I’ve always found small details in Star Wars some of the most powerful. One of those details is something many people don’t talk about much—a simple pot that Obi-Wan gave to Yoda during their time in hiding. It wasn’t a weapon or some ancient relic, but over the years, it became a quiet but meaningful piece of Yoda’s life on Dagobah.
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Something from Obi-Wan That Stayed With Yoda
After the fall of the Jedi Order, both Obi-Wan and Yoda went into exile—separated by distance but still connected through the Force and memory. During this time, Obi-Wan gave Yoda a pot. I know, sounds ordinary. But this wasn’t just for cooking stew in a swamp. It was something that Yoda kept with him for decades, through years of silence and solitude.
From the novel From a Certain Point of View, there’s a line that stuck with me:
“Obi-Wan’s small pot, rounded by his own hands.”
That’s not a detail you’d throw in for no reason. Yoda had placed it on a shelf above his bed, and whenever he looked at it, it reminded him of Obi-Wan—someone who truly understood the cost of the Clone Wars and what they had lost.
He didn’t just look at it now and then either. He used it. It was part of his everyday life. The pot made the exile less empty, even if only in small ways. And when you’re living alone on a foggy, wet planet for years, those small things matter.
When the Pot Became Part of Something Bigger
Later in that same book, there’s a moment when Yoda is being hunted by a probe droid on Dagobah. He doesn’t have a lightsaber anymore, and instead of panicking, he reaches for something familiar: the pot. And with the Force, he launches it straight into the droid’s eye:
“Obi-Wan’s pot flew through the swirl of sand and into the bulbous eye, shattering it in a rush of sparks.”
It was the last time Yoda would ever use the pot. Right after that moment, he feels something change. The book describes how he suddenly senses Obi-Wan growing stronger, then vanishing into the Force. This is the exact moment Obi-Wan dies at the hands of Vader on the Death Star.
“At that exact moment—Yoda felt Obi-Wan grow suddenly stronger, and stronger, and stronger, and then move in a quick burst into the netherworld of the Force.”
That hit me the first time I read it. The fact that the pot, this quiet part of Yoda’s life, was there in that final moment they shared through the Force—it meant more than just being a tool. It’s not spelled out, but you can feel the weight of it in the way it’s written.
What Happened After
A few days later, Yoda returned to his hut. He had cleaned it, dried it out, trimmed the blanket. But the shelf where he used to keep the pot was empty now. And that’s when the absence really hit:
“But the shelf where he had always set the pot was empty, and every time he looked at it, he felt a stillness where he had once felt vibration, and he remembered.”
He tried to remind himself of what he had always taught: “Mourn them do not. Miss them do not.” But those words didn’t stop the feeling that lingered.
“But he was lonely. And he was lonely, and old. And he had failed.”
That part stood out even more than the destruction of the pot. Even after decades of training, teaching, and sacrifice, Yoda sat alone in a small hut, looking at an empty shelf, feeling like he’d missed his chance—not just with Anakin, but maybe with the next Skywalker too.
The Other Items Yoda Kept
The pot wasn’t the only thing Yoda held onto during his exile. He also kept Qui-Gon Jinn’s Jedi robes, which he used as a blanket. Yoda didn’t bring many things with him to Dagobah, but he kept the things that reminded him of his closest friends.
These items helped ground him during the roughest moments of his isolation—especially when he had to reflect on all the decisions and regrets from his time as a Jedi Master. Even when the Force was with him, these physical pieces still meant something.