Like every creature, humans have also received certain rights, and certain duties for a successful existence in the world. Objects of comforts have also been provided. For human being there are four objects for his existence. These are Dharma (religion), Arth (luxuries), Kama (carnal pleasures) and Moksha (salvation). Most of the people neither crave nor strive for all the four. First three - religion, luxuries and carnal pleasures are more important for them. Maharishi Vatsayana regards these three objects as the basic reason of existence. Everybody strives to achieve either of these objects with all his might. Shastras or disciplines help a person to achieve the object he deserves.
PURPOSE OF KAMA SUTRA
ATTAINING THE THREE GOALS
Any religious scripture has four goals - achievement of Dharma (religion), Arth (Wealth) and Kama (pleasures) and Moksha (salvation) through them. There are three distinct stages in attaining of thee goals.
These are Anushthan (undertaking). Avabodha (appreciation) and Sampratipatti (achievement). Anushthan includes the measures to achieve religion wealth and pleasures. Avabodhan (appreciation) is the real experience of a knowledge and Sampratipatti (achievement) is the mastering of an art. Among these three Anushthan (undertaking) is the most significant undertaking also means striving to achieve something. Indeed one can not achieve any thing merely by wishing for it. One has to convert his wish power into will power and strive them to achieve something.
Maharshi Vatsayan dictates that a man of sound mind must divide his life time judiciously in order to practice religion, wealth and carnal pleasures. He should also take care that one does not infringe with or encroach upon the other.
During the childhood years, the whole attention must be on the gaining of education. One must long for carnal pleasures during his young age because during this period Om is physically and mentally fit to enjoy intimacy with the opposite sex. In old age, however one should devote himself in the service of religion and strive to achieve salvation. There is nothing to do for him either for he had already attained other goals.
APPEARANCE OF KAMA
Enjoyment of nature while appreciating sound, sight, beauty taste and smell through all the five sense organs and thus having a union of mind and soul is termed as Kama. Kama is also of two types General and Special.
Samanya Kama (General pleasure): When the soul wishes to have superficial pleasures related to sound, sight, smell etc., The resulting action is Samanya Kama. With the appearance of the wish, mind comes into action and stimulates the related sense organs. Thus activated, the sense organs begin to seek the sources of pleasures. But since, the objective is to have superficial pleasure, the whole body does not get involved in the play, it simply enjoys pleasures through sight,sound, smell etc and the soul, hence the whole process had initiated feels satisfied.
PURPOSE OF KAMASHASTRA
One can have superficial pleasures alone. But to have Vishesh Kama, one needs a partner for the category of pleasure involves total involvement. In fact superficial pleasure itself lays the foundation for total involvement in pleasure. During superficial pleasure, the soul seeks more and more satisfaction. Sooner or later, a stage arrives, when the partners cross over all the barriers between them and establish close intimate contact. At this stage they experience marvellous feeling through the closest contact of the skins of their respective parts. This contact culminates in the highest degree of joy through the unabated release of their intimate feelings.
Mutual attraction between the male and female is a natural instinct among all the animals, birds etc. It is even necessary for the contamination of life on earth. Thus what is sue of Kamashastra? According to Vatsyayan, Kama can not becompleted without active participation of the male and female partners. But before the two partners could actually participate in the pleasure play, they have miles to go. Almost in every creature, acceptance of female partner, to allow an
intercourse is more important. Males of almost all the species demonstrate elaborate rituals mating plays etc. to coax the female for an intercourse.
Human beings are not exception to this rule. Kamashatra describes the ways. How to coax a woman for an intercourse. Intimate contact with a woman is to two kinds - external and internal. External contact involves all the fondling, caressing,kissing etc. but no intercourse.
With increasing intimacy, an external contact is converted in to an internal one that is intercourse or actual mating during which no barrier exists between man and woman. But external contact does not necessarily lead to internal contact always. Desire plays here the most vital role.
PREVENTION OF UNJUST TENDENCY OF KAMA
"Kama as per the religion is an appearance of mine. Kama against the religious norms is always Catastrophic. One should therefore avoid such Kama or Carnal pleasure."
Kama or desire for Carnal pleasure is like an inextinguishable fire. Even the ascetics are not fully immune from this fire. The mind intelligence and the sense organs are all the means which, facilitate in Kama. Over powering these organs Kama covers up the knowledge and allures the organism. Hence, Lord Krishna preaches in Geeta to conquer Kama and channelize it.
Exponents of Kama Shastra believe that only through proper knowledge of discipline can unjust tendencies be contained. With the awakening of Kama, one naturally begins to incline towards the opposite sex, Now, a common, household woman and a prostitute, both have common feelings about the carnal pleasure. Here, discipline clearly dictates as to company of which partner will cause the no harm to the religion and wealth. Such a partner is known as Gamya (fit for coition). On the contrary, there are Agamya (not fit for coition) partners. Having a carnal relation with such partners, always leads to a loss in the religion and the wealth. Kama Shastra clearly defines this category of Gamya and Agamya partners. Exponent of Kama Sutra, Maharshi atsayan says.
SIXTY-FOUR ARTS OF KAMA SUTRA
These are all general arts that prepare a girl to be a good wife. In practical aspect that is when physical intimacy is achieved, there are sixteen arts that a young girl must learn before opening herself before her husband. These are - reading others thoughts, expression of love on others, showing acceptance through bodily postures, allowing slow touching of her parts, scrating lovingly with nails and biting, undoing the fastener of the lower clothe straightening and exposing the private part, artful participation in the intercourse, pleasing the partner, feeling full satisfaction and making the partner to have similar feeling, encouraging the partner for intercourse, posing as if angry, removal of anger in a playful way, pleasing the angry partner, leaving the sleeping partner, going to sleep after the coition and concealing the private parts. Apart from these there are four more additional arts inducing guilt, in the partner through tearful eyes for his showing negligence to you, stopping an uninterested partner through sending down oath on him, following him if the partner does not stop and looking helplessly at the going partner.
BENEFITS OF THESE ARTS
Learning of these arts enhances the beauty, character and virtues of a woman, Through these arts, prostitutes gain respect in the society. They get honour from the king praise from he connoisseurs and gain every kind of wealth. Princesses and the daughters of noblemen may control their husbands through these arts. Even those women whose husbands have migrated out and even widows may pass their lives without trouble if the have mastered these arts.
PRESENTATION OF POSTURE NOT VULGAR
Almost all the authorities on Kama Sutra agree that a couple must adopt such a posture that is helpful in conceiving, and not one that may lead to abortion. This dictate complies well to the basic objective of physical intimacy. Joy is the first objective of physical intimacy. If a couple fails to enjoy this intimacy, there is no meaning of sex then. There might be many reasons for a couple not enjoying physical intimacies.
Imbalance between the physical stature of the partners is the main reason. If both the partners are well matched in their physical built and age, there is no problem in establishing, and running smoothly, a physical contact. But if they are not well matched, either of them may feel pain during the intercourse. Postures in this case, tell the unmatched partners how to establish intimacy contacts and how to enjoy them. Postures of Kama Sutra constitute the theme of bas-relief in many
temples of ancient India. Temples in Khajuraho, Konark and many other places in India contain scores of figures that depict postures from Kama Sutra. Those figures, of course would have not been chiseled with an objective of propagating vulgarity. Those figures depict the vital states of life - processes that beget life.
