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THE MAGICK OF STAR TREK

All I Really Needed to Learn About Magick
I Learned From Watching Star Trek*

Rowan Sterling, self-proclaimed Trekkie since age nine. When I first saw Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn on the big screen I fell in love. Not with Kirk or Spock, but with the entire Star Trek phenomenon. Star Trek is 30 years old this year. With all the pomp and circumstance surrounding its birthday, I began to look at just what I have learned from this "mindless" entertainment over the last 15 years of my life. It may surprise the non-trekkie, but I learned a lot about magick, ethics, altered states of consciousness, and spirituality.

Star Trek (The Original Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and all the movies) always tries to tackle subjects that are parallel to current politics or deal with powers of the human will. Those who know me know that I teach Wicca to beginner level students. I have, on more than one occasion, recommended viewing certain episodes of Star Trek to clarify magickal definitions and practices.

The first and foremost lesson from Star Trek is the United Federation of Planets. This is an organization that has dedicated itself to "seeking out new life forms" to learn from. They seek not to conquer them or to change them, but to heighten the human understanding of life. The Planet Vulcan (one of the systems that is a member of the United Federation of Planets) goes by this motto: "Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations" (First seen in The Original Series episode IS THERE IN TRUTH NO BEAUTY). That ideal ties in with our relationship with Mother Earth. We, as Pagans, strive not to conquer nature, but to be one with it. To learn all we can from the animals and each other so as to compliment our own lives. All things are one. The diversity in all things leads to endless possibilities.

With the Federation of Planets comes their most revered rule: The Prime Directive. The Prime Directive states that no member of Starfleet shall interfere with the natural evolution of any culture. Is this not what we strive to do? Attempting to change or influence another's ways is detrimental. It is selfish, egotistical, and can damage the culture beyond repair. We have seen this happen in our own history. The Native American culture is a prime example. What our forefathers did to those people was disgraceful. Therefore, our generation must hold steadfastly to the rule of non-interference. This also applies to ourselves. What right does anyone have to interfere with our beliefs? None whatsoever.

We see in many of the Next Generation episodes examples of altered states of consciousness. In the episode DARK PAGE, we see Counsellor Deanna Troi attempt to astral project into her mother's consciousness. This was done to help her mother overcome a traumatic past event that has left her in a state of mental coma.

Astral projection is tackled in an additional episode. In the Voyager episode called CATHEXIS, Commander Chakotay's psyche is separated from his body in an accident. To alert the crew to his whereabout and to save Voyager from doom, Chakotay must "possess" certain crew members.

PHANTASMS deals with dream interpretation. Commander Data, an android, creates a dream program for himself. In his "dreams" he sees many strange symbols. He must interpret these symbols to save the Enterprise from destruction. This episode deals directly with the subconscious mind's ability to pick up information and store it for future interpretation.

Alternate realities are also examined in the episode called PARALLELS. Lt. Worf, a Klingon, inadvertently travels through a quantum fissure. This tear in the space-time continuum cause Worf to travel back and forth through different realities. These different realities stem from all of the choices Worf could have made in his life at any given moment. Each reality is a different outcome from a different choice. We see this idea of different realities pop up in many episodes : MIRROR, MIRROR (The Original Series), THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS (Deep Space Nine), CROSSOVER (Deep Space Nine), SHATTERED MIRROR (Deep Space Nine), and NON SEQUITUR (Voyager).

For the first time in 30 years, a Pagan oriented religion is brought into central focus on Voyager. Commander Chakotay (the second in command) is Native American. He is extremely religious, and we see for the first time practices and beliefs including Chakotay's spiritual power animal and how he attempts to help other crew members find theirs. We also see (in CATHEXIS) B'Elana Torres (half Klingon, half Human chief engineer) use the Medicine Wheel to help heal Chakotay. The Native American religion is beautifully presented in the following episodes: JOURNEY'S END (The Next Generation), THE CLOUD (Voyager), INITIATIONS (Voyager), and TATTOO (Voyager).

The psychic ability of telepathy is a main focus in Star Trek. Everyone knows what a Vulcan is. Leonard Nimoy's Spock made pointy ear Vulcans a household name. Although Vulcans have suppressed their emotions, they have encouraged other abilities such as telepathy. The Vulcan Mind Meld is the Vulcan way to telepathically link with another person. The phrase "My mind to your mind; My thoughts to your thoughts" is as well known as "Damn it Jim, I'm a doctor, not a bricklayer". The Vulcan Mind Meld is present in dozens of episodes and a primary focus in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn, and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Look for the mind meld in these episodes: SAREK (The Next Generation), MELD (Voyager), COLD FIRE (Voyager), UNIFICATION parts I and II (The Next Generation), and FLASHBACKS (Voyager).

The race of beings called Betazoids (introduced in The Next Generation) are telepathic as well. Lwaxana Troi (Star Trek's creator, the late Gene Roddenberry's widow Majel Barrett Roddenberry) introduces Betazoids to the Star Trek audience in HAVEN. Although Betazoids are touched on with Lwaxana's daughter (Counsellor Deanna Troi), Deanna is only half Betazoid therefore not fully telepathic. Additional episodes dealing with Betazoid telepathy are: MANHUNT (The Next Generation), MENAGE A TROI (The Next Generation), HALF A LIFE (The Next Generation), VIOLATIONS (The Next Generation), and COST OF LIVING (The Next Generation).

Along with telepathy, an ability that should be looked at in depth is empathy. Counsellor Deanna Troi, being half human and half Betazoid, is not telepathic like her mother, but empathic. She can sense only emotions in other beings. Empathy is a widely recognized practice by magick users and seems to be a bit easier to learn than telepathy. Empathy is also touched on with Kes, the Ocumpa nurse on Voyager. You will find the power of empathy in the following episodes: THE EMPATH (The Original Series), THE LOSS (The Next Generation), THE PERFECT MATE (The Next Generation), THE PRICE (The Next Generation), and MAN OF THE PEOPLE (The Next Generation).

The last subject that Star Trek is so fond of writing about is mythology. Whether Greek, Roman, or Norse, Star Trek writers have a fascination with Gods and Goddesses of other cultures. Some episodes deal directly with cultural mythologies while others borrow costumes, beliefs, legends, stories, and the frameworks of primitive belief structures for story line effects. There are numerous episodes of all the Star Trek series that deal with this subject. Here are some of the best ones: WHO MOURNS FOR ADONIS (The Original Series), ELAAN OF TROYIUS (The Original Series), JUSTICE (The Next Generation), WHO WATCHES THE WATCHERS (The Next Generation), SUB ROSA (The Next Generation), and HEROS AND DEMONS (Voyager).

As you can see, there is more than meets the eye when Star Trek is concerned. It isn't mindless Sci-fi babble created to numb the minds of science fiction affectionados. There is much to learn from it's ideas, theories, and adventures. Above all, Star Trek teaches us that there are many unseen realms in the mind and in our lives. Each avenue must be explored fully to find spiritual harmony and the bond of all things that live. Keep trekking...