Feminine hygiene, Indonesian style

Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States reports (via Gimcrack):

Throughout Indonesia, a majority of women regularly engage in a number of practices to "clean," "dry," "tighten," or "deodorize" their vaginas. These practices derive from longstanding traditions designed to achieve conformity with expectations about the appearance, function, and sexual performance of the vagina. These are rooted in a widespread belief that "tight sex" or "dry sex"-vaginal intercourse without any or with minimal lubrication in the vagina-is more pleasurable for men and gender norms that require women to "please" men. . . .

The traditional preparations are called jamu and are sold throughout the nation, either as raw products in the market, or in commercially manufactured packets sold in supermarkets or small shops. Jamu is a combination of herbs and roots in the form of fresh or dried leaves, seeds, roots, or bark, often crushed into powder and prepared with hot water, honey, and lime juice.

Among the Javanese and Sundanese, and many other ethnic groups, a bride is prepared for the nuptials by a professional wedding dresser ( tukang pais ). There is no standard way of preparation, but jamu is typically used to reduce vaginal odors and any "excessive" secretions. Occasionally, the dresser will advise the bride to undergo a special pre-wedding beauty treatment. At a beauty salon or spa, the bride might have her vagina "smoked," by sitting on a chair with a whole in the middle over a charcoal fire on which special herbs are placed to create a fragrant steam.

Because of the common belief that sexual pleasure, especially men's sexual pleasure, relies on friction, married women are often anxious about having an "excessively moist" vagina. A large proportion of women wash the outer genitalia with a betel leaf solution, purported to clean and dry the vagina, when they practice the routine washing cebok . Betel leaf solution is now commercially packed in the form of moistened tissues or liquid soaps and shampoos. Many women have also started using Jamu Sari Rapat (literarily means the essence of tightness ) or other jamu products that promise to tighten and dry the vagina. . . .

The most recent innovation of jamu products is Tongkat Madura, a calcium carbonate rod about 15 cm in length and 3 cm wide that is inserted into the vagina to absorb fluid or vagina discharge and then rinsed and reused. This product is now available across Indonesia , and even in markets of neighboring countries. The advertisement for Tongkat Madura on an Internet site states that it "is made from traditional herbs and is especially formulated to deodorize, tighten and cleanse the vagina." Interviews with women who have used the device indicate that it is sometimes abrasive.

Here's how the tongkat madura is advertised:

The Jamu herbal stick has been widely used in Indonesian traditional medicine for more than three centuries.  It is prescribed for the noble woman who faces intense competitive pressure among the courtesans to retain the favor of the head of the household. The formula is closely guarded and handed down from the family line. Today, it is an effective natural remedy for the many discomforts of the modern woman.

Kinda looks like a styptic pencil, doesn't it?

Comments

[Diana]

That it does.

[CraigC]

Holy crap. Yep, I know that's what I want. There's nothing that gets me hotter than a really dry hoo-ha. I especially like the part where the woman and I both simultaneously scream with pain. Hot, hot, hot!

[CraigC]

Pay not attention to the word "both," Gail. (Does she have her red pencil out?)

[nursemyra]

thanks for the link Gail. I asked my male readers to tell me if any of them preferred "dry" sex and it was a resounding "no".

glad to see CraigC feels the same way too

[CraigC]

Although I am cool with the "tighten" part.

[Jake]

Looks like a Pocket Pal.. Does it vibrate?