The Tok’ra

Summary

The Tok'ra are part of the same species as the Goa'uld, but most if not all are descended from one queen, Egeria. They do not believe in taking hosts against their will and instead form a symbiotic relationship with their hosts. Their initial goal was to fight against the head Goa'uld system lord Ra (tok'ra in the Goa'uld language means "against Ra"), and they continued to fight their Goa'uld "cousins" through subterfuge. They have formed a sometimes uneasy alliance with the Tau'ri and have assisted Jaffa rebelling against the Goa’uld.

First Encounter with the Tok’ra

SG-1 first encountered the Tok'ra when evacuating Nasya. A Tok'ra operative named Jolinar of Malkshur was hiding from the Goa'uld and used a Nasyan man named Quinta as its disguise. When the Goa'uld attacked Nasya, Quinta was killed, but Jolinar was able to survive by blending with Captain Samantha Carter when she was giving Quinta mouth-to-mouth. Believed at first to be a Goa'uld, Jolinar eventually explained she was part of a Goa'uld resistance movement called the Tok'ra. Teal'c had never heard of such a group, but knew the name Jolinar to be an enemy of the Goa'uld system lords. A Goa'uld assassin, an ashrak, attempted to assassinate Jolinar. The Tok'ra symbiote died, but used her remaining strength to save Samantha Carter's life.

Basic Biology and Historical Origins

The Goa'uld and Tok'ra biologically are identical. They are small, sentient snakelike-creatures who burrow into another species in order to communicate and interact. As part of the host, they can control all motor function, including speaking, and can increase the lifespan of the host as well as heal ailments and injuries. Their naquadah enriched blood is blue, and they cannot live long outside of a host–though they can survive for some time in water that contains some type of electrical current. The Tok'ra and Goa'uld's difference is more a philosophical distinction. While the Goa'uld have a parasitical relationship with their hosts–taking over the bodies, the Tok'ra claim a more symbiotic role. According to their laws, they will not take hosts against their will, and the host is allowed control of the body and speech. Human hosts agreed to voluntarily blend with symbiotes for the advantages of advanced knowledge and wisdom, good health, and a lifespan at least twice that of a normal human.