7

From the episode "Little Green Men":

ROM: Maybe we are dead.

QUARK: What are you talking about?

ROM: Maybe this is the Divine Treasury.

QUARK: Oh, don't be ridiculous. The Divine Treasury is made of pure latinum. Besides, where's the Blessed Exchequer? Where are the Celestial Auctioneers? And why aren't we bidding for our new lives?

ROM: You don't think we're in the other place?

NOG: The Vault of Eternal Destitution?

It would seem that they have their own version of reincarnation.

Questions:

  1. Is there any official material that suggests this is in fact Ferengi reincarnation?
  2. What happens after a Ferengi is given a new life? Do they come back to this universe or go to another dimension/universe (assuming alternate dimensions and universes exist in the ST canon)?

  3. Do the Ferengi remember any part of their past lives?

8
  • 3
    1. If it's not in the Rules of Acquisition, probably not. 2. Anything is possible! Except refunds. No refunds. 3. Alternate dimensions and universes? That's unpossible! 4. Sorry, I've forgotten what we're talking about. Commented Sep 5, 2019 at 12:38
  • @PaulD.Waite - Do the Rules of Acquisition cover what happens when a Ferengi dies? Is it like a religious text to the Ferengi, or more like life manual?
    – user120192
    Commented Sep 5, 2019 at 13:01
  • 2
    Amazon will tell you for the low, low price of... whatever they sell the book for! Commented Sep 5, 2019 at 14:26
  • @QueenSvetlana - it's a guide for life and how to navigate "the great river".
    – Valorum
    Commented Sep 5, 2019 at 16:59
  • 1
    Oops, missed that completely. You're quite right. Commented Sep 5, 2019 at 18:41

1 Answer 1

5

The Ferengi religious tradition seems to be much the same as Hinduism/Buddhism; a soul is reincarnated into a new body with their "Karma" determining their new station in life. The key difference is obviously that when a Ferengi dies, their Karmic balance is determined by their bank balance, not some intangible notion of goodness. If a Ferengi dies in profit they can bid, at the Celestial Auction, for a variety of new lives, with, presumably, the most expensive being those that are going to incarnate into babies born into a life of luxury.

It seems obvious that a reincarnated Ferengi would have no specific memory of their former life (since this is a religious tradition rather than something based on actual events or facts), nor are they being re-embodied in another universe, mirror or otherwise.

That all being said, we learn in the EU Novel DS9: Force and Motion that the majority of Ferengi don't actually believe in any of religious aspects of their cultural inheritance.

He nodded toward Sabih. “And Alpha Centaurians. It feels practically salacious somehow. Perhaps a Ferengi soul became lost and found its way into this somewhat ample frame after its last incarnation.”

“The majority of Ferengi don’t believe in reincarnation,” Sabih began. “Inasmuch as there can be said to be a major religion, it’s basically an extension of their nearly religious belief that the value of a life is measured in material gain. In fact—”