Yoda possessed a secondary lightsaber. He constructed this backup weapon and stored it on Dagobah within his dwelling in 3 ABY. This occurred after he lost his primary lightsaber during a confrontation within the Galactic Senate versus Darth Sidious, which was subsequently obliterated by fire during a celebration marking the Jedi Order's demise in 19 BBY.
Luke Skywalker eventually came into ownership of the lightsaber following Yoda's passing in 4 ABY. After a period of five years, he presented the weapon to Grogu, offering him a choice between it and acquiring beskar armor. Ultimately, Grogu opted for the beskar protection over the lightsaber, returning to Din Djarin.
This lightsaber was a single-bladed shoto type, characterized by a short blade, a straight, cylindrical hilt, an emitter shroud, and its power source was a green kyber crystal.
The Jedi Grand Master known as Yoda owned several lightsabers throughout his life. In 3 ABY, Yoda placed one of these lightsabers inside a container, along with keepsakes and ancient writings, inside his residence on the Outer Rim world of Dagobah. This occurred after the specific lightsaber he had previously cherished was lost in a battle within the Galactic Senate against the Sith Lord Darth Sidious. Sidious intended to keep Yoda's original lightsaber as a trophy within the Imperial Palace. However, it was destroyed by fire during a celebration of the Jedi Order's extermination on the Imperial center, Coruscant, by Grand Vizier Mas Amedda in 19 BBY. Yoda, in his self-imposed isolation, then decided to cease wielding a lightsaber.
Following Yoda's demise in 4 ABY, the lightsaber, along with its storage box, came into the possession of Yoda's final Jedi student, Luke Skywalker. In 9 ABY, Skywalker presented the saber to Grogu—a young member of Yoda's species—who was undergoing training by Skywalker at his Jedi academy on the Outer Rim planet Ossus. Grogu faced a choice: accept the lightsaber and continue his Jedi training, or choose the beskar armor forged for him at the request of his Mandalorian guardian Din Djarin, surrendering to their bond and abandoning the Jedi path. Grogu declined the lightsaber and was returned to Djarin with the armor by Skywalker.
The mention of Yoda's second lightsaber was first introduced after the fact in the 2016 reference book Star Wars: Complete Locations. The co-authors were Simon Beecroft, Kerrie Dougherty, Jason Fry, James Luceno, and Kristin Lund. The lightsaber's initial appearance occurred in The Book of Boba Fett television series episode "Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger," which Dave Filoni directed in 2022.
In the Disney Gallery: The Book of Boba Fett documentary, both Mark Hamill, the actor playing Luke Skywalker, and Graham Hamilton, his body double, were seen on set with the lightsaber during the filming of "Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger."
Star Wars: Complete Locations depicted Yoda's first lightsaber as being stored inside a box within Yoda's Hut during the events of Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back. At the time, this was seen as a contradiction because the same lightsaber was destroyed in the comic book Darth Vader (2017) 1. When writer Charles Soule was questioned on this, he speculated that Yoda might have constructed a new one, that he had multiple lightsabers, or that Darth Sidious created a replica to make a statement. Matt Martin of the Lucasfilm Story Group later stated that they were aware of the inconsistency but that it was not an error, as Yoda likely possessed numerous lightsabers throughout his life. Ultimate Star Wars, New Edition later confirmed that the lightsaber in Darth Vader was not a fake.
The discrepancy was seemingly addressed in the 2022 comic Crimson Reign 3, which stated that one of Yoda's lightsabers was destroyed during the celebration. However, the short story "Masters" later established that Sidious wanted to obtain Yoda's first lightsaber after his death and keep it within the Imperial Palace as a trophy, implying that Sidious did not have it destroyed as depicted in Darth Vader 1.
Star Wars Encyclopedia: The Comprehensive Guide to the Star Wars Galaxy later confirmed that Mas Amedda destroyed the lightsaber that Yoda lost in his fight against Sidious, and the lightsaber offered to Grogu was a spare lightsaber found in Yoda's hut.