‘Ahsoka’: World Between Worlds Explained – Can It Bring Back the Dead?

The events of episode 4 of ‘Ahsoka’ allowed us to see more action in the storyline. But while that may be true, we also saw the return of one of the most incredible and mysterious concepts in the Star Wars lore, and we’re talking about the World Between Worlds, a mystical plane that we last saw in ‘Star Wars: Rebels.’ We even saw the return of Anakin Skywalker in that mysterious world. So, what is the World Between Worlds, and can it bring back the dead?

The World Between Worlds is a realm that the Force created and exists outside of time and space. It is basically a plane of existence that’s well beyond the normal confines of the galaxy. There is even a suggestion that the World Between Worlds also exists as a conduit between life and death.

The introduction of the World Between Worlds in ‘Rebels’ allowed us to see how time travel can be possible in Star Wars. But this isn’t a conventional kind of time travel because it is a closed loop wherein things that are supposed to happen will happen. It can be a bit too confusing, but let’s try to explain the World Between Worlds in greater detail.

A realm outside the confines of time and space

Back in the events of ‘Star Wars: Rebels,’ Ezra Bridger and the other members of the Spectres learned that the Empire had occupied the Jedi Temple on Lothal and were excavating something strange. This archeological dig allowed the Empire to find the doorway to a mystical plane of existence that they knew nothing about back then. But Ezra found a way to open this doorway as it led him to a place called the World Between Worlds.

In this strange world, Ezra found several windows that opened up to different points in time. He eventually found a window that led to the time when Ahsoka Tano was fighting Darth Vader on Malachor V two years prior. That was how he saved Ahsoka from Vader as they both ended up in the World Between Worlds and understood that this was a realm outside the normal confines of time and space.

The fact that the World Between Worlds exists beyond time and space was why Ezra was able to save Ahsoka from Vader two years prior. On top of that, after Ezra and Ahsoka got separated from one another when Emperor Palpatine tried to enter this realm, she ended up in Malachor, where she found another doorway to the World Between Worlds. She is believed to have a spiritual journey after entering this doorway.

So, in that regard, the World Between Worlds is a plane of existence that allows those gifted in the Force to see different points in time and even enter them. But the thing about this world is that it is a closed-loop situation wherein everything is meant to happen. That same concept applies to the time when Ezra saved Ahsoka from Vader, as it was clear that this event was meant to happen and that Ezra never changed the events of the past when he took Ahsoka out of that situation.

But Ahsoka also realized that using the World Between Worlds could have dire consequences. When Ezra saw that there was a window that led to the exact same time where Kanan Jarrus died, Ahsoka stopped him from meddling with the past because Kanan’s death was meant to happen, and taking Kanan out of that situation would have killed Ezra, and the other Spectres that he protected by sacrificing himself.

In short, the World Between Worlds is not an omnipotent solution to the problems of the past because there are still consequences that the person must consider when using this realm outside of time and space. And we also know that there’s a good chance that the World Between Worlds is more than just a time machine.

It could be beyond life and death

As mentioned, the World Between Worlds exists beyond the confines of time and space. But while that may be true, we still don’t know many things about this mysterious plane of existence. There’s even a good reason to believe that it also exists beyond life and death as well.

In episode 4 of Ahsoka, Baylan Skoll struck Ahsoka down as he and Sabine Wren thought she had been killed. At the end of the episode, Ahsoka is seen lying down unconscious before she wakes up in a realm that seems to be very similar to the World Between Worlds. And the person she found there was none other than Anakin Skywalker in all of his Clone Wars-era glory.

We know that Anakin was already dead by this time because he died at least five years before the events of ‘Ahsoka.’ When he died, he was already an older man who no longer resembled his old self because of his injuries to Mustafar. The most interesting thing he told Ahsoka in episode 4 was that he wasn’t expecting to see her this early. This suggests that Ahsoka was inching closer to death after getting struck down by Baylan.

Of course, the fact that Anakin was also in the World Between Worlds is interesting because he is already dead. This opens the possibility that this realm could also be a border between life and death. And it could even be a realm beyond life and death, similar to how it is beyond the confines of time and space.

Another thing to look at is the fact that Emperor Palpatine was actively searching for a way to enter the World Between Worlds back in ‘Rebels.’ That was probably why he was trying to seduce Ezra over to the dark side, as he understood that Ezra could open the doorway to this plane of existence. And we know that Palpatine’s goal was to become immortal.

In that regard, it is possible that Palpatine wanted to enter the World Between Worlds not to have control over time and space but to seek the secrets of immortality. This was hinted at in the novel ‘Star Wars: The Secrets of the Sith.’ In that book, Palpatine said that the World Between Worlds is “a conduit between the living and the dead.” And that could explain why he wanted to enter it.

This opens up the possibility that the World Between Worlds also allows the living and the dead to interact with one another. It could also be a border between life and death, as Ahsoka entered it after she suffered what could have been a fatal attack from Baylan. Whatever the case may be, this realm is still quite mysterious. The fact that Palpatine coveted a way to enter it could explain how and why he was able to preserve his soul before it was transferred to a clone.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!