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 Caste of BuildersHere are relevant references from the Books where the Caste of Builders is mentioned. I make no pronouncements on these matters, but report them as I find them. Arrive at your own conclusions. I wish you well, Fogaban I was also instructed in the Double Knowledge - that is, I was instructed in what the people, on the whole, believed, and then I was instructed in what the intellectuals were expected to know. Sometimes there was a surprising discrepancy between the two. For example, the population as a whole, the castes below the High Castes, were encouraged to believe that their world was a broad, flat disk. Perhaps this was to discourage them from exploration or to develop in them a habit of relying on commonsense prejudices something of a social control device. On the other hand, the High Castes, specifically the Warriors, Builders, Scribes, Initiates, and Physicians, were told the truth in such matters, perhaps because it was thought they would eventually determine it for themselves, from observations such as the shadow of their planet on one or another of Gor's three small moons during eclipses, the phenomenon of sighting the tops of distant objects first, and the fact that certain stars could not be seen from certain geographical positions; if the planet had been flat, precisely the same set of stars would have been observable from every position on its surface. I wondered, however, if the Second Knowledge, that of the intellectuals, might not be as carefully tailored to preclude inquiry on their level as the First Knowledge apparently was to preclude inquiry on the level of the Lower Castes. I would guess that there is a Third Knowledge, that reserved to the Priest-Kings. Tarnsman of Gor Book 1 Page 41 The Chamber of the Council is the room in which the elected representatives of the High Castes of Ko-ro-ba hold their meetings. Each city has such a chamber. It was in the widest of cylinders, and the ceiling was at least six times the height of the normal living level. The ceiling was lit as if by stars, and the walls were of five colors, applied laterally, beginning from the bottom - white, blue, yellow, green, and red, caste colors. Benches of stone, on which the members of the Council sat, rose in five monumental tiers about the walls, one tier for each of the High Castes. These tiers shared the color of that portion of the wall behind them, the caste colors. The tier nearest the floor, which denoted some preferential status, the white tier, was occupied by Initiates, Interpreters of the Will of the Priest-Kings. In order, the ascending tiers, blue, yellow, green, and red, were occupied by representatives of the Scribes, Builders, Physicians, and Warriors. Torm, I observed, was not seated in the tier of Scribes, I smiled to myself. "I am," Torm had said, "too practical to involve myself in the frivolities of government," I supposed the city might be under siege and Torm would fall to notice. I was pleased to note that my own caste, that of the Warriors, was accorded the least status; if I had had my will, the warriors would not have been a High Caste. On the other hand, I objected to the Initiates being in the place of honor, as it seemed to me that they, even more than the Warriors, were nonproductive members of society. For the Warriors, at least, one could say that they afforded protection to the city, but for the Initiates one could say very little, perhaps only that they provided some comfort for ills and plagues largely of their own manufacture. Tarnsman of Gor Book 1 Pages 61 - 62 The Home Stone of a city is the center of various rituals. The next would be the Planting Feast of Sa-Tarna, the Life-Daughter, celebrated early in the growing season to insure 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. Tarnsman of Gor Book 1 Page 68 "The women of the Walled Gardens know whatever happens on Gor," she replied, and I sensed the intrigue, the spying and treachery that must ferment within the gardens. "I forced my slave girls to lie with soldiers, with merchants and builders, physicians and scribes," she said, "and I found out a great deal." I was dismayed at this - the cool, calculating exploitation of her girls by the daughter of the Ubar, merely to gain information. Tarnsman of Gor Book 1 Page 108 Inside, the tunnel, though dim, was not altogether dark, being lit by domelike, wire-protected energy bulbs, spaced in pairs every hundred yards or so. These bulbs, invented more than a century ago by the Caste of Builders, produce a clear, soft light for years without replacement. Tarnsman of Gor Book 1 Page 197 The road, like most Gorean roads, was built like a wall in the earth and was intended to last a hundred generations. The Gorean, having little idea of progress in our sense, takes great care in his building and workmanship. What he builds he expects men to use until the storms of time have worn it to dust. Yet this road, for all the loving craft of the Caste of Builders which had been lavished upon it, was only an unpretentious, subsidiary road, hardly wide enough for two carts to pass. Outlaw of Gor Book 2 Page 25 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. Torm, my friend of the Caste of Scribes, had been to such fairs to trade scrolls with scholars from other cities, men he would never have seen were it not for the fairs, men of hostile cities who yet loved ideas more than they hated their enemies, men like Torm who so loved learning that they would risk the perilous journey to the Sardar Mountains for the chance to dispute a text or haggle over a coveted scroll. Similarly men of such castes as the Physicians and Builders make use of the fairs to disseminate and exchange information pertaining to their respective crafts. Outlaw of Gor Book 2 Page 47 "Let it be done," said the men, first one and then another, until there was a sober chores of assent, quiet but powerful, and I knew that never before in this harsh world had men spoken thus. And it seemed strange to me that this rebellion, this willingness to pursue the right as they saw it, independently of the will of the Priest-Kings, had come not first from the proud Warriors of Gor, nor the Scribes, nor the Builders nor Physicians, nor any of the high castes of the many cities of Gor, but had come from the most degraded and despised of men, wretched slaves from the mines of Tharna. Outlaw of Gor Book 2 Page 170 The marvelous glazing substances of the Caste of Builders, long prohibited as frivolous and expensive, began to appear on the walls of the cylinders, even on the walls of the city itself. Outlaw of Gor Book 2 Page 248 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. Priest-Kings of Gor Book 3 Page 9 My Chamber Slave's accent had been pure High Caste Gorean though I could not place the city. Probably her caste had been that of the Builders or Physicians, for had her people been Scribes I would have expected a greater subtlety of inflections, the use of less common grammatical cases; and had her people been of the Warriors I would have expected a blunter speech, rather belligerently simple, expressed in great reliance on the indicative mood and, habitually, a rather arrogant refusal to venture beyond the most straightforward of sentence structures. Priest-Kings of Gor Book 3 Page 52 "My father," she said, "was of the Caste of Physicians." So I thought to myself, I had placed her accent rather well, either Builders or Physicians, and had I thought carefully enough about it, I might have recognized her accent as being a bit too refined for the Builders. Priest-Kings of Gor Book 3 Page 62 On a green field somewhere, I had no idea where, a man in the garments of the Caste of Builders, emerged from what was apparently an underground cave. He looked furtively about himself as though he feared he might be observed. Then, satisfied that he was alone, he returned to the cave and emerged once more carrying what resembled a hollow pipe. From a hole in the top of this pipe there protruded what resembled the wick of a lamp. The man from the Caste of Builders then sat cross-legged on the ground and took from the pouch slung at his waist a tiny, cylindrical Gorean fire-maker, a small silverish tube commonly used for igniting cooking fires. He unscrewed the cap and I could see the tip of the implement, as it was exposed to the air, begin to glow a fiery red. He touched the fire-maker to the wicklike projection in the hollow tube and, screwing the fire-maker shut, replaced it in his pouch. The wick burned slowly downward toward the hole in the pipe. When it was almost there the man stood up and holding the pipe in both hands trained it at a nearby rock. There was a sudden flash of fire and a crack of sound from the hollow tube as some projectile hurtled through it and shattered against the rock. The face of the rock was blackened and some stone had been chipped from its surface. The quarrel of a crossbow would have done more damage. "Forbidden weapon," said Sarm. The Priest-King monitoring the observation cube touched a knob on his control panel. "Stop!" I cried. Before my horrified eyes in the observation cube the man seemed suddenly to vaporize in a sudden blasting flash of blue fire. The man had disappeared. Another brief incandescent flash destroyed the primitive tube he had carried. Then once again, aside from the blackened grass and stone, the scene was peaceful. A small, curious bird darted to the top of the stone, and then hopped from it to the blackened grass to hunt for grubs. "You killed that man," I said. "He may have been carrying on forbidden experiments for years," said Sarm. "We were fortunate to catch him. Sometimes we must wait until others are using the device for purposes of war and then destroy many men. It is better this way, more economical of material." "But you killed him," I said. "Of course," said Sarm, "he broke the law of Priest-Kings." Priest-Kings of Gor Book 3 Pages 138 - 139 It might be mentioned, for those unaware of the fact, that the Caste of Merchants is not considered one of the traditional five High Castes of Gor the Initiates, Scribes, Physicians, Builders and Warriors. Nomads of Gor Book 4 Page 84 The walls were crowded, and I supposed many upon them used the long glasses of the Caste of Builders to observe the field of the stakes. Nomads of Gor Book 4 Page 113 The new Administrator of Ar was a man named Minus Tentius Hinrabius, an unimportant man except for being of the Hinrabian family, prominent among the Builders, having the major holdings in the vast, walled Hinrabian kilns, where much of Ar's brick is produced. Assassin of Gor Book 5 Page 16 The room was innocent of the energy bulbs of the Caste of Builders. Assassin of Gor Book 5 Page 39 "As you might have surmised," said Misk, "your city is being rebuilt. Those of Ko-ro-ba have come from the corners of Gor, each singing, each bearing a stone to add to the walls. For many months, while you labored in our service in the Land of the Wagon Peoples, thousands upon thousands of those of Ko-ro-ba have returned to the city. Builders and others, all who were free, have worked upon the walls and towers. Ko-ro-ba rises again." Assassin of Gor Book 5 Page 60 "This is the basket hitch," I told her, gesturing for her to put out one hand. "It is used for fastening a carrying basket to hooks on certain tarn saddles." I then illustrated, she cooperating, several other common knots, among them the Karian anchor knot, the Pin hitch, the double Pin hitch, the Builder's bend and the Builder's overhand. Assassin of Gor Book 5 Pages 81 - 82 On the other side of the belt, there hung a slave goad, rather like the tarn goad, except that it is designed to be used as an instrument for the control of human beings rather than tarns. It was, like the tarn goad, developed jointly by the Caste of Physicians and that of the Builders, the Physicians contributing knowledge of the pain fibers of human beings, the networks of nerve endings, and the Builders contributing certain principles and techniques developed in the construction and manufacture of energy bulbs. Assassin of Gor Book 5 Page 84 "Do not fear," said Ho-Tu. "They cannot see you." I studied the glass that separated us. The two girls strolled near the glass and one of them, lifting her hands behind her head, studied her reflection gravely in the mirror, retying the band of silk which confined her hair. "On their side of the glass," said Ho-Tu, "it seems a mirror." I looked suitably impressed, though of course, from Earth, I was familiar with the principles of such things. "It is an invention of the Builders," said Ho-Tu. "It is common in slave houses, where one may wish to observe without being observed." Assassin of Gor Book 5 Pages 114 - 115 Meanwhile the intrigues of Cernus, of the House of Cernus, threaded their way through the days and events of the spring and summer in Ar. Once in a Paga tavern I heard a man, whom I recognized to be one of the guards from the iron pens, though now in the tunic of a Leather Worker, declaring that the city needed for its Administrator not a Builder but a Warrior, that law would again prevail. Assassin of Gor Book 5 Page 231 I, Tarl Cabot, am a simple man, poor in many qualities, one who is doubtless much excelled. There is little, I suspect, that I could do better than many others. I am a man who is surely next to nothing, one unworthy of note. Yet I think there is one talent I have, though it is unimportant and unworthy, a gift toward which I have mixed feelings, a gift which is both boon and curse, one which has caused me feelings of horror and guilt, and yet to which I have owed my life and that of those I have loved. It is a gift I have sought not to exercise, a gift I have feared, and sometimes would put aside, but cannot do so. He who is a Singer must sing; he who weaves the beautiful rugs of Ar or Tor must weave; the Physician must heal; the Builder build; the Merchant buy and sell; and the Warrior must fight. Assassin of Gor Book 5 Pages 340 - 341 The man carried a long glass of the builders. Raiders of Gor Book 6 Page 185 From the stern castle of the Dorna, then, with a long glass of the builders, I observed, far across the waters, the masts of the ram-ships, one by one, lowering. Raiders of Gor Book 6 Page 197 As the beat dropped, I took out the glass of the builders and scanned the horizon. Raiders of Gor Book 6 Page 201 "Who was she?" asked the grizzled, one-eyed guard. "The Lady Rena of Lydius," said Targo, "of the Builders." Captive of Gor Book 7 Page 74 The new girl had been Rena of Lydius of the Builders, one of the five high castes of Gor. Captive of Gor Book 7 Page 85 Of special interest to me was the fact that this room, primitive though it might be, was lit by what, in Gorean, is called an energy bulb, an invention of the Builders. I could see neither cords nor battery cases. Yet the room was filled with a soft, gentle, white light, which the physician could regulate by rotating the base of the bulb. Captive of Gor Book 7 Page 93 I could probably have Claudia Tentia Hinrabia, of the Builders, who had been the daughter of Claudius Tentius Hinrabius, once Ubar of Ar, but she was now without family. Hunters of Gor Book 8 Page 174 In taking companionship with one of the Warriors she would raise caste, for the Warriors on Gor are among the high castes, of which there are five, the Initiates, Scribes, Physicians, Builders and Warriors. In many cities only members of the high castes may belong to the city's high council. Slave Girl of Gor Book 11 Pages 113 - 114 The fairs, too, however, have many other functions. For example, they serve as a scene of caste conventions, and as loci for the sharing of discoveries and research. It is here, for example, that physicians, and builders and artisans may meet and exchange ideas and techniques. Beasts of Gor Book 12 Page 44 The women of a given caste, it should be noted, often do not engage in caste work. For example, a woman in the Metalworkers does not, commonly, work at the forge, nor is a woman of the Builders likely to be found supervising the construction of fortifications. Fighting Slave of Gor Book 14 Page 209 I wore the robes of a woman of high caste, today the yellow of the Builders. Kajira of Gor Book 19 Page 100 "That Earth is real is in the second knowledge," said one of the men, a fellow wearing the yellow of the Builders, a high caste. "I was taught that, too," said the fellow with him, also in the yellow of the Builders. "Do you think it is really true?" Kajira of Gor Book 19 Page 388 Some two years ago the merchants and builders had opened the road of Cyprianus, named for the engineer in charge of the project, which led to the fairs rather from the southwest. Players of Gor Book 20 Pages 99 - 100 Initiates commonly wear white and have their heads shaved. They also, supposedly, and perhaps actually, on the whole, abstain from alcohol and women. They count as one of the five high castes, the others being the Physicians, Scribes, Builders and Warriors. Dancer of Gor Book 22 Page 279 Even more sophisticated Goreans, however, if not of the Scribes or Builders, have been noted to speculate that lightning is the result of clouds clashing together in the sky, showering sparks, and such. Renegades of Gor Book 23 Pages 18 - 19 The traditional high castes of Gor are the Initiates, Scribes, Builders, Physicians and Warriors. Renegades of Gor Book 23 Page 368 We looked at the tall, cylindrical structure which lay on a promontory, at the southwestern most point of the harbor. It was perhaps one hundred and fifty feet high. It tapered upward, and was perhaps some twenty feet in diameter at the top. It was yellow and red, in horizontal sections, the colors of the Builders and Warriors, the Builders the caste that had supervised its construction and the Warriors the caste that maintained its facilities. It was as much a keep as a landmark. At night, in virtue of fires and mirrors, it served as a beacon. Renegades of Gor Book 23 Page 411 "It is a lower-caste garment!" she said. "I am of high caste!" Ina was, I had learned, of the Builders, one of the five high castes on Gor, the others being the Initiates, Physicians, Scribes and Warriors. Vagabonds of Gor Book 24 Page 378 "It is too easy," he said. "It is unworthy of me! It is beneath my attention. It would be an insult to my skills! There is no challenge!" "It is too easy?" I asked. "Would you come to a master surgeon to have a boil lanced, a wart removed?" he asked. "No," I admitted. "To one of the Builders to have a door put on straight?" "No," I said. "To a scribe to read the public boards!" "No!" said Marcus. Magicians of Gor Book 25 Page 285 The high castes are normally accounted five in number - the Warriors, the Builders, the Physicians, the Scribes, and the Initiates. Witness of Gor Book 26 Page 225 "She is at war with herself," said the young man. "She has deeply ambivalent feelings about her own body, its beauty and needs, her own emotions, the true meaning of her sex." "That war can be ended here," smiled a man in yellow robes, those of the Builders. Prize of Gor Book 27 Page 69 Though this was not known to Ellen at the time, the scarlet denoted the caste of Warriors, one of the five high castes of Gor, the others being the Initiates, Physicians, Builders and Scribes. Prize of Gor Book 27 Page 231 Common Gorean, you see, does not use an "Arabic notation," but represents various numbers by letters, combinations of letters, and such. Most figuring is done on an abacus. It is said, interestingly, that some of the higher castes, for example, the Scribes and Builders, have a secret notation which facilitates their calculations. Prize of Gor Book 27 Pages 471 - 472 "Can they see us?" she asked, desperately. "Perhaps," I said. "They may have a glass of the Builders." Swordsmen of Gor Book 29 Page 88 "The walls of Ar," I said, "are doubtless being rebuilt." I must not make my serious concerns too obvious. "With soaring hearts and singing," said a fellow. "And the flute girls who so tormented and mocked the earlier dismantlers of the walls?" I asked. "Collared, naked, sweating, under the lash," said a fellow, "they now struggle to bear stones to the builders." Swordsmen of Gor Book 29 Page 118 Colors in the Gorean high cultures, as in most cultures, have their connotations or symbolisms. Too, in the Gorean high culture, certain colors tend to be associated with certain castes, for example green with the Physicians, red, or scarlet, with the Warriors, yellow with the Builders, blue with the Scribes, white with the Initiates, and so on. Swordsmen of Gor Book 29 Page 146 I reached into one of the boxes, and placed my hand on the egg. "It is warm," I said. "It is a matter of fluids," he said. "There are two, one to keep the egg viable, another, later, to induce hatching." "I see," I said. The matter, I gathered, was in effect a chemical incubation. I supposed we owed this development to the Builders or Physicians. I supposed the Builders, some of whom concerned themselves with industrial and agricultural chemistry, might have been paid to inquire into such matters. The Physicians, I thought, would have regarded such research as beneath the dignity of their caste. Swordsmen of Gor Book 29 Pages 409 - 410 "The glass," I said to him, with urgency. "Give me your glass!" He removed the sling from his shoulder, to which was attached the case which holstered the glass of the Builders. Swordsmen of Gor Book 29 Page 576 He handed me the Builder's glass. I was familiar with this instrument because I was one of several regularly sent aloft, to the platform and ring, that the horizon might be scanned, that large sea life might be noted, that land or a ship might be sighted. Mariners of Gor Book 30 Page 185 The glass of the Builders was on its strap, across my chest. Mariners of Gor Book 30 Page 191 I let the glass of the Builders, in its sling, drop to my hip. Mariners of Gor Book 30 Page 251 Aeacus handed me a glass of the Builders. It was difficult to focus, and there was much movement. I twisted the glass into focus. Mariners of Gor Book 30 Page 344 Whereas all natural societies are characterized by rank, distance, and hierarchy, acknowledged or not, I think there is no Gorean caste, from the highest to the lowest, which does not regard itself as the equal or superior, in one way or another, to that of every other. Where would society be without the Builders, the Merchants, the Metal Workers, the Cloth Workers, the Wood Workers, the Leather Workers, the Peasant, with the great bow, the ox on whom the Home Stone rests? Mariners of Gor Book 30 Pages 365 - 366 "I trust I will be of the Builders," said Jane. "Their robes are yellow." Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 25 The water is brought in from the Voltai Mountains, or Red Mountains, which at that time I had not seen, far north and east of Ar, by means of long, towering aqueducts, most of which are more than seven hundred pasangs long. The Builders, the "Yellow Caste," one of the five castes commonly regarded as high castes, engineered these remarkable constructions, and are charged with their supervision, upkeep and repair. Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 260 Some had glasses of the builders, though shorter than the usual glass. Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 309 Here, beside the Vennan aqueduct, the stones contained only a number, and no further indications. This was because here the pasang stones measured the length of the aqueduct from Ar, and the pasang stones were largely a convenience to the caste of Builders, concerned with the care of the aqueduct. Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 368 Lykos was standing on the wagon bench of the first wagon, with a Builder's glass, scanning the horizon. Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 369 It was not a Builder's caravan, with its tools and work crews. Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 379 "And supplies, fit for Builders, were brought in the wagons of Pausanias," said Desmond. Conspirators of Gor Book 31 Page 435 "Who are the Builders?" he asked. "Makers," I said, "artisans, manufacturers, engineers, architects, such things." Rebels of Gor Book 33 Page 154 "Suppose I am asked my master's caste," I said, "or from whence he derives his coins. How shall I make answer?" "Say the Builders," he said. "That will do." I wondered if he might not be of the Builders. As far as I could tell, he had related well to Lysander, who was of that caste. Had he not been an unquestioned, accepted, and welcomed guest at the supper I had helped serve in the house of Lysander, Administrator of Market of Semris? Not all members of a caste, of course, are active in the crafts or professions associated with the caste. "From whence, should I be asked," I asked, "shall I say my master derives his coins?" "Say," said he, "he does business, engaging now and then in speculations." "I think it is gold," he whispered to the two fellows who were now about him, one on each side. "One who is of the Merchants, who deals in gold, or one who is of the Metal Workers, who crafts ornaments of gold, or some of those who are of the yellow caste, the Builders, could make the determination," I said. "They have access to the crucible, the heat, the chemicals. The determination can be made in several ways." Through the single lens of the Builder's Glass, I saw a swooping tarnsman's loop encircle a running woman and draw her from her feet in a wide arc into the air, far over the ground. "Merchants buy and sell," said the Tarnkeeper. "Initiates eschew beans and charge for prayers and spells. Scribes ink scrolls, Builders build, Physicians heal, Bakers bake, Metal Workers work metal, Leather Workers work leather, Players battle on the kaissa board, Warriors, in the kaissa of steel, battle on the field and in the sky. The cage was well lit, from a bulb in the ceiling outside the cage. Such did not contravene the laws of Priest-Kings, which tended to restrict weapons and means of communication. I knew the Builders had designed such devices, but they were rare on the surface. On the other hand, I supposed that the bulb, like the steel caves, was a product of Kur technology. "Courage, Harold of Skjern," said Myron, the polemarkos of Temos, of Cos, now in the robes of a well-to-do Builder. With him, also in the Builders' yellow, was Captain Kasos, who, I took it, stood high on the staff of the polemarkos. |       
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