The Vulcan Salute

Oh dear...

So…I know there’s a lot of people that get pissed off when people tuck their thumbs in doing a vulcan salute. Yes, this is incorrect, but I’m not sure a lot of people know why! I’m here to explain it!

(This is a repost from two years ago when I originally posted, but seeing as today is the one year anniversary of Mr. Leonard Nimoy's death I wanted to take the opportunity to share the information again.)

Surak's Construct

So Vulcan philosophy is based on five main concepts, all of which are represented in the hand sign.

Nome: The ring finger represents Nome, meaning “all”. All things in the universe combined make existance worthwhile.

IDIC: Invinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. This is the pinky finger. To achieve knowledge, one must accept all diverse possibilities.

The Doctrine of the Domination of Logic: The middle finger is the belief that Logic should dictate every thought and action.
Reverence for Life: This is the index finger. Vulcans respect every aspect of life, no matter what the circumstances.

Privacy: This is the important part. The thumb stands alone to represent the high regard that the Vulcan people have for individual privacy.

Nome-IDIC together is to represent the joining of diverse things in order to create more meaning. This is separated from Logic-Reverence for Life because Nome-Idic includes emotion. It recognizes that emotion creates meaning and beauty and is part of the Nome.

This salute, combined with the phrase “Dif tor heh smusma”(Live long and Prosper) is essentially a Vulcan telling you that you may believe anything you like and that he or she is respecting any opinion or way of life you may have. It is also them offering to teach you about themselves or anything they know, hoping for some knowledge in return, so both parties may better themselves.

Just thought this bit of information might be interesting/helpful!

Leonard Nimoy was a talented actor and (from what I've heard) an amazing individual. Today I'd like to honour his memory by thanking him for influencing my life in such a peaceful way. He is still, and always shall be, missed.

Live long and prosper.