Note: This article is part of our Ultimate Guide to Pompoir. Check it out for a comprehensive look at this ancient sex practice.

Pulling. Tilting. Twisting. Squeezing. Locking. Sucking. And pulsing. 

Nope, I’m not talking about dance moves. 

But I am talking about a sort of workout – a workout that has been performed for thousands of years in the far East with the goal of taking orgasms to an entirely new (heavenly!) level.

The practice goes by the name Pompoir. And though it might sound French (even to us!) the word actually comes from Tamil – a Dravidian language spoken in the south of India and Sri Lanka. 

It refers to the practice of mastering voluntary command over your circumvaginal and pelvic muscles, in order to stimulate your partner’s genitalia – and at the same time, your own. 

And words don’t lie – this is exactly what the technique involves. 

Pompoir has been introduced to the Western world (vaguely, as we’ll explore soon) using other terms. For instance, we can find it as “The Singapore Grip” in popular culture, amongst books and TV shows.

And in the Middle East, it goes by the name of “Kabazzah”, which means “the one who holds”. As I said, words don’t lie.

There is a reason why the name can be traced back to eastern cultures. They created this orgasm-inducing practice as far back as 3000 years ago. 

They have taught it, shared it, and perfected it. And today, for the first time ever, we get to enjoy it.

I first read about the practice in a Thai forum about sex and intimacy. These amazing women would share their stories about how they would make their men climax in the most exquisite ways, by performing all sorts of crazy motions with their vaginal muscles.

Needless to say – I was intrigued.
 

 
As months went by and I started training Pompoir to transform my own sex life, and built the Oh!lympus Program to teach other women how to do the same, I kept wondering about the origins of this divine practice. 

I couldn't help but wonder: where does Pompoir come from?

The answer is not short. This technique is believed to have an origin in tantric sex. An Indian practice that focuses on the connection between the masculine and the feminine – and the relationship between the body and the soul.

Legend has it that women in China and Thailand took the principles of the practice to modify and perfect it.

In her book, Catherine Blackledge describes other possible origins. 

First, the Devadasis. Female dancers and worshipers from Southern India, who had to learn Pompoir as part of their basic education. 

Next, more than five thousand kilometers away, we have the ancient Greece origin story, where Hetairas – high class courtesans – would  “split a clay phallus with their vaginal muscles” as Blackledge puts it. Talk about divine skills!

I can keep going about all the nations where Pompoir is said to have originated.

In China, women performed a technique to “milk” the penis with vaginal movements. In modern culture, European kings have fallen prey to women that, allegedly, had training in certain sexual practices (aka pompoir). 

And finally, we can relate some aspects of Pompoir to the closest resemblance we have in the West: Kegel training. But as we’ll see later on, kegels are not only extremely basic for the purpose of pleasure – they’re also not aimed at it. 

Okey, now. This was obviously a very summarized answer – history is never so simple.

It is likely that different aspects of the same practice were developed simultaneously through multiple regions of the world. 

And understanding each unique perspective for it is the first step towards becoming the ultimate pompoarista.

Tantric Sex, Taoism & Pompoir

Tantric sex is a spiritual practice, originated in India. The connection between mind and body allows a deeper understanding of the self. A loving feast of cosmic energies.

Even the words that describe intimate parts as vagina and penis carry a deep meaning. First of all, Yoni. a word from Sanskrit that refers to the female sex organ as a divine sacred portal, the seat for pleasure and joy. 

Then we have the Lingam. The male sex organ, known as the wand of light and the emblem of generative power. 

You may have heard of the Yoni massage – a practice used to heal trauma and release sexual tension in the female body.

Tantric sex tends to borrow a lot of principles from yoga, as well. One example of this is a movement called Mula Bhanda, meaning “root lock”. It involves pelvic floor engagement that directs energy towards enlightenment. 

This is where Pompoir comes into place.

But the relationship between spirituality and sex has never been exclusive to India. 

During the Han dynasty, Chinese taoists performed sexual intercourse as a form of spiritual practice, as well. Since then, the role of pelvic strength has been crucial in taoism, as masters of the practice realized how orgasms contributed to health and development.  

The Devadasis: The Training of a Pompoarista

When I began researching Pompoir, I had a clear image in my mind of who I wanted to become: a divine, powerful woman with a magic Yoni that allowed her (and her partners!) to experience breathtaking, sublime orgasms. 

Little did I know, this wasn’t too far-fetched – Devadasis shared a close resemblance to this image in my head.

They weren't superheroes, but they were sacred. Indian holy dancers whose task was to worship a deity. Depending on the region, they were either celibate or sexually liberated – and many were forced into prostitution.

These women are said to have learned the skills to master their Yonis in order to provide pleasure. The Ananga Ranga, an erotic arts Indian manual from the 16th century describes them.

And one thing’s for certain: becoming a masterful pompoarista was no easy job.

Mothers and grandmothers imparted secret and intensive education to every Devadasi. They had rigorous training on a technique called Sahajoli, the spontaneous seal. By using phallic substitutes, Devadasis learned how to manipulate their vaginal muscles. Their final quest to become part of the temple was to split a clay phallus in two only using their yoni muscles.

Unfortunately, this superpower hasn't been written about in books. None of the how-tos are explained – at least not until now. The word-of-mouth tradition prevailed, and information was passed on from woman to woman.

But despite the exclusive access to these skills and the sacred connotation these women carried, their life was far from easy.  Devadasis were expected to uphold an ideal of beauty, womanhood and sexual mastery. 

“Everyone sleeps with us, but nobody marries us.” recalls Rani Bai.

Hopefully, times continue to change for the better. 

Our goal at Goh!ddess is to bring the positive aspects of the devadasi system – mainly, the structured practice of the magnificent Pompoir technique to enhance pleasure – to our modern-world self-development routines.

 
The Singapore Grip, Conquering Kings

In 2020, The Singapore Grip, a show adapted from a 1978 book, aired for the first time on television. It follows the story of a man who’s obsessed to discover what this expression means. 

Spoiler alert #1: he’s pursuing our beloved sexual technique. 

Spoiler alert #2: he’s not the first man who goes head over heels for Pompoir.

For hundreds of years, sex workers have used this talent to create a fantasy world of hedonistic pleasure.

In China, the Shililong, or famous prostitutes, used a practice called Vadaka. The Kama Sutra describes it as vaginal control. 

In Japan, the Oiran, honorable concubines, made the Empire of the Rising Sun even brighter with this practice.

This mastery of Asian escorts has reportedly been brought to Western high society. For instance, Diane de Poitiers, the mistress of Henry II of France is said to have conquered the king with her special understanding of the pelvic muscles.

But the most amazing story of a man giving up everything for a woman has to be the one of King Edward VIII of England. His royal highness resigned his throne to marry Wallis Simpson. She was an American divorcée and – you guessed it – pompoarista. Willis, seemingly, learned the technique in Shangai brothels while living in China with her ex-husband. But you know, gossip is the Devil’s radio.

Pompoir and the West: The 80's Paradigm Shift

In the East, sex was a sacred and energetic practice. But we westerners have managed to turn it into a shameful practice along the way. As a result, we’ve forgotten many of its self-development principles, and ironically, many of the spiritual ones as well.

Nowadays Pompoir isn’t taught to women. It is no longer a cultural or venerated practice. Still, a famous doctor created a series of exercises designed to strengthen the pelvic floor muscles. You may have heard of them: Kegel training.

Dr. Arnold Kegel was a gynecologist. He studied genital relaxation after childbirth and urinary incontinence.

In 1948 he noticed that surgical intervention wasn't needed to control these two issues. He used fast and slow contractions to develop tighter muscles on the pelvic floor. And he created a tool to measure its strength, the perineometer. 

All in all, his treatment proved successful and a monumental step towards spreading awareness in women’s health.

So, is Pompoir the same as Kegel training?

Not really, but they do share some common aspects. Kegel training doesn’t have sexual pleasure as its goal, therefore, the exercises are limited to variations of contractions to strengthen the pelvic floor and prevent incontinence. 

In Pompoir, contractions are the very first step towards vaginal mastery – they’ll allow you to get stronger, but they’re fundamentally used to develop your muscles and later move on to more complex motions, like squeezing, sucking, milking, twisting, pulsing, and gripping.

In Summary

Isn’t history amazing? Understanding the origins of this climax-inducing practice has led me to respect it more than ever before.

It feels like we’re making history with every new woman we share this knowledge with, and they’re making history as they discover the infinite power of their own bodies. 

I’ll never stop being amazed by Tantric sex practitioners. By holy dancers and high-class courtesans. By kings’ wives and mistresses. Throughout history, these women have unleashed their inner goddesses by tapping into their feminine energy. They have used Pompoir, or similar techniques, to reach the pinnacle of sexual pleasure.

Though the reasons to carry out this practice have been different for each of these women, they have given us the gift of connecting with ourselves and our partners in the most intimate way.

Today, we don't have to be worshippers or sacred sexual workers. We can become that powerful woman that I once imagined. This knowledge hasn’t disappeared. Quite the opposite – it has evolved into a modern, structured way to acquire these skills in a fast, practical fashion.

The exercises to become a jaw-dropping pompoarista are no longer a secret reserved for a few. They are now available to all of us.

I invite you to join our Oh!lympus training program – the first-ever, step by step Pompoir training course.

I can’t wait to help you unleash your inner sex goddess.

Love,

–Hera