BDSM is a word composed from the following abbreviations: B&D (Bondage & Discipline), D&S (Dominance & Submission), and S&M (Sadism & Masochism). It means that it can cover a play, where heavy pain is inflicted or tight bonds are applied, or where one person drives another. There is one sign common for all three: there is at least one person who leads the scene (called top), and at least one person who is controlled (called bottom).
Bondage & Discipline - bonds, humiliation, and corporal punishment are used to control the behaviour of the bottom. The top forces the bottom to achieve a certain goal through the given rules. If these are broken, then punishment takes place. It is very similar to a child treatment used in the last century, but applied to adults of course. Very often, role playing, such as parents/children, teacher/student, is a part of it.
Dominance & submission - the top dominates the bottom. The top demands that the bottom wants to obey. It is similar to B&D, but the control is mostly in the emotional field. Let me give you an example to make it clearer: The top gives a command to the sub to keep the house clean. In B&D, the top will check if the house is really clean. If not, his crop will have a work to do ... In D&S, the top will not care if the room is tidied up, but if the bottom has spent enough effort to fulfil the request.
Sadism & Masochism - pain is involved. The masochist likes to receive pain, the sadist likes to inflict pain.
BDSM can be a lifestyle, it can be a favourite game regularly played with a partner, or it can be something that would be never understood by some. Most of the BDSMers say that erotic power exchange is the most sensual thing you can experience. I can't say, if it is true for everybody, but it is surely true for me.
Safe, sane, consensual
No BDSM web site would be complete if this basic philosophy is not mentioned there. Any scene has to be:
Safe - you can't totally eliminate a possible problem, that something will go wrong, but you have to be prepared to handle such a situation.
Sane - there are limits you have to worry about, things you should be aware of. Never get too deep in your fantasies; stay in touch with reality. You can dream about being raped, but it is not so fun if you really are.
Consensual - both of you have to agree to play. BDSM is based on the gift of submission and not on the abuse of power.
Hurt not harm - What is the difference? Hurt means to inflict pain, and harm means to cause temporary or lasting damage. The damage can be physical, but it can be mental too. Do not underestimate the psychological point of view!
Punishment:
Punishment is something that makes the bottom feel very uncomfortable, and it is used to remind her that she did something wrong. Some bottoms do not understand that and try to misbehave to receive harsh treatment, which they like.
This is not a good approach, and I would recommend changing it as soon as possible. I think that it is not a fault of the bottom only, but of the top as well. If we say punishment, we think very often about corporal punishment - when physical pain is inflicted by hitting with a tool or a part of a body, like a hand. But punishment can also be humiliation, forcing to stay in an uncomfortable position, tight bonds, etc, etc. If the bottom is a heavy masochist, then it is hard to punish him by beating and still avoid injury.
In my opinion, the most cruel punishment is ignorance. I don't know about anything more terrible than waiting for your Master to pay some attention to you again. And it works on all types of bottoms. Or am I wrong?
Master/slave, Domme/sub, top/bottom, switch
What is the difference between these words? Hence, we do not often realize it, but there is a big difference there. Sometimes, some people use them in different ways. I will mention here my personal feelings about them.
A slave is a person inferior to their Master, who controls their body and mind. The slave is obliged to fulfill all requests and commands of her owner, has to ask permission to do anything that was not commanded by him, and in fact do not have any rights. Slavery is the greatest gift that one human being offers to another in the BDSM relationship. It is also a very risky and dangerous thing, because she is at the mercy of his owner.
Therefore, before the woman would become a slave, she should know very well the person she wants to submit to, and she should know what the demands will be of her. Otherwise, there will be a big disappointment for both parties involved. If this happens, the slave should ask to be released, mostly because she feels she is not able to fulfill the Master's desires and, in that way, meet her own need to be a good slave.
The Master should step forward and release the slave from her duty, simply because she becomes unusable for him anyway. Slavery is a relationship without any borders and without any time limits. In most cases, entering into the partnership is very formal and quite often, both participants sign a contract.
sub - the main meaning is as a person in D/s relation, but very often is used to describe a person who offers power over certain rights for a limited period of time to her Dom, usually in the duration of the scene. Unlikely in a Master/slave relationship, here are some limits set, in terms of actions and time, too. The sub is not under total control; she only submits in a certain range.
bottom - a very general term, which expresses inferiority of one person to the top (the superior one). The bottom can be a masochist, sub, and also a slave.
If we take a Master-slave relationship like marital status, then Dom-sub would be a pair of lovers, and top-bottom can be any pair who just have a date. We can also say that every slave is a sub and every sub is a bottom, but not vice versa. Also, every Master is a Dom, and every Dom is a top.
switch - is one who changes his/her role, can be a top, and can be a bottom too.
In written contact (by mail, email, IRC, etc.), it is useful if it is easily recognizable by name, who is who. There is a rule for this: the top usually uses a capital first letter, the bottom uses all letters in small case, and switch uses a capital letter somewhere in the middle in his/her name.
Essential principles of the BDSM relationship
As in any relation, also here the most important is the respect to the partner, and it does not matter if she/he is a master or slave, it works both ways. Anybody would hardly ever submit to someone who did not earn their trust, and she will not earn his trust if she does not show her esteem to him too.
Only novices and those who do not take BDSM seriously claim themselves to be Masters or slaves from the first meeting. Be aware of these people!
People who are serious about this will take you as an equal partner. When both of you ensure that your desires match and both feel comfortable and have trust in each other, then the bottom can offer herself to be under the control of the top, and the top can take this offer. I stress here that both parties can and not must.
To submit, it is the last bottom's decision. Since the top takes that offer, he also takes the responsibility for his bottom. I find the following ads and responses as a major mistake: "I am begging you to be accepted for your service", or "kneel and immediately write to me that you want to submit!".
Both are signs of low experience (well, I was the same in the past :-), and in the case of experienced people, it demonstrates a lack of esteem or self-esteem. Relations, which start in that way, end very early too, and are not very happy.
Of course, there is no rule without an exception. If you seek someone just for one session and you like a risk, it can be the right way for you. But it is not how I feel about BDSM.
If you search for a lifetime partner and want to have a life full of love, sex, and emotions, then it would be better to start from another point - go to dinner, learn what he likes, what his philosophy is, what he expects from life, and very slowly get to the questions concerning BDSM. In that way, you can test if you are both of the same mind.