The Four Joys of a Slave are: to serve, to obey, to honor, and to protect, her master. Collectively, the four joys describe the essence of a slave's devotion to her master. That is why they are called "joys" and not "duties." For a true slave, performing these tasks each and every day is her primary means of pleasing her master -- thereby pleasing herself. More than anything else, performing the four joys will lead a slave to true, lasting, complete happiness and contentment. Notice that the four joys do not include "to love." A slave is not expected or required to love her master; but in time if she practices the four joys fully and completely, she probably will grow to love her master deeply forever.

To Serve

To serve means that a slave will always anticipate her master's needs, wants, and commands prior to his communicating them; then, satisfying these fully before he asks or commands. The key concept here is that the slave actively ANTICIPATES. She learns his subtle, often nonverbal, preferences and desires. She also looks after what she believes is best for her master's welfare and comfort. Serving may be as simple as watching that her master's glass is never empty at a party, or as difficult as welcoming another slave in their relationship.

To Obey

To obey means that a slave will always execute all of her master's commands and requests immediately and completely, to the best of her means and ability, even if she doesn't want to, without murmur or comment. A slave will never say no, or any similar word(s) or action(s) which may indicate refusal or possible noncooperation. If her master gives her a command which she believes the master might change if he knew some new information, she must give her master that information completely and immediately, even if it may hurt her. However, once the master considers this information and re-requests that the command be carried out anyway, she may only ask questions as to the hows. Giving "input" and asking questions should NEVER be used to delay complying with her master's wishes.

To Honor

To honor means that a slave will always treat her master honorably in all her words, thoughts, and deeds. Most of all, a Master/slave relationship is based on honor, not on force. Honor and lack of force are the primary reasons why a M/s is SO powerful, emotionally intense, and develops such great depth. A slave is "on her honor" to be all and do all as she swore this in her Oath of Fealty. A master should never have to "check up" on his slave to see if she has complied with his commands. I NEVER will. If I feel a need to check up on a slave, the relationship is kaput anyway. A honest mistake, such as forgetting as long as it doesn't happen often and does not suggest a pattern will be dealt with in a supportive, nurturing way; however, intentional dishonor or disobedience ends the relationship. A key example of a slave "honoring" her master involves always telling the truth. Telling the truth includes telling ALL the truth, including any information, which the slave thinks may be relevant and may affect the master's decision(s). A slave must ALWAYS tell the truth, particularly when the truth may cause her to be punished or be hurt. If a slave should be punished, she should suggest an appropriate punishment (one which will correct her errant behavior from reoccurring, not just to get "even"). A slave also should automatically get the toy, which the master will need to punish her, e.g. a crop or paddle, if this is appropriate. Punishment should always should be considered a great gift from her master as his punishment will help correct her misbehavior and help her to serve her master better in the future.

To Protect

To protect means that a slave will always shield her master from all damage, either from words, deeds, people, or things. She will do all in her power, except disobedience, to deflect or absorb damaging events, things, anything, which could hurt her master physically, mentally, or emotionally. To protect her master also means to always give him wise advice (wise counsel) of what she believes is best for him -- without thinking about how this advice may affect herself or her relationship with her master.

If wish to send questions or comments to the author, you may write me at: master_petruchio@yahoo.com