Jedi Master / Legends The title of Jedi Master was the highest formal rank obtainable by a member of the Jedi Order . Reserved for those who had shown exceptional devotion and skill as well as balance in the Force and often combat , only individuals who had been given the rank of Master could sit on the Jedi High Council , with few exceptions ( such as the case of Anakin Skywalker ) , or any of the three other Councils . Overview . The rank of Master was a title bestowed upon very few Knights in every generation . As such , Masters made up the smallest percent of the Order ' s membership . The most common path to this rank was to train several Padawans as a Knight , typically one right after the other , and have them all successfully pass their Jedi Trials . If one did not wish to train several students , a Knight could choose to undergo a modified version of the Trials of Knighthood , or gain attention for their service to the Republic . Each of these feats could gain the High Council ' s acknowledgment and result in a promotion to the rank of Master . When Luke Skywalker reformed the Order following the Great Jedi Purge , he promoted his students to the rank of Master based on their degree of mastery of the Force . As the Order began to grow , most Masters were promoted based on the extraordinary deeds they performed for the New Republic . One well known example was the promotion of Jedi Knight Kyle Katarn following the defeat of the Dark Jedi Desann at his blade . A practice strongly discouraged by the High Council and little seen during the Golden Age of the Old Republic was the idea that a Knight could judge him or herself and assume the rank of Master without the Council ' s approval . This was not uncommon practice during the Old and New Sith Wars as the Order was not centrally controlled during the period and many saw their victories against the Sith a sign of their skills and achievements . One well - known example of this practice was the ascension to mastery by Jedi Jorus C ' baoth ; indeed even his clone , Joruus C ' baoth , would also claim himself a Jedi Master . Luke Skywalker was forced to promote himself due to the simple fact that there were no senior Jedi alive to grant him the rank formally . Those Jedi Masters whose talents were extremely superior were asked to join the ranks of the Jedi Councils , their promotion was often based on their specialized knowledge or skill sets , or vast experience in the field . As a member of a Council , a Master was given great responsibility within the Order , and often was seen at the Coruscant Temple or satellite facility instructing Initiates in the basics of the Order ' s techniques . The members of the Council were not necessarily the most skilled with a lightsaber or even those possessed of the greatest range of Force powers . Instead , membership was reserved to those Masters who could see through a situation or add insight the best swordsmen could not ever perceive . It should be noted that the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker , who may have surpassed all the Masters on the Council in raw power , was never granted the level of Master — despite the Supreme Chancellor Palpatine ' s special appointment of him to the High Council during the Clone Wars ; something that had never been done in the history of the Order . Other Masters , such as Qui - Gon Jinn were members of what was known as the Old Guard , or those Jedi that were under consideration for appointment to one of the Councils . In Master Jinn ' s case however , some members considered him too radical to sit on the esteemed body . While Master was the greatest of the formal ranks of the Order , the High Council would select a Master who possessed the strongest mind , the greatest leadership qualities , and incomparable mastery of the Force and name them Grand Master , the undisputed leader of the Order . It should be noted that in the Order ' s earliest years , several Grand Masters were appointed , though this practice was abandoned following the Ruusan Reformation . In addition to the Grand Master rank , the High Council and the Council of First Knowledge appointed a leader to guide discussion and moderate debates . In the case of the High Council , the Master of the Order was a rank often held by the Grand Master himself . The First Knowledge Council was led by the Caretaker , who at one point shared the title of Chief Librarian of the Librarian ' s Assembly . While there were generally no locks at the Temple on Coruscant , there were a few chambers sealed to non - Masters . The Holocron Vaults in the Jedi Archives were sealed off to all but those members of the High Council , as was the Treasury located under the High Council Chamber . This was to ensure that the treasures of the Order did not fall into the wrong hands , especially the dangerous Sith holocrons found in the Archives Vaults .