VirtuesWhen we come to Gor, the Free Woman is told she is virtuous and held high in Gorean society as long as she lives by her virtue. Nine points will be covered that may shed some light as to how a Free Woman might live, succeed and keep true to herself and her caste. These are also points which everyone can live by; features that we all should strive to uphold in real life and virtually.

Courage

The first virtue is courage. This is not the courage to battle. In many ways, Gorean society challenges our values. In real life on Earth, we are legally equals to men. On Gor, we are not. This courage stems from within, revealing your character to be who you are meant to be on Gor and live your life there appropriately. If Sally in the next cabin tells you that you are being too weak and subservient, while she runs around acting like a man, who is right? Is this the way to get ahead and be accepted in Gorean society? No. Live the way you are meant to live as a Gorean Free Woman.

TruthThe second virtue is truth. It is a word that bears much in its definition and includes such a wide variety of moraland philosophical beliefs that we were all drawn to it as a simple statement for what we stand.

One of the reasons is the simple issue of honesty. Words to live by: "If you do not want people to know about something, do not do it." Truth, in the sense of honesty, is essential to personal honor and also to any system ormorality that is not based on rigid legalism. If one is to uphold an honor code, one must be brutally honest with oneself and with others.

Truth is also the “Truth” that one speaks about in terms of religion or morality. It is common to talk of different peoples having different "truths," but it is equally important to remember that while we acknowledge that each person or people have their own belief as to what truth is or where to find it, there is finally the singular Truth.

This is not the truth, as we believe it, but the ultimate Truth. while we may respect other people's "truths" and seek our own, we must never forget our search for The Truth. Like the Holy Grail of Christian legend, it may never be ours to reach, but when we cease to search, we perish.

HonorHonor is the foundation upon which Gorean moral rationale is built. Honor is not mere reputation. Honor is an internal force whose outward manifestation is reputation. Internal honor is the sacred moral compass that each of us should hold dear. It is the inner dwelling at peace, which comes from living in accordance with one’s beliefs and with one’s knowledge of the truth of what one is doing. It is something deeply personal and heartfelt,almost akin to an emotion. It's a "knowing" that what one is doing is right and decent and correct, for without honor, we are nothing.

In many ways, while the most important of all the virtues, it is also the most ephemeral in terms of description. Itis all other virtues and more! The best way to describe honor is that if you are truly living with honor, you will have no regrets about what you have done with your life. You may have made mistakes, but you learned from them and grew, moving on.

FidelityFidelity is a word that is far too often defined by its narrow use in terms of marriage fidelity. Defined simply, it means being faithful to someone or something. In a Free Companionship, it means being true to one’s vows and partner, and this has been narrowly defined as limiting one’s sexual experience to one’s spouse, with the exception of slaves, unless the two decide otherwise.

While it has been found to be great practical advice, many treat fidelity as if there were no other ways in which one could be faithful or unfaithful. For Gorean Free Women, fidelity is most important in terms of our faith and truth to caste. We must remain true to our Home Stones, our sisters, to ourselves, and to the man who will one day be our Companion.

DisciplineDiscipline is best described as self-discipline within any discussion of values. It is the exercise of personal wills that upholds honor and the other virtues and translates impulse into action. If one is to be able to reject moral legalism for a system of internal honor, one must be willing to exercise the self-discipline necessary to make it work. Without self-discipline, we are no better than what is currently seen in our Earth culture.HospitalityHospitality is simply one of the strongest core values at the heart of virtually every ancient human xivilization. In a community such as Gor, it is the virtue that upholds our social fabric. In ancient times, it was essential that, when a traveler went into the world, he could find some sort of shelter and welcome for the night. On Gor, it is just as essential that a traveler find friendship and safety.

In our Home Stone, we need to treat each other with respect and act together for the good of our community asa whole. This functions most solidly on the level of the kindred where non-familial members become extremely close and look out for each other. It can mean hospitality in the old sense of taking in people, which we do, but on Gor, it could mean a warm beverage, a compassionate ear, a meal, or help out a friend or sometimes even astranger in need.

Part of hospitality is treating other people with respect and dignity, even strangers. The virtue of hospitality means seeing people as if they were all individuals with self-respect and importance. Broadly speaking, I see Gorean hospitality is analogous to a frontier "barn raising" where a whole community would come together and pool their resources. This doesn't mean we have to forget differences, but we must put them aside for those who are of our family, and work for our common good.

IndustriousnessWe must be industrious in our actions. Hard work is required if we are going to achieve our goals and there is much for us to do. We've set ourselves the task of restoring honor to its former place as a mainstream faith and by doing so reinvigorating our society and culture. We are unable to do this by sitting on our virtues; we need to make them an active part of our behavior. Rather, we must apply hard work in our daily vocations, done with care and pride.

Perhaps you are reading this with disagreement with what is being said. Well, be industrious! Write your own articles and arguments. Start composing an answer to these statements and offer a different perhaps, more enlightening point of view. Better to gain knowledge and offer discourse than to offer passivity. Get the blood moving and go out and do it. That's how it gets done.

The same holds true for our lives. As Free Women, we should offer a good example as industrious people who add to whatever we're involved in rather than take from it. We should be the ones the Homes cannot do without;the ones who always seem to be able to get things done. People should consider the Gorean Free Woman as commendable, Free Women who offer something to the world.

Self-RelianceIndustriousness brings us directly to the virtue of self-reliance, practical and traditional terms being important. Going back to the general notion of this page, we are dealing with a form of morality that is largely self-imposedand thus requires self-reliance. We rely on ourselves to administer our own morality.

Traditionally, our folkways have always honored the ability of a man or woman to make their own way in the world and not to lean on others for their physical needs. This is one of the ways in which many virtues reinforce and support each other. Hospitality cannot function if people are not responsible enough to exercise discipline and take care of themselves. It's for those that strive and fail or need assistance that hospitality is intended, not for the idle that simply won't take care of themselves.

In mundane terms, being self-reliant is simply a way to allow ourselves the ability to live as we wish to live within the Gorean society. Henry David Thoreau advocated a simple lifestyle that freed one from the temptations of materialism. Again, here we are able to live as we wish with those things that are truly important. One of the most important meanings for being self-reliant is taking responsibility for one’s life. It's about refusingto blame one’s failures on someone else. Gor is in fact unfair, and it's our own responsibility to deal eith it, get over it, and move on.

PerseverenceThe final virtue is perseverance. Perseverance is the virtue that we need to keep in the forefront of our mind in our living and application of the other values. Life teaches us that the world is an imperfect place and nothing comes easy. We need to strive to seek after that which we desire. In this imperfect world there are no free lunches or easy accomplishments--especially in the subjects we have set before ourselves.

If we truly wish to build a successful reputation for ourselves, one that people will hold up as an example of what committed people can do, then we must persevere through the hardships that building it is going to entail. We must be willing to continue on when we are pushed back. If one es hurt, the answer is not to go and hide, but to continue until one finds a place where one can move forward and live, as a Free Woman should, with honor and dignity.

Finally, failure requires perseverance. If the Keep feels as if it is falling apart because of internal strife, one should push ahead and keep going. Pick up the pieces and continue on. We must be willing to continue in the hard work of making our Home strong in the face of adversity…not just when it is convenient and easy to do so,but when it gets hard, inconvenient, or just plain boring. To accomplish without striving is to do little, but to persevere and ultimately accomplish a hard-fought goal brings great honor.

To live a virtuous life, a Free Woman and every person on Gor must follow the codes of their caste: Truth to self, Courage to live life as you must, Fidelity to your code and self, Discipline to keep the codes, Hospitality to all who enter your Home in peace. Industriousness - Do, Be, make happen, get involved. Self-reliance – take responsibility for your own actions. Perseverance to continue upon the uphill path even though the wind and rain may drive you back, all tempered with the Honor from within.