Surak
Encyclopedia
Surak is a fictional character in the backstory of the Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
television series and franchises. He is portrayed as the most important philosopher in the history of the planet Vulcan
Vulcan (Star Trek)
Vulcans, or sometimes Vulcanians, are an extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek universe who evolved on the planet Vulcan, and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic with no interference from emotion. They were the first extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek...
. During an Earth-like "modern age", when the Vulcans are technological but violent, Surak founds a movement which reforms the Vulcan way of thinking and lifestyle and leads to the world of logically-reasoning and emotion-mastering Vulcans known from the TV series. This period in Vulcan history is referred to as the "Time of Awakening".
The "Time of Awakening" is accompanied by violence unmatched in Vulcan history, according to the Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise is a science fiction television series. It follows the adventures of humanity's first warp 5 starship, the Enterprise, ten years before the United Federation of Planets shown in previous Star Trek series was formed.Enterprise premiered on September 26, 2001...
episode "Awakening
Awakening (Enterprise episode)
"Awakening" is the name of the 84th episode from the television series Star Trek: Enterprise. It is the eighth episode from the fourth season of the series. It first aired on November 26, 2004, on the American television network UPN....
" (wherein Surak's mind is resurrected 1,800 years after his death to restore to modern Vulcans an uncorrupted version of his original philosophy.) During the "Time of Awakening" a Vulcan schism of those who "sought a return to savage ways" and "marched beneath the raptor's wings" (later the symbol of the Romulan
Romulan
The Romulans are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek universe. First appearing in the original Star Trek series in the 1966 episode "Balance of Terror", they have since made appearances in all the main later Star Trek series: The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager...
people) perpetrate a cataclysmic nuclear
Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare, or atomic warfare, is a military conflict or political strategy in which nuclear weaponry is detonated on an opponent. Compared to conventional warfare, nuclear warfare can be vastly more destructive in range and extent of damage...
attack upon Surak and his enlightened society. Soon after Surak's death, these Vulcan recidivists abandon their homeworld to colonize the planets Romulus and Remus. The new society would come to be known as the Romulan Star Empire—where Surak's philosophy of peace and logic survives only as an underground movement within their emotional, warlike society for the next 2,000 years (until further shepherded, in the Star Trek Next Generation episode "Unification", by the elderly Ambassador Spock in the role of a latter-day successor to Surak), while flourishing on Vulcan to become its predominant philosophy.
The "Time of Awakening" and its "ironic violence" noted by Surak, which ends in nuclear holocaust but philosophical maturity, was written by Star Trek creators with intentional parallels to modern human society—particularly its historical progression toward cultural enlightenment, reason and tolerance interrupted by extreme bouts of cultural regression, irrationalism and fanatical violence.
Depiction
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
(based upon Earth's calendar, approximately 1,800 years before the events of the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Awakening"), apparently of radiation poisoning caused by a nuclear attack that devastates Vulcan. His spirit, or katra, is transferred into a crystalline urn which remains entombed and undisturbed until its rediscovery after two millennia by a Vulcan character, Syrran, in the 22nd century. Syrran places Surak's katra within his own mind, which leads Syrran to create a group called Syrranites dedicated to returning Vulcan civilization to the true teachings of Surak. A decade later, in 2154 prior to the outbreak of impending Vulcan civil war, Syrran is killed while escorting the characters of Captain Jonathan Archer
Jonathan Archer
Jonathan Archer is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. He is the protagonist of the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, where he is played by Scott Bakula...
and T'Pol
T'Pol
Commander T'Pol is a fictional character played by Jolene Blalock in Star Trek: Enterprise. She is a Vulcan who serves as the science officer aboard the starship Enterprise.-Concept and creation:...
to his group's headquarters in the Vulcan Forge. Before dying of his wounds, Syrran places Surak's katra into Archer's mind.
Experiencing a hallucination (or vision), Archer finds himself conversing with Surak within his own mind. Together, they witness the nuclear explosion
Nuclear explosion
A nuclear explosion occurs as a result of the rapid release of energy from an intentionally high-speed nuclear reaction. The driving reaction may be nuclear fission, nuclear fusion or a multistage cascading combination of the two, though to date all fusion based weapons have used a fission device...
that had occurred on Vulcan 1,800 years earlier, causing Surak's radiation poisoning. Surak displays some emotion when talking to Archer, as well as the use of Earth-based idioms, but this is likely because of his melding with Archer's human mind.
A subsequent attempt to transfer Surak's katra to Syrran's second-in-command, T'Pau, fails when Surak chooses to remain merged with Jonathan Archer. Once again conversing with Archer inside his mind, Surak instructs him to recover an artifact called the Kir'Shara, which Surak claims will unite the warring factions on latter-day Vulcan. The Kir'Shara is a holographic projector of the philosopher's original, long-lost writings—capable of restoring Vulcan society to the "true path" of non-violence and logic. Archer and T'Pau succeed in taking the artifact to the corrupt Vulcan High Command in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Kir'Shara
Kir'Shara (Enterprise episode)
"Kir'Shara" is the name of the 85th episode from the television series Star Trek: Enterprise. "Kir'shara" first aired on December 3, 2004, on the American television network UPN....
", resulting in its overthrow. Surak's katra is subsequently transferred into the mind of an elderly Vulcan priest; what becomes of his katra afterwards in the Star Trek backstory is, as yet, unscripted.
The character names of many latter-day Vulcan males begin with "S" and end in "k", perhaps to honor Surak, though some Vulcan character names do not fit this formula (e.g. Tuvok
Tuvok
Tuvok is one of the main characters on the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Tuvok is a Vulcan who serves as the ship's chief of security and its chief tactical officer. Tim Russ portrayed Tuvok throughout the show's run, from 1995 to 2001....
).
A character representing a physical re-creation of the "historical Surak" in his youthful maturity—fashioned by advanced alien technology from telepathically-recorded recollections and expectations held by Mr. Spock
Spock
Spock is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by Leonard Nimoy in the original Star Trek series, Spock also appears in the animated Star Trek series, two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation, seven of the Star Trek feature films, and numerous Star Trek...
, appears in the original Star Trek series
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
episode "The Savage Curtain", and is portrayed by the actor Barry Atwater
Barry Atwater
Garrett "Barry" Atwater was an American character actor who appeared frequently on TV from the 1950s into the 1970s...
. The vision of a more elderly Surak appearing in the mind of the character of Captain Jonathan Archer is portrayed by the actor Bruce Gray
Bruce Gray
Bruce Gray is a Puerto Rican-born Canadian actor.-Early years:Gray was born Robert Bruce Gray in San Juan, Puerto Rico to Canadian parents...
.
The only specific mention of the character of Surak in the 24th century period of the Star Trek saga is in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...
episode "In the Cards", where the character of the Ferengi
Ferengi
The Ferengi are a fictitious extraterrestrial race from the Star Trek universe. They first appeared in "The Last Outpost", the fifth episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987, during which they made first contact with the United Federation of Planets in 2364 on the planet Delphi Ardu,...
trader, Quark
Quark (Star Trek)
Quark is a fictional character in the American television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The character, which was played by Armin Shimerman, was depicted as a member of an extraterrestrial race known as the Ferengi, who are stereotypically ultra-capitalist and only motivated by...
, hawks a bracelet "from the time of Surak".
Cultural impact
The fictional Surak's philosophy of rationalismRationalism
In epistemology and in its modern sense, rationalism is "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification" . In more technical terms, it is a method or a theory "in which the criterion of the truth is not sensory but intellectual and deductive"...
with emotional mastery and its role as a cornerstone of Vulcan and Starfleet
Starfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
mythos has contributed a distinct philosophical component to the broader cultural influence of Star Trek. Similar to the anecdotal testimonies that Star Trek has inspired many of its viewers to become scientists or engineers, other viewers have adopted Starfleet
Starfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
- or Surak-inspired personal philosophies and lifestyles and founded fan-based or Surak-philosophy-inspired rationalist charitable organizations. Later highly popular science fiction television series such as Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...
and Stargate
Stargate
Stargate is a adventure military science fiction franchise, initially conceived by Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin. The first film in the franchise was simply titled Stargate. It was originally released on October 28, 1994, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Carolco, and became a hit, grossing nearly...
are thought to have achieved their appeal in part by broadly emulating the optimistic rationalist world view
World view
A comprehensive world view is the fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society encompassing the entirety of the individual or society's knowledge and point-of-view, including natural philosophy; fundamental, existential, and normative postulates; or themes, values, emotions, and...
first embodied in the dramatis personae of Star Trek.