Isle Of Anango
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Isle Of Anango

The Isle of Anango is located on Gor. Gor is a fictional Counter-Earth based on the books by John Norman. This island is Sovereign and Ruled by a Tatrix (female ruler). This community is representative of the Three Pillars, Homestone: Anango, Caste: Ini
 
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 The First Pillar Count..........

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Tatrix Lady Aasiyah
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Tatrix Lady Aasiyah


Number of posts : 391
Registration date : 2009-01-02

The First Pillar Count.......... Empty
PostSubject: The First Pillar Count..........   The First Pillar Count.......... Icon_minitimeFri Jan 30, 2009 9:31 am

A Home Stone unifies the people of a city. It is more important
than caste prejudices or other forms of prejudice. It inspires intense
loyalty, great enough that everyone would die to protect it. There is a
popular Gorean saying that: "One who speaks of Home Stones should stand
for matters of honor are involved." (Tarnsman of Gor, p.27) This is
taken to an extreme where a man might be killed who does not stand when
he speaks of his Home Stone. There is no symbol on Earth which has a
similar function to a Home Stone. Patriotism to our flag is but a pale
analogy to the Home Stone. Flag burning would horrify Goreans who would
treat it as a capital offense rather than an exercise of free speech.
Goreans look down on Earth because it has no Home Stone. Thus there is
no reason why Earth people cannot be enslaved.

In your
role-play, you should try to put your Home Stone in its proper
perspective. You should love your city and be intensely loyal to it.
You should be proud of your city. You should participate in matters
important to your city. You should unite with your fellow citizens
against intruders and outsiders who threaten your city. Warriors will
defend their city and Home Stone to the death. Take an active role in
your city and make it worthy.

Gorean society has a firmly
established Caste System and almost all Free Persons belong to a Caste.
The Caste system is a vital component of civilized Gorean society. In
its most basic form, a Caste is your profession though there is much
more involved than that. Your Caste defines your codes of conduct,
generally limits those you interact with, sets your place within the
Gorean hierarchy, and so much more. Your Caste defines much of who you
are on Gor, far more than any job on Earth ever would.

There
are three basic categories outside of the caste system: Priest-Kings,
outlaws and slaves. Priest-Kings are the "gods" of Gor and live hidden
away in the Sardar Mountains. A man who refuses to practice his
livelihood or strives to alter status without consent of the Council of
High Castes is by definition an outlaw. Outlaws belong to no city and
usually live hidden in the forests, mountains or other isolated areas.
Outlaws do not have identifying devices on their garb. Most cities will
impale outlaws if they try to access the city gates. There are few
outlaws on Gor as being cut off from Gorean society so to such a degree
is a great onus. Slaves are considered property and have no status in
the caste system. Any Caste they once had is stripped from them when
they are enslaved.

There are also some peoples who do not fall
into these three primary exceptions but are still outside the caste
system. There are some people who have lost caste or been deprived of
caste for various reasons. Some are born outside of the caste system. A
few occupations are not traditionally associated with a caste, like
gardening, domestic service and herding. There are also cultures and
peoples on Gor without any caste system. But these peoples are
traditionally considered barbarians and not a part of civilized Gor.
These include such cultures as the Wagon Peoples, Torvaldslanders, Red
Savages and the Tribesmen of the Tahari. All of these people are not
considered outlaws though and are able to enter cities realatively
freely.

Caste is primarily governed by birth. Children take on
the caste of their father. If the mother does not share the caste of
the father, there might be a problem if their Free Companionship
eneded. In this case, it makes sense that the children would remain
with the father as the children belong to his caste. Caste is far too
important a matter to let the children go off with someone not of their
caste. If mother and father shared caste, then the children could go
with either parent. The books though do not make clear what happens to
children when a Free Companionship ends.

The Caste system has
little upward mobility though the opportunity does exist. Changing your
Caste is generally not an easy task. Free Companionship is one method
for free women to change their caste. Normally, relationships remain
within the same caste. But, if of mixed caste, the woman can keep her
own caste or take her partner's caste. This can serve to raise her
caste. Generally, a woman would not change her Caste to a lower one.
Though her Caste changed, the woman could not fully practice her new
Caste until she had been properly trained and met all other
prerequisites. Another way for man or woman to change is their caste is
through a showing or lack of ability. This can serve to either raise or
lower your caste. To lower your Caste through a lack of ability, the
High Council of the Caste would have to make that decision. To raise
your caste or willingly change caste, the High Council of the city must
approve the change, based on your qualifications for the new Caste and
the willingness of the new Caste to accept you. Women are promoted and
demoted by the same criteria as men though it varies from city to city.


To most Goreans though, it is unthinkable to alter their caste.
Most Goreans are proud of their caste, even peasants and laborers. It
is recognized that all, or at least most, castes perform necessary,
useful or commendable tasks. Their skills are appreciated by others and
not generally looked down on. Each caste views itself as special in
some way. Each Caste has its place and worth in Gorean society. Metal
Workers state: "Where would the dwellers of cities be without us?"
(Dancer of Gor, p.293) This is a way of saying that their skills are
essential for civilization. Even the lowest Caste, the Peasants,
consider themselves the "Ox on which the Home Stone Rests." They are
the ones that provide the food for all other Castes.

Despite
this respect for the place of each Caste within Gorean society, Caste
discrimination is very common. "Language and city, and caste, however,
are matters of great moment to them, and provide sufficient basis for
the discriminations in which human beings take such great delight."
(Beasts of Gor, p.156) Entertainment and Free Companionships generally
follow Caste lines. There are paga taverns that cater to the different
Castes and a Peasant would not dare enter a High Caste tavern. Many
Castes will not use the Long Bow because it is seen as a Peasant weapon
and beneath higher castes. The Double Knowledge is a method of
discrimination meant to keep the Lower Castes in their place. The Low
Castes are generally not permitted to vote or be on the High Councils.
The Castes are ranked from Highest to Lowest which alone signifies that
some are better than others.

Each has its own color,
respectively white, blue, yellow, green, red, which is also their
ranking of order of importance. The High Castes elect the Administrator
and Council of a city for stated terms. There are subcastes of some of
these castes. For example, cartographers and lawyers belong to the
Caste of Scribes. The Lower Castes includes all the other established
castes. These includes such castes as assassins, bakers, bleachers,
carriers of wood (woodsmen), charcoal makers, cloth worker,
cosmeticians, dyers, goat-keepers, growers of rence, leather workers,
metal workers, musicians, peasants, potters, saddle makers, singers
(poets), smiths, tarn keepers, vintners, and weavers. There are many
more castes and some subcastes. These castes are also ranked in order
of their importance with peasants at the bottom of the ranking order.

Each
caste has its own Caste Code to govern the conduct of its members. "The
ethical teachings of Gor, …,amount to little more than the Caste
Codes---collections of sayings whose origins are lost in antiquity."
(Tarnsman of Gor, p.40-41) Unfortunately the books provide little
details on the Caste Codes for each different Caste. Only the Warrior
Caste receives any siginificant details on its Caste Codes. These Codes
are vitally important to the Caste members and are generally followed
by all. "It is the codes which separate men from sleen and larls,"
(Slave Girl of Gor p.227) Failing to follow the Codes could lead to
sanctions from your Caste.

Belonging to a Caste also gives you
certain privileges. Charity is administered through the caste
structure. Goreans do not favor begging and some even view it as an
insult. When charity is in order, the caste or clan comes to the
rescue. Caste Sanctuary, the protection of caste members in times of
need, is another privilege. A Caste protects its own members and they
form a cohesive unity. Caste rights are a matter of birth and you are
entitled to them automatically, even if you never practice your caste
work.

One commonly cannot practice a craft in a Caste until an
apprenticeship is done though you might be able to do some subsidiary
work in that craft without such practice. A Metalworker, who has not
completed his apprenticeship, might be able to paint iron or transport
it though he could not work the iron. An apprenticeship helps to
guarantee the quality of the Caste's products and services. Thus a
Caste will consist of full working members of the Caste, members in
training, and non-practicing members. Women of a caste often do not
engage in caste work. Women generally do not work in Castes where
physical strength is required. For example, women of the Metal Workers
do not commonly work at a forge and women of the Builder's do not
supervise the construction of fortifications.

But, women do
commonly work as Scribes and Merchants. There are even female slavers.
Another notable exception is that of the Physician's Caste. The
Physician's Caste though does restrict women in one way. The Caste will
not permit a woman to practice medicine until she has first born two
children. In many cities, at age fifteen, a woman of the Physician's
Caste dons two bracelets. One is removed for each child born, and when
both are removed, she is allowed to practice medicine. The reason
behind this is that it is understood that professional women tend not
to reproduce themselves. This would serve over time to diminish the
quality of the caste. Thus, the rule helps to preserve the future of
the caste.

The future of the caste is vitally important to
Goreans. The welfare of the caste takes priority over the ambitions of
specific individuals. The welfare of a larger number of individuals is
more important than the welfare of a smaller number of individuals.
Caste is crucially important to Goreans in ways that those of Earth
cannot easily comprehend. The importance of the caste to Goreans cannot
be underestimated. Thus, the logic behind this restriction on women in
the Physician's Caste should apply as well to the Warrior Caste.

Why
would the Warrior Caste allow women to risk their lives in combat?
There would be more women dying in combat which would lead to fewer
births. In addition, dead women could not raise their existing
children. Goreans would not want their children to grow up with
mothers. This would all diminish the quality of the caste over time.
With the welfare of the caste at stake, Warriors would not permit women
to engage in combat. In addition, women would not want to endanger the
welfare of the caste so they would accept their role in the Caste. This
may be one of the strongest single arguments against female warriors.

There
are a number of key differences between the High and Low Castes. First,
each learns a different type of knowledge concerning their world. The
Low Castes learn the First Knowledge that is a simpler knowledge with a
number of falsehoods and half-truths. They learn that the world is flat
and are not taught of the existence of Earth. The High Castes have the
Second Knowledge. They know about Earth and most of the true
information about Gor though they know little of the true nature of the
Priest-Kings. Most of them would have uncovered these truths on their
own anyways. There is a Third Knowledge belonging to the Priest Kings,
a knowledge of the many secrets of Gor.

The Low Castes are
also very superstitious normally. They are reluctant to reveal their
true names. They thus have both a use name and a real name. Often only
close relatives know their real name. High Castes usually use their
names freely though the Lowers believe they have use names. Knowing a
real name supposedly gives one power, a capacity to use the name in
spells and insidious magical practices. Many of the Low Castes believe
in magic and that some people can read thoughts. They believe the
stories of the wizards and monsters of Anango.

There is an
accent that differentiates the High and Low Castes, though some of the
higher artisan castes speak almostlike the High Caste. Illiteracy is
common on Gor and is not taken as a mark of stupidity. Literacy usually
follows by caste lines and many Goreans of the Low Castes cannot read.
Even some of the High Castes, primarily warriors, may be illiterate.
Some warriors feel that they should not be literate so they hide the
fact that they can read.

The caste system is vital to the
proper functioning of Gorean society. The caste system contributes
considerably to the stability of society. It reduces competitive chaos,
social and economic, and prevents the draining of intelligence and
ambition into a small number of envied, prestigious occupations. By
making each Caste important and instilling an attitude that the good of
the Caste outweighs individual ambitions, people tend to remain in
their Caste. Gorean society is not a battle over climbing a social
ladder.

In your role-play, you should be proud of your caste
and participate in Caste matters such as Caste leader elections.
Goreans care about the future of their Castes. They place their
personal desires below the welfare of their caste. If you are a Low
Caste, remember the differences from the High Castes. Remember that you
only have the First Knowledge and are likely illiterate. Respect those
of Higher Caste than you. Follow your Caste codes.
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