Although it may seem like Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker added new layers to the possibilities of Force healing, looking back at Star Wars: A New Hope reveals that Obi-Wan Kenobi might have used the ability long before the former hit theaters. Iterations of Force heal have been a feature of the Star Wars universe for quite some time, with the Jedi power making its way into novels, video games, and television shows. Games like Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic feature a healing mechanic for protagonists to use, while mobile Star Wars games include "healer" as a playable class.

Contemporary Star Wars media in particular has leaned heavily into the concept. Force healing is a central mechanic of The Rise Of Skywalker, but also features in hit Disney+ show The Mandalorian. Baby Yoda is shown trying to use the ability in the second episode, “Chapter 2: The Child” and succeeding at it in the seventh, “Chapter 7: The Reckoning”. Force healing also does not necessarily need to occur on organic matter. In Star Wars novel Ahsoka, Ahsoka Tano uses Force heal to mend the kyber crystals in a lightsaber. Rey herself uses this same technique in The Rise Of Skywalker to fix Luke's broken lightsaber, which had been split in two at the end of The Last Jedi. 

Related: Star Wars: Rey Healed Kylo Ren's Force Awakens Scar In Rise Of Skywalker

Within The Rise Of Skywalker, there are three primary instances of Force healing that happen onscreen. Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and Rey (Daisy Ridley) both use Force healing on each other in mortal instances, demonstrating the power behind the ability. Rey uses it to heal the fatal blow she bestows on Kylo while Kylo returns the favor by saving her life with Force healing, sacrificing himself in the process. However, not all instances of Force heal are grandiose; Rey also uses it on a much smaller scale on Pasaana, healing an injured vexis snake. According to The Rise Of Skywalker, Force healing works via a transfer of life force from one person to another, aligning to Star Wars concepts around balance. But while it's getting a renewed focus, it might've been present in the franchise from the start.

Force Heal's History From Rise of Skywalker

Rey Force healing a Vexis in The Rise of Skywalker

The Rise Of Skywalker's novelization illuminates very clearly where Rey learned Force healing from. According to the book, the sacred Jedi texts she smuggled out from Ahch-To introduced her to this new power. This is also confirmed in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Visual Dictionarywhich explains that the texts are also where Rey learned to mend kyber crystals. Many moviegoers were irritated by the introduction of such a powerful concept so far into the franchise's lifespan. The worry is the potential Force healing has to spoil emotional plot points from the movies that came before Star Wars 9. Like time travel, the ability to bring people back from the dead makes previous deaths seem unnecessary.

However, as Rey learned the skill from obscure ancient texts, it is possible it is an ability that had fallen out of use. Even if Force healing was once widespread knowledge, it is possible it could have become lost to the world, meaning Rey was acting almost as an archeologist in her uncovering of this great power. The Star Wars universe is vast. It is perfectly feasible that knowledge would be discovered, lost, and rediscovered over the course of generations. Rey is among the first people in her generation to reencounter Force healing and make any concerted efforts to bring it back, which explains why audiences haven’t seen characters use it before. If Force heal is also quite obscure and difficult knowledge to acquire, it would also explain why it hasn't simply been rediscovered whenever the information is lost. Audiences might wonder why, if this knowledge is so difficult to master, Kylo Ren caught onto the ability pretty quickly, but that could be chalked up to his Force dyad with Rey.

Obi-Wan Kenobi Resuscitates Luke In A New Hope... With Force Heal?

Star Wars obi-Wan Kenobi Heals Luke Skywalker

When Tusken Raiders attack Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in the Jundland Wastes in Star Wars: A New Hope, he is knocked unconscious, only to be saved by Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness). Obi-Wan leans down and places his hand on Luke’s temples. There is a quiet contemplation to this. It is clear Obi-Wan used the Force to heal Luke, but at the time of release (and for many years afterward) it wasn't clear exactly what he was doing.

Related: Rey's New Rise Of Skywalker Power Was Introduced In The Clone Wars

Through the information learned in The Rise Of Skywalker, audiences can connect his and Rey’s abilities as one and the same. Obi-Wan’s healing of Luke looks very similar to Rey’s Force healing of the vexis snake. They both place their palm on the injury sight for several moments and concentrate. In The Rise Of Skywalker, audiences are shown very clearly how the cut fades away on the vexis. The camera is much farther away in A New Hope, and Luke suffers an internal head injury, but The Rise Of Skywalker better contextualizes what exactly Obi-Wan is doing: using Force heal to undo Luke's likely concussion.

When Obi-Wan Could Have Learned Force Heal

If Force heal was common knowledge to the Jedi Order during the prequel timeline, it would completely undo much of the tension behind Anakin Skywalker's obsession with bringing loved ones back from the dead. From this, it can be assumed that between Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace and Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, knowledge of Force healing was inaccessible, at least to the wider galaxy.

There are several moments throughout the prequels when Obi-Wan (Ewan McGregor) does not use Force healing, but certainly would have if he had the ability. When Obi-Wan's mentor Qui-Gon (Liam Neeson) is killed in The Phantom Menace, Obi-Wan is unable to save him. He also cannot save Padme (Natalie Portman) in Revenge Of The Sith, so it is clear he gained the ability later, during his time on Tatooine. It wouldn’t be the only skill he picked up during his exile. It is during this time that Obi-Wan learned how to become a Force ghost, likely under the apprenticeship of his old master Qui-Gon. Whether Obi-Wan learned about the skill specifically from texts or through verbal lessons with Qui-Gon is left unclear. However, if Luke was able to track down obscure texts over the course of his lifetime, it is likely Obi-Wan himself would have been able to as well. The Jedi Order spans millennia, making it very likely multiple copies of the same information exist dotted around the galaxy.

The Star Wars expanded universe explains that the knowledge about Force ghosts is ancient and became lost for millennia until being rediscovered, paralleling what could have happened with Force healing and the ancient texts. Qui-Gon describes the ability to become a Force ghost as “a state acquired through compassion, not greed,” which rings true to the skills needed for Force healing. Force heal, as shown in Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker, is a matter of giving, of lending one’s own life force to another. The two lessons Obi-Wan would have learned as old Ben Kenobi were synergistic, and followed the trajectory of the man's character arc. If Obi-Wan makes one thing clear throughout the many Star Wars trilogies, it is that he is a man well-acquainted with this style of sacrifice.

Next: Star Wars Theory: Obi-Wan Kenobi Saved The Mandalorian