Kamasutra

The Kamasutra (or Kâmasûtra) is an Indian treatise attributed to Vatsyayana, written in Sanskrit, probably around the third century of our era (the exact date is still debated). Its name comes from kama, carnal desire personified by the Indian god of love, the equivalent of Eros or Cupid, and sutra, the aphorism, the short formula. Literally, then, the aphorisms of desire.

Contrary to what the illustrated coffee table books would have you believe, it is not a catalogue of postures. It is a manual on the art of living, originally intended for the urban aristocracy, explaining how to keep house, choose your perfumes, play music, entertain, court, marry, and also how to give and take pleasure with all five senses.

The erotic section devotes only one chapter to positions, but lingers at length on what comes before and alongside them. Kisses (on the forehead, the throat, the inner thighs), caresses firm or feather light, gentle bites, scratches, sounds, role play and swapping places. The text insists on slowness, on paying attention to the other's reactions, and on the idea that the partners' imagination should take over where the recommendations stop.

Worth remembering too: it was written in a highly codified society, addressed mainly to men and courtesans, with considerations on everyone's duties that make little sense today. You can keep the essential part, eroticism as an art that is learned and cultivated, without taking the rest on board.

Nota bene: the Kamasutra is often confused with tantra or the tao of love, which are spiritual and energetic paths, whereas the Kamasutra remains a secular, worldly treatise. Other Indian or Arabic texts followed it, such as the Ananga Ranga or The Perfumed Garden, and plenty of contemporary books borrow its name while having nothing in common with the original.

Synonyms : Kâmasûtra, Vatsyayana's Kamasutra, aphorisms of love