The Kamasutra is considered by many as the standard authority on the world of human sexual behavior. This ancient Hindu text is covered mainly in prose, written in the Sanskrit literature courtesy of Vtsyyana . A good portion of the work tackles the various practical issues on sexual intercourse.
The term Kama suggests sensual or sexual pleasure, which is notably among the three goals within Hindu life. This thought is followed by the "sutra," a line holding all things together. Sutra metaphorically alludes to any aphorism (rule or formula), or the collection of aphorisms by way of a manual.
Contrary to what most people (most especially within the Western World) believe, Kamasutra is never your exclusive sex manual that you can easily turn to whenever you need quick answers on the fly. It is offered as a sensible guideline to a virtuous living that examines love, its nature, family life, and other important aspects that point to the pleasure-oriented faculties of the human life.
How It All Began
The "Discipline of Kama" was traditionally attributed to Shiva's doorkeeper, Nandi the sacred bull, who was elevated to sacred utterance as it overheard how the god and his wife had made love. It was said that it recorded the utterances to benefit man. Historians argued that the text was composed somewhere from 400 BCE to 200 CE, a compendium gathered from way back in the second century CE.
Pleasure and Spirituality All in One
It was said that in the beginning, when the lord of the beings known as Brahma brought man and woman into existence, he also laid down certain rules for their existence through the dharma, artha, and kama.
Indian philosophies were known to pursue the "four primary goals that govern life" - dharma (virtuous living), artha (which proposed material prosperity), moksha (which is all about liberation), and kama (erotic and aesthetic pleasure). The dharma, kama and artha are all aims of life on a daily basis. Moksha on the other hand, is the release from the cycle that bound death and rebirth for all time.
The Kamasutra suggests that the dharma is better than the artha, and the artha in turn, fares much better than the kama. However, the artha must be given priority over all things, especially by the king, or the figurehead in every society. Through this the livelihood of men can truly flow through.
Among the goals that govern life, the virtue is considered the highest. This borders more on having a secure life on the second goal, and pleasure being the least important. Everytime the motives come into conflict, higher ideals will always be followed. This should tell you that when making money for instance, virtue must never be compromised, though the practice of earning for a living must be a separate idea, and must rule over pleasure.
The Western world generally considered the Kamasutra as a colorful manual intended for tantric sex, which should not be the case. While ideas and sexual practices exist within the corners of the Hindu Tantra tradition, it is not really a tantric text. It certainly does not talk about popular sexual rites that are usually associated with some tantric practices.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7524817
No comments:
Post a Comment