The origins of the word "Jedi" in Star Wars are intrinsically linked to the Jedi Order's commitment to creating balance in the Force. What is "balance" in the Force? Long have Jedi Knights claimed to seek balance, however, they do so by serving only the light side. The origins of this view of the Force, and the very name "Jedi," date back millennia before the events of the films.
Before there were Sith and Jedi, the two diametrically opposed orders were one. In both Legends and current continuity, both of these orders can trace their origins to the Dai Bendu, a Force-religion that viewed the universe as unified by a singular, benevolent Force. In Legends, the Dai Bendu would settle upon the Deep Core world of Tython alongside other Force-sensitives. Together, they would found a new religious order dedicated to this balance: the Je'daii.
The Je'daii Sought (Literal) Balance in the Force
The Dark Horse Comics series Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi by John Ostrander and Jan Duursema explores this ancient period in Jedi history, before the Hundred-Year Darkness and the schism that would form the modern Sith and Jedi. While these early Je'daii were formed from multiple worshipers of the Force, it was the Dai Bendu's tongue that lent the Order its name. Je'daii is an amalgam of two ancient Dai Bendu words used on the ancient Jedi's home planet of Tython - Je, meaning "mystic," and daii, meaning "center." Je'daii, or "mystic center," references this early Je'daii view of focusing on forever striving for true balance within the Force, a mission their Jedi descendants would continue to strive for in the thousands of years to come. The Je'daii interpretation of this balance is more literal than the later Jedi: to the Je'daii, balance was achieved by embracing equal parts light and darkness. Both elements of the Force were natural, and if one was to understand the great mystery that is the Force then must study all of its aspects, the dark side included.
Throughout Dawn of the Jedi, Je'daii (including red-skinned members of the Sith species) are regularly seen employing both sides of the Force: protecting each other and the innocent while simultaneously calling upon the dark to unleash tempests of Force lightning. The world of Tython itself is rooted in this philosophy: the twin moons of light Ashla and dark Bogan circle the planet. Should the moons fall out of sync, Tython suffers devastating natural disasters. The ancient Je'daii strove to understand this dual aspect of the Force, believing that the dark was as integral to the light as the light was to the dark.
The Dark Side Pulls The Force Out of Balance
By the time of the Star Wars films, the word "Jedi" still derives from this belief in a "mystic center," and the Order still seeks balance in the Force. However, modern Jedi are wholly dedicated to the light, no longer exploring the dark to achieve this balance. Indeed, the prophecy of the Chosen One states that this mythical savior figure will bring about this balance by destroying the Sith, the Jedi's dark counterbalance to their light. It's unclear when this shift happened, as the Hundred-Year Darkness, the schism that would split the Sith and Jedi, came about from the future Sith wishing to explore and embrace the dark side. At least in modern continuity, the Jedi had already sought balance through the light and shunned the dark prior to the Order's fracture. The Je'daii approach of embracing both sides of the Force equally was doomed from the start: the dark side is a hungering predator, and to invite it in is to invite it to consume your entire being.
Interpretations of the Force and the role of the dark side within it vary wildly across religions and individuals. The Je'daii way would eventually fail, with the seductive influence of the dark side's corruption growing so heavy that the Order would fracture from its pull. The legacy of the Je'daii would live on in the Star Wars galaxy, however, gracing the Jedi for millennia with a name that echoed their fundamental mission: that above all else, the Jedi fight to bring balance to the Force.