Vulcans have a reputation throughout Star Trek as being dedicated to the pursuit of logic, but the Kolinahr Ritual shows just how far they’re willing to go to achieve their goals. Fans first got a glimpse of the Kolinahr Ritual in Star Trek: The Motion Picture when Spock (Leonard Nimoy) tried to rid himself of emotions once and for all. As far as he was concerned, he’d come far enough in his training to be ready for his evolution into a fully logic-based being. Like his Vulcan ancestors before him, Spock’s goal was a total disconnection from the feelings that he believed were holding him back from the Vulcan he was meant to be.
Spock spent over two years training for the final stage of the ritual, when a strong consciousness interrupted his process. In the film, the techno-alien creature V’ger alone disrupts Spock’s concentration. In the film’s novelization, though, his thoughts are interrupted by V’ger as well as his own lingering feelings for James Kirk (William Shatner). Spock ends up failing the Kolinahr Ritual and being reunited with his old crew from the Enterprise. But what would have happened if he’d followed through instead?
The Emotional History of Vulcans
The Vulcans that Star Trek fans see today are nothing like their ancient ancestors. Before Surak ushered in the Time of Awakening, Vulcans were even more warmongering than ancient humans. Contrary to popular belief, Vulcans actually feel emotions very deeply – which can be helpful, until it's a major hindrance to getting anything done. As a result, they lived in a constant state of rage and paranoia that kept them at constant odds with each other. Vulcans eventually tired of living like they were stuck in a reality TV show. Surak’s new philosophy encouraged the suppression of emotions in favor of pursuing a perfectly logical state.
Star Trek: The Original Series put a face to the legendary name in season 3, episode 22, “The Savage Curtain.” Surak (Barry Atwater) recalled how his playing peacemaker in the final war on Vulcan helped usher in peace. Sure, his teachings weren’t much help in a situation where a rock creature was trying to get them to fight historical figures. But it was still inspiring to see that Surak lived by the teachings he encouraged others to learn. This might have encouraged Spock to later pursue the Kolinahr Ritual.
Purging Emotions in the Kolinahr Ritual
Spock wasn’t the first to follow Surak’s teaching to complete the Kolinahr Ritual. Enterprise introduced T’Klaas as the first student of Surak to master the ritual in season 4, episode 8, “Awakening.” Captain Archer (Scott Bakula) and his crew discovered the mummified corpse of the Vulcan in the T'Karath Sanctuary on Vulcan. He was still holding on to the katra, or living spirit, of Surak. The official site of the Kolinahr Ritual, however, is at the P’Jem monastery on Vulcan. Its isolated location makes this sanctuary perfect for practicing the level of meditation necessary for completing the Kolihnar Ritual.
Many Vulcans trek to this remote area and spend two to six years (sometimes more) training to purge themselves of emotions. In Strange New Worlds, Spock (Ethan Peck) described the ritual as offering clarity and the “ability to see one's self without bias.” It offers insight beyond emotion, in the Vulcan attempt to stop their passions from ruining their peaceful society.
That being said, not all Vulcans find it necessary to go through the Kolinahr Ritual. In fact, many actively work against, it because they see it as doing more harm than good.
The Anti-Kolinahr Movement
In Season 3, Picard made a reference to anti-Kolinahr demonstrations on Aklion VII. It’s not the first time the series has diverged from Star Trek canon. It is, though, one of the few times it drops the ball on an interesting plot point. Season 3, episode 7, “Dominion,” showed Seven (Jeri Ryan) getting Tuvok (Tim Russ) to meet up with her at one of these demonstrations. His agreement ends up revealing his true nature as a Changeling, since no Vulcan would be caught dead in such a disrespectful setting. That begs the question: who cares enough about the Kolinahr Ritual to protest against it? Maybe Seven’s intel is wrong.
There were some Vulcans who stood by Sybok (Laurence Luckinbill) in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. They agreed that Vulcans need a more accepting perspective of their own emotional experience. It’s possible they see the Kolinahr Ritual as something that allows Vulcans to run from difficult feelings rather than dealing with them head-on. If that’s the case, Vulcans aren’t very different from Humans after all. They, too, experience a wide variety of opinions that sometimes send them out into the streets to speak their minds. Then again, it’s hard to picture any Vulcan marching to make a point instead of debating each other face-to-face. After all, Vulcans love a good debate.
The Kolinahr Ritual is one of many traditions practiced by Vulcans as part of their vast culture. Some of these traditions are meant to foster closeness between relatives and friends alike. Just because Star Trek depicts Vulcans as emotionally controlled doesn’t mean they don’t foster close relationships with each other. After all, they still get married and cultivate families. They just don’t do it the same way as other galactic races. Vulcans practice the mind-meld, for example, as an intimate exchange of thoughts and feelings.
They understand the importance of building a community and having a support system. They just value the pursuit of logic more. The Kolinahr Ritual is a part of Vulcan culture that only a few will ever attempt to experience in their lifetime. Like Spock, Tuvok pursued the ritual after resigning from Starfleet. Neither one of them completed the ritual, but there has to be a Star Trek character that will one day. Otherwise, what’s the point of it all?