("desire
handbook") Traditionally credited to the sage Vatsyayana, this is by far
the most renowned of the ancient sexual texts.
This passage is often linked with a long list of sexual
positions and pleasures, yet it extends much beyond that preconception.
Vatsyayana was fascinated by the concept of desire in all of
its forms.
The book starts with a discussion of life's four purposes
(purushartha): worldly things (artha), desire (kama), religious obligation
(dharma), and soul liberation (moksha).
Because desire was one of the established ends of human
existence, Vatsyayana reasoned that pursuing it was a desirable thing as long
as it did not interfere with the others.
Vatsyayana next described how to cultivate desire after
establishing its validity.
The second book of the Kama Sutra comprises the text's most
well-known material: a description and classification of many sorts of sexual
connection.
It starts by defining different forms of sexual endowment in
both men and women.
It then goes on to discuss various types of hugging,
kissing, clawing, and biting as symbols of passion, as well as sexual positions
and oral sex.
Following that are chapters on finding a bride, enticing
other men's wives (which the book forbids until one's desire is "too
intense"), courte sans, and general observations on the nature of
attraction.
The book offers a guide to all aspects of sensual life,
showing how sex may be developed into a vehicle for both artistic and sheer
carnal pleasure.
The Kama Sutra is especially renowned for its attitude
toward women, who are seen to have equal sexual desire and pleasure.
Rather than one person serving the other, the ultimate goal
is for both partners to be sexually satisfied.
Many translations of the Kama Sutra have been made.
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