EDGEPLAY:
any dangerous practice or play that involves a substantial risk of physical or psychological injury.  Breath control, fire play, knife play, single tail whips, erotic asphyxiation, blood play, and some forms of electrical play are but a few activities that are considered edgeplay.



EDGING or PEAKING:
a practice of bringing sexual arousal to oneself or to another to the brink of orgasm and then stopping before reaching climax.  Sexual stimulation but ensuring that no climax is reached.  Often used as a technique in orgasm denial play bringing about a feeling of frustration for the submissive.  It is said that once a person does climax after several sessions of edging, the orgasm is twice as intense.



ELECTRICAL PLAY:
any practice involving the use of electrical current to stimulate or cause sudden painful shock to a person.  Violet wands, electric flyswatters, and tens units are but some of the equipment used in electrical play.  Some forms of electrical play are considered edgeplay and can be very dangerous.  Any amount of electrical current administered above the waist, near or around the heart, can sometimes induce heart arrhythmia, or worse, a heart attack.





EMASCULATION or EMASCULATION PLAY:
the act of psychologically weakening a male submissive.   To make a male submissive feel less masculine, served as a form of humiliation play.

See related FEMINIZATION.



EMBLEM OF BDSM:
a design based on a triskelion shape.  The triskelion shape has been used in many cultures throughout history with various meanings.  The BDSM emblem used today has a basic triskelion shape of three spokes curving out from the center with an encompassing circle.  The spokes are gold, silver, or copper to represent metal, and they travel outward so that the design appears to move counterclockwise.  The circle is the same width as the spokes.  The inner fields, which make up a yin-yang-type shape, are black.  There are three holes on these fields, punching the design.  Critics will argue that all these conditions must be met before it can be recognized as the true symbol of BDSM.  However, variations of the triskelion symbol are increasingly being used to represent BDSM.  This is likely because of practical graphic concerns, rather than ignorance of the true specs of the symbol.  When dots are put in place of the holes, or the middle or outside edge is made a different color, it can resemble a symbol already used by other groups. For example, dots in place of holes makes a symbol used by an ancient martial arts family in Japan.  It should be noted that the symbol is increasingly being used in slightly different variations to represent BDSM, so you could say that certain variations of the symbol are now serving dual purposes with two meanings.  If you see the symbol with dots rather than holes, accompanied by a naked woman being fondled and flogged, most likely the symbol does not represent an ancient martial arts family.





EMBLEM OF KAJIRA:
a symbol for a slave, adapted from John Norman's novel series Gor.  A lowercase letter K, usually depicted as red, with embellishments on the ends of the letter.

See related GOREAN D/s.





EMBLEM OF A MASTER:
a symbol for a master, usually representing a master who owns a submissive in a TPE relationship.  An arrow pointing up (common symbol for a male) on top of a shield shape.





EMBLEM OF A MISTRESS:
a symbol for a mistress, usually representing a mistress who owns a submissive in a TPE relationship.  A plus symbol (common symbol for a female) on top of a shield shape.





EMBLEM OF A FEMALE SLAVE:
a symbol for a female slave owned by a master or mistress in a TPE relationship.  A plus symbol (common symbol for a female) encompassed by a circle (a large letter “O” to mean owned), the same thickness as the plus symbol.





EMBLEM OF A MALE SLAVE:
a symbol for a male slave owned by a master or mistress in a TPE relationship.  An arrow pointing up (common symbol for a male) encompassed by a circle (a large letter “O” to mean owned), the same thickness as the plus symbol.





EMT SCISSORS or BANDAGE SHEARS:
medical scissors specifically designed to cut bandages, fabric or rope off a person.  The bottom blade of the scissor is shaped in such a way as to help prevent cutting or gouging the skin.  EMT scissors are particularly handy when trying to free someone from bondage involving rope, cloth, vinyl, or tape in the event of an emergency.





ENCASEMENT:
any bondage in which a person is encased in a device that completely immobilizes a person.   

See related MUMMIFICATION.



ENDORPHINS:
any of a group of hormones secreted within the brain and nervous system.  They are produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus as a reaction to exercise, excitement, fear, pain, love, and orgasm. Endorphins can produce feelings of well-being.  An "endorphin rush" is a term sometimes used in BDSM to describe feelings of exhilaration brought on by a session that brings some people to a state of subspace.



ENEMA:
a procedure in which liquid is injected into the rectum, usually through a thin plastic nozzle that is then inserted into the anus, typically to expel its contents, encouraging a bowel movement.  In BDSM, the enema is often used as a form of humiliation, or more commonly as a tool to ready someone for anal sex.





ENGLISH:
code term for caning.

See CANE.



EROTICA:
writings that are of an erotic nature or sexually explicit.  The term is also sometimes used for erotic photography or erotic films.  Many stories that involve BDSM activities fall under the erotica umbrella.   

See BDSM PORNOGRAPHY.



EROTIC (SEXUAL) ASPHYXIATION:
sometimes referred to as breath control play, it is the intentional restriction of oxygen to the brain for sexual arousal or to intensify the pleasure of an orgasm and/or to intensify BDSM activities.  Those who engage in this sort of play are sometimes referred to as gaspers.  When the brain is restricted from oxygen by inhibiting a person’s breathing, or by compressing the carotid-arteries in a person’s neck, it can cause a person to feel lightheaded, which can heighten sexual sensations or make other pain sensations feel more erotic.   This is considered an extremely dangerous practice.  For some reason, breath control play seems to be one of the forms of edgeplay that is often not taken seriously.  Ironically, it is one of the most dangerous and a lot can go wrong to include permanent injury or death.

See related BREATH CONTROL PLAY.





EROTIC HUMILIATION PLAY:   see HUMILIATION PLAY.



ETIQUETTE OF BDSM or PROTOCOL:
the customary code of behavior while engaging in BDSM activities, or the social code in BDSM communities.  The requirements of mutual consent and agreements as to the limits of any BDSM activity. For example, in many circles it is considered rude to approach or distract a person while they are engaged in play.  This would be a breach of BDSM etiquette.



EUPHORIA:
a feeling or state of intense excitement and happiness, feelings of well-being. Often another word used for the term subspace.

See SUBSPACE.



EVIL STICK or PAIN STICK or SADIST STICK:
an implement for striking, usually about 25cm in length, about 2mm in diameter, and made of a carbon fiber reinforced plastic rod.  It is used by firmly holding the handle, then bending the tip, and letting it snap onto the skin. Some evil sticks have a small ball near the tip that concentrates its whole energy on an even smaller area, causing more pain.  Also, some people call a cattle prod an evil stick.





EXECUTIONER'S HOOD or GUILLOTINE HOOD:
a leather hood that covers every part of the head but the eyes.  It mimics the executioner's hood worn throughout history.





EXHIBITIONISM:
extravagant behavior that is intended to attract attention to oneself.  A mental condition characterized by the compulsion to display one's genitals in public. Engaging in sexual activities while others watch and become sexually aroused.



EXHIBITIONIST:
a person acting in exhibitionism; someone who is sexually aroused by showing others their naked body and/or someone who enjoys having sex while people watch.



EYE CONTACT PLAY:
the practice of restricting a submissive from being able to make direct eye contact with a dominant.








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