Telekinesis

"Obi-Wan had never addressed telekinesis with me. It was likely that I wasn't strong enough to begin training in such an advanced field of study. That didn't mean I shouldn't try."

- Luke Skywalker in his personal writings

Telekinesis was the ability to lift, move and otherwise manipulate objects using the power of the Force.

Description
For a sufficiently skilled practitioner, the size, weight, distance, and mass of a targeted object did not matter. One could lift something as small as a piece of fruit to an X-wing starfighter, while they could also use it to manipulate liquids or to dispel gaseous substances. One could also be able to affect a target from another room or even several light years away while looking at them through a holocomm or viewscreen. Additionally, it was possible to affect targets that were otherwise obscured, such as the inside of a target, which notably could allow a target to affect technology to an extent by manipulating its internal or external mechanisms. This allowed for feats such as disabling and then reactivating thermal detonators or opening doors without touching them. Some users are also skilled with activating or deactivating lightsabers from a distances or keeping the blade ignited while not touching it. This additionally allowed a user to throw their lightsabers like boomerangs while manipulating their tradjectory to strike a distant target before causing it to deactivate and return to the user's hand. Despite the ability allowing the user the ability to manipulate targets without physical contact and from a variable distance, the precision, accuracy, magnitude, range and intensity of the ability was tied to the users concentration, willpower, emotions, senses, and spacial awareness. Therefore, a user power could be weakened, nullified, or destabilize, causing said user to be unable to properly control it.

The power was generally used at close range, but in rare instances, a user was able to affect a target only by having to know the targets location relative to themselves, whether it be around a corner or in another room. As such, the power could be applied even if the user did not have a direct line of sight to the target with enough concentration, even if the target was light-years away, viewed though a holocomm or viewscreen.

During meditation, which drew forth a stronger and more direct connection with the Force, the enhanced state of consciousness could sometimes inadvertently affect one's surroundings, usually by causing surrounding objects, or even the practitioner themselves to levitate. In fact, some practitioners were so skilled and powerful that they could consciously resist gravity, inertia, friction and other physical forces to enhance their mobility, notably allowing them to slow their falls.

Despite the strengths of the ability, many users of the ability were susceptible to limitations, which were in part brought on due to their own physical and mental limitations. The weight of an object could affect the speed in which an object could be moved and it was normally less easy to control targets that were already moving or had stronger force already exerted on them, such as debris and concussive force of an explosion. In addition, the effort of using the ability was able to induce physical and mental exhaustion. Even the most powerful and skilled users of the Force commonly refrained from repeated use of this ability in combat, as the effort and concentration could leave a user vulnerable and potentially weakened against their opponent. The ability was usually accompanied by motion of the eyes, hands or even the entire body, the latter being the most common way to use the power, which could also limit use of the ability, especially when the user's mind or senses were strained or overwhelmed.

Users of the Dark Side could use physical pain, as well as intense and raw emotions, to strengthen their power to allow them to exert more telekinetic effort than normal, especially during moments of great stress, fear, desperation, and rage.

Combatively, the ability could be used to exert harmful amounts of force against a target, such as to push, throw or choke them. This allowed a user to grab an opponent with the Force to suspend them in the air, occasionally holding them up by a certain part of their body, such as the neck, or to pin them against walls and ceilings. Alternatively, this could be used to pull or hold back an opponent, effectively restraining or completely immobilizing them. Furthermore, as a user can grip and squeeze certain parts of their targets, they can potentially manipulate their targets motor skills or make them unable to move. This could also be done more subtly, such as to disrupt the aim of an opponent, usually with a telekinetic shove, wether they be using longer-ranged weapons such as blasters or melee weapons such as lightsabers.

History
"If Master Obi-Wan caught me doing this, he'd be very grumpy."

- Anakin Skywalker as he used telekinesis on a piece of fruit to entertain Padmé Amidala.

Once, when having a meal with Padmé Amidala, Anakin Skywalker used telekinesis to manipulate a piece of fruit. He lamented that Master Obi-Wan Kenobi would be grumpy if he knew that he was doing it because a Jedi was not supposed to use the Force for frivolous purposes.

Upon discovering his wife's death, Darth Vader inadvertently unleashed his anger, despair, shame, and grief on the chamber of the Grand Republic Medical Facility where he was cybernetically rebuilt, resulting in a tremor inside the room that severely damaged it, while multiple objects and droids were telekinetically crushed. When Palpatine was distracted by his glee over his victory over the Jedi and his new apprentice, Vader was able to sent him flying against a wall. However, his second attempt to choke his new master with the Force resulted in failure, as Palpatine was ready to for it and his power protected him from Vader's.

Luke Skywalker lamented the fact that Kenobi had never addressed the subject of telekinesis in his lessons during the brief time that he trained under him, likely because Kenobi felt he wasn't ready to train in something that was considered an advanced field of study. The power could be used to focus the kyber crystal used in a lightsaber using one's mind. Skywalker decided to give it a try, but couldn't seem to get the hang of it at first. He was pleased when he was finally able to access the ability.

When Luke Skywalker was training under Master Yoda, he was tasked with lifting his X-wing starfighter out of a Dagobah swamp, but did not believe it was possible. Yoda proved him wrong by completing the task himself, after which Skywalker again expressed disbelief. Yoda told him this was why he failed.

Kylo Ren was skilled in telekinesis, able to suspend a blaster bolt in midair and leave it harmlessly hanging until he left the scene, which caused it to turn towards and then hit a wall as it was released. He could immobilize victims in a paralyzing grip, to the point where he could control their motor skills. His grip allowed him to squeeze a specific body part, notably gripping Dopheld Mitaka by the neck from across a room to drag him over to his hand. Even his use of the mind probe was strong enough to exert physical force on a subject, as he pinned Poe Dameron against his interrogation chair and held up Del Meeko by the arms without touching them.

Rey, despite having no formal training in the use of the Force, was able to override Ren's attempt to use telekinesis to summon a lightsaber that had once belonged to Luke Skywalker, summoning it to her own hand instead. However, this was while Ren was weakened physically and emotionally by Chewbacca's bowcaster and killing his father. Her knowledge in the use of this skill was also partially taken from the memories she managed to extract from Kylo when he attempted to use the Force to interrogate her earlier.

Behind the scenes
Telekinesis first appeared in the original Star Wars films and in the continuity of Star Wars Legends covered a wide range of named abilities including the Force choke and Force Pull. Telekinesis was first identified by name in canon in the 2015 novel Heir to the Jedi by Kevin Hearne.

Non-canon appearances

 * Star Wars Epic Yarns: The Empire Strikes Back
 * William Shakespeare's The Force Doth Awaken