One cannot but agree that the word "Kama Sutra" in the imagination of modern people evokes scenes of exotic decadence that beckon and even seem a little illegal. Translated into thousands of different languages, the world's oldest treatise, written in Sanskrit, is actually a much more complex work than just listing practical sexual advice. He deeply and meaningfully describes the art of love, regulates the issues of sensual relations between partners in accordance with ancient Indian laws. The text outlines curious subtleties that were practiced in ancient India, which are not applicable to modern life, but are at least interesting topics for discussion.
The Kama Sutra, which is the most famous of the collection of ancient Indian erotic texts, is believed to have been written by a scholar, philosopher and monk named Vatsyayana Mallanaga around the third century. Or rather, he collected and reworked in his work a number of alreadyexisting stories that are religious in nature. In some ancient Indian writings there are stories that tell how the Kama Sutra was created. The art of love, according to one myth, was given to mankind by the gatekeeper of the god Shiva, the sacred bull Nandi. Once he heard how the god Shiva and his wife Parvati indulged in intimate pleasures. The episode inspired the sacred bull so much that he uttered great words about love, about the role it plays in a person’s life, which the sages wrote down to pass on from generation to generation as instructions for the successful continuation of the human race. Another story tells that the Vedic creator god Prajapati, associated with conception and childbearing, recited 10,000 chapters of the Kama Sutra. Later, the god Shiva collected them together in a single text, and the son of the sage Uddalaki, Svetaketu, who is the quintessence of a person seeking knowledge, reduced it to 500 chapters. By the way, in the Mahabharata, Swetaketu is credited with saying that “a woman should be limited to one husband for life.”
Written in a rather complex form of Sanskrit, the text of the "Kama Sutra" is the only text of that historical period that has survived to our time. In scientific circles, the ancient Indian art of love is studied in order to understand the life of society, the social mores of that time. It is believed that Vatsyayana Mallanaga himself, being a celibate monk, creating his own work based on sexual knowledge accumulated over the centuries,perceived such activity as a form of meditation practice. In the fifteenth century, Ananga Ranga was published, based on the Kama Sutra, but written in a more accessible form, not in Sanskrit. As a result, for many centuries it actually supplanted the ancient text and remained the main source of knowledge about sexual pleasures. At that time, when Europeans mastered (more precisely, colonized) the Indian subcontinent, they were passionately fond of oriental texts. It was at this time that Anang Rang's involvement led people to become interested in the more ancient source again.
While the art of love in the context of sensual existence is the essence of the treatise, it is attributed to the religious faith and traditions of the Hindu system. Ancient texts describe four main goals in human life - dharma (virtue), artha (material well-being), kama (lust) and moksha (salvation). They govern the three ages: childhood, youth and old age. The Vedic concept of "kama", similar to the ancient Greek Eros, is one of the main cosmogonic principles, an all-powerful world force. Vatsyayana, instructing the reader, says that an intelligent and righteous person should organize his life wisely and rationally so that he can practice religion, become rich and enjoy sensual pleasures, and learn the true art of love.
A man who tries to know and understand the desires of women, and also chooses the proper time and place for all this, can easily win loveeven the woman who is considered impregnable. There are some interesting concepts in the text that are relevant in modern times. For example, practical information about reading female body language, recognizing that there are differences between women, what form of loving courtship to choose for each individual case.
Psychologists who have studied the text draw attention to the fact that it contains positive messages in terms of creating an equal and tender relationship between a man and a woman. The fine art of love, which includes various caresses, kisses, sexual positions, is designed to increase the physical connection between partners, offer a creative and brighter aspect of the relationship.
