Kissing

From Encyclopedia of Sex and Sexuality

An oral activity that is almost universally popular—in nearly all cultures and throughout the ages—is the kiss. While kissing is often used as a friendly greeting, we examine it here within a sexual context.

According to the dictionary, kissing means touching or caressing with the lips, But this definition does not really convey the many and varied joys of kissing. Kissing communicates both love and sexual desire and it is often enjoyed as a foreplay to coitus. But kissing can be highly pleasurable in and of itself. Couples in love have been known to spend hours just kissing. Couples who have been together for a long time should remember that kissing is a wonderful act of intimacy and should remain an important part of their sexual repertoire for life.

The lips are an erogenous zone, highly sensitive to sexual stimulation. Though some cultures do not enjoy mouth to mouth kissing, most societies do—as with other lovemaking practices and techniques, some individuals have raised it to an art form. But kissing is not necessarily limited to two pairs of lips. One can kiss the eyes, neck, earlobe, breast, testicles, armpits, and toes. Exploring a partner’s body with your lips can be tremendously exciting, as can deep kissing, the passionate exchange of tongues while kissing.

In modern society’s rush to reach quick sexual goals, kissing has often become a neglected art. But the accomplished lover is probably always a good kisser—and with good reason. Human lips were made for kissing. During erotic arousal they grow more sensitive and inviting, infused with color and swelling in size, all the better to attract.