The Spirit and Joy of the Kamasutra
In a high tech world of digital images and special effects in which sex between men and women has been reduced to clichés and aggressive caricatures on the Internet, television and cinema, commercialized to the point of tedium, the Kamasutra can serve as a much needed antidote. The book is not, as most people believe, about sexual positions. It's really about the true nature of men and women and the role of sex in helping them lead happier, more vital and fulfilling lives. As a couples counselor and marriage therapist, I encourage couples to discover and share the Kamasutra in their search for healthy relationships. The influence of the Kamasutra can play a vital role in the progress of a couples sex therapy and the ultimate success of couples counseling sessions.
Here are six life giving insights for lovers from the Kamasutra:
* A wish for salvation is born only after men and women are fully satisfied. Total satisfaction and salvation are the two goals of our existence. The sculptures of couples engaged in sexual intercourse found on the temples of Konarak, Puri, Khajiuraho and other places represent the first goal of life. That is why they are shown on the outside walls of the temple. Salvation is the second goal which is represented by the image of the god in the inner sanctum. The sculptures of couples in intercourse on the outer door and walls remind the seeker that one who has not crossed the portals of sexual satisfaction has no right to take the second step toward god and salvation.
* Intercourse depends on the two inclinations of love and sexual hunger. Love makes one generous and sentimental. Sexual hunger makes one selfish.
* Passion and desire between men and women have a natural cause. The cause is a lack. A woman eagerly wishes to receive from a man what is missing in her, and visa versa. A woman possesses the essence of the sun, and a man that of the moon. The sun draws in the juice of the earth through its power, while the moon bathes the earth in dew. The sun-possessed woman draws the moon-possessed man's semen inside herself. This is the main cause of attraction between man and woman. From the new to the full moon, the god Kama first mounts the woman's thumb, then her feet, thighs, navel, breasts, nipples, throat, cheeks, lips, eyes, eyebrows and forehead. That is why knowledgeable men awaken Kama by holding the woman's hair, kissing her eyes and forehead, biting her lips, pressing her nipples and stroking her breast and navel.
* Lips are considered the most important part of kissing because they are the tenderest parts of the body. Lips carry an electric charge which, when touched, excites those nerves and joints that carry an internal flow of this electric current. The current is responsible for the pleasure given by touch.
* Women are tender not only in body but also in character and mind. They should be handled as if they were flowers so that they neither fade nor lose their scent. There are twenty-four nerves in the vagina which give rise to the desire for intercourse. The place where these nerves end is called "Kama's umbrella" (the clitoris). It should be rubbed slowly with the fingers. Of the nerves which excite sexual desire, there are two in the face, two in the eyes, one in the throat and one at the base of the thumb. Pressing these nerves in an embrace soon excites desire. Scratching the ears, thighs, lover's back and forehead with the nails excites sexuality. Sati, asati, subhaga, durbhaga, putri, and duhitrini are the six great nerves in the vulva which give rise to an irresistible urge for intercourse when excited. Deep inside the vagina are the putri and duhitrini nerves. In the left part of the vulva is sati, in the right, the asati. At a little distance inside the vaginal canal are the subhaga and durbhaga nerves. Hugging excites the sati nerve; caressing both the armpits excites the sati. Kissing excites the subhaga. Caressing the waist excites the durbhaga. Kissing the face excites the putri and caressing the buttocks produces agitation in the duhitrini, which leads to immediate orgasm.
* Semen is present in all parts of a man's body, like the invisible presence of juice in the sugar-cane stalk, butter in milk and oil in sesame seed. When a man thinks of a desired woman, sees, hears or embraces her, he feels sexual pleasure and semen is drawn from the different parts of his body to enter the urinary canal. Sushruta's statement that semen is the material form of an individual soul is true and scientific. The seed (bija) inside the semen is the abode of the soul.