In the two-episode premiere of Star Wars: The Acolyte on Disney+, viewers were introduced to the concept of the “Barash Vow.” But this term has existed for years in the publishing side of the Star Wars franchise. Let’s explore where it came from and what it means.
The Barash Vow was created by writer Charles Soule and introduced in his acclaimed 2017 run of Marvel Comics’ Star Wars: Darth Vader title, during which Jedi Master Kirak Infil'a was shown to have taken the vow. According to Wookieepedia, this meant he “completely refrained from all activities related to the Jedi Order as a form of penitence, disengaging from anything but the Force itself,” and it was the reason he was not killed by Republic clone troopers during the execution of Order 66 and the subsequent Jedi Purge.
Later Soule went further back in the timeline to explain the origins of the Barash Vow (or at least its name) via Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The High Republic publishing initiative. It turns out that the vow was named after Jedi Master Barash Silvain, who Wookieepedia says “originated the practice” after participating in a conflict alongside her adoptive brother Porter Engle during which she “was swayed by her own biases and did not listen to the Force,” although Soule clarifies: “Jedi did this before her (and certainly after,) but her name became linked with it from that point forward.”
Today Soule took to his Instagram feed to express his gratitude for the Barash Vow being included in The Acolyte. In the show’s second episode, Jedi Master Torbin is shown having taken the vow, meditating silently to himself for years while levitating and projecting an invisible shield using the Force. It is implied in this episode that something regrettable took place in his past that caused him to take the vow. I imagine we will be learning more about what that incident might have been in upcoming episodes. As of right now, it’s very cool to see the publishing side of Star Wars interacting with and informing live-action content like this.
In addition to the Barash Vow, The Acolyte also features the character Vernestra Rwoh, who was first established in The High Republic novels, plus Jedi Vector starfighters and Jedi robes that resembles what we’ve seen in visual depictions of The High Republic on book covers and in comics (all of which so far take place prior to the events of The Acolyte in the larger Star Wars timeline). I’m definitely looking forward to seeing what other aspects of The High Republic carry over into future episodes of the show.
New episodes of Star Wars: The Acolyte are released on Tuesday evenings, exclusively via Disney+.