{"id":7708,"date":"2023-07-24T21:17:19","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T02:17:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/?p=7708"},"modified":"2023-07-31T14:34:19","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T19:34:19","slug":"the-mountain-ahead-of-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/2023\/07\/24\/the-mountain-ahead-of-us\/","title":{"rendered":"The Mountain Ahead of Us"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A few years ago, my partner and I split up.&nbsp; She was my rope bottom, and the situation left me full of emptiness and grief.&nbsp; As I processed my grief, I was able to begin an introspective journey; one that would lead me to growth I didn\u2019t know was possible, and help me understand my Heart of Kinbaku.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I was afraid to be alone, because I was afraid to stop tying.&nbsp; You see, I visualize progression in kinbaku like climbing a mountain.&nbsp; I was focused on summiting that mountain.&nbsp; But, I couldn\u2019t see at the time, it was my ego pushing me to do so.&nbsp; When I understood this, I began to undergo what Jung would call \u201cego death\u201d.&nbsp; The Japanese might call it Satori.&nbsp; This is not a singular event, but a process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While I was on hiatus from engaging in kinbaku directly, I began to think, and consider, what it means to search for our own Heart of Kinbaku.&nbsp; I began absorbing kinbaku media, engaging with the history, and further crystalizing my appreciation of beauty and aesthetic.&nbsp; I had conversations with notable figures, historians and enthusiasts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What we call \u201ckinbaku\u201d is more than just the application of rope to a body.&nbsp; It\u2019s, well, everything surrounding kinbaku as well.&nbsp; The aesthetic, the intent, the fantasy, the sexuality.&nbsp; Taking the time to appreciate all of these things, I realized, is as important as the act of tying in and of itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I no longer wanted to \u201cjust tie\u201d.&nbsp; I wanted to tie with someone I was intimate with.&nbsp; I wanted to tie with meaning.&nbsp; I wanted to use the rope to inflict upon my bottom those \u201cseme\u201d moments that are as picturesque as the setting sun.&nbsp; I wanted to extract the beauty revealed by such suffering<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When I came back to rope, I was surprised at how different things felt.&nbsp; And, I suddenly understood something very important.&nbsp; It\u2019s not necessary to summit the mountain before me.&nbsp; It\u2019s not even really that important.&nbsp; Putting in the work, and the journey it takes you on, crystalized in my heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The path upward is beautiful, and it is important to slow down, to observe and enjoy the journey.&nbsp; To enjoy the company and appreciate the beauty, made so much brighter when walking alongside someone who appreciates the same.&nbsp; No longer focused on the top, I was free to make beautiful moments wherever I walked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Progress in kinbaku does not happen without putting in the work.&nbsp; But alongside the work, one needs honesty of intention and clarity of communication, delivered not with words, but in the tension of each wrap.&nbsp; And recognizing those little moments, when your bottom is bound, you can become the camera to write the memories on your heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A few years ago, my partner and I split up.&nbsp; She was my rope bottom, and the situation left me full of emptiness and grief.&nbsp; As I processed my grief, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_media_urls":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7708"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7708"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7717,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7708\/revisions\/7717"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kinbakuodyssey.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}