Changes: Kahs-wan

Revision as of 22:06, 24 November 2019

The kahs-wan was a Vulcan rite of passage that young Vulcans were expected to accomplish.

Overview

It involved a trial into the desert where the Vulcan was expected to survive in order to be considered an adult. (TAS episode: "Yesteryear") The rules of this maturity test meant that it was a test of individual survival and as such, teamwork was forbidden. Those children that were wounded and discovered by another were left until the kahs-wan student returned home at the end of the survival course where they reported the dangers faced by the other student. (TOS novel: The Vulcan Academy Murders)

The true test of the ordeal was to pit a young Vulcan's personal ethics against the demands of survival. It would discern, for instance, if desperation would drive them to an abhorrent act, such as eating meat. (TOS comic: "Lt. Commdr. Spock: Psycho-File")

Due to the nature of the rite, there were always casualties faced by those that participated in the kahs-wan. This left some eleven year olds unbonded and tradition allowed this to be the case. Following a suitable period of mourning, it was deemed appropriate by those families who had been widowed by the death of a mate at Vulcan's Forge to approach each other in order to partake in a new bonding. (TOS novel: Unspoken Truth)

It was considered a less advanced version of the Rite of Tal'oth ritual. (TTN novel: The Red King)

History

Thousands of years ago before the Vulcan Reformation, Solor took part in a kahs-wan class that was led by his mentor Rovalat. However, the young Vulcans from ShiKahr were ambushed by members of the Te-Vikram Brotherhood who had slain members of the class. (TOS - Vulcan's Soul novel: Exiles)

Uncertain whether he would survive his kahs-wan, Spock set out on his own personal test in 2237, accompanied by his pet I-Chaya. (TAS episode: "Yesteryear")

Spock underwent his official kahs-wan a few weeks later. Spock trapped and killed a lizard using cactus needles and his shirt, but refused to eat the creature. Spock kept the horn of the reptile as a reminder of the ordeal, with the inscription “May I never kill again.” (TOS comic: "Lt. Commdr. Spock: Psycho-File")

Tuvok had performed this rite when he was seven years old. (TLE novel: The Sundered)

Connections

Kahs-wan article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.

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+The '''''kahs-wan''''' was a [[Vulcan]] rite of passage that young Vulcans were expected to accomplish.
-The '''''kahs-wan''''' was a [[Vulcan]] rite of passage that young Vulcans were expected to accomplish. It involved a trial into the desert where the Vulcan was expected to survive in order to be considered an adult. ({{e|TAS|Yesteryear}}) The rules of this maturity test meant that it was a test of individual survival and as such, teamwork was forbidden. Those children that were wounded and discovered by another were left until the kahs-wan student returned home at the end of the suvival course where they reported the dangers faced by the other student. ({{n|TOS|The Vulcan Academy Murders}})
+==Overview==
+It involved a trial into the desert where the Vulcan was expected to survive in order to be considered an adult. ({{e|TAS|Yesteryear}}) The rules of this maturity test meant that it was a test of individual survival and as such, teamwork was forbidden. Those children that were wounded and discovered by another were left until the ''kahs-wan'' student returned home at the end of the survival course where they reported the dangers faced by the other student. ({{n|TOS|The Vulcan Academy Murders}})
+The true test of the ordeal was to pit a young Vulcan's personal ethics against the demands of survival. It would discern, for instance, if desperation would drive them to an abhorrent act, such as eating meat. ({{c|TOS|Lt. Commdr. Spock: Psycho-File}})
+Due to the nature of the rite, there were always casualties faced by those that participated in the ''kahs-wan''. This left some eleven year olds unbonded and tradition allowed this to be the case. Following a suitable period of mourning, it was deemed appropriate by those families who had been widowed by the death of a mate at Vulcan's Forge to approach each other in order to partake in a new {{dis|bonding|Vulcan}}. ({{n|TOS|Unspoken Truth}})
+It was considered a less advanced version of the ''[[Rite of Tal'oth]]'' ritual. ({{n|TTN|The Red King}})
 ==History==
-Thousands of years ago before the [[Vulcan Reformation]], [[Solor]] took part in a kahs-wan class that was led by his mentor [[Rovalat (Vulcan)|Rovalat]]. However, the young Vulcans from [[ShiKahr]] were ambushed by members of the [[Te-Vikram Brotherhood]] who had slain members of the class. ({{n|TOS|Exiles}})
+Thousands of years ago before the [[Vulcan Reformation]], [[Solor]] took part in a ''kahs-wan'' class that was led by his mentor {{dis|Rovalat|Vulcan}}. However, the young Vulcans from [[ShiKahr]] were ambushed by members of the [[Te-Vikram Brotherhood]] who had slain members of the class. ({{n|TOS|sub=Vulcan's Soul|{{dis1|Exiles|TOS novel}}}})
-[[Spock]] underwent the ''kahs-wan'' in [[2237]]. ({{e|TAS|Yesteryear}})
+Uncertain whether he would survive his ''kahs-wan'', [[Spock]] set out on his own personal test in [[2237]], accompanied by his [[pet]] [[I-Chaya]]. ({{e|TAS|Yesteryear}})
+Spock underwent his official ''kahs-wan'' a few weeks later. Spock trapped and killed a [[lizard]] using cactus needles and his shirt, but refused to eat the creature. Spock kept the horn of the reptile as a reminder of the ordeal, with the inscription “May I never kill again.” ({{c|TOS|Lt. Commdr. Spock: Psycho-File}})
-Tuvok had performed this rite when he was seven years old. ({{n|TLE|The Sundered}})
+[[Tuvok]] had performed this rite when he was seven years old. ({{n|TLE|The Sundered}})
 ==Connections==
 *{{memoryalpha}}
 [[Category:Vulcan culture]]