Burning Man and associated Regional Events base themselves on some fundamental guidelines, or the 10 Principles. In this series over the next 10 weeks we will focus on each Principle in detail.
This week features Principle 4: Radical Self-Reliance
This Principle encourages every attendee to only rely on their own resources and experiences. This means that you should come to a Burn prepared for all reasonable eventualities and bring such essentials such as your own food, water and shelter, unless previously agreed with others (though that is no excuse to then not have what you need). Remember that virtually nothing can be bought on site, so free yourself from the reliance on others. Whilst gifting is important, you cannot be dependent on, or ask for a particular gift, especially if this would fulfill a need you should have otherwise come prepared for yourself. So think ahead and pack well, while also keeping on mind not to bring things that are difficult to dispose off or are superfluous to your needs, unless you intend on gifting them.
It also means that if you need information, direction or questions answered, that you first seek to find answers yourself before asking others. It is likely that whatever you are looking for has been asked and answered previously, so check before you ask.
