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Product Description
A fully illustrated Kama Sutra from the extraordinary and rare art collection of Lance Dane
• The first complete translation to illustrate all 64 sexual postures described in the Kama Sutra
• Includes 269 rare images
• Composed by one of the world’s foremost scholars of the Kama Sutra and Indian art
The erotic sentiments described in the Hindu love classic the Kama Sutra constitute the most famous work on sex ever created. Written almost 2,000 years ago, the Kama Sutra deals with all aspects of sexual life, including the principles and techniques of sexual pleasure and how to best achieve ecstatic expression of life’s beauty.
In this complete and illustrated guide Lance Dane accompanies the Kama Sutra text with 269 illustrations and great works of art that encompass coins, palm leaf manuscripts, sculptures, ancient toys, jewelry, architecture, ivory combs, birch bark, cloth, paintings, frescoes, and scrolls. Gathered from museums and private collections around the world—as well as the author’s own collection of over 300,000 photographs—these rare images clearly illustrate all 64 sexual positions and the erotic instructions set forth in the Kama Sutra. The result is a dazzling and sensuous reading experience through which the teachings of the Kama Sutra spring to life.Lance Dane is a writer, photographer, renowned scholar, and the founder of the Sanskriti Museum of Every Day Art in Delhi. He has dedicated over five decades to researching and archiving all aspects of the Kama Sutra and other pre-Vedic and Vedic classical erotica. His private collections of over 9,000 books on Indian art and architecture and his 300,000 archival photographs are housed in the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts in New Delhi. He lives in India.The Embrace
Alinganavichara Prakarana
This part of the Kama Shastra deals with sexual union, and is called Chatushshashti, or sixty-four. Some authors say it is so titled because it contains sixty-four chapters. Followers of Babhravya say that this part contains eight subjects: the embrace; kissing; scratching with the nails or fingers; biting; lying down; making various sounds; purushayitam, or playing the part of a man; auparishtaka, or mouth congress. Each subject is of eight kinds, and since eight multiplied by eight is sixty-four, it is therefore named Chatushshashti.
But Vatsyayana affirms that as this part also contains subjects such as striking, crying, the acts of a man during congress, the various kinds of congress and other subjects, the name sixty-four is only accidental. For instance, a tree is saptaparna, seven-leaved, or an offering of rice is panchavarna, five-coloured, but the tree does not have seven leaves, nor does rice have five colours.
Kind of Embraces
Babhravya refers to eight different kinds of embraces:
The embrace which indicates the mutual love of a man and woman who have come together is of four varieties, and the action is denoted by the word which describes it.
If a man under some pretext goes in front of or alongside a woman and touches her body with his own, this is called the touching embrace.
If a woman in a private place bends down as if to pick up something, and presses her breasts against a man sitting or standing, and the man takes hold of them, this is called a piercing embrace.
These two kinds of embraces take place only between persons who have not, as yet, started speaking freely to each other.
When two lovers are walking together slowly, either in the dark, or in a public or a lonely place, and rub their bodies against each other, this is referred to as a rubbing embrace.
If on this occasion one of them presses the other's body forcibly against a wall or pillar, this is known as a pressing embrace.
These two embraces are peculiar to those who know each other's intentions.
Embraces on Meeting
At the time of the meeting four kinds of embrace are used:
When a woman clings to a man in the same manner as a creeper twines around a tree, pulls his head down to hers to kiss him and makes a slight purring sound, embraces him, and looks lovingly at him, this embrace is called twining of a creeper.
When a woman places one of her feet on the foot of her lover, and the other on his thigh; passes one of her arms round his back, and the other on his shoulders; makes a slight sound of humming and cooing, and climbs up towards him to get a kiss, this embrace is likened to climbing a tree.
These two kinds of embrace take place when the lover is standing.
When lovers are on a bed, and embrace each other so closely that their arms and thighs are encircled by each other, and rub against them, this is called an embrace like a mixture of sesamum seed and rice.
If a man and a woman are very much in love and embrace as if they are entering into each others bodies, either while the woman is sitting on the lap of the man, or in front of him, or on a bed, this is called an embrace like a mixture of milk and water.
These two kinds of embraces take place at the time of sexual union.
Embracing Specific Body Parts
Suvarnanabha gives us four more ways of embracing particular parts of the body:
When one of the two lovers presses one or both thighs of the other between his or her own forcibly, this is the embrace of thighs.
If a man presses the jaghana, middle part of the woman's body, against his own, and mounts her to practice scratching with the nail or finger, or biting, or striking, or kissing, while the hair of the woman remains loose and flowing, this is referred to as the embrace of the jaghana.
If a man places his breast between the nipples of a woman and squeezes them, this is called the embrace of the breasts.
If either of the lovers touches the mouth, eyes and forehead of the other with his or her own, this is known as the embrace of the forehead.
Some say that even massaging is a kind I embrace because it involves touching of bodies. But Vatsyayana thinks that as massaging is performed at a specific time and for a particular purpose and has a different character, it cannot be termed an embrace.
Some shlokas further enlighten us on this:
The whole subject of embracing is of such a nature that men who ask questions about it, or who hear about it, or who talk about it, acquire thereby a desire for enjoyment. Even those embraces that are not mentioned in the Kama Shastra should be practiced at the time of sexual enjoyment, if they are in any way conducive to the increase of love or passion. The rules of the Shastra apply as long as the passion of man is middling, but once the wheel of love is set in motion, there is then no Shastra an no order.The Complete Illustrated Kama Sutra
Preface to Kama Sutra
Introduction to Kama Sutra
Book 1--General Principles
Study of the Shastras
Dharma, Artha, Kama
Study of Arts, Sciences
Man about Town
Nayikas and Messengers
Book 2--Love-Play and Sexual Union
Sexual Union
The Embrace
The Kiss
Pressing and Nail Marks
The Bite
Sexual Vigor and Intensity
Striking and Spontaneous Sounds
Donning the Male Role
Oral Congress
Beginning and End of Congress
Book 3--Courtship and Marriage
Betrothal and Marriage
Instilling Confidence in the Bride
Courting a Maid
Behavior of a Couple
Kinds of Marriage
Book 4--The Wife
Duties of a Wife
Senior and Junior Wives
Book 5--Seducing the Wives of Others
Characteristics of Men and Women
Getting Acquainted
Ascertaining Emotions
Duties of a Go-between
Behavior of a King
Conduct of Ladies of the Inner Court
Book 6--The Courtesan
Beguiling the Right Man
Living as his Wife
Acquiring Wealth
Reconciliation
Special Gains
Gains and Losses
Book 7--Secret Lore, Extraneous Stimulation, and Sexual Power
Beautifying the Body
Regarding Virility"Gives us the dazzling artwork from museums and private collections worldwide... fascinating...sex has not changed in over 2,000 years.""A new, gorgeously illustrated edition of the famous Hindu Classic.""It is not, in fact, a pornographic work, but a book depicting the art of living for the civilized and refined citizen, finding its expression in the sphere of love, eroticism, and the sensual pleasures of life. . . . Rather than calling the Kama Sutra pornography and hiding it on the highest shelf of their bookcases, Western readers should see it as the expression of a refined, sophisticated people on the art of love."
• The first complete translation to illustrate all 64 sexual postures described in the Kama Sutra
• Includes 269 rare images
• Composed by one of the world’s foremost scholars of the Kama Sutra and Indian art
The erotic sentiments described in the Hindu love classic the Kama Sutra constitute the most famous work on sex ever created. Written almost 2,000 years ago, the Kama Sutra deals with all aspects of sexual life, including the principles and techniques of sexual pleasure and how to best achieve ecstatic expression of life’s beauty.
In this complete and illustrated guide Lance Dane accompanies the Kama Sutra text with 269 illustrations and great works of art that encompass coins, palm leaf manuscripts, sculptures, ancient toys, jewelry, architecture, ivory combs, birch bark, cloth, paintings, frescoes, and scrolls. Gathered from museums and private collections around the world—as well as the author’s own collection of over 300,000 photographs—these rare images clearly illustrate all 64 sexual positions and the erotic instructions set forth in the Kama Sutra. The result is a dazzling and sensuous reading experience through which the teachings of the Kama Sutra spring to life.Lance Dane is a writer, photographer, renowned scholar, and the founder of the Sanskriti Museum of Every Day Art in Delhi. He has dedicated over five decades to researching and archiving all aspects of the Kama Sutra and other pre-Vedic and Vedic classical erotica. His private collections of over 9,000 books on Indian art and architecture and his 300,000 archival photographs are housed in the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts in New Delhi. He lives in India.The Embrace
Alinganavichara Prakarana
This part of the Kama Shastra deals with sexual union, and is called Chatushshashti, or sixty-four. Some authors say it is so titled because it contains sixty-four chapters. Followers of Babhravya say that this part contains eight subjects: the embrace; kissing; scratching with the nails or fingers; biting; lying down; making various sounds; purushayitam, or playing the part of a man; auparishtaka, or mouth congress. Each subject is of eight kinds, and since eight multiplied by eight is sixty-four, it is therefore named Chatushshashti.
But Vatsyayana affirms that as this part also contains subjects such as striking, crying, the acts of a man during congress, the various kinds of congress and other subjects, the name sixty-four is only accidental. For instance, a tree is saptaparna, seven-leaved, or an offering of rice is panchavarna, five-coloured, but the tree does not have seven leaves, nor does rice have five colours.
Kind of Embraces
Babhravya refers to eight different kinds of embraces:
The embrace which indicates the mutual love of a man and woman who have come together is of four varieties, and the action is denoted by the word which describes it.
If a man under some pretext goes in front of or alongside a woman and touches her body with his own, this is called the touching embrace.
If a woman in a private place bends down as if to pick up something, and presses her breasts against a man sitting or standing, and the man takes hold of them, this is called a piercing embrace.
These two kinds of embraces take place only between persons who have not, as yet, started speaking freely to each other.
When two lovers are walking together slowly, either in the dark, or in a public or a lonely place, and rub their bodies against each other, this is referred to as a rubbing embrace.
If on this occasion one of them presses the other's body forcibly against a wall or pillar, this is known as a pressing embrace.
These two embraces are peculiar to those who know each other's intentions.
Embraces on Meeting
At the time of the meeting four kinds of embrace are used:
When a woman clings to a man in the same manner as a creeper twines around a tree, pulls his head down to hers to kiss him and makes a slight purring sound, embraces him, and looks lovingly at him, this embrace is called twining of a creeper.
When a woman places one of her feet on the foot of her lover, and the other on his thigh; passes one of her arms round his back, and the other on his shoulders; makes a slight sound of humming and cooing, and climbs up towards him to get a kiss, this embrace is likened to climbing a tree.
These two kinds of embrace take place when the lover is standing.
When lovers are on a bed, and embrace each other so closely that their arms and thighs are encircled by each other, and rub against them, this is called an embrace like a mixture of sesamum seed and rice.
If a man and a woman are very much in love and embrace as if they are entering into each others bodies, either while the woman is sitting on the lap of the man, or in front of him, or on a bed, this is called an embrace like a mixture of milk and water.
These two kinds of embraces take place at the time of sexual union.
Embracing Specific Body Parts
Suvarnanabha gives us four more ways of embracing particular parts of the body:
When one of the two lovers presses one or both thighs of the other between his or her own forcibly, this is the embrace of thighs.
If a man presses the jaghana, middle part of the woman's body, against his own, and mounts her to practice scratching with the nail or finger, or biting, or striking, or kissing, while the hair of the woman remains loose and flowing, this is referred to as the embrace of the jaghana.
If a man places his breast between the nipples of a woman and squeezes them, this is called the embrace of the breasts.
If either of the lovers touches the mouth, eyes and forehead of the other with his or her own, this is known as the embrace of the forehead.
Some say that even massaging is a kind I embrace because it involves touching of bodies. But Vatsyayana thinks that as massaging is performed at a specific time and for a particular purpose and has a different character, it cannot be termed an embrace.
Some shlokas further enlighten us on this:
The whole subject of embracing is of such a nature that men who ask questions about it, or who hear about it, or who talk about it, acquire thereby a desire for enjoyment. Even those embraces that are not mentioned in the Kama Shastra should be practiced at the time of sexual enjoyment, if they are in any way conducive to the increase of love or passion. The rules of the Shastra apply as long as the passion of man is middling, but once the wheel of love is set in motion, there is then no Shastra an no order.The Complete Illustrated Kama Sutra
Preface to Kama Sutra
Introduction to Kama Sutra
Book 1--General Principles
Study of the Shastras
Dharma, Artha, Kama
Study of Arts, Sciences
Man about Town
Nayikas and Messengers
Book 2--Love-Play and Sexual Union
Sexual Union
The Embrace
The Kiss
Pressing and Nail Marks
The Bite
Sexual Vigor and Intensity
Striking and Spontaneous Sounds
Donning the Male Role
Oral Congress
Beginning and End of Congress
Book 3--Courtship and Marriage
Betrothal and Marriage
Instilling Confidence in the Bride
Courting a Maid
Behavior of a Couple
Kinds of Marriage
Book 4--The Wife
Duties of a Wife
Senior and Junior Wives
Book 5--Seducing the Wives of Others
Characteristics of Men and Women
Getting Acquainted
Ascertaining Emotions
Duties of a Go-between
Behavior of a King
Conduct of Ladies of the Inner Court
Book 6--The Courtesan
Beguiling the Right Man
Living as his Wife
Acquiring Wealth
Reconciliation
Special Gains
Gains and Losses
Book 7--Secret Lore, Extraneous Stimulation, and Sexual Power
Beautifying the Body
Regarding Virility"Gives us the dazzling artwork from museums and private collections worldwide... fascinating...sex has not changed in over 2,000 years.""A new, gorgeously illustrated edition of the famous Hindu Classic.""It is not, in fact, a pornographic work, but a book depicting the art of living for the civilized and refined citizen, finding its expression in the sphere of love, eroticism, and the sensual pleasures of life. . . . Rather than calling the Kama Sutra pornography and hiding it on the highest shelf of their bookcases, Western readers should see it as the expression of a refined, sophisticated people on the art of love."
Product Details
Title: | TheComplete Illustrated Kama Sutra |
---|---|
Author: | Lance Dane |
SKU: | BK0231205 |
EAN: | 9780892811380 |
Language: | English |
Binding: | Paperback |
About Author
Lance Dane is a writer, photographer, renowned scholar, and the founder of the Sanskriti Museum of Every Day Art in Delhi. He has dedicated over five decades to researching and archiving all aspects of the Kama Sutra and other pre-Vedic and Vedic classical erotica. His private collections of over 9,000 books on Indian art and architecture and his 300,000 archival photographs are housed in the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts in New Delhi. He lives in India.