Time Keeping

Of Importance to the Gorean

Holidays, festivals and celebrations are very important in the lives of Goreans. Although many have attempted to align these periods with Earth seasons and months, there is never mentioned in the books how Gorean months are paralleled to Earth months.

Holidays

While many celebratory festivals were noted in the books, only one real holiday was ever mentioned. Note, that kajuralia does translate to the "holiday of slaves," it was not a true holiday, but falls into the category of a celebration.

• The New Year
The New Year is celebrated almost universally. However, there are a few cultural differences, with regards to a specific cultural group of people and-or geographic location. This can be compared to Earth, for example, between the universally accepted New Year's Day of January 1, and the Jewish New Year, the Chinese New Year, et al.

~ Gorean New Year (Typical)
On the day of the Vernal Equinox, many northern Gorean cities, including Ar, celebrate the Gorean New Year. Typically upon this day a celebration takes place, doors are painted green, and a city-wide festival is held, lasting for two full Gorean hands (equivalent to ten days). Every fourth year, the Gorean New Year is celebrated on a separate day between the Waiting Hand of the previous year and the first day of the first Hand of En'Kara.

"… the last day of the Eleventh passage hand, about a month before the Gorean New Year, which occurs on the Vernal Equinox, the first day of the month of En'Kara." — Assassin of Gor, page 205.

~ Turian New Year
The peoples of Turia and certain other southern regions officially celebrate their own new year on the day of the Summer Solstice. A ten day period of revelry follows, similar to the New Year celebrations in northern cities.

~ The New Year of the Wagon  Peoples
The day of the Winter Solstice is celebrated by the Wagon Peoples as the first day of the new year, and marks the beginning of The Season of Snows.

"… the Wagon Peoples calculate the year from the Season of Snows to the Season of Snows…" — Nomads of Gor, pages 11-12.

Noted Events

Many special events were often celebrated, not specifically upon an annual basis, but at different intervals of timeline. Again, many of these particular events were culturally defined, dependent upon the inter-culture within Gor itself. These events could be celebratory, or simply a traditional reaffirmation of one's loyalty to their home stone.

•The Omen Year
The four tribes of the Wagon People war amongst each other more or less continuously; but once every ten years they come together during a season called The Omen Year. The Omen Year actually spans parts of two different regular years, which are calculated by the Wagon People from one Season of Snows to the next Season of Snows. The Omen Year lasts several months, and is comprised of three phases related to the seasonal migrations of the bosk.

The first phase is known as the Passing of Turia, and takes place during the autumn.

The second phase is called the Wintering, and takes place when the tribe is camped to the north of Turia and south of the Cartius River. The equator, in the southern hemisphere, is to the north; thus it is in the north that the Wagon Peoples are most likely to find grass for the bosk during the cold winter months. The nomadic herds of the Wagon peoples typically occupy their winter pastures during the period from the middle of the ninth Gorean month through the Second Hand of En'Kara.

The third and final phase of the Omen Year is called the Return to Turia, which takes place in the spring, or Season of Little Grass. It is at this time that the omens are read by hundreds of haruspexes, in verr livers and bosk blood, to determine whether the time is right for the choosing of a Ubar San (One Chief) to rule over all the four tribes of the Wagon Peoples, thus bringing them together under one fearsome war standard. The last day of the Second Hand of En'Kara is traditionally the day which marks the beginning of The Season of Little Grass for the Wagon Peoples, and shortly thereafter they begin the long trek from their winter pastures back to Turia.

"The Wagon Peoples war among themselves, but once in every two hands of years, there is a time of gathering of the peoples, and this, I had learned, was that time. In the thinking of the Wagon Peoples it is called the Omen Year, though the Omen Year is actually a season, rather than a year, which occupies a part of two of their regular years, for the Wagon Peoples calculate the year from the Season of Snows to the Season of Snows… the Omen Year, or season, lasts several months, and consists of three phases, called the Passing of Turia, which takes place in the fall; the Wintering, which takes place north of Turia and commonly south of the Cartius, the equator of course lying to the north in this hemisphere; and the Return to Turia, in the spring, or, as the Wagon Peoples say, in the Season of Little Grass. It is near Turia, in the spring, that the Omen Year is completed…" — Nomads of Gor, pages 11-12.

•The Planting Feast of Sa Tarna
A complex feast celebrated by most Gorean cities early during the growing season, and believed by many to ensure a plentiful harvest for the year ahead. Numerous rituals are performed during the three days of the feast by members of the caste of Initiates, and members of each of the five high castes perform their own part of the ceremony during that three-day period. Most of these rituals consist of sacrifices or prayers to the Priest Kings conducted in the presence of the city Home Stone. On the final eve of the feast, the Home Stone is placed beneath the sky, typically atop the tallest cylinder in the city, and sprinkled with Sa Tarna grain and Ka-la-na wine by a dignitary of the city, often the Administrator, Ubar, or a member of the ruling family.

"The next would be the Planting Feast of Sa-Tarna, the Life- Daughter, celebrated early in the growing season to ensure a good harvest. This is a complex feast, celebrated by most Gorean cities, and the observances are numerous and intricate. The details of the rituals are arranged and mostly executed by the Initiates of a given city. Certain portions of the ceremonies, however, are often allotted to members of the High Castes… In Ar, for example, early in the day, a member of the Builders will go to the roof on which the Home Stone is kept and place the primitive symbol of his trade, a metal angle square, before the Stone, praying to the Priest-Kings for the prosperity of his caste in the coming year; later in the day a Warrior will, similarly, place his arms before the Stone, to be followed by other representatives of each caste. Most significantly, while these members of the High Castes perform their portions of the ritual, the Guards of the Home Stone temporarily withdraw to the interior of the cylinder, leaving the celebrant, it is said, alone with the Priest-Kings… Lastly, as the culmination of Ar's Planting Feast.. a member of the Ubar's family goes to the roof at night, under the three full moons with which the feast is correlated, and casts grain upon the stone and drops of a red, winelike drink made from the fruit of the Ka-la-na tree. The member of the Ubar's family then prays to the Priest-Kings for an abundant harvest and returns to the interior of the cylinder, at which point the Guards of the Home Stone resume their vigil." — Tarnsman of Gor, page 68.

•The Waiting Hand
This is a five day period following the Twelfth (12th) Passage Hand during which doors are painted white, little food is eaten, little is drunk and there is no singing or public rejoicing in the city. Walls and doors are adorned with sprigs and branches from the brak bush to ward off ill-luck in the coming year. On the day of the Vernal equinox, the Ubar or Administrator of the city performs a ritual "greeting of the sun," after which doors are repainted and the brak foliage is removed, beginning a ten day period of general revelry.

"On the first day of the Waiting Hand, the last five days of the old year, the portals of Ar, including even that of the House of Cernus, had been painted white, and in many of the low-caste homes had been sealed with pitch, not to be opened until the first day of En'Kara. Almost all doors, including that of the House of Cernus, had nailed to them some branches of the Brak Bush, the leaves of which, when chewed, have a purgative effect. It is thought that the pitch and the branches of the Brak Bush discourage the entry of bad luck into the houses of the citizens. During the days of the Waiting Hand the streets are almost deserted, and in the Houses there is much fasting, and little conversation, and no song. Rations even in the House of Cernus were halved during this period. Paga and Ka-la-na were not served. The slaves in the pens received almost nothing. Then, at dawn, on the first day of En'Kara, in the name of the city, the Administrator of Ar, or a Ubar if it be Ubar, greets the sun, welcoming it to Ar on the first day of the New Year. The great bars suspended about the walls of the city then ring out for more than an Ahn with their din, and the doors of the city burst open and the people crowd out onto the bridges, clad in the splendor of their finest, singing and laughing. The doors are painted green and the pitch washed away, and the branches of the Brak Bush burned in a small ceremony on the threshold. There are processions in the city that day, and songfests, and tournaments of the game, and recitations by poets, and contests and exhibitions. When the lanterns on the bridges must be lit the people return home, singing, carrying small lamps, and give the night over to feasting and love. Even the slaves in the iron pens in the House of Cernus received that day a small cake with oil and had their troughs filled with water mixed with Paga." — Assassin of Gor, pages 211-212.

"The Waiting Hand, the five-day period preceding the vernal equinox, the first day of spring, is a very solemn time for most Goreans. During this time few ventures are embarked upon, and little or no business is conducted. During this time most Goreans remain within their houses. It is in this time that the doors of many homes are sealed with pitch and have nailed to them branches of the brak bush; the leaves of which have a purgative effect. These precautions, and others like them, are intended to discourage the entry of ill luck into the houses. In the houses there is little conversation and no song. It is a time, in general, of mourning, meditation and fasting. All this changes, of course, with the arrival of the vernal equinox, which, in most Gorean cities, marks the New Year. At dawn on the day of the vernal equinox a ceremonial greeting of the sun takes place, conducted usually by the Ubar or Administrator of the city. This, in effect, welcomes the New Year to the city. In Port Kar this honor fell to Samos, first captain in the Council of Captains, and the council's executive officers. The completion of this greeting is signified by, and celebrated by, a ringing of the great bars suspended about the city. The people then, rejoicing, issue forth from their houses. The brak bushes are burned on the threshold and the pitch is washed away. There are processions and various events, such as contests and games. It is a time of festival. The day is one of celebration. These festivities, of course, are in marked contrast to the solemnities and abstinences of the Waiting Hand. The Waiting Hand is a time, in general, of misery, silence and fasting. It is also, for many Goreans, particularly those of the lower castes, a time of uneasiness, a time of trepidation and apprehension. Who knows what things, visible or invisible, might be abroad during that terrible time? In many Gorean cities, accordingly, the Twelfth Passage Hand, the five days preceding the Waiting Hand, that time to which few Goreans look forward with eagerness, is carnival." — Players of Gor, page 10.

Festivals and Celebrations

•Carnival
Held in many southern cities, notably Port Kar, during the five days of the Twelfth Passage Hand, just before the omnious Waiting Hand. During this celebration it is often customary to garb oneself in outlandish costumes or masks and attend various masquerade fetes and feasts. Much like the Mardi Gras of New Orleans and the Carnival celebrations of the Caribbean on Earth. As common with festivals, many games are played during this time. One such game is played by the free women is a game of favors.

"In many Gorean cities, accordingly, the Twelfth Passage Hand, the five days preceding the Waiting Hand, that time to which few Goreans look forward with eagerness, is carnival." — Players of Gor, page 10.

•The Game of Favors
In this game played by free women during Carnival, each woman is given ten scarves and must run about asking for the men to accept her favor; the goal to be the first to get rid of the scarves and run back. This game permits free women, in a socially acceptable manner, to expose their sexual needs to a small extent and make advances to men whom they may fancy. For more complete information, please refer to the Recreation pages.

In short, the game of favors permits free women, in a socially acceptable context, by symbolic transformation, to assuage their sexual needs to at least some small extent, and, in some cases, if they wish, to make advances to interesting males." — Players of Gor, pages 44-45.

•Festival of the 25th of Se'Kara
An annual Festival held in Port Kar to celebrate their great naval victory over the combined fleets of Cos and Tyros.

•Feast of Fools
This is a festival celebrated in some Gorean cities on the last day of the Third Hand of the eighth Gorean month. It is similar in many respects to the southern Festival known as Carnival, except it lasts only for the period of one night. Also known as "Festival of the Cities of Dust," in homage to the spirits of the deceased who died during the last year.

•The Games of Love War
The Games of Love War are held annually in the Season of Little Grass and in fact, these games are said to pre-date even the first Omen Year. Often, the two events are confused, and are often thought of going hand in hand with each year. The Games of Love War occur every two (2) years, while the Omen Year, takes place every tenth (10th) year. These games are a series of martial contests between the warriors of the Wagon Peoples, and the warriors of Turia. At the time of these Games, an unofficial truce is declared between Turia and the Wagon Peoples, normally enemies of one another; and also between the various tribes of nomads. For more complete information, please refer to the Recreation pages.

•Kajuralia
The Festival of Slaves, or the Holiday of Slaves, as it translates to, is held in most Gorean cities (the exception is Port Kar, not celebrated at all) on the last day of the Twelfth Passage Hand. In Ar, it is celebrated on the last day of the fifth month, the day which precedes the Love Feast. Upon this day, slaves may take liberties which are otherwise not permitted them during the year, including the drinking of wine and liquor, the freedom to roam at will (provided of course they do not attempt to escape from their owners permanently), the freedom to choose their own sexual partners and to couch with slaves of the opposite sex whom they find attractive, temporary suspension of all work and duties, and even the opportunity to play (minor) tricks and practical jokes upon free persons. Generally, Kajuralia is celebrated until dawn the next day. In no uncertain terms, do free men/women and slaves reverse their roles; this is purely an onlinism.

"I wandered about the house. It was now past the twentieth hour, the midnight of the Gorean day, yet still, here and there, I could hear the revels of Kajuralia, which are often celebrated until dawn." — Assassin of Gor, page 269.

"I turned suddenly into the kitchen in which the food for the hall of Cernus is prepared. Some startled slaves leaped up, each chained by one ankle to her ring; but most slept, drunk; one or two, too drunk to notice me, were sitting against the wall, their left ankles chained to their slave rings, a bottle of Ka-la-na in their grasp, their hair falling forward." — Assassin of Gor, page 271.

Perhaps it is because of a quote from Assassin of Gor in which three slaves waylaid Tarl Cabot, tied him up and attempted to force him to serve them is the reason for this particular way in which the holiday is celebrated in virtual rooms with the frees and slaves automatically swapping roles. However, if you read, you will see that Tarl Cabot taught them a valuable lesson about a free man and slavery.

"The Kajuralia, or the Holiday of Slaves, or Festival of Slaves, occurs in most of the northern, civilized cities of known Gor once a year; The only exception to this that I know of is Port Kar, in the delta of the Vosk. The date of the Kajuralia, however, differs. Many cities celebrate it on the last day of the Twelfth Passage Hand, the day before the beginning of the Waiting Hand; in Ar, however, and certain other cities, it is celebrated on the last day of the fifth month, which is the day preceding the Love Feast." …
       "Kajuralia!" cried the slave girl hurling a basket of Sa-Tarna flour on me, and turning and running. I had caught up with her in five steps and kissed her roundly, swatted her and sent her packing.
       "Kajuralia yourself!" I said laughing, and she, laughing, sped away. About that time a large pan of warm water splashed down on me from a window some sixteen feet above the street level. Wringing wet I glared upward. I saw a girl in the window, who blew me a kiss, a slave gift.
       "Kajuralia!" she cried and laughed. …
       A Builder, whose robes were stained with thrown fruit, hastily strode by. "You had better be indoors," said he, "on Kajuralia."
       Three male house slaves stumbled by, crowned with odorous garlands woven of the Brak Bush. They were passing about a bota of paga and, between dancing and trying to hold one another up, managed to weave unsteadily by. One of them looked at me and from his eyes I judged he may have seen at least three of me and offered me a swig of the bota, which I took. "Kajuralia," said he, nearly falling over backwards, being rescued by one of his fellows, who seemed fortunately to be falling in the opposite direction at the same time. I gave him a silver coin for more paga. "Kajuralia," I said, and turned about, leaving, while they collapsed on one another.
       At that time a slave girl, a blond girl, sped by and the three slaves, stumbling, bleary-eyed, bumping into one another, dutifully took up her pursuit. She turned, laughing in front of them, would run a bit, then stop, and then when they had nearly caught up with her, she would run on again. But, to her astonishment, coming up from behind, catching her by surprise, another male seized her about the waist and held her, while she screamed in mock fear. But in a moment it was determined, to the rage of all save the girl, that she wore an iron belt. "Kajuralia!" she laughed, wiggled free and sped away. I dodged a hurled larma fruit which splattered on the wall of a cylinder near me. I turned down another street. Here, unexpectedly, I ran into a pack of some fifteen or twenty girls who, shrieking and laughing, surrounded me in a moment. I found myself wishing that masters belled their girls for Kajuralia, so that they might be heard approaching. Their silence in the street a moment before I had turned into it told me they had been hunting. They had probably even had spies, advance scouts. Now they crowded about me, laughing, seizing my arms. "Prisoner! Prisoner!" they shrieked. I felt a rope thrown about my throat; it was drawn unpleasantly tight. It was held in the hand of a black-haired girl, collared of course, long-legged, in brief slave livery.
       "Greetings," said she, "Warrior." She jerked menacingly on the rope. "You are now the slave of the girls of the Street of Pots," she informed me. I felt five or six more ropes suddenly looped about me, drawn tight. Two girls had even, behind me, darted unseen to my ankles, and in an instant had looped and drawn tight ropes on them. My feet could be thus jerked from beneath me should I attempt to run or struggle.
       "What shall we do with this prisoner?" asked the black-haired girl of her fellows. Numerous suggestions were forthcoming. "Take off his clothes!" "Brand him!" "The whip!" "Put him in a collar!"
       "Now look here," I said. But they had now set off down the street, dragging me along amongst them. We stopped when I was pushed stumbling into a large room, in which there were numerous baskets and harnesses hanging about, apparently a storeroom of sorts in an unimportant cylinder. A wide area had been cleared in the center of the room, on which, over straw, had been spread some rep-cloth blankets.
       Against one wall there were two men, bound hand and foot. One was a Warrior, the other a handsome young Tarn Keeper. "Kajuralia," said the Warrior to me, wryly.
       "Kajuralia," I said to him.
       The black-haired girl, the tall girl, walked back and forth before me, her hands on her hips. She also strode over to the other two men, and then she returned to me. "Not a bad catch," said she. The other girls laughed and shrieked. Some leaped up and down and clapped their hands. "Now you will serve us, Slaves," announced the black-haired gift. We were freed, save that two ropes apiece were kept on our throats, and a rope on each ankle, each rope in the care of one of the girls. We were given some small cups of tin, containing some diluted Ka-la-na that the girls had probably stolen. "After we have been served wine," announced the girl, "we will use these slaves for our pleasure."
       Before we were permitted to serve the wine, garlands of talenders were swiftly woven about our necks. Then each of us gave some of the girls wine, asking each "Wine, Mistress?" to which each of the girls, with a laugh, would cry out, "Yes, I will have wine!"
       "You will serve me the wine, Slave!" said the long-legged, black-haired girl. She was marvelous in the brief slave livery.
       "Yes, Mistress," I said, as humbly as I could manage. I reached out to hand her the small, tin cup.
       "On your knees," she said, "and serve me as a Pleasure Slave!" The girls gasped in the room. The two men cried out in anger.
       "I think not," I said. I felt the two ropes on my throat tighten. Suddenly the two girls on the ankle ropes jerked on their ropes and I fell heavily forward, spilling the wine to the stones.
       "Clumsy slave," jeered the long-legged girl. The other girls laughed. "Give him more wine," ordered the long-legged girl. Another small tin cup was placed in my hands. I no longer much cared for their foolery. The long-legged girl, doubtless a miserable slave most of the year, seemed intent on humiliating me, taking revenge probably on her master, for whom I now stood as proxy. "Serve me wine," she ordered harshly. …
       Another small tin cup was placed in my hands. I no longer much cared for their foolery. The long-legged girl, doubtless a miserable slave most of the year, seemed intent on humiliating me, taking revenge probably on her master, for whom I now stood as proxy. "Serve me wine," she ordered harshly. "Kajuralia," I said, humbly. She laughed, and so did the other gifts as well. My eye strayed to a room off the storeroom, in which I could see some boxes, much dust. Then the room was very still. I put down my head, kneeling, and extended the small tin cup to the girl. The other girls in the room seemed to be holding their breath. With a laugh the long-legged girl reached for the tin cup, at which point I seized her wrists and sprang to my feet, swinging her off balance and, not releasing her, whirled her about, tangling her in the ropes, preventing them from being drawn tight. Then while the girls shrieked and the long-legged girl cried out in rage I swept her into my arms and leaped into the small room, where I dropped her to the stones and spun about, throwing the door shut and bolting it. …
       I opened the door and, not to my surprise, discovered that the Warrior and Tarn Keeper, preventing the girls from escaping, and having freed themselves in the moment of surprise and tumult in which I had seized the long-legged girl, had, probably one by one, while the other girls had looked on miserably, cuffed away if they tried to interfere, bound the girls of the Street of Pots. A long rope, or set of ropes knotted together, ran behind the kneeling girls, with which their wrists were bound; another rope, or set of ropes tied together, fastened them by the throat, as in a slayer's chain. The long-legged girl was pushed into the larger room to observe her helpless cohorts. The black-haired girl sobbed. There were tears in the eyes of several of the girls.
       "Kajuralia!" said the Warrior, cheerfully, getting to his feet, after checking the knots that bound the wrists of the last girl on the ropes.
       "Kajuralia!" I responded to him, waving my hand. I took the black-haired, long-legged girl by the arm and dragged her to the line of bound girls. "Behold the girls of the Street of Pots," I said.
       She said nothing, but tried to turn away. I permitted her to go to the center of the room, where she stood, facing me, tears in her eyes, near the rep-cloth blankets spread over straw. Then she looked down, defeated. "I will serve you wine," said she, "Master."
       "No," I said. She looked at me, puzzled. Then she nodded her head, and, reached to the disrobing loop on her left shoulder. "No," I said gently. She looked at me, startled. "I," I said, "will serve you wine." She looked at me in disbelief while I filled one of the small tin cups with diluted Ka-la-na and handed it to her. …
       Her hand shook as she took the cup. She lifted it to her lips, but looked at me. "Drink," I said. She drank. I then took the cup from her and threw it to the side of the room, and took her into my arms, that lovely, long-legged, black-haired beast, provocative in the brevity of her slave livery, and kissed her, and well, and at length. …
       The Warrior, followed by the Tarn Keeper, was moving down the line of bound girls, lifting their heads, taking their final wages for the sport, saying "Kajuralia," to each and moving to the next. Once more I kissed the black-haired, long-legged girl, and she me. "Kajuralia," I said to her gently, and turned, and with the Warrior and the Tarn Keeper, arm in arm, with garlands of talenders, which had been several times replaced, woven about our necks, left the Street of Pots.
       "Kajuralia!" called the girls to us. "Kajuralia!" we responded. "Kajuralia!" I heard the long-legged girl call after me. "Kajuralia, Warrior!"
       "Kajuralia!" I responded, well satisfied with the day's sport. The Kajuralia, or the Holiday of Slaves, or Festival of Slaves, occurs in most of the northern, civilized cities of known Gor once a year; The only exception to this that I know of is Port Kar, in the delta of the Vosk. The date of the Kajuralia, however, differs. Many cities celebrate it on the last day of the Twelfth Passage Hand, the day before the beginning of the Waiting Hand; in Ar, however, and certain other cities, it is celebrated on the last day of the fifth month, which is the day preceding the Love Feast. — Assassin of Gor, pages 222-229.

Here is an example of trickery by slave girls to a free person, and though such is permitted, it is not always received well by the free person who is the chosen victim of the prank.

This was the evening of Kajuralia. There was much hilarity in the hall of the House of Cernus, and, though it was early in the evening, Paga and full-strength Ka-la-na were flowing. Ho-Tu threw down his spoon in disgust, grinning at me wryly. His gruel had been salted to the point of being inedible; he flared disgustedly down at the wet mash of porridge and salt. "Kajuralia, Master," said Elizabeth Cardwell to Ho-Tu, smiling sweetly, as she passed by with a pitcher of Ka-la-na.
       Ho-Tu seized her by the wrist. "What is wrong, Master?" inquired Elizabeth innocently.
       "If I thought it was you," growled Ho-Tu, "who dared to salt my porridge, you would spend the night sitting on a slave goad."
       "I would never think of such a thing," protested Elizabeth, wide-eyed.
       Ho-Tu grunted. Then he grinned. "Kajuralia, Little Wench," said he.
       Elizabeth smiled. "Kajuralia, Master," said she, and turning quickly about, still smiling, went on with her work. …
       "What is this?" cried Ho-Sorl.
       "It is bosk milk," Phyllis informed him. "It is good for you." Ho-Sorl cried out in rage. "Kajuralia," said Phyllis, and turned and moved away, with a triumphant twitch that might have shocked even Sura.
       Ho-Sorl bounded over the table and caught her four paces from the dais, spilling the milk about. He threw her bodily over his shoulder, her small fists pounding on his back, and carried her to Ho-Tu's place. "I will pay," said Ho-Sorl , "the difference between what she will bring as Red Silk and White Silk." Phyllis shrieked in fear, wiggling on his shoulder, pounding. Ho-Tu apparently gave the matter very serious thought. "Don't you want to be Red Silk?" he asked Phyllis, who, from her position, could not see him.
       "No, no, no!" she cried.
       "By tomorrow night," pointed out Ho-Sorl , neatly, "she may be Red Silk anyway."
       "No, no!" wept Phyllis. "Where would you make her Red Silk?" asked Ho-Tu. "The pit of sand will do," said Ho-Sorl. Phyllis shrieked with misery. …
       "Put her in the sand," said Ho-Tu. Ho-Sorl carried the struggling Phyllis Robertson to the square of sand, and flung her to his feet. He then stood over her, hands on hips. She could roll neither to the left nor right. She lay on her back between his sandals, one knee slightly raised, as though she would flee, and lifted herself on her elbows, terrified, looking up at him. He laughed and she screamed and tried to escape but he took her by the hair and, crouching over her, pressed her back weeping to the sand. His hand moved to the disrobing loop and she shuddered, turning her head away. But instead of tugging on the loop, he simply, holding her under the arms, lifted her up, and then dropped her on her seat in the sand, where she sat foolishly, bewildered, looking up at him. "Kajuralia!" laughed Ho-Sorl and turned, and to the laughter of all, returned to his place at the table. Ho-Tu was laughing perhaps the loudest of all, pounding the table with his fists. Even Cernus looked up from his game and smiled. Phyllis had now struggled to her feet, blushing a red visible even under the torches, and, unsteady, trembling slightly, was trying to brush the sand from her hair, her legs and her slave livery.
       "Don't look so disappointed," said a Red Silk Girl passing near her, carrying Ka-la-na. Phyllis made an angry noise. "Poor little White Silk slave," said another Red Silk Girl passing between the tables. Phyllis clenched her fists, crying out in rage.  …
       "I'm glad I'm going to be sold," cried Phyllis. "It will take me from the sight of you! You black-haired, scarred tarsk!" There were tears in her eyes. "I hate you!" she screamed. "I hate you!"
       "You are all cruel!" cried Virginia Kent, who was standing now a bit behind Ho-Tu. The room was extremely silent for a moment. Then, angrily, Virginia Kent picked up Ho-Tu's bowl of gruel and, turning it completely upside down, dumped it suddenly on his head. "Kajuralia," she said. Relius nearly leaped up, horror on his face. Ho-Tu sat there with the porridge bowl on his head, the gruel streaming down his face.
       Once again there was an extremely still moment in the room. Suddenly I felt a large quantity of fluid, wine, surely at least half a pitcher, being poured slowly over my head. I began to sputter and blink. "Kajuralia, Master," said Elizabeth Cardwell, walking regally away.
       Now Ho-Tu was laughing so hard that his eyes were watering. He took the bowl from his bald head and wiped his face with his forearm. Then he began to pound the table with his fists. Then everyone in the room, amazed at the audacity of the slave girl, to so affront one of the black caste, after a moment, began to roar with amusement, even the slave girls. I think so rich a treat they had never expected on Kajuralia. I maintained a straight face, and tried to frown convincingly, finding myself the butt of their laughter. I saw that even Cernus had now looked up from his board and was roaring with laughter, the first time I had ever seen such amusement in the person of the Master of the House of Cernus. Then, to my horror, I saw Elizabeth, her back straight, her step determined, walk straight to Cernus and then, slowly, as his mouth flew open and he seemed scarcely to understand what was occurring, pour the rest of the contents of the vessel of Ka-la-na directly on his head. "Kajuralia," said Elizabeth to him, turning away. Ho-Tu then, to my great relief, rose to his feet, lifting both hands.
       "Kajuralia, Ubar!" he cried. Then all at the table, and even the slaves who served, stood and lifted their hands, laughing, saluting Cernus.
       "Kajuralia, Ubar!" they cried. …
       Then the slave girls about the table began to go wild, throwing things and where possible pouring liquids on the heads of the guards and members of the staff, who, leaping up, seized them when they could catch them, kissing them, holding them, making them cry out with delight. And more than one was thrown to the love furs under the slave rings at the wall. Revel filled the hall of the House of Cernus. I made sure I got my hands on Elizabeth Cardwell, though she dodged well and was a swift wench, and taking her in my arms carried her to one side. She looked up at me. — Assassin of Gor, pages 237-244.

Here we learn that often times, severe injuries accompany Kajuralia.

I found Flaminius, the Physician, in his quarters, and he, obligingly, though drunk, treated the arm which Ho-Tu had slashed with the hook knife. The wound was not at all serious. "The games of Kajuralia can be dangerous," remarked Flaminius, swiftly wrapping a white cloth about the wound, securing it with four small metal snap clips. — Assassin of Gor, page 264.

•Love Feast
A five day celebration within Ar, held during the Fifth Passage Hand. It is a time wherein many slaves are sold; the fourth day of the Love Feast is typically considered the climax of the festival in regard to the sale of slaves. The fifth day (August 17th) is normally reserved for great contests and spectacles in the Stadium of Blades, grand races in the Stadium of Tarns, great Kaissa championships and general celebratory feasting.

•Sardar Fairs
These are four huge trade fairs which are held quarterly in the shadow of the Sardar Mountain Range. Each young person of Gor is expected to make a pilgrimage to the foot of the Sardar Mountains before he or she reaches their 25th birthday. They typically last ten full days (plus at least that long for set up and break down) and are scheduled to coincide with the solstices and equinoxes. The four fairs are:

• The Fair of En'Kara
• The Fair of En'Var
• The Fair of Se'Kara
• The Fair of Se'Var

"Month names differ, unfortunately, from city to city, but, among the civilized cities, there are four months, associated with the equinoxes and solstices, and the great fairs at the Sardar, which do have common names, the months of En'Kara, or En'Kara-Lar-Torvis; En'Var, or En'var-Lar-Torvis; Se'Kara, or Se'Kara-Lar-Torvis; and Se'Var, or Se'Var-Lar- Torvis." — Assassins of Gor, pages 77-78.

"The fair of En'Kara occurs in the spring. It is the first fair in the annual cycle of the Sardar Fairs, gigantic fairs which take place on the plains lying below the western slopes of the Sardar Mountains. These fairs, and others like them, play an important role in the Gorean culture and economy. They are an important clearing house for ideas and goods, among them female slaves." — Players of Gor, page 8.

"Four times a year, correlated with the solstices and equinoxes, there are fairs held in the plains below the mountains, presided over by committees of Initiates, fairs in which men of many cities mingle without bloodshed, times of truce, times of contests and games, of bargaining and marketing." — Outlaw of Gor, page 47.

 "It was not far to the fair of En'Kara, one of the four great fairs held in the shadow of the Sardar during the Gorean year, and I soon walked slowly down the long central avenue between the tents, the booths and stalls, the pavilions and stockades of the fair, toward the high, brassbound timber gate, formed of black logs, beyond which lies the Sardar itself, the sanctuary of this world's gods, known to the men below the mountains, the mortals, only as Priest-Kings." — Priest-Kings of Gor, page 8.

"I wished that I had had longer to visit the fair for on another occasion at another time I should have sought eagerly to examine its wares, drink at its taverns, talk with its merchants and attend its contests, for these fairs are free ground for the many competitive, hostile Gorean cities, and provide almost the sole opportunity for the citizens of various cities to meet peaceably with one another. It is little wonder that the cities of Gor support and welcome the fairs. Sometimes they provide a common ground on which territorial and commercial dispute may be amicably resolved without loss of honor, plenipotentiaries of warring cities having apparently met by accident among the silken pavilions. Further, members of castes such as the Physicians and Builders use the fairs for the dissemination of information and techniques among Caste Brothers, as is prescribed in their codes in spite of the fact that their respective cities may be hostile. And as might be expected members of the Caste of Scribes gather here to enter into dispute and examine and trade manuscripts." — Priest-Kings of Gor, page 9.

"The fairs incidentally are governed by Merchant Law and supported by booth rents and taxes levied on the items exchanged. The commercial facilities of these fairs, from money changing to general banking, are the finest I know of on Gor, save those in Ar's Street of Coins, and letters of credit are accepted and loans negotiated, though often at usurious rates, with what seems reckless indifference. Yet perhaps this is not so puzzling, for the Gorean cities will, within their own walls, enforce the Merchant Law when pertinent, even against their own citizens. If they did not, of course, the fairs would be closed to the citizens of that city. The contests I mentioned which take place at the fairs are, as would be expected, peaceable, or I should say, at least do not involve contests of arms. Indeed it is considered a crime against the Priest-Kings to bloody one's weapons at the fairs. The Priest-Kings, I might note, seem to be more tolerant of bloodshed in other localities. — Priest-Kings of Gor, page 11.

"Although no one may be enslaved at the fair, slaves may be bought and sold within its precincts, and slavers do a thriving business, exceeded perhaps only by that of Ar's Street of Brands. The reason for this is not simply that here is a fine market for such wares, since men from various cities pass freely to and fro at the fair, but that each Gorean, whether male or female, is expected to see the Sardar Mountains, in honor of the Priest-Kings, at least once in his life, prior to his twenty-fifth year. Accordingly the pirates and outlaws who beset the trade routes to ambush and attack the caravans on the way to the fair, if successful, often have more than inanimate metals and cloths to reward their vicious labors." — Priest-Kings of Gor, page 12.

"I am not truly Tuchuk," said Elizabeth. "I am only a girl from the islands north of Cos, taken by pirates of Port Kar, sold to a tarnsman, carried to and sold again in the city of Turia, and hence for twenty boskhides traded to the Tuchuks, where I was ringed and branded."
       "How came you to Thentis?" asked Cernus.
       "Kassars raided Tuchuk wagons," she said. "I was abducted, later sold to Turians." She spoke numbly. "I was later sold in Tor," she said, "far to the north of Turia. A year later, by slave wagon, I reached the fair of Se'Var near the Sardar, where I was sold to the House of Clark, from which house I and many others were fortunate enough to be purchased by the House of Cernus, in Glorious Ar." — Assassin of Gor, page 47.

•The Thing
An annual celebration held in Torvaldsland, during which all of the shield men of the various Great Jarls travel to the Hall of their particular leader, submit their weaponry for inspection, and formally re-pledge their oaths of loyalty. The Thing usually occupies a span of from three to five days, and occurs sometime during the middle of the ninth Gorean month, varying according to such factors as weather and the current political situation.

Event Calendars

Below are two calendars mapped out specifically by book references. The first calendar is one that notates days, Hands, Months and Seasons in which specific festivities or holidays are celebrated. The second calendar is actually a timetable of chronological events.

 

 

 

Special Note

Because of the differences in publishing the books, depending upon whether published in the U.S. or Europe, depending upon whether a first publishing or a Masquerade Books release, page numbers will often vary. All of my quotes are from original, first-printing U.S. publications (see The Books page for a listing of publishers and dates) with the exception of the following books:

• Tarnsman of Gor (2nd Printing, Balantine)
• Outlaw of Gor (11th Printing, Balantine)
• Priest-Kings of Gor (2nd Printing, Balantine)
• Assassin of Gor (10th Printing, Balantine)
• Raiders of Gor (15th Printing, Balantine)
• Captive of Gor (3rd Printing, Balantine)

Disclaimer

These pages are not written for any specific home, but rather as informational pages for those not able to get ahold of the books and read them yourself. Opinions and commentaries are strictly my own personal views, therefore, if you don't like what you are reading — then don't. The information in these pages is realistic to what is found within the books. Many sites have added information, assuming the existences of certain products and practices, such as willowbark and agrimony for healing, and travel to earth and back for the collection of goods. I've explored the books, the flora, the fauna, and the beasts, and have compiled from those mentioned, the probabilities of certain practices, and what vegetation mentioned in the books is suitable for healing purposes, as well as given practicalities to other sorts of roleplaying assumptions.

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