Star Wars helped George Harrison Express his Spirituality

Throughout the years, the Beatles have drawn the most unlikely of inspirations for their songs and their lives in general. From a spat with their wives to newspaper clippings, anything could stimulate one of the fab four to write iconic songs. Moreover, it turns out that Star Wars helped George Harrison in more than just songs. His son, Dhani Harrison, has revealed that the iconic trilogy actually helped Harrison in expressing his spirituality.

Related: George Harrison Was The Hottest Of The Beatles

Dhani Harrison recently had a chat with StarWars.com, as he has been a lifelong fan of the franchise. In fact, for Dhani, A New Hope is his favorite movie of all time. However, he was not the only star Wars shill in the family. It turns out that his father, the quiet Beatle George Harrison, was also a big fan of George Lucas’s saga. Dhani even noticed a similarity between Harrison’s My Sweet Lord and Yoda’s words:

Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter.

Dhani then recalls what his father George Harrison said about Star Wars and his spirituality. He said he loved the way the franchise addressed a greater force. Moreover, that even helped him in expressing his spirituality in front of others, especially those who did not believe in a higher being. Dhani revealed:

We were always very into [The Empire Strikes Back], obviously. My dad had a way of explaining things. He used to say things like, ‘If you talk about God, you can watch people’s toes curl.’ But if you use the term “the Force,” essentially to mean exactly the same thing, or the universe, it’s a way more palatable thing that people with no spiritual or religious affiliations can get behind. So I think he always enjoyed that — the way that George Lucas explained that spirituality. Because it made his job easier. [Laughs] It made the explanations of things easier.

Just like Obi-Wan, George Harrison would tell stories to Dhani and his friends

Apart from revealing how his father was influenced by Star Wars, he also revealed some childhood memories associated with the franchise. Recalling a fond memory, he reveals how on Star Wars night George Harrison would just sit with him and his friends, telling them stories like Obi-Wan Kenobi, saying:

My friends would kind of end up back at my house in the garden, and it would be like around twilight on a Saturday night, and we’d find my dad somewhere in the garden. Sooner or later it would turn into like, five teenagers sitting there, listening to him lay things down in a very Obi-Wan kind of way

With the wisdom and spiritual enlightenment that George Harrison carried, it’s not surprising to see what he loved about Star Wars. But, would he have loved the prequels and the sequels in a similar way? I’m not sure if the quiet Beatle would have enjoyed the Midi-chlorian reveal from The Phantom Menace. What are your thoughts on the matter? Let us know in the comments below.