You’ve heard about it—and you’ve probably heard the word ‘sex-manual’ associated with it. I wouldn’t say that the Kama Sutra does not contain a so-called ‘sex-manual’ but it is not just that. Calling the Kama Sutra a sex-manual is like mistaking a gourmet meal for a single ingredient. While sex is a flavourful component, this ancient Indian text explores the idea of pleasure in a deeply philosophical way.
What is Kama Sutra?
Let’s start with our understanding of the text. The Kama Sutra was compiled in 4th century CE by the sage Vatsyayana, who himself believed to have remained celibate all his life. His real name is supposed to be Mallinaga or Mrilana, Vatsyayana being his family name.
The text was brought to light in modern times by British explorer Sir Richard FF Burton and translated by FF Arbuthnot from Sanskrit to English. First published by the Kama Shastra Society in 1883, its circulation was restricted to a limited audience. According to the art historian and author Alka Pande, “it took more than eighty years, until 1962, for the Kama Sutra to be published in the Western world, so powerful were the vestiges of Victorian prudery in the English-speaking world.”
There has always been a robust tradition of erotic writing in Indian literature—particularly in the genres of the Sanskrit kavya (poetry) favoured by court poets. In the context, the Kama Sutra may be described as a distillation of the Kama-related wisdom of India’s ancient sages.
What is Kama, you might ask? In simple words, Kama means sensual gratification. Anything that pleases our senses, be it art or drinking or… sex, of course. Sutra, on the other hand, literally means thread but is also used to describe a text or discourse. So, the Kama Sutra is a discourse on the art of pleasure. Easy, right?
The underlying philosophy of the Kama Sutra
As per the Kama Sutra, man should practise three things in life: Dharma (Following the scriptures), Artha (acquiring material possessions) and Kama (pleasure through five senses). The end goal is always the same in Indian philosophy: Moksha (liberation). So, there are two ways to lead a good life: one is the life of a monk who relinquishes all worldly desires and the other is the life of a common citizen who indulges in these desires. Both seek to attain spiritual liberation, but they do so in different ways. And it is the life of the common citizen that is addressed in the Kama Sutra.
One important thing to note here is that even though the life of a citizen involves worldly pleasures, he is still expected to have a more spiritual perspective of it. Towards the end of the Kama Sutra, Vatsyayana writes, “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.”
This is important. The Kama Sutra does not simply ask you to become a hedonist. Instead, it offers a balanced approach to seek our pleasures deeply and more meaningfully.
How to read the Kama Sutra
Reading the Kama Sutra is not very hard. The text is quite simple and straightforward. There are many translations available, most notably being the ones by, as mentioned earlier, Sir Richard FF Burton.
The challenge is to understand the context and extract the wisdom which would be relevant in this day and age. And believe me, there is a lot of it that is still relevant. This is where I will try to help you in the next few posts as well as podcast episodes. I will explain each section in detail and help you understand how we can apply those lessons in our lives. Keep following this space.
Note: You can listen to the podcast series that I am doing on the Kama Sutra, the complete text as well as its interpretations. Click here to listen.
Kalampedia 