The Withdrawal was the name given to the time when Surak withdrew from Vulcan society in order to develop his pacifistic, logical teachings.

During the time, that lasted five years, Surak met numerous religious groups but the exact content of those discussions were never known though on some occasions Cthia was never discussed.

One such conversation that was recorded on tape and preserved through the centuries was with a hermit who lived near a lake by the Lesser Sea which covered nothing more then the art of fishing with a rod. (TOS novel: Spock's World)