>>718765403
He needed to trap the characters and separate Obi-Wan from Qui-Gon, and have them see each other. That's how he came up with it. He did not really have any "lore" explanation in mind - it is a plot device, visual spectacle, dramatic tension, and as for what it actually is in-universe - it is meant to be mysterious. Lucas addressed this in the audio commentary for the film. Lucas does not really think in terms of "lore" - he is a filmmaker, he thinks in terms of visuals, spectacle, story, themes and drama. That's something people need to understand about Star Wars. "Lore" is usually written after the fact by other people in supplementary third party material, and it exists only to satisfy certain autism of certain people, and it doesn't really matter. Actual story is never dictated by the "lore."