Asian Geographic - 09.2018

“he Kama Sutrais not a book about sexual
positions.” hat this statement is potentially
baling underscores just how widely
established the myth is, i.e., the ancient Hindu
treatise is simply titillating, lasciviously
illustrated erotica. he view is perpetuated to a
large extent by the fact that the famous chapter
on sexual union is oten heavily emphasised, or
even printed or distributed alone as a discrete
publication. he 1980 English translation by
Indra Sinha is a case in point: the chapter on
sexual positions was reportedly so widely
circulated on the Internet that it is oten
believed to be the entireKama Sutra.Also
contributing to the mistaken impression is,
of course, the almost invariable use of erotic
imagery in many contemporary “Kama Sutra”
publications. he original series contained
no illustrations.
Several legends are associated with the origin
and history of theKama Sutra. One involves the
sacred bull Nandi, who, inspired ater hearing
Lord Shiva and his wife Parvati make love, put
his experience down on record, which was later
passed down to mankind. Another describes
the supreme Hindu deity, Prajapati, composing
the Hindu commandments in a huge epitome
comprising 100,000 chapters. he aspects related
to the three goals of life (Purusartha) – Dharma
(religious merit), Artha (material wealth) and
Kama (enjoyment of sensual pleasures) – were
expounded by the heavenly beings Manu,
Brihaspati and Nandi.

Debunking the

Kama Sutra Myth

ANCIENT TREATISE

THE SEVEN PARTS OF THE KAMA SUTRA

ABOVE A sandstone

statue depicting the

Kama Sutra

RIGHT Erotic kama

sutra carvings on

the roof of Jagannath

Temple in Durbar

Square, Kathmandu

(Nepal)

itage

part 1: Introduction

The priorities of life, acquisition of

knowledge, and conduct of a well-

cultivated person.

part 2:Sexual Union

Stimulation of desire; types of

foreplay; sexual positions and

sexual acts.

part 3:Acquisition of Wife

Ways of inding a wife and

managing marital union.

part 4: Duties of Wife

Conduct of the only wife vs

conduct of the chief wife

and the other wives.

On the mortal plane, notable pioneering

authors, among them Babhravya, Dataka and

Suvarnanabha, composed shorter volumes

of the divine commandments. Many of the

texts are now lost. Around the third or fourth

century of the irst millennium, Mallanaga

Vatsyayana worked to reconcile the disparate

parts of the writings that were still extant.

Te x t Jocelyn Lau