Kama Sutra: Pleasure & Pain: Sighs & Blows
Kama Sutra
Kama Sutra: Sighs and Blows
Sexual intercourse can be compared to a quarrel, on account of the
contrarieties of love and its tendency to dispute. The place of
striking with passion is the body, and on the body the special places
are:
The shoulders
The head
The space between the breasts
The back
The jaghana, or middle part of the body
The sides
Striking is of four kinds:
Striking with the back of the hand
Striking with the fingers a little contracted
Striking with the fist
Striking with the open palm of the hand
On account of its causing pain, striking gives rise to the hissing
sound, which is of various kinds, and to the eight kinds of crying:
The sound Hin
The thundering sound
The cooing sound
The weeping sound
The sound Phut
The sound Phât
The sound Sût
The sound Plât
Besides these, there are also words having a meaning, such as 'mother',
and those that are expressive of prohibition, sufficiency, desire of
liberation, pain or praise, and to which may be added sounds like those
of the dove, the cuckoo, the green pigeon, the parrot, the bee, the
sparrow, the flamingo, the duck, and the quail, which are all
occasionally made use of.
Blows with the fist should be given on the back of the woman while she
is sitting on the lap of the man, and she should give blows in return,
abusing the man as if she were angry, and making the cooing and the
weeping sounds. While the woman is engaged in congress the space
between the breasts should be struck with the back of the hand, slowly
at first, and then proportionately to the increasing excitement, until
the end.
At this time the sounds Hin and others may be made, alternately or
optionally, according to habit. When the man, making the sound Phât,
strikes the woman on the head, with the fingers of his hand a little
contracted, it is called Prasritaka, which means striking with the
fingers of the hand a little contracted. In this case the appropriate
sounds are the cooing sound, the sound Phât and the sound Phut in the
interior of the mouth, and at the end of congress the sighing and
weeping sounds. The sound Phât is an imitation of the sound of a
bamboo being split, while the sound Phut is like the sound made by
something falling into water. At all times when kissing and such like
things are begun, the woman should give a reply with a hissing sound.
During the excitement when the woman is not accustomed to striking, she
continually utters words expressive of prohibition, sufficiently, or
desire of liberation, as well as the words 'father', 'mother',
intermingled with the sighing, weeping and thundering sounds. 1 Towards
the conclusion of the congress, the breasts, the jaghana, and the sides
of the woman should be pressed with the open palms of the hand, with
some force, until the end of it, and then sounds like those of the
quail or the goose should be made.
There are two verses on the subject as follows:
'The characteristics of manhood are said to consist of roughness and
impetuosity, while weakness, tenderness, sensibility, and an
inclination to turn away from unpleasant things are the distinguishing
marks of womanhood. The excitement of passion, and peculiarities of
habit may sometimes cause contrary results to appear, but these do not
last long, and in the end the natural state is resumed.'
The wedge on the bosom, the scissors on the head, the piercing
instrument on the cheeks, and the pinchers on the breasts and sides,
may also be taken into consideration with the other four modes of
striking, and thus give eight ways altogether. But these four ways of
striking with instruments are peculiar to the people of the southern
countries, and the marks caused by them are seen on the breasts of
their women. They are local peculiarities, but Vatsyayana is of opinion
that the practice of them is painful, barbarous, and base, and quite
unworthy of imitation.
In the same way anything that is a local peculiarity should not always
be adopted elsewhere, and even in the place where the practice is
prevalent, excess of it should always be avoided. Instances of the
dangerous use of them may be given as follows. The king of the
Panchalas killed the courtesan Madhavasena by means of the wedge during
congress. King Satakarni Satavahana of the Kuntalas deprived his great
Queen Malayavati of her life by a pair of scissors, and Naradeva, whose
hand was deformed, blinded a dancing girl by directing a piercing
instrument in a wrong way.
There are also two verses on the subject as follows:
'About these things there cannot be either enumeration or any definite
rule. Congress having once commenced, passion alone gives birth to all
the acts of the parties.'
'Such passionate actions and amorous gesticulations or movements, which
arise on the spur of the moment, and during sexual intercourse, cannot
be defined, and are as irregular as dreams. A horse having once
attained the fifth degree of motion goes on with blind speed,
regardless of pits, ditches, and posts in his way; and in the same
manner a loving pair become blind with passion in the heat of congress,
and go on with great impetuosity, paying not the least regard to
excess. For this reason one who is well acquainted with the science of
love, and knowing his own strength, as also the tenderness,
impetuosity, and strength of the young women, should act accordingly.
The various modes of enjoyment are not for all times or for all
persons, but they should only be used at the proper time. and in the
proper countries and places.'
Ancient Indian Philosophy of Kama Sutra: On Fellatio & Cunnilingus
Chapter IX Kama Sutra - On Auparishtaka, Mouth Congress (Oral Sex,
Fellatio, Cunnilingus)
There are two kinds of eunuchs, those that are disguised as males, and
those that are disguised as females. Eunuchs disguised as females
imitate their dress, speech, gestures, tenderness, timidity,
simplicity, softness and bashfulness. The acts that are done on the
jaghana or middle parts of women, are done in the mouths of these
eunuchs, and this is called Auparishtaka. These eunuchs derive their
imaginable pleasure, and their livelihood from this kind of congress,
and they lead the life of courtesans. So much concerning eunuchs
disguised as females.
Eunuchs disguised as males keep their desires secret, and when they
wish to do anything they lead the life of shampooers. Under the
pretence of shampooing, a eunuch of this kind embraces and draws
towards himself the thighs of the man whom he is shampooing, and after
this he touches the joints of his thighs and his jaghana, or central
portions of his body. Then, if he finds the lingam of the man erect, he
presses it with his hands and chaffs him for getting into that state.
If after this, and after knowing his intention, the man does not tell
the eunuch to proceed, then the latter does it of his own accord and
begins the congress. If however he is ordered by the man to do it, then
he disputes with him, and only consents at last with difficulty.
The following eight things are then done by the eunuch (fellatio) one
after the other:
The nominal congress
Biting the sides
Pressing outside
Pressing inside
Kissing
Rubbing
Sucking a mango fruit
Swallowing up
At the end of each of these, the eunuch expresses his wish to stop, but
when one of them is finished, the man desires him to do another, and
after that is done, then the one that follows it, and so on.
When, holding the man's lingam (penis) with his hand, and placing it
between his lips, the eunuch moves about his mouth, it is called the
'nominal congress'.
When, covering the end of the lingam with his fingers collected
together like the bud of a plant or flower, the eunuch presses the
sides of it with his lips, using his teeth also, it is called 'biting
the sides'.
When, being desired to proceed, the eunuch presses the end of the
lingam with his lips closed together, and kisses it as if he were
drawing it out, it is called the 'outside pressing'.
When, being asked to go on, he puts the lingam further into his mouth,
and presses it with his lips and then takes it out, it is called the
'inside pressing'.
When, holding the lingam in his hand, the eunuch kisses it as if he
were kissing the lower lip, it is called 'kissing'.
When, after kissing it, he touches it with his tongue everywhere, and
passes the tongue over the end of it, it is called 'rubbing'.
When, in the same way, he puts the half of it into his mouth, and
forcibly kisses and sucks it, this is called 'sucking a mango fruit'.
And lastly, when, with the consent of the man, the eunuch puts the
whole lingam into his mouth, and presses it to the very end, as if he
were going to swallow it up, it is called 'swallowing up'.
Striking, scratching, and other things may also be done during this
kind of congress.
The Auparishtaka (fellatio) is practiced also by unchaste and wanton
women, female attendants and serving maids, i.e. those who are not
married to anybody, but who live by shampooing.
The Acharyas (i.e. ancient and venerable authors) are of opinion that
this Auparishtaka (fellatio) is the work of a dog and not of a man,
because it is a low practice, and opposed to the orders of the Holy
Writ, and because the man himself suffers by bringing his lingam into
contact with the mouths of eunuchs and women. But Vatsyayana says that
the orders of the Holy Writ do not affect those who resort to
courtesans, and the law prohibits the practice of the Auparishtaka
(fellatio) with married women only. As regards the injury to the male,
that can be easily remedied.
The people of Eastern India do not resort to women who practice the
Auparishtaka (fellatio).
The people of Ahichhatra resort to such women, but do nothing with
them, so far as the mouth is concerned.
The people of Saketa do with these women every kind of mouth congress,
while the people of Nagara do not practice this, but do every other
thing.
The people of the Shurasena country, on the southern bank of the Jumna,
do everything without any hesitation, for they say that women being
naturally unclean, no one can be certain about their character, their
purity, their conduct, their practices, their confidences, or their
speech. They are not however on this account to be abandoned, because
religious law, on the authority of which they are reckoned pure, lays
down that the udder of a cow is clean at the time of milking, though
the mouth of a cow, and also the mouth of her calf, are considered
unclean by the Hindoos. Again a dog is clean when he seizes a deer in
hunting, though food touched by a dog is otherwise considered very
unclean. A bird is clean when it causes a fruit to fall from a tree by
pecking at it, though things eaten by crows and other birds are
considered unclean. And the mouth of a woman is clean for kissing and
such like things at the time of sexual intercourse. Vatsyayana moreover
thinks that in all these things connected with love, everybody should
act according to the custom of his country, and his own inclination.
There are also the following verses on the subject:
'The male servants of some men carry on the mouth congress with their
masters. It is also practiced by some citizens, who know each other
well, among themselves. Some women of the harem, when they are amorous,
do the acts of the mouth on the yonis of one another, and some men do
the same thing with women. The way of doing this (i.e. of kissing the
yoni) should be known from kissing the mouth.
When a man and woman lie down in an inverted order, i.e. with the head
of the one towards the feet of the other and carry on this congress, it
is called the "congress of a crow".'
For the sake of such things courtesans abandon men possessed of good
qualities, liberal and clever, and become attached to low persons, such
as slaves and elephant drivers. The Auparishtaka, or mouth congress,
should never be done by a learned Brahman, by a minister that carries
on the business of a state, or by a man of good reputation, because
though the practice is allowed by the Shastras, there is no reason why
it should be carried on, and need only be practiced in particular
cases. As for instance, the taste, and the strength, and the digestive
qualities of the flesh of dogs are mentioned in works on medicine, but
it does not therefore follow that it should be eaten by the wise. In
the same way there are some men, some places and some times, with
respect to which these practices can be made use of. A man should
therefore pay regard to the place, to the time, and to the practice
which is to be carried out, as also as to whether it is agreeable to
his nature and to himself, and then he may or may not practice these
things according to circumstances. But after all, these things being
done secretly, and the mind of the man being fickle, how can it be
known what any person will do at any particular time and for any
particular purpose.
Praised be the three aims of life, virtue (dharma), prosperity (artha),
and love (kama), which are the subject of this work.
(The Complete Kamasutra, 1994)
Ancient Indian sages composed the Kama Shastra on the basis of the
Vedas. The first formulation of the Kama Shastra, or the rules of love,
is attributed to Nandi, Shiva's companion. It is preserved today in the
form of the 'Kamasutra' written down by the sage Vatsyayana sometime
between the first and sixth century A.D. The Kama Sutra is recognised
as the true surviving text of the original Kama Shastra. Vatsyayana
states that he only quotes and condenses the previous work and refers
to himself in third person (Vatsyayana thinks ..) when expressing his
opinion.
The Kama Shastra was one of three ancient Indian texts concerning the
aims of life. It should be understood within the context of the Artha
Shastra and the Dharma Shastra (which were written in Sanskrit, seventh
century B.C.). As Alain Danielou confirms;
Life necessitates three kinds of activity: to assure its survival, its
means of existence, and its nourishment; to realise its reproduction
according to forms of activity generally connected with sexuality; and,
lastly, to establish rules of behaviour that allow different
individuals to perform their roles within the framework of the species.
In human society, this is represented as three necessities, three aims
of life: material goods (artha) assure survival; erotic practice (kama)
assures the transmission of life; and rules of behaviour, a moral
nature (dharma), assure the cohesion and duration of the species. (The
Complete Kamasutra, translated by Alain Danielou, 1994)
So with religion, morality (dharma) and material success (artha), kama
is the third goal of human life. Kama is further defined as;
Kama is the enjoyment of appropriate objects by the five senses of
hearing, feeling, seeing, tasting and smelling, assisted by the mind
together with the soul. The ingredient in this is a peculiar contact
between the organ of sense and its object, and the consciousness of
pleasure which arises from that contact is called Kama. (Kamasutra,
1883)
Kama is to be learnt from the Kama Sutra (aphorisms on love) and from
the practice of citizens. (Kamasutra, 1883)
The ancient Indians appear to be very good evolutionists, as it is
clear from evolution that sex and survival are the two most fundamental
forces driving our continued existence. Further, the Kama Sutra is an
evolutionary work in that it promotes the cultivation of skills to
become a well rounded / well evolved individual with healthy, intimate
relationships with others. As Alain Danielou agrees;
The Kama Sutra is not a pornographic work. First and foremost, it is a
picture of the art of living for the civilised and refined citizen,
completing in the sphere of love, eroticism and the pleasures of life.
(The Complete Kamasutra, Alain Danielou 1994)