Japanese bondage

The allusion is to the use of hemp rope for restraining prisoners, as a symbol of power, in the same way that stocks or manacles are used in a Western BDSM context.

Shibari (縛り) is a Japanese word that broadly means "binding" or "tying" in most contexts, but is used in BDSM to refer to this style of decorative bondage.

As a result, and due to the manipulation of body parts using rope to achieve this, it is common, though not always required, for models or participants to be fully naked and the art form regularly incorporates aspects of BDSM such as erotic humiliation.

[3] Generally recognized as "father of Kinbaku", Seiu Ito, started studying and researching Hojōjutsu (the art of binding a prisoner of war) and is credited with the inception of Kinbaku, though it is noted that he drew inspiration from other art forms of the time including Kabuki theatre and Ukiyoe woodblock prints.

Kinbaku became widely popular in Japan in the 1950s through magazines such as Kitan Club and Yomikiri Romance, which published the first naked bondage photographs.

[7] Due to the generally larger physique of Western subjects, 7–8 meters (23–26 feet) ropes are commonly used in the West.

The natural fibers easily lock to each other which means the bondage can be held together by the friction of twists and turns or very simple knots.

Shibari has a strong presence in the works of some renowned contemporary artists, mainly photographers, like Nobuyoshi Araki in Japan, Jim Duvall in the United States and Hikari Kesho in Europe.

[9] The video, directed by Marian Nica, was controversial and banned by Romanian television for its explicit erotic content.

[16] While some claim this is a somewhat hidebound definition and the word shibari is now increasingly being re-imported from the West to Japan, as the tying communities are very close-knit, there is no evidence to support such a conclusion as most practicing bakushi in Japan have very limited contact with the west and almost no interest in debating the meaning of words.

Kinbaku is based on fairly specific rope patterns, many of them derived from Hojojutsu ties though significantly modified to make them safer for bondage use.