The enigmatic teppo suspension aka teppozuri / 鉄砲吊り aka rifle suspension results in the shape of a soldier shouldering his rifle.

      When the first Portuguese arrived in Japan in the 16th century they would soon introduce firearms aka teppo / 鉄砲. It is those rifles slung over the shoulders of soldiers that first inspired the teppo shibari / 鉄砲縛り and later the teppozuri / 鉄砲吊り aka rifle suspension. This suspension has been made popular by the late shibari grandmaster Akechi Denki (明智伝鬼).

The tie can be fairly complicated because you have to adapt the takatekote / 高手小手 aka bread-and-butter box tie to be built with one arm only – the other arm being bent upwards with the elbow above the head. Fortunately, the bondage can be broken down into micro units, making it easy for beginners to understand.

Most of the bondage will happen “on the body” so even riggers without immediate access to a suspension point will be able to benefit greatly. Once the rope on the body is complete it is only a matter of applying one main suspension line to the upper body and two more suspension lines to the legs to achieve a “running-man” position.

The Osada-ryu (長田流) version of the teppo suspension introduces several new safety features.