Despite the fact that Hindu religious life is typically linked with detachment and renunciation, Hindu culture has also cultivated a significant amount of eroticism, which has a well-established role in daily life.
The Kama Sutra, a well-known "manual" on the art of love, is one example of the ratishastra literary genre, which includes "treatises on [sexual] pleasure." The sculptures carved on the temples of Konarak and Khajuraho, as well as the amount of attention paid to love poetry, are further instances of eroticism in the culture.
In Hindu culture, one of the purusharthas, or life goals, is kama ("desire," notably sexual desire), along with artha (wealth), dharma (religious obligation), and moksha (ultimate libation of the soul).
As a result, sexual pleasure is accepted as a valid objective as long as it is seen in the correct context.
Although renunciation is one of the major principles of Hinduism, nonrenouncing has been emphasized almost as much.
Eroticism is reflected in current popular Hindu culture via tantra, an esoteric ritual practice in which sexual connection is a metaphor for liberation.
As the most famous of the panchamakara or "Five Forbidden Things," sexual intercourse is often integrated as an actual part in tantric ritual.
Despite the fact that tantric practice is sometimes associated with illegal sexuality, such actions are always carried out inside a controlled ceremonial environment.
The ultimate goal of tantric practice is to destroy the dichotomy between holy and profane, which is ultimately a symptom of ignorance, rather than to fulfill one's carnal urges.
One approach to erase this dichotomy is to ritualize ordinarily banned activity, as well as to stress the superiority of tantric practice over other types of religious life.
The adept is also mimicking Shiva, who is both the ideal yogi and the model spouse, in this practice.
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