The story of the kind, honorable, and selfless Jedi Grandmaster Yoda from the Star Wars franchise.
Biography[]
Past[]
| “ | For 800 years have I trained Jedi. | „ |
| ~ Yoda, to Luke Skywalker |
Born 900 years before the Battle of Endor, Yoda belonged to an ancient and mysterious species which included Yaddle and Grogu. As he was keenly attuned to the Force, he joined the Jedi Order as a youngling. After undergoing the ritual known as the Gathering, he received his kyber crystal, and Professor Huyang helped him construct his first lightsaber aboard the Crucible. Thereafter, Yoda was paired up with a personal mentor. During their time together, Yoda's Jedi Master told him the tale of K'ungfu and Chuang, two great Jedi of the past. Around the age of 100, Yoda was ready to pass on what he had learned. Having attained the rank of Master, he would spend the next eight centuries training and tutoring generations of Jedi.
Centuries later, Yoda would take on the Human Dooku as his last known padawan in the era of the Galactic Republic. During one mission to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, the padawan witnessed his master face off with a giant, dreadful terentatek.
Yoda also taught outside the Master/Padawan relationship. In fact, he trained all the Jedi younglings prior to their teaming up with Jedi Masters. Master Obi-Wan Kenobi was taught as a Youngling. Kanan Jarrus, as Caleb Dume, often heard Yoda counsel "Do, or do not. There is no try." He also taught groups of younglings in the basics of Jedi training, including lightsaber instruction.
Prequel Trilogy[]
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace[]
| “ | There's no doubt the mysterious warrior was a Sith." "Always two, there are. No more, no less. A master and an apprentice." "But which one was destroyed, the master or the apprentice? |
„ |
| ~ Mace Windu and Yoda, about Darth Maul |
Yoda during the Naboo crisis.
Yoda at around 800 years old sits on the Jedi Council when Qui-Gon Jinn tells the Council of the events that happened on Naboo and the Sith warrior he fought on Tatooine. Master Mace Windu believes that the Sith cannot return without the knowledge of the Jedi, but Master Yoda states that the dark side of the Force is hard to see. Yoda asks Qui-Gon if he has more to share and the Jedi Master tells them his discovery of a boy named Anakin Skywalker he believes to be the Chosen One, prophesied to bring balance to the Force. Yoda and Mace Windu agree to train the boy, but think training him is unwise.
The following day, the Council tests Anakin and find the Force is strong with him. Yoda asks him how he feels and if he is frightened and Anakin shares that he is not. Yoda tells the boy that his fear will lead him to the dark side and from there it will lead him to suffering and Yoda senses much fear in Anakin. That night, Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan Kenboi and Anakin stand before the Council and tell the Masters that the boy is too old and has formed emotional attachments to the memory of his mother. Qui-Gon os angry at this decision, stating he is the Chosen. Yoda looks into the Force and sees Anakin's future is clouded which is a dangerous sign. Qui-Gon decides to defy the Council and take Anakin as his Padawan learner but the Council states that young Skywalker's fate will be decided later and orders Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan to return with the Queen to Naboo.
After the Invasion of Naboo ends and the defeat of the Sith Lord, Yoda and the Jedi Council arrive on Naboo. Yoda grants Obi-Wan the rank of Jedi Knight but still holds firm on his decision to not train the boy. Obi-Wan states Qui-Gon believed in him and Yoda shares that he may be the Chosen One but still senses great danger in his training. Yoda agrees with Obi-Wan's decision and allow him to serve as Anakin's Master.
At Jinn's funeral, Yoda and Windu discussed the return of the Sith.
Later, the Jedi Council hold a solemn funeral for the fallen Qui-Gon Jinn, while Yoda and Mace Windu discuss how to deal with the mysterious return of the Sith. Yoda says that there are always two: a Master and an apprentice and Master Windu asks which was destroyed.
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones[]
| “ | I think it is time we informed the Senate that our ability to use the Force has diminished. Only the Dark Lords of the Sith know of our weakness. If informed, the Senate is, multiply, our adversaries will. |
„ |
| ~ Mace Windu and Yoda |
Yoda on the eve of the Clone Wars.
Ten years later, the Galactic Republic is on the brink of war with many planets leaving and joining the Separatist Movement and the Military Creation Act trying to be passed to give the Republic an army, that has never happened before in galactic history. Yoda and the Jedi Council meet with the Supreme Chancellor, the former Naboo senator, Palpatine to discuss these serious issues. Chancellor Palpatine asks Yoda if these conflicts would lead to war, and Yoda says that the dark side clouds everything and that the future was impossible to see. The Loyalist Committee enter the Chancellor's Office lead by Padme Amidala and discuss with the Chancellor and Yoda about the conflict. Yoda sees that the senator is in grave danger and Palpatine suggests a Jedi escort be issued to protect her.
After a second attempt on the senator's life happened, Master Obi-Wan and Padawan Anakin stand before the Council to discuss what has transpired. Yoda tells Ob-Wan to track down the bounty hunter while Anakin will escort Padmé back to her home planet of Naboo. Obi-Wan feels that his apprentice is not ready for this type of mission but Yoda states their judgement is ensured.
Later Yoda teaches a group of younglings in the training room when Obi-Wan arrives and shares the discovery he has found. Yoda asks the younglings to help the Jedi Master solve his problem of not finding a planet where it was supposed to be. A youngling states that the planet does exist, but someone erased it from the Archives. Yoda says that for someone to erase it is disturbing and tells Obi-Wan to search out this planet while he mediates on this.
Yoda and Windu are informed by Kenobi.
After Obi-Wan arrives on the planet Kamino and discovers a clone army being created for the Republic and meets a Mandalorian bounty hunter, he contacts Yoda and Mace via hologram. Obi-Wan shares the information he discovered, Yoda tells him to bring the bounty hunter to the Temple and they will question him and ends the transmission. Yoda and Mace discusse how they could have been so blind not to see this army and Mace thinks it is time to tell the Senate that their ability to use the Force is clouded.
While waiting for Kenobi's report, Yoda meditates; hearing the voice of the spirit of Qui-Gon Jinn and sensing that something had happened to Anakin. He conferrs with Windu that the young Padawan is in "pain. Terrible pain".
The Council and some senators meet in the Chancellor's Office when Obi-Wan contacts them stating he followed the bounty to Geonosis and has discovered the Separatist were creating massive droid armies before the Jedi is captured. Yoda and Mace both feel there is more happening on the planet. The Senate later decides to award the Chancellor emergency powers for him to create the grand clone army of the Republic to counter the threats of the Separatists. Afterwards, Mace Windu tells Yoda he will take what Jedi are left and travel to Geonosis to help Obi-Wan whilst Yoda visits the cloners on Kamino and see the army that has been created and both part ways.
With the Jedi surrounded by the huge droid army led by Count Dooku with a surviving group left, all seems lost until Yoda arrives with a brigade of the new clone army and rescues the Jedi out of the execution arena and on to the plains. Yoda commands the clone forces before sensing a disturbance in the Force.
| “ | Fought Well, you have, My old padawan! | „ |
| ~ Yoda duelling Dooku |
Yoda fights Count Dooku.
Master Yoda later confronts the Sith Lord Dooku who has injured both Kenobi and Skywalker in order to save his allies. It is at this moment that Yoda proves that, whilst his body is thin and he is very old, he is not only by no means a weak and small man, but is actually an exceptionally powerful and formidable enforcer of the Light Side of the Force. He proves that the Force is an extremely powerful ally of his and easily bested all of Dooku's Force attacks, showing that his immense power and mastery over the Force considerably exceeded that of Dooku's, tossing aside Dooku's telekenetic projectiles and deflecting Dooku's Sith lightning without any effort or strain in his part, even mocking Dooku by saying he still had much to learn. Yoda then engages in an intense lightsaber duel with his former apprentice and proves to be the superior duelist, gaining the upper hand quickly. Just as Yoda is about to defeat and kill Dooku, after commenting he had fought well, Dooku uses the Force to hurl debris at the fallen Jedi then flees while Yoda prevents a column from crushing his friends.
Returning to Coruscant, the Republic wins its first battle but many Jedi lost their lives. The Jedi meet, with Obi-Wan relieved by their recent victory but a grim Yoda warns that troubled times await the galaxy's people and senses the Clone Wars will be a long and foreboding period on not just the galaxy but the Jedi Order.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008)[]
Yoda assigns Anakin Skywalker his own Padawan, Ahsoka Tano , as he believes that she will help Anakin grow as a Jedi and as a person. Throughout most of the series, Yoda spends his time on Coruscant with the Jedi Council, but he occasionally leaves for certain tasks, such as negotiations with King Katuunko on Rugosa, and a confrontation with Asajj Ventress's droid army. Yoda also watches over Anakin and Ahsoka throughout the series, pleased that they are both maturing due to each other's influence. However, in the final arc of season five, Ahsoka is framed for a crime she didn't commit, and Yoda and the Jedi Council expel her and turn her over to the Republic military. Along with other members of the Council, Yoda observes Ahsoka's trial, but Anakin bursts in with the true culprit, fallen Jedi Barriss Offee , before the verdict can be read. Afterwards, Yoda, Anakin and the Council personally invite Ahsoka to rejoin the Order, but she refuses and leaves. According to show runner Dave Filoni, Yoda blames himself for Ahsoka's departure, as he made her Anakin's padawan in the first place.
Yoda later hears Qui-Gon Jinn speaking to him from beyond the grave. Yoda flees the Jedi Temple with R2-D2 to travel to Dagobah, his future home, to find answers. Shown cryptic visions of the fall of the Jedi, Yoda learns he has been "chosen" to learn how to manifest his consciousness after death as a Force ghost. Yoda is tested by a group of spirit priestesses in order to overcome trials and temptations on his pilgrimage; one of these tests is to face an illusion of ancient Sith lord Darth Bane. Yoda's final test is to resist an attempt by Darth Sidious and Dooku to lure him to the dark side with a false vision of deceased Jedi Master Sifo-Dyas. Yoda engages in a metaphysical battle with Sidious, and appears to sacrifice his life in order to save Anakin's – only to awaken and discover that the battle was merely a vision, and that he has passed the test. The priestesses inform Yoda that his training will resume in time.
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith[]
| “ | I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi. The Dark Side of the Force surrounds the Chancellor. [...] The Jedi Council will have to take control of the Senate to ensure a peaceful transition." "To a dark place this line of thought will take us. Great care we must take. |
„ |
| ~ Mace Windu and Yoda |
Yoda leads the Jedi Council in pursuing the mysterious Sith Lord Darth Sidious. Palpatine has by now amassed near-dictatorial emergency powers, and begins interfering in Jedi affairs by appointing Anakin as his personal representative on the Council. The Council grants Anakin a Council seat, but denies him the rank of Master, feeling that doing so would amount to giving Palpatine a vote in the Council. Embittered by the perceived snub, Anakin begins to lose faith in the Jedi.
Anakin seeks Yoda's counsel about his prophetic visions that someone close to him will die. Yoda, unaware of the intensity of Anakin's love for Padmé, his pregnant wife, tells him to train himself to let go of everything that he fears to lose. Unsatisfied, Anakin turns to Palpatine, who then reveals himself as Darth Sidious, and manipulates the young Jedi into becoming his Sith apprentice, Darth Vader, with the promise that the dark side holds the power to save Padmé from dying in childbirth.
Yoda feels the deaths of each Jedi as they are assassinated by their own troops.
Palpatine later transforms the Republic into the tyrannical Galactic Empire, proclaiming himself emperor for life, and orders the clone troopers to kill their Jedi generals. At this time, Yoda is on Kashyyyk, overseeing the battle between the Separatist forces and a combined command of clone troopers and Wookiees. Through the Force, Yoda feels the deaths of each of the Jedi as they are assassinated by their own troops. After swiftly killing the clone troopers instructed to kill him, he escapes with Wookiee leaders Tarfful and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), and returns to Coruscant, where he and Obi-Wan fight their way into the Jedi Temple to stop a trap for all surviving Jedi. Inside, they discover that all the Jedi inside, younglings included, have been slaughtered. They then discover a holographic recording, revealing Vader as the assassin. Yoda decides to face Palpatine, sending Obi-Wan to kill his former Padawan. Obi-Wan tells Yoda he won't kill Vader, asking instead to go after Palpatine. However, Yoda insists knowing that Palpatine would be too powerful for Obi-Wan and he is the only Jedi who stands a chance of victory in confronting Sidious. He also tells Obi-Wan that the Anakin he knew no longer exists, having been "consumed by Darth Vader."
Yoda battling Darth Sidious in the Senate chamber.
| “ | I have waited a long time for this moment, my little green friend… at last, the Jedi are no more." "Not if anything to say about it, I have! […] At an end your rule is, and not short enough it was. |
„ |
| ~ Darth Sidious and Yoda |
Subsequently, Yoda confronts Palpatine in his office battles Palpatine in an intense lightsaber duel that wrecks the Senate Rotunda. Yoda and Palpatine are at first equally matched but Yoda ultimately starts to gain the upper hand and almost beats Sidious until the Dark Lord begins using the Force in an attempt to even the battle. While initially pressured by Sidious's use of Senate Hoverpods Yoda is able to dodge all of Sidious's telekenetic assault and ultimately forces him back into reach for another duel but Yoda is soon disarmed of his Lightsaber by Sidious's sudden Force Lightning and forced to absorb the attack with only the Force, initially struggling but ultimately despite Palpatine's overwhelming power and skill, Yoda is able to absorb the attack and after a long struggle, Yoda finally manages to deflect it but is blasted to the bottom of the Senate Building due to his weighing little and being in the center of the blast while Sidious manages to hang on to the edge of the Hoverpod.
| “ | Into exile I must go. Failed, I have. | „ |
| ~ Yoda, to Bail Organa |
Battered and exhausted, Yoda realizes that, while he had the chance to kill Sidious at the beginning of their fight, with his stamina having been reduced and his body battered while Sidious is still at excellent condition, he would not win a fight with Sidious and decides to retreat rather than continue fighting. He goes into exile on Dagobah so that he may hide from the Empire and wait for another opportunity to destroy the Sith. At the end of the film, it's revealed that Yoda has been in contact with Qui-Gon's spirit, learning the secret of immortality from him and passing it on to Obi-Wan.
Yoda lands on the planet Dagobah, his home for the rest of his life.
Yoda is also instrumental in deciding the fate of the Skywalker children after Padmé dies in childbirth, recommending that Luke and Leia be hidden from Vader and Palpatine in remote locations. Other than the ancient Jedi Master, only the Organas, the Lars family, R2-D2 and Obi-Wan know of their true identities. Yoda then begins his exile on Dagobah.
Original Trilogy[]
Star Wars Rebels[]
| “ | Master Yoda, you're powerful. You must know a way to destroy Vader and his Inqusitors." "Padawan, thousands of Jedi once there were. Then came war. In our arrogance, join the conflict swiftly we did. Fear, anger, hate. Consumed by the dark side, the Jedi were." "Was it wrong for the Jedi to fight? Is it wrong for me to protect my friends?" "Wrong? Hmm. A long time, fought I did. Consumed by fear, I was, though see it I did not." "You were afraid?" "Yes, afraid. Hmm, surprised are you? A challenge lifelong it is, not to bend fear into anger. |
„ |
| ~ Ezra Bridger consults Yoda through the Force. |
During his exile on Dagobah, Yoda keeps an eye on other Jedi throughout the galaxy, including those who ventured into the various Jedi Temples found amongst the stars. Approximately four years before the Battle of Yavin, Yoda speaks to Kanan Jarrus, who had been the Padawan of Depa Billaba and a survivor of Order 66. Jarrus had travelled to the Jedi Temple on the planet Lothal with his own Padawan, Ezra Bridger, to whom Yoda also speaks. Bridger is in the temple in order to overcome his greatest fears; Yoda acted as an anonymous guide in helping Bridger do so and to understand why he wanted to become a Jedi and how to withdraw from the anger and the wish of revenge within him. This guidance leads Bridger to receive a kyber crystal, which he uses to build his own lightsaber whilst , Yoda counsels Jarrus about Jarrus' insecurities as a teacher.
Yoda appearing to Ahsoka Tano and biding her farewell.
A year later, Jarrus and Bridger return to the Lothal Temple with Ahsoka Tano in search of a way to defeat the Inquisitorius. Yoda casts an illusion of the Jedi Temple Guard for Jarrus, including the Grand Inquisitor as he is before the Jedi Purge. The Inquisitor forces Jarrus to recognize his fears and knighted him a true Jedi. Meanwhile, Bridger pleads with Yoda for help: despite his pacifism, the Jedi Master ultimately directs him to go to Malachor. When the other Inquisitors arrive, Yoda uses the Temple Guard to distract them as the Jedi escape. As she flees, Tano turns back and sees Yoda, who smils and waves at her: she smiled back.
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back[]
| “ | Do, or do not. There is no try. | „ |
| ~ Yoda to Luke Skywalker |
Yoda trains Luke Skywalker on Dagobah.
Three years later, Luke Skywalker arrives on Dagobah to seek his guidance, having been instructed to do so by the Force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Yoda doesn't initially identify himself to Luke and instead tests his patience by presenting himself as a comical and senile backwater individual, deliberately provoking both Luke and R2-D2. Luke is shocked when he finally realizes that this small, elderly creature is the powerful Jedi Master he was seeking. Finding that Luke has the same anger and recklessness which caused his father's downfall, Yoda is reluctant to teach him in the ways of the Force, and agrees only at Obi-Wan's behest. Luke's training includes having to climb up with Yoda on his back and using his mind to levitate his own ship. Before finishing his training, however, Luke chooses to leave Dagobah in order to confront Darth Vader and save his friends from the Empire's grasp at Bespin. Yoda and Obi-Wan warn him that he is not ready to face Vader and is being lured into a trap, but Luke leaves anyway, promising to return. When Obi-Wan laments that Luke is their "last hope," Yoda reminds him that "there is another".
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi[]
| “ | Luke... ...when gone am I, the last of the Jedi, will you be. Luke... ...the Force runs strong in your family. Pass on what you have learned. Luke... ...There... ...is... ... another... ...Sk... ...Sky... ...walker.. | „ |
| ~ Yoda's last words to Luke |
Yoda becomes one with the Force.
Yoda, now sick and frail, informs Luke that he has completed his training but will not be a Jedi until he confronts Darth Vader; he also confirms that Vader is Luke's father, something Vader had told a shocked Luke in the previous film. Yoda then peacefully dies at the age of 900, his body disappearing as he becomes "one with the Force". He leaves Luke with the knowledge that "there is another Skywalker". Moments later, Obi-Wan's ghost helps Luke come to the realization that the "other" of whom Yoda spoke is Princess Leia, who is his twin sister. He return as a spirit on Endor alongside Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke's father, Anakin Skywalker after the Empire is defeated.
Sequel Trilogy[]
Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens[]
Yoda's voice is heard during a vision by the young scavenger Rey after she discovers the Skywalker lightsaber.
Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi[]
| “ | Read them, have you? Well, I... Page-turners they were not. Yes, yes, yes. Wisdom they held, but that library contained nothing that the girl Rey does not already possess. |
„ |
| ~ Yoda and Luke on the Sacred Jedi Texts. |
Yoda appears before Luke on Ahch-To.
About 30 years after his death, the Force spirit of Yoda visits Luke at the Jedi Temple at Atch-To, when Luke is determined to destroy the original books containing the teachings of the Jedi Order. When Luke hesitats on destroying the tree, Yoda summons Force lightning and destroys the tree himself, but Luke does not know that Rey had taken the books with her when she left Atch-To.
The two discuss learning from past mistakes, talking about how Luke failed training Ben Solo. Yoda chastises the younger man for continuing to look to the horizon instead of what is right in front of him, and for not learning from failure, which Yoda says is the greatest teacher.
Yoda's meeting with Luke helps Luke forgive himself for his failures, and leads Luke to help the Resistance escape Crait. Fatally weakened by the experience, Luke joins his father, Yoda, and Obi-Wan in becoming one with the Force.
Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker[]
Yoda's voice can be heard during the duel between Rey and Palpatine. When Rey is fallen weakened on the ground, Yoda and other Jedi from the past contact her, encouraging her to rise and confront her grandfather.