On past May 18th we celebrated the third anniversary since the first time that HaruTsubaki Sensei started her teaching path in Buenos Aires Argentina, after having received the authorization from Osada Steve Sensei and Yukimura Haruki Sensei. She made her first experience before that, in front of Osada Steve Sensei himself at his Honbu Dojo in Tokyo, Japan. Since that moment she focused in sharing the same shibari values and principles that she was taught in Japan and those who she assimilated through the numerous workshops she had the chance to attend.

It was a great effort to start a dojo for the shibari kinbaku promotion in a genuine and authentic way and respecting the traditional Japanese ways. Being the first in Latin America and opening the road for a young and growing rope community was a great challenge.  At KinbakuMania Shibari Dojo we always though the dojo should be an infrastructure based on teaching and that focus it’s real importance in what is lived and shared as it’s core essence. A dojo is not merely the physical space where you practice ropes, but an energy, a spirit, and a concept that goes far beyond dojo’s space walls and is formed by those who share and nurture that so special energy.  A dojo (literally translated from Japanese as an enlightenment path ) is where those people who make it are.

More than 70 students from various countries have been learning shibari at KinbakuMania Shibari Dojo in its different teaching formats. From those who hired private tuition, those who had attended to regular weekly continued learning dojo classes, and those who had attended to the different workshop formats, everyone had learned some important shibari concepts that they may apply at the time of rigging.  All along these 3 years Sensei firmly established her way of teaching and worked hard to let those who wanted to learn this art understand that shibari is much more than making some knots and laces, how do you get that pattern, or knowing to do some fancy suspensions.  She always reinforced the core idea that rope path is the one that lead to the genuine non verbal communication with the model. A genuine communication based on rope and not related to any role playing enactment.

Nowadays, and after 3 years of hard work,  HaruTsubaki Sensei feels proud of many of her student’s improvements not only in rope handling but far beyond that reflecting in their practices some values she taught them as common sense, empathy with the model, the acceptance and continuous improvement of their own limitations, their awareness of the environment, etc.  We also feel that through the numerous and repeated rope safety speaches, practice and teaching, we’ve been able to get the needed awareness for rope models about safety and care, and what should be expected to be felt when they’re correctly suspended.  We feel that such information about self care and self respect of their own bodies, and the teaching of shibari without that haphazardly happening rope torture some people do (that torture that simply occurs without rigger’s knowing it or without him being able to control it) is a great added value for the young and eager rope community in Latin America.

We want to share with you all a short video we uploaded to our Youtube & Vimeo channels  where we tried to show a bit sample of what the dojo and students had achieved in this last time.

Link for mobile users:https://youtu.be/uMDsoVqWZNQ

We want to thank to Shibari Great Masters, Senseis, riggers, rope models, photographers, artists, and dojo friends in general.

THANK YOU ALL A LOT !!

If you happen to be in Buenos Aires, we invite you to celebrate with us next Sat May 27th starting at 19:00 hours.

KinbakuMania Shibari Dojo