Home Stone Law

Conclusions on Gorean Home Stone Law

The Home Stone is far more than a physical object or a place; it is the sacred and ultimate legal symbol of identity, belonging, and sovereignty in Gorean society. Law pertaining to the Home Stone is fundamental, absolute, and deeply tied to personal honor and civic order.

I. The Home Stone as the Foundation of Legal Identity

1. Claim of Land and Sovereignty: Where a man sets his Home Stone, he claims, by law, that land for himself. This act establishes personal ownership and territorial dominion.

2. Defining Community and Allegiance: Allegiances in Gorean law are primarily defined by loyalty to a Home Stone, not merely by physical structures or geographical locations. It represents the binding commitment to a community.

3. Source of Rights and Protection: Possession of a Home Stone (or being "of the Home Stone" through a sworn man) confers crucial rights and protections:

   • It grants citizenship and "standing before the law."

   • It provides protection from guardsmen and the general absence of legal rights that slaves suffer.

   • A free woman's "standing before the law" and her status as a "person, citizen, noble, lofty, and exalted" are tied to her having a Home Stone (through her male lineage/companion).

4. Symbol of Dignity and Status: Even a man of low caste can become a "prince and sovereign" in the place of his own Home Stone, gaining immense pride and respect among his fellows. It elevates his standing regardless of his general social position.

II. Home Stone Law: Absolute and Unwavering

1. Paramountcy: The "law of the Home Stone" is so fundamental that even an Ubar, the supreme ruler of a city, must uphold it. An Ubar who fails to respect this law would betray the very foundation of their rule. This law binds even the highest authority figures (e.g., Marlenus and the purloined Home Stone of Ko-ro-ba).

2. Severe Penalties for Violation: Violating the law of the Home Stone, particularly its purloining (theft), carries extreme penalties, including torture and impalement. This underscores its sacred and inviolable nature.

3. Irreversible Consequences for Betrayal: To "betray its Home Stone" (as Talena did) results in an individual becoming "without a Home Stone," a "fugitive," and "no longer protected by law." This is a catastrophic loss of identity and legal standing, a fate worse than mere banishment for a Gorean.

III. Contrast with Slavery

1. Fundamental Distinction: The concept of having a Home Stone is a clear and crucial distinction between a free person and a slave. A slave is explicitly "without caste," "without citizenship," and "without a Home Stone." They are merely "property, an animal," stripped of the fundamental legal and psychological anchors that define a free Gorean.

In conclusion, Home Stone Law in Gor is the bedrock of individual and civic identity. It defines ownership of land, establishes belonging, confers rights and protections, and is held as an unyielding principle that binds even the most powerful rulers. To be without a Home Stone is to be an outcast, unprotected, and largely without legal standing in the eyes of Gorean society.

- Kati Evans