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Rope bondage
BDSM activity
BDSM activity



Rope bondage, also referred to as rope play, is bondage involving the use of rope to restrict movement, wrap, suspend, or restrain a person, as part of BDSM activities. Japanese bondage, also known as kinbaku or shibari, is the most publicly visible style of rope bondage. An alternative style, "Western bondage" is about achieving restraint; the Japanese style is more concerned with the artistry of the process. String bondage is the wrapping of rows of string around a body area for arousal. String bondage is also known as "constrictions".
History
Rope bondage derives from the erotic Japanese bondage art form of shibari, which was in turn developed from the now-defunct Japanese military restraint technique of hojōjutsu. The rope dress is not of itself a form of restraint, but is used either by itself as an adornment, or incorporated into restraining bondage.
Materials
Bondage ropes used come in a variety of materials and length. Japanese bondage traditionally uses natural fibers such as hemp and jute which are cut into approximately 25 foot lengths. Western-style bondage typically uses longer ropes that span a wider variety of materials.
- Ropes (typically of a nylon or cotton variety)
- Household furniture
Technique
Main article: Bondage positions and methods
Spreadeagle position
A four-poster bed is sometimes used to hold the subject in a spreadeagle position. The wrists and ankles are tied to the bed's vertical columns, thus restraining the arms and legs.
X-cross
Main article: X-cross (BDSM)

The X-cross is shaped like the letter 'X'. The points of each section act as anchor points for restraining the arms and legs.
Chair tie

A chair tie is a form of furniture bondage, a bondage technique which has multiple forms. It typically places the subject in a chair with wrists bound to the arm rests of the chair or bound behind the subject's back and behind the back rest. The subject's ankles are generally tied to the legs of the chair, and additional ropes are sometimes used to keep the subject fully secure. A chair tie is occasionally combined with suspension bondage.
Suspension bondage
Main article: Suspension bondage
Hogtie

The subject is restrained at the wrists and ankles with all four joints converging together while the subject rests on either their back or (more commonly) stomach.
References
References
- Boys, Two. (May 2025). "Two Knotty Boys Showing You the Ropes". Green Candy Press.
- (2016). "Samurai Road". Bellatrix.
- "string bondage - Dictionary of Sexual Terms".
- "Sexual Practices Encyclopedia".
- Bacarr, Jina. (May 2025). "The Japanese Art of Sex". Stone Bridge Press.
- Morey, Craig. (May 2025). "The Seductive Art of Japanese Bondage". Greenery Press (CA).
- Levitte, Joshuah. (17 March 2013). "Karada Rope Dress".
This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.
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