Chapter XII
<< Is All This So Very New? >>
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We're sure you've wondered. We did. If multi-orgasms for men have been possible all along, how come no one talked about them before?

Logically, if all we've said is true, then we can't be the first people to notice such a remarkable phenomenon. In fact, to a certain degree, we ought to be able to prove what we claim by showing that multi-orgasmic men have existed in the past.

To test this, we went back into ancient literature, and we found just what we had expected. As far back as 2968 B.C., in China, there were writings that described male multiorgasms. The problem, of course, is that when you read the works of some ancient author—written in a language foreign to you—there can be difficulties with translation and interpretation. Maybe we were interpreting what we read so that it reinforced what we believed had been true. After all, we couldn't go back to those long-dead Chinese and test their responses on our machines and charts.

So we continued on with our research, hoping to find something more definite than graceful poetry and flowing lines of ancient calligraphy. When we found our research thinning, we took a different approach.
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A hundred years ago it was assumed in Western culture that only women of questionable morality had orgasms and enjoyed sex. "Good" women accepted sex as an inevitable part of marriage, but they never let on that they enjoyed it (if they did), and like that one client of ours, they endured patiently until it was finished.

In our culture today there have been improvements in that attitude. Far more women today have orgasms and acknowledge them than did even as little as twenty years ago. However, even now, far less than 100 percent of Western women have that open, accepting attitude toward their own sexuality.

Once single orgasms became known and acceptable for women, multiple orgasms occurred occasionally, too, though in very few women. This was true basically because men seldom continued intercourse long enough for a woman to have one orgasm, let alone two or three.

It has really only been within the last forty years that female orgasms have been recognized and accepted as "normal." Since that time, research has shown that women who are capable of having one orgasm, if they continue on with stimulation, will have many, one after the other, until they stop out of sheer exhaustion.

Now it appears that all women are potentially multiorgasmic.

This statement is accepted by most researchers, and by sexually aware laymen. Research that has taken place in the last twenty years seems to prove this.

Yet, during all this research, few questions have been asked regarding male orgasmic capabilities. Why? We suspect that the same inhibitions that confined women for so long to the role of "receptical" for male sexual satisfaction, also put limits on male sexual enjoyment. The accepted concept used to be that humans did not deserve—in fact had no right to have—pleasure in this life. "Eternal joy" was reserved for heaven.
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To reconcile the need for sex (people had to continue to have children, or the world would end) with this concept of the world as a "vale of tears," intercourse had to be limited. Only for procreation, and only one orgasm (with ejaculation) at a time. Sex was a duty for both man and woman.

If we accept modern males as victims of the same attitudes that inhibited women, then we can understand why so many men today still believe that they can have only one orgasm in any one sex encounter—and why research had simply accepted as fact what no one has bothered to disprove.

Once more we returned to old writings, looking for any evidence, no matter how slight, that something other than the presently accepted quick ejaculatory pattern of two minutes (for male orgasm) had been noted, either by poets, by writers, or by whatever "scientists" existed at the time.

We found what we had hoped for. And yet . . .

The problem still existed, as it had when we read the ancient Chinese prose. The method of description was so different from ours that a clear picture of what was happening during sexual activity was not clear.

Take, for example, the Oneida Community, in our own United States. A "simple" description of the phenomena by the granddaughter of the founder of the community is so complex that we, researchers accustomed to technical descriptions of physical acts, were more confused after we read her work than we had been before.

Part of the problem, we decided, lay in the fact that we were reading descriptions of highly personal experiences. If you consider how difficult it would be to describe snow (without the use of pictures) to a person who had never seen it, you will understand how difficult all this can be. An emotion is even more ephemeral than snow.

When a Western doctor first tried to give information on contraception to natives in a primitive society who believed that children were conceived when a woman stood too close to a wooden stick wrapped with string, he was met with derisive laughter. "Everyone" in that community knew that such ridiculous precautions would never have any effect at all.
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So we found that the attitude of the reader of ancient works colored the meaning of the words he read because of his own beliefs. A man who is convinced that orgasm and ejaculation are synonymous will view any literature that discusses prolonged intercourse in a different way than will a man who is aware that orgasm can and does occur without ejaculation.

It is from this second framework that we will consider the literature from the past, recognizing that some other reader, coming from the first assumption, would interpret things differently. Our approach is based on what we have observed in our study subjects, and is reinforced by the physiological recordings on our eight-channel Beckman R411 dynograph recorder. We've seen the "pictures" of male multi-orgasms, so we are willing to believe—in fact we know—that they exist.

Starting with this premise, we looked for specific characteristics in the descriptions of sex that exist in old writings.

       1.    We looked for descriptions of long sessions devoted to sexual pleasure. That, we know from our research, is necessary for multi-orgasm in both men and women.
       2.    We looked for a society that accepted male sexual pleasure as good. We acknowledge that in most cultures, both ancient and modern, it is male pleasure or satisfaction that is valued.
       3.    We also looked for cultures where a certain amount of romanticism was evident in the writings of the wealthy upper classes. Those were the societies where sexual enjoyment was most likely to be appreciated for both men and women.
       4.    We looked for societies where the wealthy classes had a great deal of leisure time.
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Why this concentration on the condition of the upper classes? Because throughout most world history the lot of the poor has been hard. They have never had spare time in which to cultivate sensual pleasure.


How Far Back Did We Go?

The earliest information on prolonging sex that we were able to locate came from the Emperor Hiang Ti, in China, in 2968 B.C. We assume that other cultures neighboring China at that time may well have shared in this source of physical enjoyment, for some of the writings suggest this. That would mean that we might find some data in the early Persian writings, and in the traditions and works of ancient India.

If we allow ourselves to follow what was then a natural trade route, assuming that with trade would go cultural knowledge, we might find some concepts of extended sexual pleasure appearing in the works of Middle Eastern cultures and Greece. There is concrete evidence that such trading took place, with China as the motivating force. So we may at least consider the possibility that concepts of extended sexual pleasure that appear in India and Persia and ancient Greece all originated in China. You will find a number of books listed in the Bibliography that will give you more information about these cultural interchanges.

Did these ancient writings use the same terminology we use today? How simple our research would have been if they had. No, they spoke of extended sex in many ways. To clarify what we say later, we'll list the different terms used. Well also give a description that fits the ancient writings.

       1. The Tao of Loving.
This, the earliest mention of extended sex, is closely connected to some of the religious practices of that time. The writers of the Tao of Loving believed that if ejaculation was controlled, a man enjoyed better health and suffered less debilitating effects when he indulged in intercourse to ejaculation.
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In some books, we even found proscriptions for sex that were based on the age and physical health of the subject. All of these writings advised careful control of ejaculation, but put no limit on intercourse or orgasm. It appears that retrograde ejaculation was sometimes mentioned—and considered acceptable.

       2. Tantra, the Secret Ritual.
In India, this form of religious-sexual practice was considered especially sacred. The steps to be performed are clearly described. Often tantra does not even include penetration, and the accent is on extending the time of "ecstasy." This is a very ritualistic form of sex, deeply tied to religion. It is often equated with the Chinese Tao of Love by various authors, but Jolan Chang, the author of a definitive book on the subject, indicates that tantra is connected to religion in a far more stringent way than is the tao of loving. We feel that there is, certainly, a close connection between the two, not only in the behavior advocated, but in the admonitions given to would-be practitioners. Though the tao of loving does appear to have been less structured, the religious aspects of it appear to us to be as strong as those in tantra.

       3. Tantra, the Yoga of Sex.
In his book Tantra, the Yoga of Sex, Omar Garrison describes the series of steps that, when followed, bring on an extended pleasurable sensation described as "feeling like an energy flow from one body to another."

Recently, when doing research with this ritual, we found that the breathing pattern and the pelvic contractions used were an important part of the ritual. Our subjects were not monitored by a recorder, so all we have is anecdotal information. Our subjects did not report what occurred as an orgasmic experience, but they did report a feeling that energy was flowing between them.
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According to the directions in Tantra, the Yoga of Sex, no penetration needs to occur, and the ritual must take place five days after the cessation of menstruation. This experience, obviously, was not to be enjoyed any time, but had to be performed at a specific time, and involved specific ritualistic behaviors that culminated in genital apposition without penetration.

       4. Vajroli.
Vajroli, discussed by Robert de Ropp in his book Sex Energy, is a method whereby a man can gain control over the urinary bladder so that he can dilate the sphincter at will. When he can do this, he can consciously direct the ejaculate into the bladder (retrograde ejaculation). This method of avoiding "normal" ejaculation is utilized in Tibet as well as in India.

       5. Coitus Prolongatus.
This form of extended intercourse is described by Allen Edwards and R. E. L. Masters in their book The Cradle of Erotica. It is a very strenuous form of sex, involving extreme willpower and great potency. The movements are continuous, and appear to require great athletic ability on the part of the practitioner.

       6. Vishrati.
This is the name given to prolonged coitus in classical India. The erotic literature of India as well as that of the Chinese and the Japanese praise the male who can go for long periods of time.

       7. Twenty-Times Copulation.
This appears to be simply the ability to go for a long time in coitus. It is a term used only in India.

       8. Coitus Obstructus.
In this technique, described in Reay Tannahill's Sex in History, the male presses firmly on a spot between the anus and the scrotum, using the middle finger of his left hand. At the same time, he must gnash his teeth and inhale deeply (but not hold his breath). This technique was believed to force the ejaculate into the brain. What it apparently did was force the semen into the bladder (that old retrograde ejaculation again), to be expelled during urination.
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       9. Imsak.
Little is written or known about imsak. Sir Richard Burton mentioned it in his writings, but no book has ever been published on its methods. Muhammad was said to practice imsak.

Allen Edwards says that imsak is an Arab word meaning "prolongation of pleasure in coition by protracted penetration and withholding of the ejaculation."

The practice of imsak (apparently a form of coitus reservatus) among the Arabs was probably imported from India or China, inspired by the concept that semen is a life force that should not be wasted. For this reason, coitus without ejaculation was frequently practiced. Is was claimed, however, to be highly pleasurable, which suggests to us that orgasm did occur.

The Ali Khan was said to practice imsak. He could go indefinitely, had sex frequently, but was purported to ejaculate only two times a week. Consider the fact that the Ali Khan lived in this century, and was thought a great lover and ladies' man. Other contemporary "cocksmen," who had reputations for "being able to have sex all night," were Errol Flynn, Porfirio Rubirosa, and Gary Cooper.

Incidentally, Allen Edwards notes that men who are unable to practice the retention of seminal fluid are viewed contemptuously by both Muslim and Hindu women.

In The Cradle of Erotica, Edwards and Masters note that in the technique, used in both Muslim and Hindu societies, the penis is inserted without movement, but there is stimulation of the clitoris, and the woman contracts against the penis with her pelvic muscles. They note elsewhere that some movement is acceptable.

With such lack of agreement even in one research, we must assume that there are two methods. Maybe the first, where no movement is permitted, is used for learning, as it is today in sex therapy. There is a method called the quiet vagina, where the penis is inserted and the couple lies quietly without movement. This is used to help men who ejaculate prematurely, or who wish to learn to go longer during intercourse (for its own sake, or in an attempt to become multiorgasmic). If this technique parallels the imsak without movement, then possibly our later instructions to use movement as soon as control is reached is like the second kind of imsak found by Edwards and Masters.
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       10. Coitus Reservatus.
This is probably the most common name used for the phenomenon of prolonged intercourse, although the name is of recent origin. Apparently, orgasm takes place, in the form of retrograde ejaculation, since this type of sexual behavior is usually described along with a discussion of how to retain the semen in the body. One author, Paul Gillette, in The Complete Sex Dictionary, claims that there was no movement during the sex approved by the Oneida Community, so male orgasm was prevented. The Oneida group seems to have used this method, with or without movement, and it not only appears to have had no bad effects, it seems from reports by members of the society that men who were skilled in it had better health than that of the general population.

Better overall health care, however, may be a more realistic explanation for the longevity of the men in the Oneida Community. In her book, Oneida Community: An Autobiography, 1851-1876, Constance Noyes Robertson notes that good health is an important aspect of communal living. She does not state definitely that retrograde ejaculation was used by this community, since the information available is not adequate to make any definitive judgment. Inge and Sten Hegeler, in An ABZ of Love (Medical Press, New York), when mentioning the Oneida Community, imply that no sexual gratification of any kind occurred.

Coitus reservatus was said to be a way of making love to a partner that produced intense pleasure for both. It allowed the male to function with a number of partners, one after the other, which was important especially in the Middle East and the Far East, where men had harems or concubines. Among the Oneida Community members were encouraged to have many partners, so the same need for extending the lasting powers of the male might have existed.
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In a way, the structure of the Oneida Community resembled that of a swinging group today. A man capable of being multi-orgasmic, in a swinging group, can enjoy many partners during an evening, and ejaculate only with the last. A few such men have reported to us that they sometimes have more than one orgasm with one partner during the evening, as well as having orgasms with several other women within about a four-hour period.

       11. Chira.
Chira is mentioned in Vatsyayanas' Kama Sutra, the Hindu Art of Love. However, no description is given. It is simply described as coitus that goes for an extended period of time prior to ejaculation.

       12. Maithuna.
This is another name used to describe coitus reservatus. The origin and culture are unknown, but the name does appear in literature, often interchangeably with other terms used to identify the prolongation of intercourse. Often the terms aren't really identical in meaning, though they are used in the same way as coitus reservatus.

       13. Kebbauzehs.
This is defined in Scott-Morley's Encyclopedia of Sex Worship as a method a woman used to contract her vaginal muscles so that copulatory movements were not necessary for orgasm or ejaculation. Such a technique would appear to be not only possible, but quite effective. We know that a man can go longer during intercourse if he takes a more passive role. In our therapy, we often suggest that the woman take the superior position and also the initiative in pelvic movements as part of the practice used to help her companion last longer. We've also found that a number of female subjects have used their pelvic muscles during intercourse, and in so doing have helped their partners become multi-orgasmic. This, however, was done on their own, not at our suggestion.
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       14. Male Continence.
This is another term that was used in the Oneida Community. It appears to have originated during the middle of the nineteenth century, and a book was written on the subject by Noyes. This is a term that was actually used by members of the community. What precisely is meant by it, however, we do not know.

       15. Dynamic Coitus Prolongatus.
Edwards and Masters describe this as meaning repeated and energetic acts of sexual intercourse. It's performance depends entirely upon masculine potency, sensitivity, and willpower. Movements are strenuous and continuous, and suspension of thrusting lasts only a few seconds during the act itself.

       16. Dharanarati.
This is described by Edwards and Masters as copulation prolonged with erotic tension maintained for a long period of time. Neither orgasm nor ejaculation are said to occur. (The fact that these two are mentioned separately seems to indicate to us that they were viewed as separate phenomena.) A man was said to be able to have pleasurable intercourse with as many as twenty women without loss of arousal. This practice seems to produce an altered state of consciousness in a male, giving him a "high" that lasts for an extended period of time.

       17. Karezza (or Carezza).
Alice Stocham, an early feminist and an advocate of birth control at the end of the nineteenth century, apparently coined the term karezza. She wrote a book called Karezza: Ethics of Marriage, which was a modern adaptation of the early taoist and tantric love techniques. Tannahill, in Sex in History, likens karezza to the Chinese and Indian technique of having orgasm without ejaculation. She also suggests that karezza was practiced in the Oneida Community. If so, it was probably used mainly as a birth control technique, since ejaculation was not involved.
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All of these methods, similar as they may be, have small differences that make each one unique. Yet our information regarding them is sparse. Even the most recent practices are shrouded in a haze that makes it difficult to understand. We do know that the Oneida Community permitted its members to choose partners from the group, and was opposed to any bonding that excluded the group. But it is difficult for us to learn much about the frequency of sexual contact in the community; some literature describes sexual license with varied partners as occurring frequently, while others emphasize abstinence as a more common practice. In any event, we do know that the Oneida Community produced few children in the twenty-five years it existed.

We have one description of karezza, from Scott-Morley's Encyclopedia of Sex Worship, in which it is stated that there is no movement. This indicates that it is more like tantric yoga than tao. Morley-Scott provides this explanation of the act:

"Karezza (also Carezza) intercourse between a male and female in which no coital movements are used, taking an hour or more to perform, is an act of will on the parts of both the male and female. It sometimes ends with spontaneous and unified orgasm between the both of them, in which the male lets loose a vast quantity of stored up and held-in-check sperm and the female's vagina contracts violently while her clitoris becomes vibrant and agitated."

       18. The Mystic Way.
A Dutch writer, R. L. Van Gulic, in his book Sexual Life of Ancient China, spoke of the "mysticism of coitus reservatus." He was at least honest in his presentation. He admits that he does not understand the concept, even as he attempts to explain it.

       19. The Alchemy of Ecstasy.
There are, obviously, marked differences between various methods of prolonging intercourse, even though some writers have lumped them all together. The alchemy of ecstasy utilized the retention of semen, that we know. But by that is it meant that retrograde ejaculation was practiced? We cannot say. As with other concepts originating in the East, this involved control of breathing. What part did it play in the technique? Again, we cannot say. All we know is that the retention of semen and the conscious control of ejaculation were part of this sexual "exercise."
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Nowhere in all the literature we studied were men referred to as multi-orgasmic. Yet in our studies, we have found that when a man extends intercourse for more than fifteen minutes, usually there occurred at least one orgasm, and often more. Were such orgasms part and parcel of all these various techniques? We can only guess at the answer.


Orgasm Versus Ejaculation

We do know from our experiments that orgasm and ejaculation are not inextricably tied together, and so we have not been surprised to find that some literature supports our findings. Kinsey reported that male children up to puberty have orgasms but don't ejaculate. He also found that older males, either because of age or a slowing down of the sexual processes, sometimes do not ejaculate. Mellaril, a medication taken by many men these days for hypertension, is well known for its ability to inhibit ejaculation. But it does not usually hinder orgasm. In literature, the laboratory, and medicine, there are clear indications that the two, orgasm and ejaculation, need not be considered inseparable.


Why the Big Secret?

Over past centuries, the population of the world has been segregated into the very wealthy ruling class and the very poor lower class. Many of the pleasures enjoyed by the upper classes were not available to those in lesser positions. Often religion forbade things to the poor that the rich took for granted.
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To some degree this was a result of the unequal distribution of leisure time. The underprivileged poor had no time for extended pleasure. Their time was taken up with the task of finding food and paying for shelter.

Reading, too, was taught only to the wealthy, who could then discover these sexual pleasures by studying the ancient writings. Again, the poor were denied that opportunity. All the literature we found spoke of kings and rulers, of emirs and shahs. Obviously, in the past, this form of sexual indulgence was not for the common man.

The poor man had only one use for sex—procreation. In most cultures, even today, prejudice against liberal sexuality often restricts people with less money and/or education in their attempts to improve their sex lives. The roots of inhibitions and prejudice lie deep.


What Prejudice?

Whenever procreation is important, as it was as long as mortality was high and most infants died at birth, semen has great value. This reverence for the "life fluid" reaches far back into history. There was a time when a farmer would spill some semen on the ground to make his land fertile. And rain was called "God's semen" by many primitive peoples.

In areas where, even now, the belief in the sacredness of semen continues, the practice of coitus reservatus is very acceptable. In the past, procreation was the most important reason for coitus. Pleasure came in a poor second, especially for women. Therefore, we find far less information than we would like in most ancient writings. Often it is restricted to prohibitions against homosexuality, prostitution, getting an unmarried woman pregnant, and other such rules that control procreation. There can also be found some admonitions to women as to how they should behave with their husbands, the number of wives a man was allowed, and, occasionally, instructions as to how long intercourse should go on.

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The Bible

The Bible does make reference to length of intercourse, and the ability of a man to satisfy many partners. Both King David and King Solomon were evidently very potent, virile men. David was said to have had intercourse thirteen times in succession in one evening. The inference is that each was a separate occurrence (not multi-orgasmic in nature), since his wife washed herself after each ejaculation. Samson was said never to stop ejaculating during his sexual activities. This resembles one multi-orgasmic man we have observed in the laboratory, who ejaculates a small amount of semen almost every time he has an orgasm.


Early Iran, India, and Greece

Some literature from early Iran includes tales of men enjoying prolonged pleasure. The stories of Vis and Ramin and that of Khusrau include such events. For the most, however, they describe the trials and tribulations of two lovers, and only touch lightly on the sexual activities in which the pair indulge. In those tales, much is made of platonic love.

In India, according to the literature. Brahmin erotologists, like those in ancient Greece, made a science of prolonged tumescence and delayed orgasm. There are specific instructions that will teach a man to prolong his pleasure artfully for a half-hour or more, "avoiding all haste and thereby conditioning himself for harmonious wedlock." This seems to imply that pleasure was shared, and was considered important for the woman as well as the man. Yet the main emphasis placed on coitus reservatus was directed toward the man's health and well-being, not on his ability to please and satisfy his wives.
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We can conclude from this survey that the idea of extended sexual pleasure is far from new. It was, in the past, garbed with much religious ritual and was often restricted to special groups, such as royalty or at least the wealthy. But restricted though it was, it certainly was known—and practiced.


Christian Influence

Most modern Americans are reasonably well acquainted with the biblical admonitions for man to "be fruitful" and to "multiply." We have also learned, for whatever reason, that sexual pleasure is basically sinful. We've already mentioned how the issue of procreation was treated by the early Christian Church. Sex was a duty—but it should not be enjoyed. By enforcing that concept, and by teaching its followers that "things of the body" were "of the devil," the Church managed to keep sexuality under control. Certainly, in most Christian societies, until quite recently, the idea that sex was a natural pleasure that should be enjoyed was rarely found.

However, other things besides religion influence thought—especially today. As a society becomes affluent, pleasure is accepted as a right.

Our society is, basically, a society of plenty. Even our poor have more than was available to poor in past generations. And so, in a very natural way, attitudes have altered. Today we consider pleasure a positive thing, and feel a man or woman is justified in seeking it, as long as it is not at someone else's expense.
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We still have other attitudes that hamper us, however, in this new appreciation of pleasure. Some of the concepts we often encounter among our clients are listed below. If you have been inhibited by any one of them, you will find your striving for multiple orgasms easier when you have at last put that unfounded belief to rest.

       1)    You must not waste time.
       2)    Time is money.
       3)    Work is the only truly satisfying activity.

Get over feeling guilty if you spend an hour having pleasure. If you can overcome that traditional, common emotion, you will find your path to all pleasure grows easy. And your chances of becoming multi-orgasmic will be at least doubled. Think of it this way. For generations, sexual pleasure was "hogged" by the rich and the influential. But this is the day of the common man. You have as much right to enjoy your body as King David did.

So do it! Relax. Put guilt feelings aside. And give yourself over to pleasure!

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