Shaman of the Whills

Shaman of the Whills
Historical Information
First appointed	c. 3,900 BBY (Ussej Bac)
Chronological and political information
Era(s)	Old Republic era Rise of the Empire era Rebellion era New Republic era
Affiliation	Order of the Whills

For eons, they awaited the arrival of a shaman who would help guide them.
—Sarus speaking of the Whills

Shaman of the Whills was a religious title held by an individual in the Order of the Whills; the destined purpose of the person who served as Shaman of the Whills was to watch over the timeline of galactic history. There were at least three individuals who held the time, each at a different time, including former Jedi Knight and Bendu Knight Ussej Padric Bac; Bac became the Shaman of the Whills upon his mortal death on Kal'Shabbol, when he was reborn on Ashlan Four as the Shaman. He held the title until at least 4 ABY.

Individuals who served as the Shaman of the Whills watched over the timeline by observing the time stream, a body of water on Ashlan Four through which the timeline flowed; historians in the Order of the Whills used this to document the Journal of the Whills, which the Shaman was the keeper of. A shaman could step into the time stream and both observe and interaction in historical events, appearing wherever the shaman wanted to appear. Despite being able to observe historical events, the Shaman of the Whills was forbidden from influencing undesirable historical outcomes, though Bac did choose to intervene on certain occasions.

History

...he studied both sides of the Force at one point in time before realizing the true nature of the Force of Others. The path led him to his death, upon which he became one with the great mystery and transcended reality to become the Shaman of the Whills.
—Sarus tells the story of Ussej Padric Bac

Following the foundation of the Order of the Whills on Ashlan Four, the Whills spent tens of thousands of years awaiting the arrival of a shaman for their people. The Whills knew that while they could watch the time stream on Ashlan Four and see the history of the galaxy flow through it, thereby allowing them to watch and document history in the Journal of the Whills, they could not actually enter the time stream and interact in historical events. Only the Shaman of the Whills could do so.

In the years after the Great Territorial War, former Jedi Knight turned Bendu Knight Ussej Padric Bac fulfilled his destiny and died on Kal'Shabbol. He had studied both sides of the Force before realizing what he believed was its true nature; his path of studies ultimately led to his death, circa 3,900 BBY. This was only a mortal death, however, as he became one with the Force and was taken to Ashlan Four where he became the Shaman of the Whills.

As the Shaman of the Whills, Ussej was able to use the time stream to interact in historical events as a living, corporeal being; his ability to live after death was referred to by Sarus, the leader of the Ophuchi Clan in 22 BBY, as one where Ussej "transcended reality." Ussej made his presence known to a number of people throughout history, but only in his present; he would not alter the past. His mandate to protect the timeline led the Whills to refer to him as the "Guardian of Forever."

Circa 922 BBY, the Ophuchi Clan fragmented and scattered across the Outer Rim Territories. Ussej appeared to the disorganized Ophuchi and led them back to their sanctuary in the Dune Sea on Tatooine, where he told them the path they needed to take in life in order to fulfill the Ophuchi destiny. By interacting with the Ophuchi, Ussej was able to continue to do so in the centuries that followed, namely when he watched over Annikin Skywalker during the early days of the Apocalypse. He later went on to interact with Skywalker, who Bac believed was the Chosen One, a number of times.

When the Galactic Civil War ended in 4 ABY, Ussej recounted the story of Annikin Skywalker to Duseuso, a Whill historian, though he also noted that the time stream was subject to any number of interpretations, so Bac's interpretation—even after his interaction with Annikin—was not necessarily the correct one. Nonetheless, his recollections were documented in the Journal of the Whills.

Powers and abilities

As the Shaman of the Whills, Ussej Padric Bac was able to use the time stream to view historical events, much like the Whills, but also to interact in them. He could choose to be an unseen observer, or he could make his presence known to certain individuals, such as he did throughout history with the Ophuchi, Annikin Skywalker, and others. Depending on where he viewed the time stream, he could interact in the past, present, and future; in the past he chose to be an unseen observer, not wanting to alter it, and he refused to view the future as he believed that the future was not set in stone.

When directly interacting with individuals in the present, the shaman would use the time stream to appear wherever he wanted to appear. His appearance would cause a gust of wind to be created, as well as when he disappeared. One such example was when he spoke with Darth Plagueis and attempted to convince him not to let Plagueis' apprentice take the Sith throne.

Behind the scenes

A Shaman of the Whills was first mentioned in the novelization and filming script of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, though the mention was cut from the final film. In the novel and script, the Shaman of the Whills was described as a member of the Ancient Order of the Whills who had a knowledge of the Force and discovered the secret of eternal life, namely the creation of Force ghosts. This shaman then shared the secret with Qui-Gon Jinn, who in turn shared it—as a disembodied voice—with Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi during the Dark Times.

In late 2005, author Brandon Rhea chose to make Ussej Padric Bac, who at the time was his role-playing character on TheStarWarsRP.Com, the Shaman of the Whills in his alternate universe series; when the series became part of the Alternative Star Wars Saga, Ussej was kept as the Shaman of the Whills, appearing in works such as Star Wars: The Tragedy and Star Wars: Episode I - The Chosen One.

Appearances

• Star Wars: The Tragedy
• Star Wars: Episode I - The Chosen One (First appearance)

External links

• Shaman of the Whills on Wookieepedia, the Star Wars wiki