

Bnar introduced Qel-Droma to Odan-Urr even though he knew he was unlikely to change his opinion. Odan-Urr demonstrated to Qel-Droma the fate of a young Jedi who had tried a similar scheme—he succumbed to the dark side and killed his Master—using the Sith Holocron he had obtained more than a thousand years before.

Despite being appalled by the prospect, Qel-Droma persisted in his resolve, thinking he would emerge as a hero. Knowing what would probably happen, the wise Masters said goodbye to the two Jedi Knights and wished them luck in the Force.

5. How Did Ood Bnar Contribute During the Great Sith War?

In the end,Qel-Droma's quest was unsuccessful. He betrayed his fellow Jedi after succumbing to Aleema Keto's black magic. In an attempt to restore Ulic Qel-Droma to the light, a team of Jedi Knights, comprising Nomi Sun-rider, Qel-Droma's brother Cay, Qrrrl Toq, and Dace Diath, set out on a quest to the Empress Teta system. A number of Jedi Masters, including Ood Bnar, provided advice prior to their departure.

Bnar disagreed with Master Thon's suggestion that Qel-Droma might learn from his own mistakes. He cautioned that people who had adopted the dark side, such as Aleema Keto, may incite a Jedi's wrath, impairing their judgment and common sense. The Jedi Knights ignored the warning and continued their mission, but they soon returned with little success. Qel-Droma had shown his true loyalty by refusing to rejoin them.

Exar Kun was another young Jedi who had succumbed to the dark side. Qel-Droma was apprenticed to Kun, who was declared the Dark Lord of the Sith by the old Sith spirit Marka Ragnos.

Kun fought alongside the armies of the Krath and Mandalore the Indomitable against the Republic. After the Dark Lord found his Sith Holocron, Kun killed Odan-Urr on Ossus, the first significant fatality of the war.

Ood Bnar took over as Head Librarian and Keeper of Antiquities at the Great Jedi Library after his old buddy passed away. But Bnar and the other Jedi were unaware of the real reason for Odan-Urr's demise; Kun had lied when he said that Odan-Urr had made him a Jedi Master before he died of old age and merged with the Force.

Unbeknownst to the Order, Kun had secretly enlisted a number of young Jedi and steered them toward the evil side. While he tracked down and murdered his former Master, Vodo-Siosk Baas, on Coruscant, he ordered his acolytes to murder their Jedi Masters. Oss Wilum and Crado were unable to overcome Master Thon on Ambria, but Kun's dark Jedi were able to slay their Masters.

To assess the damage, Thon went to Ossus with Sylvar and Nomi Sunrider. There, a group of Jedi Shadows who were among the first to find the deceased Masters joined them in a chamber next to the Great Jedi Library, where they encountered Bnar. A young Twi'lek Jedi Knight named Tott Doneeta rushed in with word of an attack on the nearby Kemplex Nine space station in the Cron Cluster of the Auril sector while they were talking about the collapse of Qel-Droma and the deaths of the eight Jedi Masters.

Thon cautioned the Jedi while they discussed their options. Thon suspected a trap because the station was not very important, and Kun had no apparent reason to target it. Though the rest remained on Ossus to protect against a possible surprise attack by Kun, three of the Jedi Shadows—Qrrrl Toq, Shoaneb Culu, and Dace Diath—decided to confront the Sith fleet and try to save those on the station.

Thon's intuition was correct; the attack on Kemplex was a distraction that had disastrous results for Ossus. Aleema Keto and Crado were becoming a hindrance to Kun and Qel-Droma's intentions. Therefore, they were no longer needed. Expecting to be pursued by the Republic and Jedi, Kun sent them on a suicide mission to the Cron Cluster. They did, and with the intention of destroying the pursuing soldiers, Keto used her Sith magic to set off a supernova as she approached one of the Cluster's stars.

But Keto had underestimated the explosion's power, and it killed her and Crado while sending a shockwave that would soon destroy Ossus.

6. How Did Ood Bnar Sacrifice Himself to Protect Ossus?

As the other Jedi scrambled to save as much of Odan-Urr's enormous scroll collection as they could, Ood Bnar withdrew to a quiet corner of the Jedi archives. There, he kept a number of antiquated lightsabers in a secret room under the tiled floor.

While he was securing them, Exar Kun came in with a number of massive Massassi troops. Bnar was resolved to stop Kun from searching for any artifacts that the Jedi had left behind before they were gone forever. Bnar remained determined, lighting one of the ancient lightsabers and getting ready to battle the Sith Lord, despite Kun's mocking thanks to the Neti Master for keeping the treasures safe for him.

However, Kun had two significant advantages over the ancient Neti Master: stronger battling skills and a unique double-bladed lightsaber. Despite this, Bnar was able to deftly avoid Kun's strikes and hold him off for a number of minutes.

Finally, Bnar was forcibly disarmed by one of Kun's Massassi fighters. Bnar was on his knees, helpless and aware that he could not beat the Dark Lord of the Sith, but he was determined to prevent Kun from obtaining the lightsabers. Utilizing his Neti powers, he assumed his actual tree-like shape and stood watch over the holy lightsabers. Knowing that he had won even without the lightsabers, Kun escaped to Yavin 4 and abandoned Bnar.

In the meantime, Nomi Sunrider cut off Ulic Qel-Droma from the Force when he murdered his brother. Though they admitted that they would have had to leave some behind even with a year to pack, Thon and the other Jedi were able to save some of the scrolls and records from Odan-Urr's Library.

Thon went to see his old friend Ood Bnar before leaving. Bnar was still able to communicate and interact with people despite being immobilized in his tree form. Though Thon didn't understand Bnar's decision ultimately, he accepted it and lamented his friend's passing. Bnar comforted him that he might even survive the upcoming apocalypse on Ossus and that this was only a regular part of his life cycle. The two buddies bid each other farewell for good, never to cross paths again.

Bnar's brown lightsaber crystal, which came to be known as Bnar's Sacrifice, was left as a legacy for future generations.

The Rodian master artist Zyk-yadoon later honored his valiant acts throughout the fight in an artwork that was on display in Almas' Remembrance Hall.

7. How Did Ood Bnar Assist the New Jedi Order After His Awakening?

Ossus was hit by the shockwave soon after Thon left, but he anticipated that Ood Bnar would escape the destruction. The planet was destroyed, though, and the extreme radiation made it impossible for the Jedi to reconstruct their training facilities and Library. Not only did Bnar survive, but a group of Jedi who were unable to flee took sanctuary in the enormous tunnels beneath the Eocho Mountains.

Their descendants became the tribal Ysanna after gradually losing their recollection of their ancestry. But the Jedi of his time never found Bnar, and his companions did not survive over time. Thon spent his final years in Ambria, while Shaela Nuur was killed soon after the war. Eventually, Bnar fell into a centuries-long sleep that lasted through several galactic periods, including the Great Jedi Purge in 19 BBY, which almost brought the Jedi Order to a stop.

Bodo Baas, a descendent of Bnar's buddy Vodo-Siosk Baas, was not forgotten, but he did reference the Neti Master in his holocron, which was later acquired by Luke Skywalker, a young Jedi who aimed to restore the Order. The Ysanna believed that Bnar was the source of their magic and came to know him as the "place of Ascension." " For 4,000 years, they tied people to him in order to give them this ability as part of their ascending ceremonies.

Ood Bnar was awoken in 10 ABY, for more than four thousand years following his metamorphosis. Luke Skywalker and Kam Solusar discovered two Ysanna, Jem and Rayf, chained to what appeared to be a vast, twisted tree after being guided to Ossus by Bodo Baas'sBaas's Holocron. Following their release, the Jedi met the Ysanna tribe, who sided with them after realizing they were Jedi.

But two of Palpatine's Dark Side Elite, Sedriss QL and Vill Goir, followed Skywalker and Solusar, bringing reinforcements in the form of troopers. The Jedi and Ysanna engaged in combat with these armies. Kam Solusar killed Goir, leaving Sedriss to face the two formidable Jedi alone. Sedriss backed himself against the enormous tree that was Bnar and held Jem prisoner out of desperation.

In a final act of heroism, Ood Bnar sacrifices himself and uses the world's energy to destroy Sedriss.

The sheer number of powerful Force-users, especially Jedi, roused Bnar from his sleep. He grabbed Sedriss with his root-like limbs and dragged him away from the terrified Ysanna. Sedriss tried to use the energy from Ossus's broken skies to overcome Bnar because he knew this would be his last fight. Bnar, however, retaliated by using the vital energy found in the soil of the planet.

Ultimately, both Force-users died, destroying one another. The ancient lightsabers that Bnar had protected contributed to the Jedi Order's resurrection, despite the Jedi's sadness that he was unable to impart his knowledge to them. A tiny sapling started to sprout where Bnar had stood, leaving behind a modest legacy as he became one with the Force.

Treasure hunters searched the galaxy for notebooks thought to have been written by Ood Bnar long after the Great Sith War ended. The existence of these journals was still up for discussion at the time of the Battle of Yavin. However, the search for this elusive item consumed the explorer Riyan Kiner to the point where he lost his mind.

8. What Were Ood Bnar's Defining Personality Traits?

The Jedi Order held Ood Bnar in high regard due to his vast wisdom. He was a priceless source of wisdom because of his extensive knowledge of the Force's dark and light aspects, which he had acquired during decades of study. The Jedi Order valued his thoughts so highly that they were kept in a Holocron.

Having seen such attempts before, Master Bnar's vast understanding of Jedi literature frequently enabled him to predict the results of certain actions; therefore, many pupils were sent to him for assistance. The Coruscant Jedi Temple even released a compendium of his Force lectures called "Lectures on the Nature of the Force."

Bnar made a lot of friends during his lengthy life, even though he knew he would outlive most of them. He was incredibly close to Thon, even though they disagreed on a number of issues. Vodo-Siosk Baas, one of the most senior members of the Order, was among the Jedi Masters with whom he frequently conferred. He kept the Great Jedi Library on Ossus alongside Odan-Urr, his closest friend. Bnar regarded Odan-Urr as one of the wisest of Masters, and the two of them frequently advised others.

Bnar was also well-known for mentoring many students, offering them both counsel and recognition. His rare Solari crystal was given to Shaela Nuur, his favorite trainee, as a token of appreciation for her advancement. He was willing to teach about the perils of the dark side, but he always advised students to weigh the risks before exploring it.

Bnar was a quiet, reticent person who stayed out of the spotlight in emergencies. He did not mind being alone himself most of the time. He simply learned the fundamentals of using a lightsaber since he disliked violence. Although Bnar preferred to remain in the background, he was not afraid to speak in front of others and often attended conferences with other Jedi. He was adamantly against the notion that humans were better than other animals since he thought all living things, sentient or not, were equally important. According to Bnar, the Force was a unifying factor that gave everything equal significance.

Bnar was a knowledgeable person who had the unusual capacity to maintain objectivity while researching the dark side of the Force in particular. Throughout his millennium-long life, this detachment ensured he was never tempted to give up on the light. His distinct viewpoint was essential since it enabled him to counsel more martial Jedi on the dark side's vulnerabilities and how to overcome them.

When Bnar transformed to stop Exar Kun from stealing the lightsabers during the Great Sith War, he demonstrated his selflessness by giving his life. For a Neti, this metamorphosis was unavoidable, but Bnar had the option to postpone it in order to save others.

9. What Were Ood Bnar's Most Impressive Force abilities?

Despite his obvious preference for studying over fighting, Bnar was a proficient Jedi. Although his lightsaber abilities were less effective against opponents who were faster or more experienced, he was proficient with a weapon, even though he didn't carry a lightsaber.

The fact that his Padawan, Shaela Nuur, became a skilled swordsman speaks highly of Bnar's teaching talents. However, Bnar avoided one-on-one lightsaber duels whenever possible because he was well aware of his limits.

Despite his lack of proficiency with a lightsaber, Bnar was a powerful Force adept who possessed a wide range of abilities.

He proved his mettle in a battle against Sedriss QL on Ossus. In response to Sedriss's attempt to use the dark energies in Ossus's atmosphere, Bnar used the deep energies of the planet. The two strong Force users were on equal footing, and their conflict finally resulted in their demise.