Transcript blog.dallaskink.com

Shibari/Kinbaku overview
including suspension with rope
Background
Imprint - 8yrs old, tied up by neighbor
Experience - Have been practicing daily/weekly for 15 years, making rope for
6 years
Credits - Owner/organizer Bondage Expo Dallas, Fetish Ball performances in
Dallas and San Antonio, Performed for opening of Houston and San
Antonio dungeons, Published in Dallas Observer, Metro ANE, Scene
Magazine, Coeus Magazine
Origins of Shibari/Kinbaku
Fossilised handmade rope lengths were found in Europe which dated to 15,000BC
Rope making tools were first constructed in Egypt in late 4000BC.
Records exist of prisoners tied with rope from the Heian period (around 800), and rope was most
likely utilised for restraint for hundreds of years before that. However, it was the Edo period
(between 1603 and 1867) where rope bondage moved beyond martial use into artform.
For this class, we differentiate between the terms this way:
Hojo jutsu - rope with the intention of martial art/capture
Shibari - rope with the intention of art/beauty
Kinbaku - rope with the intention of connection/sexuality
Origins of Shibari/Kinbaku
Seiu Ito 3/3/1882 - 1/28/1961 (Tokyo) is recognised today as "the father of modern kinbaku"
Ito was interested in kabuki theater, Ukiyoe woodblock prints and the ways of the Edo period and
published a book ‘An History of Edo and Tokyo Manners’.
Kinbaku is based on fairly specific rope patterns, many of them derived from Hojojutsu ties. The
Ushiro Takatekote (a type of arm box tie), which forms the basis of many Kinbaku ties was
influential, and the Ebi, or "Shrimp", which was originally designed as a torture tie and codified as
part of the Edo period torture techniques.Today the tie is used as part of BDSM play and can be
considered a form of Semenawa, torture rope.
Typically, Kinbaku is practiced in Japan with ropes of 6–8 meters (20–26 feet) in length. Due to the
generally larger physique of Texans, 8 meters (26 feet) ropes are commonly used here. Often the
length is determined more by the wingspan of the rigger than the bottom.
The rope material is usually hemp or jute though many other materials are used including cotton,
silk, linen and various synthetics. Occasionally the ropes are polished or worked to make the
natural fiber ropes softer, less itchy, or otherwise personalize to taste.
Origins of Shibari/Kinbaku
Kinbaku became widely popular in Japan in the 1950s through magazines such as Kitan Club. In the
1960s, people such as Eikichi Osada began to appear performing live BDSM shows often including
a large amount of rope bondage, today these performers are often referred to as Nawashi (rope
master, rope maker) or Bakushi (from kinbakushi, meaning bondage master).
In recent years, Kinbaku has become popular in the Western BDSM scene in its own right and has
also profoundly influenced bondage, combining to produce many 'fusion' styles.
Shibari first came into use in the late 80s/early 90s to help describe the kind of rope work being
done.
Mizukoshi Hiro’s recently reprinted book Torinawajutsu offers historical background followed by
thorough, practical instruction of more than 25 traditional ties including some recreated from rare
and very old texts. The Koryu cited are Seigo Ryu Jujutsu, Seishin Ryu Jujutsu, Koden Enshin Ryu
Iaijutsu, Nanbu Handen Hojo Jutsu, Kurokawa Ryu Ninjutsu, Kurama Yoshin Ryu Jujutsu,
Mitsuo (Mippa) Muteki Ryu, Bo Ryu and Tenfu Muso Ryu. Although long out-of-print, the late
Seiko Fujita’s monumental work, Zukai Torinawajutsu could be considered a bible of the art;
showing hundreds of ties from many different schools.
Bakushi Timetable
Types of rope
FLAX - annual plant aka linseed.
Pre 30000 BC, grown in many civilizations for its seeds (linseed oil, very rich in omega fatty acids)
and stem from which fibers are extracted. Sometimes the un-spun fibers of the plant are also
called flax. Plant by-products: fibers, medicines, gels, soap, fishnet, paper, dyes etc.
Linen - a natural fabric obtained from the fibers of the flax stem.
SILK - The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry
silkworm. Bombyx mori reared in captivity. Silk's shimmer is due to the triangular prism-like
structure of the fiber.
bourette - an irregular slubbed yarn made usually of silk waste
tussah - from Tussar silk worms that live in the wild in trees of the Terminalia species and Shorea
robusta
noil - short fiber left over from combing wool or spinning silk
Types of rope
BAMBOO - crushed mechanically before a natural enzyme retting/washing process is used to
break it down and extract fiber
HEMP - is a commonly used term for high growing varieties of the Cannabis plant and its products,
which include fiber, oil, and seed. By-products: hemp seed foods, wax, resin, rope, cloth, pulp,
paper, and fuel.
Other variants, Cannabis sativa and Indica are widely used as a drug. These are typically low
growing and have higher content of THC. The legality of Cannabis varies widely from country to
country, and from state to state.
JUTE is a long, soft, shiny vegetable fiber that can be spun into threads. It is produced from plants
in the genus Corchorus. "Jute" is the name of the plant or fiber that is used to make burlap and is
one of the most affordable natural fibers and is second only to cotton in amount produced and
variety of uses of vegetable fibers. Jute fibers are composed primarily of the plant materials
cellulose and lignin. It falls into the bast fiber category (fiber collected from bast or skin of the
plant) along with hemp and flax (linen). In raw jute the fibers are off-white to brown, and 1–4
metres (3–13 feet) long. Typically a golden fiber in color.
Knots and Ties
Types of ties
Chest harness - Gote, Takate Kote, box tie
Hip harness - gunslinger, drum
one and two column ties
Types of knots
Being tied with knots was thought to be shameful or disgraceful, so this was avoided and rope with
high friction was used along with wraps and cinches.
Bowline - wykd fast and sommerville
Square knot - bring line thru tail for safety
Munter hitch - hold lines in place
Cinches - hold lines in place
Suspensions - Tsuri (Zuri)
Ebi - the shrimp tie ( Ebi-tsuri: suspended form)
Sakasa tsuri: Inverted suspension feet, ankle, hip
Yoko tsuri - Sideways constructions
Aomuke - Face up suspensions
Safety
Responsibility - Rope top is responsible for safety, includes risk awareness,
equipment maintenance.
Equipment - kept in good working order, cutting tools handy
Sobriety - important for both top and bottom
Intimacy - pre-negotiate boundaries
Allergies - to any equipment, gear, foods, fibers
Communication - important to have between top/bottom
Circulation - check often to avoid problems
Nerve Pinching - nerve damage is real and really bad. Learn basic anatomy
and avoid problems.
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