Three Principles in Internal Enslavement

This article describes three general principles of use in Internal Enslavement, which are echoes of maxims in other contexts:

1. Do no harm.

2. Know your slave.

3. Build on foundations.

Do no harm

Clearly harm is a relative concept. However, one must consider the possible consequences of one's actions to avoid unwanted effects, and by "harm" I mean unwanted, long lasting damage, to the mind or the body. In particular, do not underestimate the psychological damage that unpredictable behaviour or severe punishments can produce: all the way from an inhibiting nervousness around certain objects to full blown traumatisation, since these can impede or reverse the Enslavement process.

Know your slave

One needs information to manage any complex system, and the psyche of a developing slave is no exception. The proper study for a Master is his slave.

Practices such as the keeping of a slave journal, or regular face to face debriefing sessions are manifestations of this principle. They attempt to gain access to the slave's inner life, which is usually a private world in free persons and is often remarkably different to what the Master might expect.

The evolving history of a slave's inner world is the slave's Enslavement, and to manage it successfully, the Master must become that country's historian, its prophet and its leader.

Build on foundations

Mere factual knowledge and expertise, such as position training, is only the surface expression of service and obedience. If it is only skin deep, the Master's possession of the slave is no more than skin deep. It is true that superficial training, using the rational mind of the slave, plays an important part in the deeper, emotional changes we seek, but they are two distinct layers.

It is hard work creating new beliefs and attitudes from scratch, since these emotional states are built up by experience over time. But it is these emotional states which we are seeking to grow and guide in the process of Internal Enslavement: by finding what is there already that can be used and expanded, our work can be done more easily and more naturally, in a way suited to where the slave actually is.

Conclusion

In summary, no adult human is a blank slate: everything you do to a slave is in the context of the inner self produced by their past history. By studying the slave, and building on and adapting what is already there, one can benefit from the current reality of the slave's state rather than fighting against it. With this solid foundation, the slave can grow naturally, guided by her Master's requirements, and her service can be molded to suit his requirements with external training which is informed rather than blind.

(The original version of this article appeared as part of the Internal Slave Development Manifesto in March 1999)