What is the magic of “Star Wars?” George Lucas found inspiration for the saga in old Kurosawa samurai films, science fiction movies, books and, most notably, the teachings of Joseph Campbell.

Campbell was a professor of comparative mythology at Sarah-Lawrence College. He taught his students that mythology is being acted out in everyday life, and that the myths themselves are being regenerated every time we tell a new story.

George Lucas’ intention when he created the “Star Wars” epic was to retell the story of the hero’s journey, a recurring theme in mythology.

When you see “Episode 1,” you will not be disappointed. Lucas has given us an array of new characters who participate in a classic “Star Wars” mixture of mysterious worlds, epic space battles, and awesome lightsaber duels between good and evil. Each character has a role that parallels ancient mythology.

The story begins with a mercantile conflict between the opportunistic Trade Federation and the small planet of Naboo. The Federation has blockaded Naboo in hopes of resolving the dispute. The Galactic Senate has also sent hopes of resolution along with its ambassadors, Jedi Knights Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi Wan Kenobi.

When negotiations fail and the Senate fails to act, Queen Amidala, leader of the Naboo, takes the initiative and decides to fight the Federation. Thus is Amidala’s mythological status secured.

Queen Amidala is Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, reason and defensive war. Lucas has masterfully changed Athena’s symbolic role into a physical manifestation.

In “Episode 1,” the people do not follow a symbolic leader as they did with Athena. Amidala’s Athena instead leads a symbolic people. We do not see the people because Lucas has placed us on a higher plain with the gods where we can better watch the unraveling of the epic.

Qui-Gon Jinn, the Jedi master who discovers Anakin Skywalker, is Prometheus. Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to his people but with dire results.

Though Watto, slave owner of Anakin, is no god, Qui-Gon steals Anakin with a little Jedi influence over a dice rolled to determine the boy’s fate. Though Anakin is brought before Qui-Gon’s people, the Jedi Council, we will not witness the destructive consequences until the next installments of the epic.

Since “Star Wars” tells us the story of a hero, we should focus on our hero, Anakin Skywalker. The first clue that tells us of his hero status is that he had no father. He was the result of an immaculate conception, a virgin birth. As a result, Anakin has a strong bond with his mother, which will need to be broken if he is to continue his journey unhindered.

In myth, most heroes’ journeys begin with a dream or a vision. Anakin tells Qui-Gon he has had dreams of becoming a Jedi master and returning to free the slaves of Tatooine, the home planet of the Skywalkers.

When Qui-Gon can’t find enough money to buy necessary parts to repair Queen Amidala’s ship that is stranded on Tatooine, Anakin offers to participate in a pod race and give the winnings to Qui-Gon. Anakin has thus displayed another trait of past mythological heroes: He is giving to something bigger than himself without desire for reward. Our hero’s journey has begun.

Before Anakin can go with Qui-Gon to become a Jedi, he must break the bonds with his mother. In many cultures, initiation rites begin with the symbolic taking of the child from the mother’s arms. If the child looks back, then there may be problems with his future.

Some initiations are accompanied by scarification or circumcision. The night before the pod race, Anakin has cut himself while working on his pod racer. While Qui-Gon cleans the cut, Anakin looks into the sky with hopes of being the first to visit all the star systems. Then comes the actual moment when Anakin must leave his mother behind.

In the movie, some may consider this a melodramatic scene, but it is this interaction between Anakin and his mother that is the most important key to the entire epic. The child must go into the night alone and if he carries too many memories of the past, too many fears, he will suffer in the future. Yoda warns Anakin of this possibility.

Other mythological qualities are found beyond the characters of “Star Wars.” The Jedi and the Sith are like gods who are vying for control of the mortals. In fact, the idea of the light side of the force versus the dark side is directly out of Zoroastrian myth.

Ohrmazd, god of goodness, and Ahriman, the god of evil, according to Zoroaster belief, are doing battle this very moment. Their battle is manifested in the lives of all people and living things on Earth just as is the conflict between the light and dark sides of the living force in the “Star Wars” universe.

Searching for this much mythology in “Star Wars” may be too profound an undertaking for some, but do not fret. Not only has George Lucas created a mythological tale for us to learn from, but he has also created a magnificent story full of drama, action and adventure.

There are characters with whom we sympathize, a pod race that rivals the great chariot race in “Ben-Hur,” and a lightsaber duel that has us believing Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson), Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Darth Maul (Ray Park) just might actually be Jedi masters.

The parallels of mythology are found in the “Star Wars”‘ epic and in everyday life. Joseph Campbell writes:

“The latest incarnation of ‘Oedipus,’ the continued romance of ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ stand this afternoon on the corner of Forty-Second Street and Fifth Avenue, waiting for the traffic light to change.”

That is the magic of “Star Wars.”