Khala

"I know what to do now. I know the path we need to follow These centuries of hatred-it's wrong, Temlaa, so very wrong. We need to remember what we once had. We do not need the Xel'Naga, we need only each other!"

- Savassan describes the necessity of the Khala to Temlaa

The Khala ("Path of Ascension") is the main religion of the Protoss and the psionic philosophy that maintains their communal psionic link.

The Original Link
The Xel'Naga discovered the Protoss on their homeworld of Aiur and noticed that the Protoss were held together by a psionic link. This link was a form of instinctive telepathy, enabling them to communicate with one another, so that even large groups could work together efficiently. The Xel'Naga saw this as a sign that the Protoss had a purity of essence in addition to their purity of form.

The Xel'Naga descended to Aiur and revealed themselves. They taught the Protoss about technology. However, as the understanding and personal awareness of the young Protoss grew, they began to place greater pride in individual achievements rather than the benefit of the community. The various Tribes sought to distance themselves from one another, seeking their role not only within their immediate society, but the universe as a whole. Their psionic link disappeared. The Protoss could still telepathically communicate and read thoughts, but no longer had an empathic bond with each other.

The Xel'Naga despaired that their creation had failed and tried to leave. Some of the Protoss tribes were angered at this action and attacked the Xel'Naga, to little effect. The Xel'Naga had left, but they did not take all their relics with them. The Protoss tribes fell upon each other, beginning the Aeon of Strife.

The Aeon of Strife
Near the end of the Strife, a Protoss named Savassan found the Khaydarin Crystals that the Xel'Naga (the creators of the species) had left behind on the Protoss homeworld Aiur and channeled their primal energy. Going by the name of Khas ("he who brings order"), he sensed the primordial bonds of the Protoss, which strengthened the telepathic connections between Protoss and also re-established an emotional connection. With knowledge gained from Xel'Naga relics, he learned how to spread the bond. He wrote teachings so that the Protoss might evolve again into a unified communal society.

Khas believed that, with the Khala, the Protoss would understand each others' emotions (especially positive emotions that they all shared) and stop the self-hatred that was driving them insane. Many Protoss both loved and hated the Xel'Naga and were nearly driven insane by the depths of hatred. The Protoss didn't need the Xel'Naga, believed Khas, they only needed the original emotional link - the very thing they had lost but Khas had rediscovered.

The theory of the Khala formed the foundation of future Protoss psionic techniques, especially powerful abilities such as the Psionic Storm.

The Modern Khala
Khas thus ended the Aeon of Strife and brought on the Second Age for the Protoss. The Khala structured a society composed of three Castes: the Judicator Caste (led by the Conclave), the Khalai Caste and the Templar. The Protoss started to follow the Dae'uhl ('Stewardship') for other planets once claimed by the Xel'Naga. They started supervising and protecting the lesser life forms but not interfering.

Protoss who follow the Khala are often referred to as "Protoss of Aiur" or Khalai (used in a difference sense from members of the Khalai Caste).

However some Rogue Tribes did not want to follow the Khala, as there was a risk of being "washed away" by the loss of self and gain of "other". These outcasts became known as the Dark Templar. They cut themselves off from the psionic link by severing the nerve cords that linked them to the Protoss telepathic community.

Uses of the Khala
Protoss who follow the Khala are always linked, making it impossible for one Protoss to hide from another. (During the Aeon of Strife, Protoss could hide from each other because they weren't linked to the Khala; the Dark Templar can hide from each other and other Protoss because they are not linked to the Khala.)

The depth of this link varies, however, according to the personal choices of the Protoss. Members of the Templar and Judicator Castes immerse themselves into it several times per day, along with many Khalai.

Communication within the Khala
Protoss can communicate using a mental link (which transmits emotions) or simply through "speaking" (another form of mental link).

Protoss can create a special kind of mind-meld deep within the Khala, were no one could lie. Protoss performing this kind of mind-meld hold up their hands and face their palms to each other; both palms softly glow. This kind of communication was also possibly between Adun and Raszagal, the latter not following the Khala.

Speculation about the Khala
The Protoss were confused by the "betrayal" of the Xel'Naga during the Aeon of Strife. Khas believed that the Protoss were, in fact, suffering from self-hatred and that the Khala was the necesary cure. The Khala was advanced by the Conclave as the only way to prevent another Aeon of Strife.

The Rogue Tribes did not "go insane" however, despite cutting themselves off from the Khala. They had, like the other Protoss, "gotten over" their self-hatred. The Khala was not needed as a "permanent" cure, just a "one-time" cure for the madness.

The psionic link that the Protoss possessed and Khas re-established was one of the reasons the Xel'Naga became so close to the Protoss, so severing themselves from the link would render the Dark Templar "forbidden" in the eyes of the Conclave (and possibly the Xel'Naga as well). However, the Dark Templar continue to revere the Xel'Naga, to the point of settling the harsh world of Shakuras in order to live near one of their temples.