Triva Questions

1)   What is every Gorean expected to do at least once in their life and by their
      25th birthday?
Hover here for the answer Journey to the Sardar Mountains

if only to stand within the shadows of those cliffs that hide the secrets of the Priest-Kings. Indeed, at least once in his life every Gorean is expected to make this journey.
Outlaw, Page 47

It had been decided that she should now undertake the journey to the Sardar, which, according to the teachings of the Caste of Initiates, is enjoined on every Gorean by the Priest-Kings, an obligation which is to be fulfilled prior to their attaining their twenty-fifth year.
Captive, Page 233

2)   When Tarl was sentenced to the mines of Tharna, what was the name of the informant
      on his chain?
Hover here for the answer Ost

"I shall inform against you," hissed Ost, "for plotting an escape."
Outlaw, Page 149

3)   What annual event allows those sentenced to the mines of Tharna a brief relief
      to their existence?
Hover here for the answer The birthday of the Tatrix

The only relief in their existence comes once a year, on the birthday of the Tatrix, when they are served a small cake, made with honey and sesame seeds, and a small pot of poor Kal-da.
Outlaw, Page 150

4)   What is the phrase that came to signify camaraderie in the mines of Tharna?
Hover here for the answer "We are of the same chain."

"We are of the same chain," he said.
Outlaw, Page 171

5)   What keeps animals from entering the Sardar Mountains?
Hover here for the answer An invisible barrier

The tarn had struck a field of some sort, which perhaps acted on the mechanism of his inner ear, resulting in the loss of balance and coordination. A similar device, I supposed, might prevent the entry of high tharlarions, the saddle lizards of Gor, into the mountains.
Outlaw, Page 182

6)   For what two reasons is a slave branded?
Hover here for the answer 1 - its psychological effect
2 - a device for merchants who must have some such means for tracing runaway slaves

1 - the brand is used primarily, oddly enough, because of its reputed psychological effect.
2 - a device for merchants who must have some such means for tracing runaway slaves
Outlaw, Pages 189 - 190

7)   All directions on Gor are calculated from:
      (a) The North Pole
      (b) Ar
      (c) The Equator
      (d) The Sardar Mountains
      (e) Each Free Person's perspective
Hover here for the answer (d) The Sardar Mountains

all directions on the planet are calculated from the Sardar Mountains
Nomads, Page 3

8)   A kite is:
      (a) a bird
      (b) a child's toy among the Wagon Peoples
      (c) a term used among the Merchants
      (d) a slave outfit used in the far north
      (e) None of the above
Hover here for the answer (a) A bird

Overhead a wild Gorean kite, shrilling, beat its lonely way from this place
Nomads, Page 4

9)   As a guest at a banquet in Turia, Kamchak places a gift on the neck of Aphris.
      What was it?
      (a) a priceless diamond necklace
      (b) a bosk rope
      (c) a silken ribbon holding a golden medallion of Turia
      (d) a Turian slave collar
      (e) None of the above
Hover here for the answer (d) a Turian slave collar

Kamchak lifted from the box an object indeed intended to grace the throat of a girl. But it was a round metal ring, a Turian collar, the collar of a slave.
Nomads, Page 100

10)   What determines the women who stand at the stakes in the game of Love War?
Hover here for the answer Their beauty

Only the most beautiful of the most beautiful could stand in this harsh sport.
Nomads, Page 117

11)   How did Kamchak promise Aphris she would spend her first night with him?
Hover here for the answer In a dung sack

"Tonight, little Aphris," said Kamchak, "as I promised you, you shall spend your first night in the dung sack."
Nomads, Page 119

12)   How did Tarl and Harold secretly enter Turia?
Hover here for the answer Through an underground stream

a rocky tunnel, through which flowed an underground stream
Nomads, Page 189

13)   The Yellow Pool of Turia is:
        (a) one of the public baths
        (b) a cesspool
        (c) a paga tavern
        (d) a monetary collection for the Caste of Builders
        (e) None of the above
Hover here for the answer (e) None of the above

"Yes," said Saphrar, gleefully. "It is alive!"
I heard Saphrar remark, "It sometimes takes hours to be fully digested."
Nomads, Pages 208 - 209

14)   One who speaks of Home Stones should _______.
Hover here for the answer stand

Indeed, there is a saying on Gor, a saying whose origin is lost in the past of this strange planet, that one who speaks of Home Stones should stand, for matters of honor are here involved, and honor is respected in the barbaric codes of Gor.
Tarnsman, Page 27

15)   What is the name of the Gorean funeral procession song and dance?
Hover here for the answer (Trick Question) There isn't one

The procession did not chant, nor sing, for this was not a time for such things, nor did it carry boughs of Ka-la-na, nor were the sounds of the sista or tambor heard in the sunlight that morning. At such a time as this Goreans do not sing nor speak. They are silent, for at such a time words mean nothing, and would demean or insult; in such a time there can be for Goreans only silence, memory and fire.
Assassin, Page 2

16)   "What woman could respect a man who is not strong enough to _______."
Hover here for the answer put her under the whip

Guardsman, Page 102

17)   "Goreans, as the men of Earth commonly do not, celebrate ___(a)___ and ___(b)___
        in a girl."
Hover here for the answer (a) quickness of mind
(b) alertness

Assassin, Page 125

18)   What is more personal, the brand or the collar?
Hover here for the answer The collar

the brand is impersonal; the collar is intensely personal; the brand marks her property; the collar proclaims whose property she is . . . the brand relationship to the free man is institutional; the collar relationship, on the other hand, is an intensely personal one.
Tribesmen, Page 42

19)   It is said that the Priest-Kings formed the first man from ___(a)___, and ___(b)___.
Hover here for the answer (a) the mud of the earth
(b) the blood of tarns

the first man on Gor, a hero whom the Priest-Kings are said to have formed from the mud of the earth and the blood of tarns.
Outlaw, Page 179

20)   "One of the great pleasures in owning a girl is ______ to her."
Hover here for the answer listening

the brand is impersonal; the collar is intensely personal; the brand marks her property; the collar proclaims whose property she is . . . the brand relationship to the free man is institutional; the collar relationship, on the other hand, is an intensely personal one.
Guardsman, Page 180

21)   True or False: A man to be a man must have mastered a woman.
Hover here for the answer True

I have wondered sometimes if a man to be a man must not master a woman and if a woman to be a woman must not know herself mastered.
Outlaw, 206

Strong men simply need women. This will never be understood by weak men. A strong man needs a woman at his feet, who is truly his. Anything else is less than his fulfillment. When a man has once eaten of the meat of gods he will never again chew on the straw of fools.
Explorers, Page 12

"It is hard to be a man," I said, "until one stands in a relation to a woman. And, I suppose, it is hard to be a woman until one stands in a relation to a man."
Explorers, Page 188

22)   "Perhaps it should only be added that the Gorean Master, though strict, _______."
Hover here for the answer is seldom cruel

Outlaw, Page 53

23)   "A girl in a collar is not permitted _______."
Hover here for the answer inhibitions

Marauders, Page 171

24)   "The absolute truth must be spoken to a Gorean master.
        It is forbidden to a girl to _______."
Hover here for the answer hide her feelings

Captive, Page 171

25)   The talender, fixed in her hair, is a slave girl's wordless confession that she _______.
Hover here for the answer cares for her Master

Hunters, Page 65

26)   True or False: Slaves have pride.
Hover here for the answer True

"There is a difference," laughed Hassan, "between the pride of a free woman and the pride of the slave girl. The pride of a free woman is the pride of a woman who feels herself to be the equal of a man. The pride of the slave girl is the pride of the girl who knows that no other woman is the equal of herself."
Tribesmen, Page 333

27)   What is the "slave belly"?
Hover here for the answer The navel or belly button

I pushed it down so that her navel might be well revealed. It is called the "slave belly" on Gor.
Explorers, Page 334

28)   Other than the left thigh, name at least three other common brand sites.
Hover here for the answer right thigh
lower left abdomen
left side of the neck
left calf
interior of the left heel
inside of the left forearm
the left breast
behind the left ear
backs of either leg
buttocks
insteps of either foot

Fighting Slave, Page 349
Mercenaries, Page 389
Renegades, Page 124

29)   The words "Three beats of a slave's heart" appear how many times?
        (a) 1 time
        (b) 3 times
        (c) 26 times
        (d) Never
Hover here for the answer (d) Never

30)   Black wine served 'Second Slave' is ______?
Hover here for the answer Black, without creams or sugars

"Second slave," I told her, which, among the river towns, and in certain cities, particularly in the north, is a way of indicating that I would take the black wine without creams or sugars, and as it came from the pouring vessel, which, of course, in these areas, is handled by the "second slave," the first slave being the girl who puts down the cups, takes the orders and sees that the beverage is prepared according to the preferences of the one who is being served.
Guardsman, Page 245

31)   "To share the kettle of a friend is to dine with a ______."
Hover here for the answer Ubar

Blood Brothers, Page 349

32)   What does it mean if one is sitting "below the salt"?
Hover here for the answer He is socially ranked less

Salt, in its bowls on the tables, divided men into rankings. Those sitting above the salt were accorded greater prestige than those sitting below it. If one sat between the salt and the high seat, one sat "above" the salt; if one sat between the salt and the entrance to the hall, one sat "below" the salt.
Marauders, Page 186

33)   Is this correct?
        "Peasants, usually serving regular military rotation conscriptions, except in emergencies
        when they are sent back to protect the fields, are thus utilized in the armed forces of a
        city; this is a further reason why their weapon, the horn bow, is well known in the cities,
        and among warriors, as it deserves to be."
Hover here for the answer No . . .

Peasants, incidentally, are seldom, except in emergencies, utilized in the armed forces of a city; this is a further reason why their weapon, the long bow, is less known in the cities, and among warriors, than it deserves to be.
Raiders, Page 3

34)   "There is a time and a place for speaking, as there is a time and a place for ______."
        It is a saying of the warriors.
Hover here for the answer steel

Slave Girl, Page 269

35)   What is a vart?
        (a) a stick used by children in ball games
        (b) a poisoned needle used by Free Women to protect themselves
        (c) a comb, used primarily by slaves
        (d) a loincloth sometimes worn by male slaves
        (e) None of the above
Hover here for the answer (e) None of the above

The vart is a trained batlike creature, some the size of a small dog, used as a weapon.
Raiders, Page 139

36)   What is painted on the sides of ships? and Why?
Hover here for the answer Eyes
So she may see
The painting of the eyes reflects the Gorean seaman's belief that the ship is a living thing. She is accordingly given eyes, that she may see her way.
Raiders, Page 183

37)   By what inventive measure did Bosk defeat the fleets of Cos and Tyros?
Hover here for the answer The use of tarns at sea

Raiders, Page 273

38)   A man having a shaven stripe, running from the forehead to the back of his neck,
        signifies what?
Hover here for the answer He had been captured and sold by the panther girls
The strip which had been shaven on his head, from the forehead to the back of the neck, signified that he had been captured, and sold, by the panther girls of the northern forests. It is among the greatest shames that a man can know, that he had been enslaved by women, who had then, when weary of him, sold him, taking their profit on him.
Hunters, Page 12

39)   True or False?
        "Gorean compliments are generally meaningful, for they tend to be given only when
        deserved, and sometimes not then."
Hover here for the answer True

Beasts, Page 17

40)   There are four common purpose of a collar. Can you name at least one?
Hover here for the answer "What is the common purpose of a collar?"
"The collar has four common purposes, Master," she said, "First, it visibly designates me as a slave, as a brand might not, should it be covered by clothing.
Second, it impresses my slavery upon me.
Thirdly, it identifies me to my Master.
"Fourthly," she said, "it makes it easier to leash me."
Explorers, Page 80

41)   It is believed that no woman may obtain eternal life, Why?
Hover here for the answer Only Initiates can obtain eternal life and no female may become an Initiate.

Incidentally, it is a teaching of the initiates that only initiates can obtain eternal life. No female, incidentally, may become an Initiate. It is a consequence, thusly, that no female can obtain eternal life.
Marauders, Pages 29 - 30

42)   What is often taken as a symbol of Priest-Kings?
Hover here for the answer A circle of gold

Marauders, Page 33

43)   Howsoever she enters ______, voluntarily, or by force, free or secured, she emerges
        from it, by the laws of Torvaldsland, as a bond-maid.
        (a) the smooth-walled capture pit
        (b) into a warrior's 'slave embrace'
        (c) a bond-maid circle
        (d) the warrior's hut
        (e) None of the above
Hover here for the answer (c) a bond-maid circle

Marauders, Pages 44 - 45

44)   When handed a drinking horn of Torvaldsland you do one of two things, What?
Hover here for the answer Drain it or give it to another

Marauders, Page 89

45)   What covers the floor of the main chamber in the house of Samos.
Hover here for the answer A map of known Gor

Tribesmen, Page 7

46)   The Waiting Hand, the five-day period preceding the vernal equinox, the first day of
        spring, is ______.
        (a) celebrated with festivals, singing and much food
        (b) a very solemn time for most Goreans
        (c) basically ignored by most Goreans
Hover here for the answer (b) a very solemn time for most Goreans

Players, Page 10

47)   This word is spelled two different ways, Har-ta and Harta. What does it mean?
Hover here for the answer Faster

Tarnsman, Page 57
Slave Girl, Page 133
Witness, Page 35

48)   Can any Free Man discipline a slave?
Hover here for the answer "Any Free Man may discipline an insolent or errant slave," I said, "even one who is the least bit displeasing, even one he might merely feel like disciplining. If she is killed, or injured, he need only pay compensation to her Master, and that only if the Master can be located within a specific amount of time and requests such compensation."
Players, Page 235

49)   Is Bazi tea really drunk in tiny glasses, usually three at a time?
Hover here for the answer Yes

Tribesmen, Page 140

50)   What are the first few words of the Books?
Hover here for the answer "My name is Tarl Cabot."

Tarnsman, Page 9