Let’s Get Kinky: Shibari

The word shibari came into common use in the West at some point in the 1990s to describe the bondage art Kinbaku. Shibari (縛り?) is a Japanese word that literally means “to tie” or “to bind”. It is used in Japan to describe the artful use of twine to tie objects or packages.

– Wikipedia

“Shibari” is bondage as art. It involves using rope tied into intricate designs to bind and suspend your partner. It looks sorta like a hammock crossed with a sling you’re never getting out of until your captor has had his way with you.

Manhunt member Daiboy explained for us what turns him on about shibari. Check out what he had to say and some more pics of this ancient practice demonstrated by Chad Brock and Morgan Black after the JUMP!

It looks sorta itchy.

If you have a particular kink or fetish you’d like for us to explore in “Let’s Get Kinky”, tell us about it! E-mail us at daily@manhunt.net.

– J. Harvey

Photo credit: Bound Gods

Alot about rope work turns me on. It’s the feel of the rope sliding over my skin as I’m being tied up; it’s the smell of the jute rope; it’s the physical touch of the top as he pulls my body into the position that he wants; it’s the total surrender you give up to another; it’s the connection that is formed. I love that Shibari is a little more ritualized, not so much formal, (as it is based off the Japanese bodage that was used for capturing and holding prisoners) but still highly sensual and erotic.

The hottest experience was when I went to a sort of hippy festival last year (ConFest) and one of the workshops offered was a Shibari one. So I went along and became the rope bunny for a guy who’d never done any form of rope work, but oh my god, it so didn’t seem like it. His touch was sensual and sure. It wasn’t timid, (that’s one thing with bondage if you’re topping you need to be firm and have control of the situation). He was actually quite good for a first time, really good infact. I was sent into sub space from his work. And it wasn’t anything truely intricate in the form of ties, just a simple chest harness and binding of the wrists behind the back, but there was a connection formed and I actually started to have orgasms as he was pushing on pressure points on my back. Nothing went further than this with him (damn shame really ~_<) but I was blissed out for a few days afterwards. So that was one of the hottest rope sessions that I’ve had, just the fact that he could turn me into a pile of goo with some basic ties and pressing a certain spot on my back.

Advice I would give would be to get your hands some good books on the subject. There is a good one by Midori called The Art of Japanese Bondage, another good one for the beginner is ‘Shibari you can use’ by Lee Harrington. Another thing I would say is practice and don’t start out doing the full on suspension/hardcore stuff straight away, take baby steps and work your way up in skill level. Also invest in a decent rope. If you can actually find someone to teach it to you, even better because some people actually learn better from seeing it actually done.

Thanks, Dai! We comped him for a week of full access on Manhunt for helping us out. Again – if you’ve got a kinky secret you want to share with us, e-mail daily@manhunt.net