Kinbaku, Hojojutsu, Shibari, Fusion and Western Bondage

You way well wonder what are let alone the difference between Kinbaku, Hojojutsu, Shibari, Fusion and Western Bondage. I think you can probably ask three rope experts(?) and come up with at least five different answers. So I guess I will add mine ...

Kinbaku - I see this as the pure traditional form of Japanese sensual bondage. The forms are well defined and referenced in many places so I wont go into detail here but will document my own ties as I learn them. I am often asked "Whats the difference to Shibari ? Isnt this just Shibari?" ... to me the difference to me is like learning Karate in Okinawa to learning it in LA. Yes they are sort of the same but also intrinsically different at a philosphical and spiritual level.

Hojojutsu - is the martial art of subbuing and binding prisioners based upon the practices of feudal Japanese warriors. There are many similarities and ties to jojitsu and ninjitsu. Perhaps not exactly correct but its the way I see it.

Shibari - is a more westernised approach to Kinbaku. Not so much focused on form but just the general sorts of ties you see documented in most bondage books. Probably more focused on sexuality then perhaps sensuality and further removed from the traditional martial origins.

Fusion - I see as being even further removed from the eastern origins and more focused on  fancy knot work. I am not sure of the source of the knots but I would suspect more decorative areas such as macrame and yachting :)

Western Bondage - (or dont care just tie the bitch) is the fine art of functional bondage. Form and style have given away to functionality and speed. Its the means to another ends rather then the art itself. Again perhaps not everyones view on it but this is mine.

Rescue Hook or EMT Shears

Well I rather the Benchmade 5 Hook (in the middle) for a few reasons.

• Small compact size.
• Simple to use.
• Less components to fail.
• Opens beer bottles (after roping!)

The only minuses are that the cutting edge is not easily sharpened and it will tarnish over time especially if used to open beer bottles! These are not significant as emergency equipment should stay sharp due to infrequence use and the tarnish can be rubbed off with steel wool or wet dry sand paper if you are fussy.

The plastic rescue hook (on the right) is similar in ease of use to the Benchmade hook. It has advantages of replaceable blades which are razor sharp. But down side of more bits to break when you need them most.

EMT shears (on the left) are my last choice as they arent so simple to cut rope. Admittedly they are less likely to unintentionally cut someone through mishandling then rescue hooks (yes I have accidentally nicked myself with rescue hooks) but I also see various quality shears around which I think you really do not want to rely upon in an emergency situation.

Step Zero - Risk Aware Safety

Roping can harm. It is simple and there is much literature out and about all the possible ways in which it can happen. I do play in public at events where I have only just met someone ... so I will run through my approach. 

My approach is to direct the scene to minimise the risk of harm and the list below is by no where complete but in the rough order I see as most risk if not addressed.

Responsibility - its a rope tops obligation to take responsibility for the safety and positive experience that is a rope scene. This includes good are of your equipment and making your rope bottom risk aware. It also requires you to attain a certain level of proficiency in rope and knowledge of safety aspects.

Soberity - its basically asking for trouble if a bottom is not sober enough to drive. Given I think one beer is too much for most to be behind the wheel gives you how I rather play. It impares judgement and sensation for the rope bottom which only leads to trouble.

Experience - check for a rope bottoms experience and any issues or difficulties in past rope scenes. I usually run through the basic form of the bondage to check for any physical restrictions in the planned positioning of the bottom due to flexibility or injury. As a general rule I do not suspend someone until I get to know them (yes I did learn the hard way ...). Floor scenes often are quite fun anyhow.

Intimacy - always establish the limits of intimacy as not to cross ones boundaries. I have encountered the strangest taboos ... "don't touch my throat/ears/feet/bum or I will drop out of scene and most likely try and kill you!". Being male I sometimes forget ... consider what your bottom is wearing as it could get damaged, crumpled or pick up fluff.

Equipment Failure - the biggest risk of equipment failure is incorrect utilisation and application. The long and the short of it is that humans make mistakes. Be cautious. Double check. Have a mate check your setup. Know how to use your kit and its capability. My preference is to use climbing rated hardware although I do use some marine grade hardware where I work within 5-10 times the device load capacity. I do not use equipment that is not load rated.

Allergies or Asthma - I always check for any alergies to grass or hemp or things that can bring on a asthma attack. I usually check for any reason I might need to get someone out of a tie quickly and establish how she will indicate 911 get me out now! I always have my rescue hook on my person. This is when I usually ask if the bottom has any health problems I should know about including the obvious infectious diseases, heart problems, diabetes, etc. The bottom does need to inform as part of their risk mitigation.

Rope Marks - always check if the bottom has been marked before, problems with excessive bruising or have issues with being left with visible marks after a scene.

Communication - always check how your rope bottom is traveling particularly if you are not familiar with tying them up. Yes its not always the best scene but neither is harming a bottom. As familiarity and skill build this can be moderated to the level required. Always remember communication is a two way street and as much the responsibility of the rope bottom.

Circulation - I will not repeat what many others more learned then myself have already posted. Its your responsibility to be aware of the risk of cutting circulation and how to detect it before it become an issue for your bottom. Easy way to check is to feel the bottoms skin (most often hands) to see if they are clammy or cold. The bottom will sometimes experience pins and needles.

Nerve Pinching - I will not repeat what many others more learned then myself have already posted. Its your responsibility to be aware of the risk of the possibility and consequences of nerve damage. It is also your responsibility to tie in a way that minimises these risks. Basic risk avoidance are not being tight over skinny bits such as joints (elbows, knees, wrists, neck, etc), pressure points (shoulders, genitals,etc) and position of vulnerable nerves such as the sciatic nerve.

Now you might ask why is circulation and nerve pinching last on my list. For a few reasons.

• If you do know what you are doing there is a low chance of occurrence.
• The risk minimising above usually mitigates unexpected problems.

Rope Types

I was going to write an article on rope types but I found a good article by erinhoudini who also supplies interesting dyed nylon solid braid. So I guess I might talk about why I use particular ropes.

Jute/Hemp

Is my first choice of rope for the way it feels and affects a rope bottom. The best description I have heard from a bottom is that "it is like being wrapped in croncrete". This is due to the low deflection under load which makes for better bondage and knotting. I rather the lightness of jute compared to hemp.

Synthetic

I mostly use this if I can find one supple enough to hold knots such as climbing rope.  Often synthetic rope from hardware stores just doesnt have a nice feel or knots securely.  Climbing rope also has the advantage of being load rated. Synthetic rope does also come in nice colours.

Cotton

I mostly use this rope as a disposable rope for practice or where there is risk of contamination. It realy just does not knot nicely as they tighten and stretch under load.

Hog Tie Competitions

I was first introduced to Western Hog Ties at a hog tie comp at Leather Pride Week Fair Day (if  memory serves) in Sydney many years ago. One of the competitors (Mark of DV8 House) and I discussed some sensible rules for such competitions.

• Both use the same length of rope
• Use all of the rope
• Must be secure
• Hands & ankles must be tied.
• Must be able to pick up the rope bottom by the rope

The critical ones I had overlooked and highlighed by Mark were the same length of rope and using all of the rope. Although the size of the rope bottom would also be a consideration for this as well.

The main caution is that the wrist is a weak joint and that direct binding from ankles to wrist can lead to injury. 

The alternative to direct binding of wrists to ankles is to start with a basic chest harness and bind the hands and feet with 2 column ties to the chest harness. This distributes the load across the chest and shoulders which allows for a longer scene with lower stress on the bottom.

Three Knots to Bind Them All

I like life simple. I think you really only need to know three knots to tie almost anything you can think of and best of all you probably already know two of them. These are not my demos cos heaps of other people have done ones better then me. (from left to right)

• Larks Head Knot
• Overhand or Thumb Knot
  (tied to the rod with a clove hitch)
• One/Two Column Tie
• Boola Boola (or this)
• Somerville Bowline 

Esinem has a good discussion and tips on the Boola Boola.

Before you can say I cant count there are four knots. Well the last one is a personal preference and to be honest you can get away with just learning the Boola Boola. The Somerville Bowline is just a bit smancey.

Basic Hair Tie

This tie is based upon Twisted Monk's Basic Hair Tie Video.  My variation has more wraps as I find single wraps tend to slip in a subs hair. Optionally you can skip the last step if you want to leave the initial knot unlocked with the tail through the rope loop. 

As in Monk's video I am using 4mm rope (jute in my case as is my perference )but as he didnt mention rope length. I have used one about 3m long. Long enough to tie the hair and tie off to somewhere else like ankles or a chest harness. 4mm is used because its more flexible and not as heavy. You can go smaller say to 2mm spectra or 6mm to incorporate into another tie if the subs hair is not too fine.

Make a bight (loop) in the middle of the rope

and grab the hair in a ponytail

 Wrap the bight end of rope around the hair two times

 Tie a simple overhand knot

Make a loop from the hair

Wrap the tail (loose) end around the hair loop two times

 Poke the tail through the hair loop

 Secure though rope loop