The Vulcan Mind meld is something that we see a lot in Star Trek, for its practical
applications across a myriad of situations. However, I feel that this has downplayed the
importance, toll and consequence of using Mind Melds. So Vulcans are mainly tactile
telepaths, in that they have to make physical contact with another creature in order to
use their psionic abilities, however there are some elements to their telepathy that
are more akin to other species such as the Betazoids, or Tarquin’s species, in that
they have an extensive range to them. Vulcans have a bioelectrical field generated
by their nervous system which they have a limited amount of conscious control over.
This can be concentrated into their fingertips, which allows them to extend their control
over their own nervous system through their hands and gain limited sway over another’s.
This has led them to develop things like the nerve pinch, Mind Meld and the ability to
simply mess with another person’s system for the purpose of harming them. (Although
non Vulcan’s can perform the Nerve Pinch too, so presumably it is just a technique
that can be learned, although I imagine having a Vulcan’s affinity for manipulating the
bioelectric field helps a lot). So bringing it back to the Mind Meld specifically,
it has been a part of Vulcan culture since their earliest records, part and parcel of
their unique biology and psionic heritage. In ancient times, their powers were often
used as weapons and even led to the creation of devices like the Psionic Feedback device,
the “Stone of Gol”. By the Time of Awakening, when Surak’s teachings
rose to prominence during a Vulcan civil war, part of his lessons concerned the Katra and
the application and use of their telepathic abilities. His teachings valued mental discipline
which would have only benefited their mental powers and the control that Vulcans practiced
to restrain their emotions also taught them how to resist and fortify their mental defences.
The practice of the Mind Meld however was forgotten over the generations as a more conservative
Vulcan government rose, which was eventually revealed to be in part due to the interference
of Romulan agents within their government. I’ve already mentioned this as a theory,
but I like it so I’ll mention it here, but I suspect that the Romulans purposefully obscured
and outlawed the use of Mind Melds and such in order to bolster their control over Vulcan.
After all, a psychic reading of an infiltrator’s mind would undo centuries of their groundwork
in manipulating the Vulcans. Eventually the discovery of the Kir’Shara
brought back Surak’s original, unedited teachings including the proper instruction
of telepathic techniques. The merger of minds, at its core is a blending of thoughts that
allows the participants to share memories and thought process as well as everything
that entails. This is a personal experience to say the least
as it allows for the reading of any stray thought or memory, an obvious and sometimes
unintentional invasion of privacy, although the participants do have some say on what
thoughts are accessed. On the Vulcan’s part, it also exposes them to the emotions of the
other, outside of the context of that Vulcan’s emotional repression and can prove to be an
uncomfortable experience, not least because it may be tempting to experience those feelings
vicariously. It is also a possibility that as the minds end up sharing thought processes,
that the sense of individuality is endangered, creating a situation where the meld cannot
be easily terminated because you can no longer identify whose mind is whose.
After a meld is severed, both participants effectively leave an echo of each other in
the mind. The way that person thought, some trace memories and feelings are forever imprinted
on the psyche of the other, especially if the initiator has a pre-existing emotional
investment in the other. In this case, it’s not unheard off that a permanent bond is formed
as part of the Katra, is left in the mind. Such are the effects of a Mind Meld, that
it can lead to a permanent change in personality, a vague imparting of skills, and even faint
memories and feelings from the other person that can be detected through subsequent melds
with unaffiliated individuals. A mind meld can also be done incorrectly,
leading to Pa’nar syndrome, which is a degenerative neural disorder that often proves to be eventually
fatal. Fortunately, the damage Pa’nar inflicts can be reversed with a mind meld. To use a
computer analogy, I imagine it’s like tampering with some lines code to mind meld, while not
realising that those alterations now clash with further lines and break the overall coding.
It then takes an experienced Practitioner to go back in a find the bad lines and redo
them, or at least alter the remainder of the code to better fit.
A mind Meld can also be resisted with conscious effort, mental discipline and force of will.
Doing so was often uncomfortable, and if the initiator continued to try to force a joining
of minds, it could potentially harm both participants, doing real physical and psychological damage
to the brain. Often a meld was terminated if there was a sign of resistance, because
of the potential damage and exceptionally strong minds could simply close off their
thoughts altogether. This was a commonly taught technique for intelligence operatives of several
governments and of course some species were simply incompatible with Vulcan mind melds
or telepathy in general. Using a mind meld on an unwilling person is
not a good idea unless you are desperate for information or something. From the disregard
of morals for violating someone’s privacy, to the natural resistance that most minds
will put up from such an act, truly I imagine it takes a greater degree of control to allow
a Meld to occur, than it would to resist it. However, it is a tool in the Vulcan arsenal
that is far too useful to ignore and it has a variety applications. Discipline and practice
can allow for a high mitigation of side-effects and experienced Vulcans, such as Spock and
Sarek can deploy Mind Melds to be as light or heavy handed as needed for a variety of
beneficial, tactical and medical reasons. Honestly though, If Mind melds were a thing,
I don’t think I’d want one. There’s some chaotic stuff up there that would probably
really mess up a Vulcan. And Vulcans get scary when they’re messed up. I’ve been Ric
and thanks for watching this breakdown on the Vulcan Mind Meld. What do you think of
it? Convenient plot tool, or something that should be treated with more gravity with lasting
consequences? Thanks again for watching and I’ll see you next time, goodbye!