Meta: "Niman: A New Perspective"
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elphrona_outpost here.
A discussion of the sixth traditional lightsaber combat form, Niman, and its subdiscipline Jar'Kai, including an overview of available canon information and a new analysis of the form's distinguishing characteristics. (Written from an in-universe perspective.)
Niman: A New Perspective
Niman is the sixth of the traditional Jedi lightsaber forms. It is also known as the Moderation Form, the Way of the Rancor, and, in casual parlance, the "diplomat's form." Jar'Kai, the art of wielding two lightsabers at once (or more, if one's anatomy permits), is a subdiscipline of Niman.
In the classic training text The Jedi Path, Jedi Master Skarch Vaunk describes Niman as a composite form drawing on elements from Forms II-V. She says that Niman is less physically demanding than other forms and is favored by Jedi who serve primarily as diplomats or in other non-combat roles, since it requires a smaller time commitment to maintain one's skills. Niman's decreased emphasis on bladework is balanced by its practitioners' incorporation of telekinesis into lightsaber combat, using the Force to manipulate objects in the environment or their opponents' bodies directly. Vaunk defends Niman as worthwhile, but only for Jedi who do not specialize in lightsaber combat: "While it is true that it would be nearly impossible for a Form VI adherent to defeat an expert in Makashi, this doesn't mean that the style isn't useful for facing down criminals and thugs. Thus for Jedi Consulars, who devote a high percentage of their time to study and peacekeeping, it is a form easily mastered." (The Jedi Path, 74.)
But is Niman merely a watered-down version of the other forms, or is it something more? Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, while still a Padawan, wrote the following comment in the margins of Vaunk's essay in his copy of The Jedi Path: "It's difficult to use the Force as a weapon while trying to use a lightsaber too! I need more practice." (Ibid.) Kenobi is widely regarded as one of the finest duelists of his era, a master of both Form III, Soresu, and Form IV, Ataru - forms that demand precise bladework and considerable physical prowess. Kenobi's difficulty lay not in the kinesthetic elements of Niman, which are certainly simple compared to Soresu or Ataru, but in the integration of telekinesis into lightsaber combat.
All Jedi use the Force in combat. The most basic manifestation of this is the limited and largely instinctive precognition that allows us to anticipate an opponent's blows or the path of an incoming projectile - commonly thought of as "Jedi reflexes." The Force may be used to enhance strength and stamina, and to suppress pain and shock so a Jedi can continue fighting despite severe injury. Many lightsaber forms have blade techniques backed by the Force; one example of this is the Form V move known as "Falling Avalanche," an overhand strike enhanced by the Force that can be used to shatter armor. (Id. at 73.) What makes Niman unique is not simply that it incorporates the Force into lightsaber combat but the way in which it does so.
Though I hesitate to question Vaunk's opinion, I suspect that Niman's reputation as a lesser form compared to the others stems not from any deficiencies in a combat situation but instead from the difficulties in adapting it to a training environment. Because the other forms rely almost exclusively on bladework and a combatant's use of the Force is chiefly internal (e.g., increasing one's own strength, speed, or stamina), exchanging a live lightsaber for a training blade largely eliminates potential lethality, so the techniques can be demonstrated in full in a training environment. But traditional Niman, to a much greater degree than any other form, incorporates external Force techniques: Combatants use telekinesis to push and pull on their opponents' bodies directly and to manipulate their environment, turning nearby objects into projectiles and even – if they are true masters of the form – causing the ground itself to tremble beneath an opponent's feet. These telekinetic techniques are difficult to adapt to a training environment: Throwing a foe into a wall to cause injury is much easier than doing the same to a training partner while softening the blow before it can do real harm. Practitioners of Niman, especially younger Jedi still learning the form, therefore often practice the kinesthetic and telekinetic aspects of traditional Niman separately. Without the telekinetic elements, the simple bladework of traditional Niman cannot compete with the other forms; but a master of Niman, melding bladework and telekinesis into a unified whole, is a formidable opponent.
What defines Niman and distinguishes it from the other Forms is precisely what Kenobi identified as his greatest challenge in learning it: The practitioner of Niman must maintain a dual focus on both the kinesthetic and telekinetic elements of the form during combat. To focus on one at the expense of the other is to court disaster, as Niman's simplified blade techniques cannot stand up to the other forms without the telekinetic element to supplement, and telekinesis alone is of limited defensive use.
Defining Niman by this duality of focus also explains why Jar'Kai is classified as a subdiscipline of Niman, a categorization that confuses many Jedi. Why would a form generally known for its reduced focus on bladework incorporate as a subdiscipline the technique of wielding two blades? At first glance, Jar'Kai seems to be more similar to Soresu or Ataru, forms that focus on precision bladework. But this initial instinct is based on the externally visible characteristics of the Form rather than the practitioner's internal state. Looking beyond the physical, the internal discipline of a Jar'Kai practitioner is the same dual focus required by traditional Niman. The Jar'Kai practitioner must maintain focus on both blades separately while using them cohesively, just as a practitioner of traditional Niman balances and synthesizes the kinesthetic and telekinetic elements of the form into a unified whole.
elphrona_outpost here.A discussion of the sixth traditional lightsaber combat form, Niman, and its subdiscipline Jar'Kai, including an overview of available canon information and a new analysis of the form's distinguishing characteristics. (Written from an in-universe perspective.)
Niman is the sixth of the traditional Jedi lightsaber forms. It is also known as the Moderation Form, the Way of the Rancor, and, in casual parlance, the "diplomat's form." Jar'Kai, the art of wielding two lightsabers at once (or more, if one's anatomy permits), is a subdiscipline of Niman.
In the classic training text The Jedi Path, Jedi Master Skarch Vaunk describes Niman as a composite form drawing on elements from Forms II-V. She says that Niman is less physically demanding than other forms and is favored by Jedi who serve primarily as diplomats or in other non-combat roles, since it requires a smaller time commitment to maintain one's skills. Niman's decreased emphasis on bladework is balanced by its practitioners' incorporation of telekinesis into lightsaber combat, using the Force to manipulate objects in the environment or their opponents' bodies directly. Vaunk defends Niman as worthwhile, but only for Jedi who do not specialize in lightsaber combat: "While it is true that it would be nearly impossible for a Form VI adherent to defeat an expert in Makashi, this doesn't mean that the style isn't useful for facing down criminals and thugs. Thus for Jedi Consulars, who devote a high percentage of their time to study and peacekeeping, it is a form easily mastered." (The Jedi Path, 74.)
But is Niman merely a watered-down version of the other forms, or is it something more? Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, while still a Padawan, wrote the following comment in the margins of Vaunk's essay in his copy of The Jedi Path: "It's difficult to use the Force as a weapon while trying to use a lightsaber too! I need more practice." (Ibid.) Kenobi is widely regarded as one of the finest duelists of his era, a master of both Form III, Soresu, and Form IV, Ataru - forms that demand precise bladework and considerable physical prowess. Kenobi's difficulty lay not in the kinesthetic elements of Niman, which are certainly simple compared to Soresu or Ataru, but in the integration of telekinesis into lightsaber combat.
All Jedi use the Force in combat. The most basic manifestation of this is the limited and largely instinctive precognition that allows us to anticipate an opponent's blows or the path of an incoming projectile - commonly thought of as "Jedi reflexes." The Force may be used to enhance strength and stamina, and to suppress pain and shock so a Jedi can continue fighting despite severe injury. Many lightsaber forms have blade techniques backed by the Force; one example of this is the Form V move known as "Falling Avalanche," an overhand strike enhanced by the Force that can be used to shatter armor. (Id. at 73.) What makes Niman unique is not simply that it incorporates the Force into lightsaber combat but the way in which it does so.
Though I hesitate to question Vaunk's opinion, I suspect that Niman's reputation as a lesser form compared to the others stems not from any deficiencies in a combat situation but instead from the difficulties in adapting it to a training environment. Because the other forms rely almost exclusively on bladework and a combatant's use of the Force is chiefly internal (e.g., increasing one's own strength, speed, or stamina), exchanging a live lightsaber for a training blade largely eliminates potential lethality, so the techniques can be demonstrated in full in a training environment. But traditional Niman, to a much greater degree than any other form, incorporates external Force techniques: Combatants use telekinesis to push and pull on their opponents' bodies directly and to manipulate their environment, turning nearby objects into projectiles and even – if they are true masters of the form – causing the ground itself to tremble beneath an opponent's feet. These telekinetic techniques are difficult to adapt to a training environment: Throwing a foe into a wall to cause injury is much easier than doing the same to a training partner while softening the blow before it can do real harm. Practitioners of Niman, especially younger Jedi still learning the form, therefore often practice the kinesthetic and telekinetic aspects of traditional Niman separately. Without the telekinetic elements, the simple bladework of traditional Niman cannot compete with the other forms; but a master of Niman, melding bladework and telekinesis into a unified whole, is a formidable opponent.
What defines Niman and distinguishes it from the other Forms is precisely what Kenobi identified as his greatest challenge in learning it: The practitioner of Niman must maintain a dual focus on both the kinesthetic and telekinetic elements of the form during combat. To focus on one at the expense of the other is to court disaster, as Niman's simplified blade techniques cannot stand up to the other forms without the telekinetic element to supplement, and telekinesis alone is of limited defensive use.
Defining Niman by this duality of focus also explains why Jar'Kai is classified as a subdiscipline of Niman, a categorization that confuses many Jedi. Why would a form generally known for its reduced focus on bladework incorporate as a subdiscipline the technique of wielding two blades? At first glance, Jar'Kai seems to be more similar to Soresu or Ataru, forms that focus on precision bladework. But this initial instinct is based on the externally visible characteristics of the Form rather than the practitioner's internal state. Looking beyond the physical, the internal discipline of a Jar'Kai practitioner is the same dual focus required by traditional Niman. The Jar'Kai practitioner must maintain focus on both blades separately while using them cohesively, just as a practitioner of traditional Niman balances and synthesizes the kinesthetic and telekinetic elements of the form into a unified whole.
