Kaelah's Corner (Mar 2013): Rhythm of the Beat

(Ritual spanking with a pomlázka. Picture taken from Wikipedia.)

Today, Christians all over the world celebrate Easter. When I became an atheist, this was one life structuring ritual that I lost. For me, rituals are about structure, but also about feeling connected with others, family, friends and larger communities. Since it is my firm conviction that atheists need rituals as much as religious people do, I decided to celebrate the holiday as a symbol of spring, fertility and (earthly) life, like others in many different cultures do and have done for a very long time. In Germany, this is symbolized by the bunny that brings coloured eggs as presents.

Unfortunately, there is not much spring awakening to be seen outside right now here in Germany. And since I have been ill for several days, being on the mend, I can't go outside for very long, anyway. Well, at least I can enjoy the thought that there are some very kinky Easter traditions out there, for instance in the Czeck Republic and Slovakia. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about these very special customs:

In the Czech Republic and Slovakia, a tradition of spanking or whipping is carried out on Easter Monday. In the morning, men spank women with a special handmade whip called a pomlázka (in Czech) or korbáč (in Slovak), or, in eastern Moravia and Slovakia, throw cold water on them. The pomlázka/korbáč consists of eight, twelve or even twenty-four withies (willow rods), is usually from half a meter to two meters long and decorated with coloured ribbons at the end. The spanking is not painful or intended to cause suffering. A legend says that women should be spanked with a whip in order to keep their health and beauty during the whole next year.

An additional purpose can be for men to exhibit their attraction to women; unvisited women can even feel offended. Traditionally, the spanked woman gives a coloured egg and sometimes a small amount of money to the man as a sign of her thanks. In some regions, the women can get revenge in the afternoon or the following day when they can pour a bucket of cold water on any man. The habit slightly varies across Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

As I wrote in a comment on Pixie's blog, I very much like the idea that the men take the time to craft handmade whips. Obviously, one can also buy the whips in shops these days, but for me, the idea of men undergoing the ritual to make their whips with their own hands has a much higher appeal.

I think it is the same for me when it comes to my spanking kink in general. Rituals play a very important role there. That doesn't mean that every spanking has to follow the same protocol. And it doesn't mean that every scene needs to be long-planned and elaborate, either. But I like it a lot when certain elements of a spanking are done very consciously. For instance, the act of pulling down the pants and panties. And in my fantasies, the spankings are usually rather formal and ritualistic ones, even though the formalism of the procedure is usually combined with a deep emotional connection between the participants. Finally, although Ludwig and I don't manage the time for that very often nowadays, I enjoy the thought of playing out a well-planned, elaborate scene with lots of ritual from time to time.

The ritual is also one thing that I enjoy immensely when we make spanking clips. Developing an idea for a storyline, sometimes between Ludwig and me only, sometimes in collaboration with others, for instance our readers. The preparations like choosing the right clothes, setting and positions. Setting up the cameras and lights. The introductory part which builds up to the spanking itself. The spanking that is usually very clearly determined in advance (implements, number of strokes). The aftermath of showing off and looking at the marks. The process of editing the footage into one piece. And finally, the publishing and, hopefully, the feedback of those who enjoyed the results.

Unfortunately, I don't have coloured eggs for you, but, as several of you might already have noticed, Ludwig and I already published a free gift for you three days ago. The production of this clip did not only involve our readers and therefore lots of exciting anticipation, but also an implement which I had to cut and prepare beforehand. Ritual galore! After an initial problem with a difficult to handle file hoster and file format, the download and viewing should be very simple and work out without any complications now. I hope you enjoy watching the clip and I would love to hear from you if you did! We are nearing 200 downloads but so far there has been very little feedback from people who have actually watched the clip already.

Whatever holiday you celebrate today or not, I wish you all a wonderful Sunday! And of course you are very welcome to share your thoughts on spanking and rituals. Do you see spanking as a ritual? If yes, which parts of the ritual are the most important for you? What does it take for you to make a scene work?