Ahsoka: How 'Bokken Jedi' In Episode 6 Connect Ezra Bridger To Luke Skywalker
Like any "Star Wars" project worth its salt, "Ahsoka" mixes its straightforward action-packed narrative with a fair bit of worldbuilding and recontextualizing for diehard fans of the franchise to unpack and theorize on. In fact, Episode 6 introduces one particular concept that redefines how fans might refer to the various Jedi that have existed through the ages in-universe.
In the episode, Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) refers to the missing Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi) as something called a "Bokken Jedi." While this installments marks the first time that the phrase has been used in the franchise, the term 'bokken' has shown up before — and it's not just a made-up concept from "Star Wars" either. What's more, this new classification of Jedi actually connects Ezra to the iconic Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) through a common element of their history and training. Here's the full explanation on the Bokken Jedi and their significance in the greater "Star Wars" canon.
The Bokken Jedi in Ahsoka Episode 6 Explained
"Ahsoka" Episode 6 thankfully sees Baylan Skoll offer up a quick explanation of exactly what he means when he calls Ezra a Bokken Jedi. Per his direct verbiage, the Bokken Jedi are a subset of Jedi who were "trained in the wild after the temple fell." More specifically, he's referring to Jedi who conducted their training after the fall of the Jedi Order due to the execution of Order 66 and the rise of the Empire, as witnessed in "Star Wars: Episode 3 — Revenge of the Sith."
That's the basic definition of Bokken Jedi, but fans may still be wondering what the term "bokken" actually refers to. A bokken is actually a Japanese word for a wooden sword, which was used throughout the real-world history of Japan for swordplay training. Bokken have shown up in "Star Wars" before as substitutes for actual lightsabers during the training of Jedi Padawans. In fact, Ezra wields one during his Jedi lessons in "Star Wars Rebels."
Are Ezra Bridger and Luke Skywalker both Bokken Jedi?
Per the definition presented by Baylan Skoll in "Ahsoka" Episode 6, Ezra Bridger is a Bokken Jedi. Audiences have even seen him wield the very weapon that the term is named after. But some fans may be wondering if Luke Skywalker could also classify as a Bokken Jedi.
It's important to note that Luke, at least in the original depictions of his Jedi training under Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, never wields a bokken saber. In fact, the iconic scene from "Star Wars: Episode 4 — A New Hope" in which Luke trains aboard the Millennium Falcon sees him using an actual lightsaber from the get-go. Despite that fact, Luke still fits the definition presented by Skoll. He was trained as a Jedi out in the wild, following the demise of the Jedi Order. In this sense, Ezra and Luke are connected by their shared past as Jedi who rose from the ashes of the Galactic Republic.
Of course, some may wonder whether other major "Star Wars" characters might classify as Bokken Jedi. There is certainly some credence to the argument that any Jedi who rises after the chronological events of "Star Wars: Episode 3 — Revenge of the Sith" is a Bokken Jedi. Nonetheless, it stands to reason that Luke's re-establishment of the New Jedi Order prior to "Star Wars: Episode 7 — The Force Awakens" serves as the end of the era of Bokken Jedi.
Why are Bokken Jedi so important in Star Wars?
While Bokken Jedi may have been trained differently from the typical Jedi, they're still Jedi at the end of the day — so, what makes them so significant in the context of the greater "Star Wars" timeline? Simply put, the Jedi wouldn't even exist after the events of "Star Wars: Episode 3 — Revenge of the Sith" if it weren't for the Bokken Jedi.
Jedi like Luke Skywalker and Ezra Bridger don't receive typical Jedi training, but they are nonetheless the ones responsible for the Jedi surviving during the reign of the Empire. In a sense, this subset of Jedi is something of a diaspora — a group that split off from the Jedi Order but nonetheless kept its embers alive as they spread throughout the galaxy and battled against the sinister forces that had destroyed their forebears.
Perhaps the most important takeaway from the concept of the Bokken Jedi, however, is that the New Jedi Order founded by Luke and later inherited by Rey Skywalker (Daisy Ridley) is one founded on the principles and learnings of that subgroup. Put another way, the Bokken Jedi are the dominant influence of the Jedi who rise following the defeat of the Empire. With how big of a force the Jedi are in "Star Wars" continuity, that's a pretty important role.