# Kipling's Nine and Sixty Ways

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kiplings-nine-and-sixty-ways/638189>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [October 19, 2012, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kiplings-nine-and-sixty-ways/638189 "2012-10-19T01:59:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\
**Post date:** [October 19, 2012, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kiplings-nine-and-sixty-ways/638189/1 "2012-10-19T01:59:42Z")

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In his poem “In the Neolithic Age,” Kipling famously says:

“There are nine and sixty ways of constructing tribal lays,  
And every single one of them is right!”

The most conventional interpretation of this is “Follow your muse.” Write poetry the way you want to, and devil take the critics.

But I’ve always wondered: 69? “Lays?” Was he having his little joke? Was he tipping the wink for those who knew about simultaneous mutual oral sex, and laughing at those who were “whooshed” by the reference?

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**Author:** ![MacSpon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@MacSpon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacSpon)\
**Post date:** [October 21, 2012, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kiplings-nine-and-sixty-ways/638189/2 "2012-10-21T00:37:24Z")

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To be honest, I think sex was far from his mind in that one.