Way of the Mandalore

An ancient belief system practiced by orthodox members of Mandalorian society, such as the Children of the Watch, the Way of the Mandalore consisted of a code of behavior and traditions that honored Mandalorian heritage. It involved protecting fellow Mandalorians but also wearing a helmet at all times. The Way stated that if a Mandalorian removed their helmet in front of another living being, they were no longer permitted to wear it nor considered Mandalorians anymore. Instead, they were considered apostates and were issued with a decree of exile. Redemption was only possible through bathing within the Living Waters beneath the Mines of Mandalore.

It was only considered acceptable for a follower of the Way to not wear a helmet if they were too young to speak the Creed and to temporarily remove it in order to eat, and even then they had to do so out of the sight of others. When food was served, each Mandalorian would be responsible of finding a hiding place away from their company, except for war party leaders who had the honor of staying by the fire to keep warm. Mandalorians who adhered to the Way would state "This is the Way," a legendary Mandalorian motto, when following its ideals. Mandalorians not of that Creed would treat followers of the Way with scorn, and viewed their beliefs as superstitious. In turn, the followers of the Way saw those individuals as not being true Mandalorians. The followers of the Way believed in curses that were prophesized in the Creed and claimed that their adherence to the Way preserved the Mandalorian legacy for generations. Adherents also saw keeping their word was a matter of honor.

Followers of the Way believed foundlings were the future and reserved beskar for them. They took care of foundlings until they were of age or reunited with their own kind. When foundlings who followed The Way came of age, they performed a ceremony for the foundling's swearing of the Creed. The ceremony included banners with clan signets and drummers. The foundling had to stand in water, recite the words of the Creed and to swear to walk the Way. A helmet was then placed on the foundling's head, never to be removed again, and the tribe joined to say "This is the Way." The foundling then swore to never remove their helmet in the presence of other living beings from that moment on. Foundlings would train until they were taken as a Mandalorian apprentice by a mentor.

The Way was followed by at least one Mandalorian tribe, known simply as "the Tribe," which resided in an underground covert on Nevarro during the era of the New Republic. In 9 ABY, when the Mandalorian bounty hunter Din Djarin got into an altercation with Paz Vizsla in the enclave after Vizsla had accused Djarin of being a coward for using Imperial beskar to create his armor, a Mandalorian armorer reminded them both of the Way of the Mandalore, stopping the fight. Later, the members of the Tribe protected Djarin from members of the Bounty Hunters' Guild when he broke the Bounty Hunter Code by rescuing Grogu. Despite the fact that revealing themselves openly would necessitate relocating their covert to remain in hiding, the Tribe assisted Djarin as a fellow Mandalorian who followed the Way. Following the battle, Gideon's Imperial remnant found the tribe and attacked it, killing many of the Tribe's members.

When the farmer Omera asked Djarin if he ever removed his helmet publicly, he stated that he never did as he followed his way of life since he was rescued by the Mandalorians as a young boy.

After being caught in the explosion of an E-Web heavy repeating blaster cannon during a clash on Nevarro against an Imperial holdout led by Moff Gideon, Djarin was badly injured. While Carasynthia Dune, Greef Karga, and Grogu escaped into the Nevarro sewer, IG-11, an IG-series assassin droid who had been reprogrammed as a nurse droid, insisted that he remove Djarin's helmet, but was instead greeted by Din Djarin's blaster pistol as he aimed it at the droid to stop him from removing it. However, he lowered his blaster when IG-11 reminded him that he was lifeless and therefore Djarin would not be seen by a living being, which allowed the IG-series droid to remove Djarin's helmet and heal him with a bacta spray. After he was healed, they went to the covert and found the Armorer, who had remained to salvage what she could. She told Djarin that according to the Way, the foundling was in his care until he was reunited with his own kind. She forged him a signet, making him and Grogu a clan of two, and granted him a jetpack.

Djarin, quested to reunite Grogu with his own kind, looked for other Mandalorians, as he thought they were able to lead him to a Jedi. He found Bo-Katan Kryze, Koska Reeves, and Axe Woves on the moon of Trask. However, as the three Mandalorians took off their helmets, Djarin angrily dismissed them after realizing they did not follow the Way. Kryze told him that her armor had passed down for three generations, that she had been born on Mandalore, and had fought in the Great Purge. To Djarin's astonishment, Kryze revealed that he was one of the Children of the Watch, a cult of religious Mandalorian zealots that broke away from Mandalorian society to pursue the re-establishment of the ancient Way of the Mandalore. Not believing her to be a true Mandalorian, Djarin left the group. Kryze and the others eventually met up with Djarin again, saving him from group of Quarrens. Kryze insisted to buy Djarin a drink. Inside a local inn, she convinced Djarin to aid them on their mission to steal weapons shipments from an Imperial Gozanti-class cruiser that belonged to Moff Gideon's Imperial Remnant.

In exchange, Kryze promised to give Djarin information about the location of a Jedi. Together, they infiltrated the ship. When Kryze stated that they were coming up to hijack the ship, Djarin complained about Kryze changing their deal. Kryze taunted him by uttering the mantra "This is the Way," telling him that if he wanted her information about the Jedi, he would help her take the ship. Eventually, they succeeded in their mission. Djarin declined her offer to join their group, and Kryze revealed the location of Ahsoka Tano. Later, while infiltrating the Morak Imperial refinery alongside Migs Mayfeld while disguised as a Juggernaut Pilots, Djarin had to download data from a terminal. As it required a facial scan, the Mandalorian wrestled with the decision, but removed his helmet to allow the scan. Recovering the data allowed him to locate Gideon's light cruiser, where Grogu was being held. Later, the Mandalorian removed his helmet again to let Grogu see his face before the foundling left with Jedi Luke Skywalker.

Sometime later, Djarin sought out his tribe again, and traveled to the space station Glavis Ringworld. He found the covert in the substrata. Djarin presented the Darksaber that he had captured from Moff Gideon, and the Armorer recounted the tale of the Night of a Thousand Tears, which was part of the Great Purge, and told him that although the Mandalorian civilization had stood for ten thousand years, it was nearly wiped out by the Empire. She claimed it was a curse prophesized in the Creed, because those who were born on Mandalore lost their way, and only those who had embraced the Way escaped the curse, including their sect which was cloistered on the Concordian moon. Later, Paz Vizsla challenged Djarin to a duel, as he wanted to wield the Darksaber, although the Armorer intervened before Djarin struck the killing blow. When the Armorer asked the pair if they had ever removed their helmets, Djarin admitted that he did. Vizsla called him an apostate and ordered him to leave, while Djarin asked for forgiveness from the Armorer, who told him the only way to atone was in the living waters beneath the mines of Mandalore. Djarin then departed from them.

Later, having joined with Daimyo Boba Fett on Tatooine, Djarin became involved in a conflict with the Pyke Syndicate. When offered the chance to escape, Djarin refused, telling Fett that he had made a promise, even though the latter thought that it was "bantha fodder."

Sometime later, the Tribe relocated to another covert on a desert astronomical object with lakes. There they were joined with more surviving members of the Children of the Watch. They held a ceremony for the foundling Ragnar's swearing of the Mandalorian Creed. The Armorer recited the words and Ragnar repeated her. The ceremony was interrupted by a dinosaur turtle when Ragnar was swearing to never remove his helmet. The tribe failed to defeat the dinosaur, until Djarin arrived in his N-1 starfighter, striking the beast with cannon fire. Djarin was still not accepted in the Tribe due to his decree of exile but would redeem himself by bathing in the living waters, accidentally resulting in Kryze being "redeemed" as well due to her diving in to save him once he fell.

In the end, the Armorer would decide that Kryze could walk "both worlds:" the orthodox path of the Way and the unorthodox path of her background, allowing Kryze to remove her helmet once more. The Mandalorians who followed the Way and those of Clan Kryze, who did not, agreed to come together for the reconquest of Mandalore, joining with other Mandalorian survivors of the Great Purge once they reached the planet. Under the leadership of Kryze and the Armorer together, the Mandalorians would reclaim the planet from Gideon's Imperial remnant and usher in a new era: Mandalorians who walked the Way and those who did not lived together in peace.

The Way of the Mandalore was first described in the 2019 live-action television series The Mandalorian.

• LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga