Tying up loose ends
Of the Manila Post Office and the art of Shibari, which in English means 'to tie'
Published May 31, 2023 10:21 am
I watched in horror as footage of the burning Manila Post Office Building streamed in various social media platforms from the night fire broke out in this classical style government building along the Pasig River on May 21. Photos and videos of its colonnades, pediments, and porticoes being engulfed in flames filled me with dread as I thought of the loss of another of our heritage structures in the metropolis.
Being one of the very few who still send letters via post, I am very familiar with the Manila Post Office. I have frequented its halls, especially its philatelic division to buy stamps depicting beautiful local flora and fauna or commemorating Filipino individuals and achievements in our country’s history and prehistory. I wonder what happened to the stamp collection in their archives. A shiver goes through me at the thought of what else has been lost.
Scenes of previous visits flash before me—walking up the steps of the Post Office building and gazing up high as one couldn’t help but do, passing its towering columns, and walking past the grilled counters in rooms with cathedral-like ceilings. Granted classical style buildings can be seen in many provincial capitolyos (Pangasinan, Bacolod, and Leyte, to name a few) since this classical revival was introduced in the country in the 1920s, during the American period, by Filipino artists returning from studies abroad filled with ideas on the latest trends—but certainly the grand dame of them all was the Manila Post Office Building in Manila.
I take comfort in the fact that this is not the first time the Manila Post Office Building was lost and rebuilt. During World War II, the new Philippine Republic led by President Manuel Roxas faced the gargantuan task of rebuilding the city of Manila leveled during the battle to liberate Manila from Feb. 3 to March 3, 1945.
The Manila Post Office was designed by Juan M. Arellano, Tomas Mapua, and Ralph Doane. It was completed on Nov. 28, 1927. After the war in 1946, the Post Office was rebuilt keeping close to its original design. Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan announced that the post office will be rebuilt and assured the public that since the Manila Post Office Building is protected as an “important cultural property, no other building or establishment will be built in its place aside from the post office.”
When the Imperial Forces occupied the Philippines between 1942 and 1945, it is said that “Japan’s mission in the Philippines was not only for military conquest but a cultural crusade to re-orient the people to their supposedly destined place by the side of a divinely ruled nation” such as Japan. Despite heavy censorship and propaganda, the Fil ipinos remained strong in their fight against “intellectual treason” and not only in the arts but in the way Filipinos thought. I have nothing against learning from other cultures but I will take issue when it is forced.
Speaking of consent, I have been friends with Joyen, a Filipina dominatrix for a few years now. Yes, a dominatrix or domina as they are called within the BDSM (Bondage and Discipline and Sadism and Masochism) community. As a serious practitioner of arts and crafts, I try to hone and expand my skills by taking lessons and gaining knowledge about new crafts. One day, I was searching the web for new ways to decorate gifts. My search started with ribbons, then twine, then rope, then this progressed to knots. Soon I was led to the topic of Japanese knots and the art of tying called Shibari. Shibari traces its roots in Hojo-jutsu (the traditional Japanese art of restraining a person using cord or rope. The rope is called nawa.)
During the Japanese Edo period (1603-1867) this type of restraint was used by the Samurai warriors on captives. The type of “tying up” would depend on who was being arrested and how that person would be transported.
Shibari in English is “to tie” and this form of tying became a “style of erotic rope bondage” among the Japanese elite between the 17th and the 19th centuries and now popular in contemporary BDSM subculture. Shibari is sometimes interchanged with Kinbaku but there is a difference. Kinbaku was used in Kabuki theater during the Edo period where actors would create “dramatic poses and movements” using rope. It is an art form still performed today. I was intrigued and blown away to find a thriving community in the Philippines.
I heard about Joyen when I shared my web findings to another friend who turned out to have had dabbled in BDSM. This friend knew of Joyen and had been dying to take classes from her. So, I offered to sign her up if she went along with me to one of Joyen’s Shibari classes. The knots and the patterns used to tie “captives” up were so beautiful. I could very well use this method on boxes and other gift packages!
The first thing we had to do was sign a “consent form.” Consent is very important along with safety. In fact, in the “contract” we had to choose our “safe word.” When the safe word is uttered, if tied up, the domina or dominus must be able to release/cut the ropes off the “sub” or “rope bunny” (one who likes being tied up) within a few seconds.
There are five basic Shibari knots: The Dragonfly Shibari knot, The Hishi Karada Shibari knot, The Gote (Takatekote)Shibari knot, the Ladder Leg Tie Shibari knot, and The Spider Web Shibari knot. The beauty of the knots used in Shibari is that when you pull it a certain way, it easily unravels but it is difficult for the captive to do it himself or herself.
The basic rules in the practice of Shibari is as I mentioned is, one, consent and, two, communication. When Joyen was demonstrating Shibari on the sub bunny, she was always asking her how she was and checking the color and condition of the submissive’s skin. It is advisable not to wear nail polish to ascertain good blood circulation. Third: Never be under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Fourth: Keep scissors or diver’s knife handy in the event the rope needs to be cut to release the sub. Five: Keep sessions short between 15 and 20 minutes.
I met up with Joyen for some catch up and drinks. We talked more about the BDSM community in the Philippines. And how clients (a lot of them in high intensity positions in the fields of medicine and law) help her navigate the physical and legal intricacies of her profession. We also talked about the psyche of the people in the BDSM community and how this subculture has helped societies around the world for centuries. And what it is like to live the life of a domina in a very conservative and religious country like the Philippines. All this and more in my next article. Stay tuned!