C'Thian

Ancient history

Although Vulcan civilization goes back much farther than that of Humans for example, there are still many gaps in Vulcan prehistory. Such as the Obelisks of ancient Vulcan, which were lost for many years but were an important archaeological discovery when they were finally excavated. P'Jem monastery was founded for religious purposes. As far back as Vulcan memory goes, they have never been conquered. Memory goes back so far that Vulcans cannot conceive of a conqueror. According to Spock, early Vulcans once subscribed to a "martial philosophy." These early Vulcans followed a pagan religion with many gods, including gods of war, death and peace. They celebrated many religious holidays as well, such as Rumarie. Some rituals such as the Vulcan wedding ceremony have remained unchanged from the "time of the beginning."

Surak

Surak was a legendary Vulcan philosopher, scientist, and logician, considered the greatest of all who ever lived on Vulcan and the father of the modern Vulcan civilization.

Life

Surak lived in the 4th century, during the Time of Awakening. He was a scientist, he was considered on the same level as Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton. Surak walked in Vulcan's Forge, beginning in the Gateway and crossing the Plain of Blood. His logic was said to have cooled it from the heat of battle. It was here that he founded the T'Karath Sanctuary. Surak told stories of the IDIC. He stated that the IDIC "had no end," and that its name was only a shadow of its true meaning. He was also an active mind melder. Surak's followers included T'Klass, one of the first Kolinahr masters. During the Time of Awakening, Vulcan suffered from a series of devastating wars, which nearly destroyed the planet. In the early stages of what was to be another devastating war, Surak's followers sent emissaries to propose peace. Many of these emissaries were killed, but over time they achieved peace on their planet. Surak was killed in the last battle against "those who marched beneath the Raptor's wings." He died from radiation sickness by atomic weapons on Mount Seleya.

Surak's katra

Just prior to his death, Surak's katra was taken and housed in a katric ark. This ark was discovered in 2137 by Syrran, who became the holder of Surak's katra. With Surak's katra, Syrran founded the Syrranite movement. Syrran melded with his followers, letting them all touch Surak's mind. Syrran died in 2154 during a sand fire and transferred Surak's katra to Captain Jonathan Archer. Archer began having visions of Surak's time, and was able to find the T'Karath Sanctuary and the Kir'Shara. An attempt was made by T'Pau to remove Surak's katra from Archer, but it failed, as Surak wished to remain within Archer. After Archer finished his quest, Surak's katra was placed in the mind of another Vulcan priest.

Surak's Legacy

Surak's original writings (the "Kir'Shara") were believed to have disappeared by the 22nd century, although many copies of his teachings were recorded by his followers.  These teachings led to the majority of Vulcans purging their emotions. A group of Vulcans, known as the V'tosh ka'tur, examined these writings, and believed that Surak wanted Vulcans to master their emotions, not purge them. Many of them existed in the 22nd century. The Teachings of Surak were translated into English by Skon prior to 2152. After the Kir'Shara was discovered in 2154, it ushered in the Vulcan Reformation. During the 23rd century, a Vulcan courier was named Surak. Items from before his time were labeled as "pre-Surak" by the 24th century.

Katra

The katra, or living spirit, is the essence of the Vulcan mind and can be transferred to another person moments before death.

The Katra is believed to be similar to the Human soul. And is what travels before and after life. Some believe that the katra may form itself to resemble its original host body once it reaches Sha Ka Ree. Vulcans do not believe that the body is just a shell for the Katra but a vessel that is the home and personal shrine to each Katra and is treated as such by many Vulcans.

The existence of the katra was controversial, to say the least; many Vulcans thought it was nothing more than a myth, but a small group of Vulcans named the Syrrannites believed in it. In 2154 an event took place which brought the existence of the katra to the attention of the Vulcan people and its leaders, the Vulcan High Command.

Legend has it that ancient Vulcans used katric arks to store katras. Some of those arks were discovered at the P'Jem monastery centuries earlier. Although they were analyzed by Vulcan scientists (one of them even tried to meld with an ark), they were not found to contain a katra.

A highly notable surviving katra was the one of Surak, Vulcan's founder and father of Vulcan philosophy. Although Surak died in the 4th century, his katra survived to the year 2154 when it was briefly held by a Human, Captain Jonathan Archer before its transfer to a Vulcan Priest. The reappearance of Surak's katra was instrumental in the rise of T'Pau's influence and the following reorganization of Vulcan government and society.

When a katra is transferred to someone, he or she will benefit from the experiences of the person the katra came from. Because the katra can resist its transfer, the procedure is not without risk and must be performed according to a specific ritual. Non-Vulcans might experience side effects like a form of multiple personality. Humans are especially vulnerable because of the severe shock a transfer can give to their nervous system. Restoring a katra to a Vulcan is preferably done by a Vulcan priest with enough experience with katras.

Vulcans can initiate a transfer of their katra by placing one of their hands on the head of the recipient and to position their fingers on specific points. Via a mind meld, a Vulcan is able to tell if someone has received a katra.

The katra can be restored when a person has died and his Katra was transferred to someone, if the family of that person wishes to do so. This ritual is called fal-tor-pan, which literally means "the refusion". This ritual is performed very rarely. The last time was in 2285 when Spock's regenerated body was found on Genesis and returned to Mount Seleya, where his katra was transferred from Doctor McCoy into his own body.

The transfer of someone's katra is not regularly practiced and is only done in special circumstances. When a Human receives a katra, the effect of the merge can by counteracted by lexorin, but this is only for a short period of time. The katra must eventually be transferred to someone else. Around 2369 the existence of the katra was common knowledge within most medical establishments.

Time of Awakening

Vulcan was tearing itself apart. Their rampant emotions combined with a hostile warrior culture led to many wars. But out of this came a philosopher named Surak, who would propose leading a life governed by logic rather than emotion. His teachings quickly spread, and Vulcan finally began a shift towards peace. One group still opposed allowing logic to govern their lives. "Those who marched beneath the Raptor's wings", as Surak called them, fought a final war with the rest of Vulcan, were forced to leave the planet, and became the Romulans. Surak himself later died of radiation sickness on Mount Seleya, which eventually became one of the most important religious temples on Vulcan.

The Time of Awakening was a period in Vulcan history when the violent and warlike Vulcan race switched to more peaceful ways. It occurred sometime during Earth conflict.

The change was brought on by a Vulcan named Surak, who preached a philosophy of using logic to control emotions, as well as total pacifism. He was effective in spreading his teaching across Vulcan, though he encountered heavy resistance from many Vulcans, especially "those who marched beneath the raptor's wings", even starting a nuclear war. Surak died of radiation sickness shortly before the last battle against these factions, but his writings were preserved in the Kir'Shara.

In the end, a sizable group of Vulcans eventually left, becoming the ancestors of the Debrune and the Romulans. It should be noted that there is no actual proof that these Vulcans were actually rebelling against Surak; all that is canonically known is that a group of Vilcans left around this time, but whether or not they opposed Surak's teachings has never been officially stated on-screen. It is however likely that the faction Surak referred to as "those who march beneath the Raptor's wings" were the precursors of the Romulans, given that the Romulan Empire's emblem is a raptor.

19th century

At this point, Vulcan had rebuilt its civilization and returned to interstellar travel. When the Vulcans developed warp drive is something of a mystery. Although they have been capable of interstellar travel since antiquity, it is not clear whether this first wave of exploration was driven by warp capability or undertaken in generation ships at subluminal speeds. In The Forge, Soval tells Admiral Forrest that "...it took my people nearly 1500 years to rebuild our world and travel to the stars. You humans did the same in less than a century." Since humanity's reach for the stars began with Zefram Cochrane's development of warp drive, Soval's statement, if taken literally, could mean that Vulcan developed warp drive in Earth's 19th century.

21st century

In 2063, the Vulcans were the first to make formal contact with the Human race. An alliance that lasted for centuries was formed between the two worlds, though the Vulcans initially refused to share advanced warp technology with the Humans. Almost a century after first contact, Earth was able to launch its first warp 5 starship, the Enterprise NX-01.

22nd century

By the mid-22nd century, Vulcan was a regional power in the Alpha Quadrant. The Vulcan High Command engaged in conflicts with the neighboring Andorians, and also used its influence to slow Earth's technological development. At some point prior to 2151, the Vulcans built a monitoring station beneath the ancient monastery at P'Jem for the purpose of spying on the Andorians. In 2151, the listening station was discovered by the Human starship captain Jonathan Archer and the Andorian Shran. Shortly thereafter, the monastery was destroyed by Andorian orbital bombardment. This caused turmoil and upheaval on Vulcan, including the dismissal of the First Minister.

Vulcan Reformation

Subsequent to this crisis, the High Command gained more control over civilian affairs. Under the leadership of Administrator V'Las, the High Command persecuted the Syrrannite sect, which claimed that Vulcan no longer followed the true teachings of Surak. (Many of Surak's original writings had been lost in the centuries since the Time of Awakening.) In 2154, V'Las claimed to have proof that the Andorians were developing a superweapon based on Xindi technology, and planned to invade Andoria in order to preempt this threat. As these plans were developing, agents loyal to V'Las bombed Earth's embassy and framed the Syrrannite T'Pau for the act. Jonathan Archer, investigating the Syrrannites, was briefly joined with the katra of Surak, and re-discovered the Kir'Shara, an artifact containing the original writings of Surak. Ambassador Soval and Commander Charles Tucker warned the Andorians of the planned invasion, and the Vulcan attack fleet lost the element of surprise (see Battle of Andoria). As the battle got underway, Archer and T'Pau brought the Kir'Shara into the High Command's headquarters, justifying the Syrranites' position and enabling Minister Kuvak to challenge V'Las's increasingly illogical behavior. In short order, the attack on Andoria was canceled, V'Las deposed, and the High Command disbanded. Kuvak and T'Pau formed a new transitional government which promised to pursue peaceful policies, and also to end its restrictions on Earth's technological development and expansion.

The Federation

The years following the Vulcan reformation also saw the Vulcans being one of the leading members of the Coalition of Planets, an alliance which included friends such as Earth as well as long-time rivals such as the Andorians. This alliance leads Vulcan to be one of the founding members of the United Federation of Planets. A newspaper article (It's Federation Day!) in the Picard family album created for Star Trek Generations suggests that a Representative T'Jan was the Vulcan at the forming of the Federation, though the clipping was not seen on screen and is not considered canon. The novel Last Full Measure suggests that the Vulcan signers of the Federation Charter were Soval, T'Pau and Solkar.

23rd century

By the 23rd century, Vulcans were one of the more active members of the Federation. Personifying this was Ambassador Sarek, whose quick and logical responses during debates (such as with Tellarite Ambassador Gav) brought him recognition. He was even asked to come out of retirement to represent Vulcan at the Babel Conference. He later served as a personal adviser to the Federation President, and was involved in the Khitomer Accords. On a less than positive light, by then some saw the Vulcans as the "intellectual puppets of the Federation" as the Klingon ambassador put it while arguing before the Federation Council. The non-canon Starfleet Operations Manual goes so far as to suggest that the Vulcans were so well trusted by other Federation members that some less-diplomatic species such as the Zaldans elected Vulcan Federation Councillors to represent their interests rather than a member of their own species.

Romulan Invasion Attempts

The Romulans have attempted to invade, subvert, and/or gain control of the Vulcan government on at least three occasions. One attempt was during a 100-year war between the two powers sparked by the actions of a renegade Q. Another occurred in the 22nd century, during a time of political and social upheaval in Vulcan society that ended in the Vulcan Reformation. Administrator V'Las, who was either a Romulan or a Romulan sympathizer, attempted to wipe out the Syrrannite movement. His efforts were thwarted by Starfleet Captain Jonathan Archer, T'Pol, and T'Pau when they recovered and returned the Kir'Shara, which held the recordings of Surak's true teachings.  It is unknown if anyone ever discovered V'Las' true identity or allegiance. In 2368 an attempt at a Vulcan-Romulan reformation/reunification almost resulted in an invasion of Vulcan. It began when Ambassador Spock went to Romulus because the new Proconsul Neral convinced Spock he was ready to open formal relations with Vulcan.

Vulcan Reformation

The Vulcan Reformation was a period of great upheaval and change in Vulcan philosophy that began on or around the month of July in 2154. The Reformation marked the beginning of the greatest changes on Vulcan since the Time of Awakening.

Over the centuries following the death of Surak, the father of the Vulcan logic movement, his teachings had been subject to numerous interpretations and possible revisions. As a result, much of the original intent had been lost.

The recovery of the Kir'Shara, an artifact (long considered a legend) containing Surak's original writings, allowed Vulcan society to reconsider the many choices made since Surak's death and especially the direction of the government under then Administrator V'Las.

Captain Jonathan Archer, Commander T'Pol, and a member of the Syrannite movement named T'Pau were responsible for recovering the artifact. During their search, the three were pursued by soldiers of the Vulcan High Command, who wished to put an end to the Syrrannites as a prelude to launching a pre-emptive strike on Andoria.

The High Command was successful in destroying one of the main sanctuaries of the Syrrannites. Archer and the others, however, succeeded in getting the artifact to the chambers of the High Command, undermining their efforts and bringing a new era to Vulcan. Archer was reported by some to have been led to the writings by the katra, or essence of spirit, of Surak. After reflecting on the writings, the Vulcans decided to rededicate themselves to lives of peace and logic. They also decided that they would no longer oversee matters regarding Humans and space travel, a role they had played since first contact, allowing Humans to explore space on their own. Additionally, T'Pau was elevated from the status of a hated rebel to a position of importance in Vulcan politics.

Vulcan Mythology

Vulcan mythology before the Time of Awakening included a number of different gods, such as the God of War, the God of Death, and the God of Peace. Typically, the God of War and the God of Death are depicted together on artifacts but never with a third glyph. An exception is on the Stone of Gol, where the symbols of the two gods were separated by the God of Peace.

Vulcan mythology stated that all creation arose from a place known as Sha Ka Ree.

While visiting Vulcan, Spock explained to his father that he was passing through ShirKahr during his journey to the family shrine, "to honor our Gods."  The DVD commentary for "Amok Time" says that TOS writer D.C. Fontana named the Vulcan god of death "Shariel"; a bust of who is seen in Spock's quarters. StarTrek.com has speculated that the ancient Olympian gods, such as Apollo, may have visited Vulcan before Earth.

Vulcan Gods

Oekon,

Khosaar, The god of War.

Kir'alep, The god of peace and acceptance.

Ny'one, The god of fertility and life, husband of T'Priah

T'Priah, The goddess of fertility and childbirth, wife of Ny'one.

Shariel, The god of Death and the underworld, husband of Reah

Reah, The goddess of the underworld, of death, and berevement, wife of Shariel.

Natara, The god of water, sea and sky.

Sha Ka Ree

Sha Ka Ree was an idyllic place in Vulcan mythology, analogous to the Human "Eden" or the Klingon "Qui'Tu" or the Romulan "Vorta Vor", that Spock's half-brother, Sybok, believed he located on a planet at the center of the galaxy. Sybok believed that a powerful entity existed there, which he called "God" and that all life had originated on Sha Ka Ree. Sybok searched for this planet for many years, collecting a group of loyal fundamentalists as he continued to search.

Eventually, Sybok and his followers stole the USS Enterprise-A and used it to travel to where he believed Sha Ka Ree to be. However, he discovered that the entity which he had sought for much of his life was a malevolent being, its only intention to travel beyond the Great Barrier and escape Sha Ka Ree. Sybok was killed by the entity as he held it off to allow Kirk to escape from it. After his death the being cornered Kirk, but was destroyed by a Klingon Bird of Prey that had been pursuing the Enterprise.

Vulcan Philosophy

Revolves around the concept of logic. The highest objective of a traditional Vulcan life is to either control or suppress all emotion, thus rendering a purely logical being. This difficult task is attained through meditation and discipline. As Vulcans approach or reach maturity, it is customary to train under the tutelage of a Vulcan master in the Kolinahr ritual, to purge themselves of any remaining lack of emotional control. The father of Vulcan philosophy is Surak, who helped lead the Vulcan people out of a time of savagery and violence into their new era of peace. His introduction of logic and emotional discipline ushered in the Time of Awakening. Though committed to the concept of total logic Vulcan philosophy after the Time of Awakening did not totally abandon its past. Vulcans continued to maintain ceremonies dedicated to ancient religious beliefs and physical training. The Vulcans reasoned that complete dedication to logic could allow for weakness and frailty to arise and endanger them, thus ancient practices such as the kahs-wan were preserved and many Vulcans continued some form of dedication to their ancient gods, including ritual pilgrimages. These ideals were forgotten by many Vulcans around the 22nd century, leading to a corrupt governmental system. Unknown at the time, their government had been infiltrated at the highest levels by Romulan operatives, misleading the population with a distorted version of Surak's teachings. A small faction called Syrrannites, founding their philosophy on what was believed to be his true works discovered Surak's original texts, restoring the society he had built. Other works related to this philosophy are Kiri-kin-tha's First Law of Metaphysics ("Nothing unreal exists") and T'Plana-Hath's statement that "Logic is the cement of our civilization with which we ascend from chaos using reason as our guide." Vulcans embrace cultural and racial diversity, as again evidenced through the IDIC. Vulcans also embrace a pacifist philosophy, going so far as to follow strict vegetarian diets to avoid killing even non-sentient animals. Vulcans believe that the needs of a very large group should go before the needs of a very small group or any individual. T'Pol gave Captain Archer a book on the subject, The Teachings of Surak, to read during shore leave on Risa. Vulcan Philosophy was a topic of study at Starfleet Academy by the 24th century. Because Data was not affected by feelings or emotional considerations, he considered himself closer to being Vulcan than Human; however, he was not attracted to Vulcan philosophy. He felt that although their devotion to logic had a certain appeal in its simple purity, he found overall that their devotion to be a somewhat stark philosophy, lacking beauty and joy.

Society

For an intensely logical race, the Vulcans do have spiritual beliefs. Though little is known about the details, their religious system is polytheistic. They also believe in the katra, the soul and consciousness of a person, which can be transferred psionically prior to death. Vulcans are generally non-violent, but logic dictates that combat is sometimes necessary. Vulcans can and do use weapons and practice martial arts called "tal-shaya", and "Suus Mahna". Most modern Vulcans are vegetarians. Vulcans are known for their high degree of honesty. They are extremely reluctant to tell a lie, and indeed it is said that "Vulcans cannot lie". However, they will do so for what they perceive as logical reasons, though they rarely refer to their dishonesty as "lying."

Development of a Vulcan's life of logic begins at a young age. Vulcan parents will utilize learning tools, such as pleenoks, to train their infants in primary logic. Vulcan children will then learn to detach themselves from their emotions at an early age.

Despite this early training in logic, Vulcan children in nursery school are allowed to dance. These dances are reminiscent of the dances of the Orion slave girl, just not as well coordinated.

As parents, Vulcans never shield their children from the truth. Doing so would only hinder their ability to cope with inevitable difficulties. A Vulcan parent's attachment to their children cannot be described as an emotion. They are part of the parent's identity and the parent is incomplete without them.

Vulcans sometimes have mates chosen for them by their parents at the age of seven. The mates are joined in a ceremony that links them telepathically that is "less than a marriage, more than a betrothal". When the two come of age and undergo the pon farr, the link compels them to follow through with full marital rituals, which cement their relationship.

If, for whatever reason, the female does not wish to go through with the marriage, then the ceremony of koon-ut-kal-if-fee ("marriage or challenge") is invoked. The male must fight for the right to keep his mate against a challenger of her choosing. The female becomes the property of the male who wins the contest, unless he chooses to release her. The koon-ut-kal-if-fee is a fight to the death. The timing of pon farr (every seventh year of a Vulcans "adult life"), would suggest that Vulcans marry either in the equivalent of their early-to-mid teens (just after the onset of puberty) or in their early-to-mid 20s (seven years after puberty). Spock first underwent pon farr in his 30s, but his Human blood may have made his case an aberration, although this may not have been the first occurrence of the pon farr for him. The essence of their logical society is in arriving at the truth through logical process. Emotions are illogical, thus making them impure and deterrent to truth. Vulcans are born with the same emotions that afflicted their violent ancestors, but continual mental conditioning generally gives them the impassivity they seek. Emotions like remorse, relief, joy, and embarrassment were all displayed by Spock when he thought Captain Kirk was dead. Additionally, T'Pol showed romantic interest in Commander Tucker on the Enterprise, especially due to imbalances caused by exposure to trellium-D. Though not all can arrive at the ultimate pure logical state, the exacting process of mental control gives Vulcans enough to conform to the ideals of Vulcan society. The ultimate level of logical thought is achieved through the attainment of kolinahr, which is said to purge them of all remaining emotions. Vulcans believe knowledge to be the best defense against unknown dangers, and pursue them with the intellect and logic that makes them some of the finest scholars in the Federation. Vulcans consider death to be the completion of a journey. Therefore, they do not fear it happening; however the loss of one's katra is to be avoided if possible, since the katra lives on beyond the physical death.

Culture and Tradition

Vulcans were fermenting wines, notably Vulcan port, during the 21st century. This contradicts a previous statement made by Spock in where he noted, "My father's race was spared the dubious benefits of alcohol," when offered a glass of Saurian brandy by Dr. McCoy.T'Pol also noted in ENT: "Breaking the Ice" that Vulcans don't drink wine, indicating that perhaps Vulcan port is for cultural purposes only, or perhaps is nonalcoholic. Tuvok offered to accompany Captain Janeway to drinking wine in a holodeck simulation, possibly further contradicting T'Pol's claims that Vulcans don't drink wine. This could also be just a personal choice between Vulcans or that Vulcans haven't yet built a tolerance for alcoholic beverages. Events suggested that beverages such as champagne may have contained synthehol rather than alcohol, which is not as intoxicating; it could be that Tuvok's offer was to drink a syntheholic wine, rather than an alcoholic one. Although it has not always been so, most Vulcans are vegetarians. They also do not touch food with their hands, unless wearing special gloves. Guests in a Vulcan household are expected to rise before sunrise to prepare the morning meal. Plomeek broth is considered a traditional Vulcan breakfast.  Vulcans play a game known as kal-toh. What little is known about Vulcan religious beliefs indicates that beginning prior to the "Time of the Awakening" they were polytheistic. Surak's teachings became the primary focus of Vulcan spirituality/mysticism, but as late as the 23rd century it was still not nheard of to find Vulcans honoring the traditional gods. There are, however, no demons in Vulcan literature.

Holidays

T'Pau Day (February 21) Long service and bringing all Vulcans the truth.

T'Pol Day (March 5) The First Vulcan to serve on a Starfleet vessel for an extended time. Also helping to form the great friendship between Vulcan and Earth.

Spock Day (March 26) to honor Spock and all his contributions to the universe and Vulcan society.

First Contact Day (April 5) When Vulcans First came to Earth.

Vorik Day (April 5)

Federation Day (May 13) When the Vulcans Joined the greatest alliance in the Milky Way.

Soval Day (June 7) in honor of his service to the Vulcan people.

Kal Rekk (June 20)

Is a holiday observed on the planet Vulcan. Kal Rekk, to the Vulcans, is a day of atonement, solitude and silence.

Tuvok Day (June 22) willing to give his life for the many.

Surak Day (September 7) in honor of his life.

Sarek Day (October 15)

Independance Day (November 21) though not in service to anyone in the Federation, Vulcans were being suppressed, and on this day gained their freedom by seccedding from the Federation.

V'Lar Day (December 10)

Rumarie (Observed during most holidays. Mostly During Kal Rekk)

Is an ancient pagan holiday that has been observed since the 14th century AD. While learning about Vulcan holidays, Neelix discovered Rumarie, which he described as a festival "full of barely clothed Vulcan men and women, covered in slippery Rillian grease, chasing one another."

Tal-Shanar

Is a Vulcan spiritual practice that they rarely allow outsiders to see.

Doctor Phlox, while stationed on Earth, was allowed to observe the Tal-Shanar, when it was held at the Vulcan Consulate.