UUID: cf6274ec-10de-11e5-9d0a-4fc950d1ab4a
This ebook was created with BackTypo (http://backtypo.com)by Simplicissimus Book Farm
Table of contents
PREFACE.
INTRODUCTION.
PART I. THE VATSYAYANA SUTRA. INTRODUCTORY PREFACE.
CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER V.
PART II.
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER VI.
CHAPTER VII.
CHAPTER VIII.
CHAPTER IX.
CHAPTER X.
PART III.
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER V.
PART IV.
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER II.
PART V.
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER VI.
PART VI.
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS.
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER VI.
PART VII.
CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER II.
CONCLUDING REMARKS.
FOOTNOTES:
PREFACE.
In
the literature of all countries there will be found a certain number
of works treating especially of love. Everywhere the subject is dealt
with differently, and from various points of view. In the present
publication it is proposed to give a complete translation of what is
considered the standard work on love in
Sanscrit
literature, and which is called the 'Vatsyayana Kama Sutra,' or
Aphorisms on Love, by Vatsyayana.While
the introduction will bear with the evidence concerning the date of
the writing, and the commentaries written upon it, the chapters
following the introduction will give a translation of the work
itself. It is, however, advisable to furnish here a brief analysis of
works of the same nature, prepared by authors who lived and wrote
years after Vatsya had passed away, but who still considered him as a
great authority, and always quoted him as the chief guide to Hindoo
erotic literature.Besides
the treatise of Vatsyayana the following works on the same subject
are procurable in India:—The
Ratirahasya, or secrets of love.The
Panchasakya, or the five arrows.The
Smara Pradipa, or the light of love.The
Ratimanjari, or the garland of love.The
Rasmanjari, or the sprout of love.The
Anunga Runga, or the stage of love; also called Kamaledhiplava, or a
boat in the ocean of love.The
author of the 'Secrets of Love' (No. 1) was a poet named Kukkoka. He
composed his work to please one Venudutta, who was perhaps a king.
When writing his own name at the end of each chapter he calls himself
"Siddha patiya pandita,"
i.e.,
an ingenious man among learned men. The work was translated into
Hindi years ago, and in this the author's name was written as Koka.
And as the same name crept into all the translations into other
languages in India, the book became generally known, and the subject
was popularly called Koka Shastra, or doctrines of Koka, which is
identical with the Kama Shastra, or doctrines of love, and the words
Koka Shastra and Kama Shastra are used indiscriminately.The
work contains nearly eight hundred verses, and is divided into ten
chapters, which are called
called
Pachivedas. Some of the things treated of in this work are not to be
found in the Vatsyayana, such as the four classes of women, viz., the
Padmini, Chitrini, Shankini and Hastini, as also the enumeration of
the days and hours on which the women of the different classes become
subject to love. The author adds that he wrote these things from the
opinions of Gonikaputra and Nandikeshwara, both of whom are mentioned
by Vatsyayana, but their works are not now extant. It is difficult to
give any approximate idea as to the year in which the work was
composed. It is only to be presumed that it was written after that of
Vatsyayana, and previous to the other works on this subject that are
still extant. Vatsyayana gives the names of ten authors on the
subject, all of whose works he had consulted, but none of which are
extant, and does not mention this one. This would tend to show that
Kukkoka wrote after Vatsya, otherwise Vatsya would assuredly have
mentioned him as an author in this branch of literature along with
the others.The
author of the 'Five Arrows' (No. 2 in the list) was one Jyotirisha.
He is called the chief ornament of poets, the treasure of the
sixty-four arts, and the best teacher of the rules of music. He says
that he composed the work after reflecting on the aphorisms of love
as revealed by the gods, and studying the opinions of Gonikaputra,
Muladeva, Babhravya, Ramtideva, Nundikeshwara and Kshemandra. It is
impossible to say whether he had perused all the works of these
authors, or had only heard about them; anyhow, none of them appear to
be in existence now. This work contains nearly six hundred verses,
and is divided into five chapters, called Sayakas or Arrows.The
author of the 'Light of Love' (No. 3) was the poet Gunakara, the son
of Vechapati. The work contains four hundred verses, and gives only a
short account of the doctrines of love, dealing more with other
matters.'The
Garland of Love' (No. 4) is the work of the famous poet Jayadeva, who
said about himself that he is a writer on all subjects. This treatise
is, however, very short, containing only one hundred and twenty-five
verses.The
author of the 'Sprout of Love' (No. 5) was a poet called Bhanudatta.
It appears from the last verse of the manuscript that he was a
resident of the province of Tirhoot, the son of a Brahman named
Ganeshwar, who was also a poet. The work, written in Sanscrit, gives
the descriptions of different classes of men and women, their classes
being made out from their age, description, conduct, etc. It contains
three chapters, and its date is not known, and cannot be ascertained.'The
Stage of Love' (No. 6) was composed by the poet Kullianmull, for the
amusement of Ladkhan, the son of Ahmed Lodi, the same Ladkhan being
in some places spoken of as Ladana Mull, and in others as
Ladanaballa. He is supposed to have been a relation or connection of
the house of Lodi, which reigned in Hindostan from A.D. 1450-1526.
The work would, therefore, have been written in the fifteenth or
sixteenth century. It contains ten chapters, and has been translated
into English, but only six copies were printed for private
circulation. This is supposed to be the latest of the Sanscrit works
on the subject, and the ideas in it were evidently taken from
previous writings of the same nature.The
contents of these works are in themselves a literary curiosity. There
are to be found both in Sanscrit poetry and in the Sanscrit drama a
certain amount of poetical sentiment and romance, which have, in
every country and in every language, thrown an immortal halo round
the subject. But here it is treated in a plain, simple, matter of
fact sort of way. Men and women are divided into classes and
divisions in the same way that Buffon and other writers on natural
history have classified and divided the animal world. As Venus was
represented by the Greeks to stand forth as the type of the beauty of
woman, so the Hindoos describe the Padmini or Lotus woman as the type
of most perfect feminine excellence, as follows:She
in whom the following signs and symptoms appear is called a Padmini.
Her face is pleasing as the full moon; her body, well clothed with
flesh, is soft as the Shiras or mustard flower, her skin is fine,
tender and fair as the yellow lotus, never dark coloured. Her eyes
are bright and beautiful as the orbs of the fawn, well cut, and with
reddish corners. Her bosom is hard, full and high; she has a good
neck; her nose is straight and lovely, and three folds or wrinkles
cross her middle—about the umbilical region. Her yoni resembles the
opening lotus bud, and her love seed (Kama salila) is perfumed like
the lily that has newly burst. She walks with swan-like gait, and her
voice is low and musical as the note of the Kokila bird, she delights
in white raiments, in fine jewels, and in rich dresses. She eats
little, sleeps lightly, and being as respectful and religious as she
is clever and courteous, she is ever anxious to worship the gods, and
to enjoy the conversation of Brahmans. Such, then, is the Padmini or
Lotus woman.Detailed
descriptions then follow of the Chitrini or Art woman; the Shankhini
or Conch woman, and the Hastini or Elephant woman, their days of
enjoyment, their various seats of passion, the manner in which they
should be manipulated and treated in sexual intercourse, along with
the characteristics of the men and women of the various countries in
Hindostan. The details are so numerous, and the subjects so seriously
dealt with, and at such length, that neither time nor space will
permit of their being given here.One
work in the English language is somewhat similar to these works of
the Hindoos. It is called 'Kalogynomia: or the Laws of Female
Beauty,' being the elementary principles of that science, by T. Bell,
M.D., with twenty-four plates, and printed in London in 1821. It
treats of Beauty, of Love, of Sexual Intercourse, of the Laws
regulating that Intercourse, of Monogamy and Polygamy, of
Prostitution, of Infidelity, ending with a
catalogue raisonnée
of the defects of female beauty.Other
works in English also enter into great details of private and
domestic life. 'The Elements of Social Science, or Physical, Sexual
and Natural Religion,' by a Doctor of Medicine, London, 1880, and
'Every Woman's Book,' by Dr. Waters, 1826. To persons interested in
the above subjects these works will be found to contain such details
as have been seldom before published, and which ought to be
thoroughly understood by all philanthropists and benefactors of
society.After
a perusal of the Hindoo work, and of the English books above
mentioned, the reader will understand the subject, at all events from
a materialistic, realistic and practical point of view. If all
science is founded more or less on a stratum of facts, there can be
no harm in making known to mankind generally certain matters
intimately connected with their private, domestic, and social life.Alas!
complete ignorance of them has unfortunately wrecked many a man and
many a woman, while a little knowledge of a subject generally ignored
by the masses would have enabled numbers of people to have understood
many things which they believed to be quite incomprehensible, or
which were not thought worthy of their consideration.
INTRODUCTION.
It
may be interesting to some persons to learn how it came about that
Vatsyayana was first brought to light and translated into the English
language. It happened thus. While translating with the pundits the
'Anunga runga, or the stage of love,' reference was frequently found
to be made to one Vatsya. The sage Vatsya was of this opinion, or of
that opinion. The sage Vatsya said this, and so on. Naturally
questions were asked who the sage was, and the pundits replied that
Vatsya was the author of the standard work on love in Sanscrit
literature, that no Sanscrit library was complete without his work,
and that it was most difficult now to obtain in its entire state. The
copy of the manuscript obtained in Bombay was defective, and so the
pundits wrote to Benares, Calcutta and Jeypoor for copies of the
manuscript from Sanscrit libraries in those places. Copies having
been obtained, they were then compared with each other, and with the
aid of a Commentary called 'Jayamangla' a revised copy of the entire
manuscript was prepared, and from this copy the English translation
was made. The following is the certificate of the chief pundit:—"The
accompanying manuscript is corrected by me after comparing four
different copies of the work. I had the assistance of a Commentary
called 'Jayamangla' for correcting the portion in the first five
parts, but found great difficulty in correcting the remaining
portion, because, with the exception of one copy thereof which was
tolerably correct, all the other copies I had were far too incorrect.
However, I took that portion as correct in which the majority of the
copies agreed with each other."The
'Aphorisms on Love,' by Vatsyayana, contains about one thousand two
hundred and fifty slokas or verses, and are divided into parts, parts
into chapters, and chapters into paragraphs. The whole consists of
seven parts, thirty-six chapters, and sixty-four paragraphs. Hardly
anything is known about the author. His real name is supposed to be
Mallinaga or Mrillana, Vatsyayana being his family name. At the close
of the work this is what he writes about himself:"After
reading and considering the works of Babhravya and other ancient
authors, and thinking over the meaning of the rules given by them,
this treatise was composed, according to the precepts of the Holy
Writ, for the benefit of the world, by Vatsyayana, while leading the
life of a religious student at Benares, and wholly engaged in the
contemplation of the Deity. This work is not to be used merely as an
instrument for satisfying our desires. A person acquainted with the
true principles of this science, who preserves his Dharma (virtue or
religious merit), his Artha (worldly wealth) and his Kama (pleasure
or sensual
gratification),
and who has regard to the customs of the people, is sure to obtain
the mastery over his senses. In short, an intelligent and knowing
person, attending to Dharma and Artha and also to Kama, without
becoming the slave of his passions, will obtain success in everything
that he may do."It
is impossible to fix the exact date either of the life of Vatsyayana
or of his work. It is supposed that he must have lived between the
first and the sixth centuries of the Christian era, on the following
grounds:—He mentions that Satkarni Srtvahan, a king of Kuntal,
killed Malayevati his wife with an instrument called kartari by
striking her in the passion of love, and Vatsya quotes this case to
warn people of the danger arising from some old customs of striking
women when under the influence of this passion. Now this king of
Kuntal is believed to have lived and reigned during the first century
A.C., and consequently Vatsya must have lived after him. On the other
hand, Virahamihira, in the eighteenth chapter of his 'Brihatsanhita,'
treats of the science of love, and appears to have borrowed largely
from Vatsyayana on the subject. Now Virahamihira is said to have
lived during the sixth century A.D., and as Vatsya must have written
his works previously, therefore not earlier than the first century,
A.C., and not later than the sixth century A.D., must be considered
as the approximate date of his existence.On
the text of the 'Aphorisms on Love,' by Vatsyayana, only two
commentaries have been found. One called 'Jayamangla' or
'Sutrabashya,' and the other 'Sutra vritti.' The date of the
'Jayamangla' is fixed between the tenth and thirteenth centuries
A.D., because while treating of the sixty-four arts an example is
taken from the 'Kávyaprakásha,' which was written about the tenth
century A.D. Again, the copy of the commentary procured was evidently
a transcript of a manuscript which once had a place in the library of
a Chaulukyan king named Vishaladeva, a fact elicited from the
following sentence at the end of it:—"Here
ends the part relating to the art of love in the commentary on the
'Vatsyayana Kama Sutra,' a copy from the library of the king of
kings, Vishaladeva, who was a powerful hero, as it were a second
Arjuna, and head jewel of the Chaulukya family."Now
it is well known that this king ruled in Guzerat from 1244 to 1262
A.D., and founded a city called Visalnagur. The date, therefore, of
the commentary is taken to be not earlier than the tenth and not
later than the thirteenth century. The author of it is supposed to be
one Yashodhara, the name given him by his preceptor being Indrapada.
He seems to have written it during the time of affliction caused by
his separation from a clever and shrewd woman, at least that is what
he himself says at the end of each chapter. It is presumed that he
called his work after the name of his absent mistress, or the word
may have some connection with the meaning of her name.This
commentary was most useful in explaining the true meaning of
Vatsyayana, for the commentator appears to have had a considerable
knowledge of the times of the older author, and gives in some places
very minute information. This cannot be said of the other commentary,
called "Sutra vritti," which was written about A.D., by
Narsing Shastri, a pupil of a Sarveshwar Shastri; the latter was a
descendant of Bhaskur, and so also was our author, for at the
conclusion of every part he calls himself Bhaskur Narsing Shastra. He
was induced to write the work by order of the learned Raja Vrijalala,
while he was residing in Benares, but as to the merits of this
commentary it does not deserve much commendation. In many cases the
writer does not appear to have understood the meaning of the original
author, and has changed the text in many places to fit in with his
own explanations.A
complete translation of the original work now follows. It has been
prepared in complete accordance with the text of the manuscript, and
is given, without further comments, as made from it.
PART I. THE VATSYAYANA SUTRA. INTRODUCTORY PREFACE.
SALUTATION
TO DHARMA, ARTHA AND KAMA.In
the beginning, the Lord of Beings created men and women, and in the
form of commandments in one hundred thousand chapters laid down rules
for regulating their existence with regard to Dharma,[1]
Artha,[2]
and Kama.[3]
Some of these commandments, namely those which treated of Dharma,
were separately written by Swayambhu Manu; those that related to
Artha were compiled by Brihaspati; and those that referred to Kama
were expounded by Nandi, the follower of Mahadeva, in one thousand
chapters.Now
these 'Kama Sutra' (Aphorisms on Love), written by
Nandi
in one thousand chapters, were reproduced by Shvetaketu, the son of
Uddvalaka, in an abbreviated form in five hundred chapters, and this
work was again similarly reproduced in an abridged form, in one
hundred and fifty chapters, by Babhravya, an
inhabitant
of the Punchala (South of Delhi) country. These one hundred and fifty
chapters were then put together under seven heads or parts named
severally—1st.
Sadharana (general topics).2nd.
Samprayogika (embraces, etc.).3rd.
Kanya Samprayuktaka (union of males and females).4th.
Bharyadhikarika (on one's own wife).5th.
Paradika (on the wives of other people).6th.
Vaisika (on courtesans).7th.
Aupamishadika (on the arts of seduction, tonic medicines, etc.).The
sixth part of this last work was separately expounded by Dattaka at
the request of the public women of Pataliputra (Patna), and in the
same way Charayana explained the first part of it. The remaining
parts, viz., the second, third, fourth, fifth, and seventh were each
separately expounded by—Suvarnanabha
(second part).Ghotakamukha
(third part).Gonardiya
(fourth part).Gonikaputra
(fifth part).Kuchumara
(seventh part), respectively.Thus
the work being written in parts by different authors was almost
unobtainable, and as the parts which were expounded by Dattaka and
the others treated only of the particular branches of the subject to
which each part related, and moreover as the original work of
Babhravya was difficult to be mastered on account of its length,
Vatsyayana, therefore, composed his work in a small volume as an
abstract of the whole of the works of the above-named authors.
CHAPTER II.
ON
THE ACQUISITION OF DHARMA, ARTHA AND KAMA.Man,
the period of whose life is one hundred years, should practise
Dharma, Artha, and Kama at different times and in such a manner that
they may harmonize together and not clash in any way. He should
acquire learning in his childhood, in his youth and middle age he
should attend to Artha and Kama, and in his old age he should perform
Dharma, and thus seek to gain Moksha,
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!
Lesen Sie weiter in der vollständigen Ausgabe!