Quote: 1) I will know myself and be honest with myself. (temet nosce)
Agreed. I've actually talked others into doing this myself. What's more I don't want my own feelings spared so they're honest with me as well. This isn't just D/s advice. It's "How to be honest with who you are in general" advice.
Quote: 2) I will do anything I can to please my Sir and I will constantly think about and seek new ways to please my Sir.
Going to make a correction here. A sub can be either gender. So let's switch "sir" with "sir/madam". On this I... agree and slightly disagree. One word. Brat. Also none brats that "Take the bad with the good" of things. It's a "We're going to push each other in ways we don't like as well as ways we love" kind of thing. I also argue the same rule applies with a dom too. Who would want to be with someone that isn't trying to make you happy after all? Of course, on the sub side there's thinks like "Accepted bad situations" and the like, but even that is in the interest of long term happiness. Though I suppose it can be argued that in this case you would still seek new ways to please each other. But would it be constant when you're trying to displease each other in good fun?
Quote: 3) I will communicate honestly and clearly with my Sir/madam, including the correct use of safewords.
Replacing "sir" with "sir/madam" from here. Communication. Agreed. Safewords, IF they're used, agreed. Not everyone uses them. I don't myself. I just trust and talk about things beforehand, knowing full well the situations I put myself in and the risks involved. Close company only. What's more if I really don't want something I will voice it. I might scream out "no" with something I want, but if it's a serious thing that needs talking about I communicate about it ASAP. It isn't "breaking play" (I'm lifestyle). It's bringing up a more important matter that needs to be addressed for peace of mind. There's "This forced thing on me I accept and got into knowingly" and then there's keeping your mental shit together.
Quote: 4) Any reward or privilege is given to me by my Sir/madam, I will thank him/her and never seek any reward or privilege without permission.
Disagree somewhat here. This ties in with communication. If I say "I don't like this thing" and a dom then gives me said thing that is not a reward and it is not a privilege. Not unless it symbolises something meaningful anyway. I do ask for rewards at times, but at the same time I'm fully aware that wherever I deserve to be rewarded or not is not my decision to make and can as easily lead to punishment. I do not ask for permission to do that either. Though I rarely ask for things. I simply make what I enjoy known and hope they look after me. People can struggle with this and get lazy, especially when new to things. Before reward comes communication. And making sure the dom is well looked after. If I'm not "rewarded" enough the dom might be hard on themselves for not looking after me well enough. Likewise I must ensure they're well looked after too. It is nice to get things unasked for but it is not a bad thing to bring up rewards if they are lacking altogether. Or if you're getting rewards that are disliked. This puts the dom at risk as much as the sub. This requires communication in order to avoid drifting apart, or worse, depression.
Quote: 5) If I have been in violation of these rules in thought or action I will inform my Sir/madam and ask for forgiveness.
Heh. I actually disagree here. I don't ask for forgiveness. I know full well that if I've crossed a line I'm getting face planted into the floor and I'm about to get put in line. Also this "rule" isn't something that applies to all subs. I never apologise. I've spent a whole past feeling sorry for myself. Actions and effort gets things done. If I get out of line I want to be put in it ASAP. No messing around. If I do it again I won't be sorry either. I might do it knowingly. It can be fun to "play" with each other. Knowing full well the risks, consequences and that it won't cause a rift between the two people.
Quote: 6) I will accept appropriate correction and punishment for any transgression I am guilty of.
Punishment then. Who decides what "appropriate correction" is though? For example, I need a harsher/rougher approach. Only I know this for myself. In the end I can only inform another that this is the case and hope they're understand well enough. It's for them to decide how hard to push me. But it's also for me to know how hard (or soft) I need to be pushed.