The Bedside Kama Sutra is an easy-to-follow

photographic guide to lovemaking. Based

on the most renowned and ancient text on
sexual pleasures and techniques, this book
explores new heights of pleasure by describ-
ing 23 erotic positions, such as 'The Plough,'
'Canopy of Stars' and 'Feeding the Peacock.'

The atmospheric, step-by-step photography,

together with original Indian illustrations, show
how to combine the ceremonial choreography
and passion inherent in these intimate poses.
Each technique includes commentaries detailing
the Kama Sutra's fascinating advice on the
ancient art of sexual fulfilment and an intro-
ductory section shows how you can discover
the body's erogenous zones through exercises
and sensory stimulation.

The Bedside Kama Sutra is the ultimate guide

to sexual techniques.

$19.95
 The
Bedside
Kama outra
23 Positions for Pleasure and Passion

Linda sonntag

FAIR WINDS
PRESS
Published by Fair Winds Press
33 Commercial Street

Gloucester, MA 01930

Copyright © 2001 Octopus Publishing Group Limited

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be

reproduced stored in a retrieval system or transmitted

in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying or otherwise without the prior permission

f the publisher,
oO

ISBN 1-931412-79-0

Printed in Hong Kong

The author has asserted her moral rights

WARNING
With the prevalence of AIDS and other sexually transmitted
diseases, if you do not practice safe sex you are risking
your life and your partner's life.
 The Kama Sutra
Yoga Practice
The Frog

The Hunter
The Cow
Chariot
Canopy of Stars

Feeding the Peacock

The Plough
emple

Shoal of Fish
The Wheel
Cocoon
Butterfly

Sultan

Contents
A ntelope
Rajasthan
}
he Abduction

S tarflower
The Horse
Eternity 102
Introduction F enzy 106
Jacaranda 110
Centre Yourself Riding the Elephant 114
The Head The Path of Life 118
The Eyes Ganges 122
The Ears
The Nose
The Mouth Index 126
The Arms and Hands
The Breasts Acknowledgements 128
The Belly
The Genitals

The Legs and Feet

 Right: The imagination of Indian

artists has no bounds. In this

impossibly exotic configuration,

sexual acrobats explore the

delights of fantasy.

Introduction In ancient India, as elsewhere in the ancient world, sex was

celebrated and explored without shame. Sometime between the
first and fourth centuries AD in Benares, a holy sage called
Vatsyayana, about whom little else is known, wrote down
everything he could discover about the sexual practices of his
countryfolk in a meticulous guide to sexual etiquette called the
Kama Sutra. His work is more a treatise than a pillow book — its
title translates as 'the science of pleasure’. The sage dedicated his
researches to the goddess from whom all ecstasy flows. The Kama
Sutra mirrors the privileged world that Vatsyayana inhabited, a
world saturated with indolence, luxury and intrigue. The objective
of upper class Indian society was the pursuit of pleasure, and its
obsessions were seduction and sex. Amoral and materialistic as this
world was, it also reached a spiritual dimension, and sex was the
gateway to achieving it.

6 Introduction
 Experiences that transcend time and place bring a deep
happiness and fulfilment that put everyday problems into
perspective. They enable us to tap into a well of generosity and
deal lightly and kindly with the world. Emotionally committed sex
provides one way of experiencing the transcendant. The ancient
Indian sages found that yoga provides another. Yoga and sex
together form the basis of tantrism, or spiritual sex. Yoga means
literally 'yoke' - it is said to have been invented by the god Shiva,
Lord of the Dance, to join himself in sex to the fundamental
creative power of the ultimate goddess, Kali. The Tantrists
believed that women possess more spiritual energy than men, and
that men could join themselves to the divinity only through
sacred, highly charged emotional sex with a woman.
The love positions presented in original photographic
sequences in The Photographic Kama Sutra and depicted in the
exquisite Indian miniatures featured in the book have all been
inspired by yoga. For some of the sequences in this book, the lovers
need to be strong, graceful and supple. Practice in yoga will benefit
all the poses, as well as enhancing your self-awareness, increasing
your vitality and improving your ability to relax. Introduce
yourselves gradually to the poses, use them as inspiration for your Above: Yoga practice gave the

own sexual journey and avoid forcing anything that does not come lovers of ancient India strong and

naturally. May the goddess be with you! supple bodies. Nevertheless, it is

difficult to believe that some of the

love poses depicted in these

miniatures could ever be achieved.

Introduction 7
oe —
Tne Head
The head is the closest part of the body to heaven, and the way
you hold your head shows how you feel about yourself in relation
to heaven. Learn to hold your head like a dancer. Stand in your
bare feet, and feel their connection to the ground. Now bring your
mind up your body to your pelvis. Imagine it as a dish of water.
Feel your spine growing upwards from this dish like a plant
shooting towards the Sun. Imagine a flower blooming at the top
of the stem: this is how you should hold your head.
The women of the East who carry water jars on their heads
move with grace and dignity. Imagine you are carrying life-giving
water from the well in a clay pot made in your own kiln. Feel your
head centred above your belly as you glide forwards against the
blue sky, walking so your toes make contact with the sandy road
before your heels. You are learning your body all over again
through walking with sensual awareness. When you stoop to pick
up a bangle that has slipped from your wrist, watch it glinting
from the corner of your eye and bend from the knees to keep your
water jar balanced on your head. This is an exercise you can
practise anywhere, any time.
Because the hair springs from the head, it is thought to be the
dwelling place of the soul. It concentrates its owner's personality,
vitality and sexuality and has magic powers as a love charm. Lovers
all over the world and throughout history have exchanged locks of
hair as pledges. In some cultures the hair of a bride and groom are
shampooed in the same basin at their wedding, then their hair is
twisted together into one strand to unite the pair for life. The
same idea lies behind braiding dances, often seen embroidered and Above: For a woman, grooming

appliquéd on Indian wedding cloths. The men move sunwise or and adorning herself for love can

clockwise and the women dance in the opposite direction, be a delightful build-up to erotic

moonwise, so that the sexes are woven together. In the maypole relaxation.

dance, the ribbons stand in for the rays of the Sun and the Moon
and also for hair braided as a fertility charm.

10. Centre Yourself

The hair, the gods and sexual energy
Tantric sages believed that women could activate forces of
creation and destruction by binding and unbinding their hair. The
goddess Kali unleashed violent thunderstorms by freeing her long
tresses into wildly writhing serpents, and calmed the skies again by
combing them. Her partner Shiva is a hairy god — his unruly locks
represent the creative and sexual energy of the universe and must
on no account be cut, or he would be castrated like Samson. Even
to this day Indian men keep their hair long and wrapped in a
turban to preserve its vital essences.
Students of the Kama Sutra learned the arts of beautifying
their hair by colouring it with henna, dressing it with perfumes
and unguents, making braids, chaplets, turbans, crests and
topknots of flowers. While the hair on the head was celebrated, Below: Da p with sweat and

men shaved their beards and both sexes removed all body hair. If hanging free, a woman’s hair is

a wealthy courtesan wanted to assess a potential new client, she more beauti ul during love-making

would send shampooers, singers and jesters to his house. The than after a session with the most

shampooers would rub the man's body as well as his hair. If she talented sty ist.

liked what she heard, the courtesan might then seduce him with
an erotic hair dance, in which her hair was rubbed with perfumed
oils then swung loose with passionate movements of her head.

Centre Yourself 11
 Below: The lovers read each

other's character and wishes

through deep, silent, constant

eye-contact.

Your eyes are worlds of feeling distilled into colour and light.
They bring messages direct from your soul, unedited by thought
processes, faster, deeper, truer, more subtle and fleeting than
words. The first sparks of instant sexuality pass unconsciously
through the eloquence of the eyes. Later, they become a channel
of desire — one glance can set two bodies on fire, and in the
conflagration that follows, the naked power of the eyes fixes the
act of love in eternity.
Some people train themselves to hide the feeling in their eyes.
Thereby they lose beauty and character and become less true to
themselves. Real eye contact takes courage — you reveal
vulnerability as well as strength, and it is easy to get swept away on
diving into the eyes of another. Take your time. When you are
overwhelmed, remember that seeing is a two-way process — you
are giving power as well as receiving it.
Of course, for most of its waking life the eye does not transmit
intense emotion. It is cool rather than warm, the organ through
which we perceive the world around us. The eye stands for
intellectual perception — 'I see’ means 'I understand’. The eye is a
judge that discerns, distinguishes — and condemns.

The evil eye

Because of its power of condemnation, the evil eye strikes terror
into those it watches. The people of ancient India used yonic
symbols (symbols of the vulva) to protect themselves against the
evil eye. A cowrie shell was a most effective amulet that could be
carried about a person or worn as a necklace, but even a simple
triangle daubed on the door of the house would do. Still today in
northern India farmers protect their crops by hanging Kali's black
pot, a symbol of the goddess's vagina, in their fields.
In ancient India the two eyes were identified with the Sun and
the Moon. The right eye belonged to the Sun and was concerned
with actions and the future; the left eye was a child of the Moon,
linked to the passive and the past. To resolve this duality was the

12. Centre Yourself

 Left and below: The brain is the

body‘s most important sex organ. It

gives and receives messages of

desire through the eyes.

function of the third eye, the eye in Shiva's forehead. Our eyes
create a distance between us and what we look at; they observe
limits, defining the world which is not the self. But our inner eye
— the third eye — destroys boundaries, it unites and synthesizes.
This is the eye of the heart and the recipient of spiritual
enlightenment. To reach the vision of your inner eye is to see and
understand yourself.

The inner eye

The inner eye is the place where revelations occur. These often
happen in that mysterious dreamworld between waking and
sleeping. Who has not mulled over a problem for days without
making progress, only to have the answer leap up fully fledged at
the moment of waking? Train yourself to hover on the verge of
consciousness, and stay in this colourful fluid zone where you will
discover your most creative thoughts and feelings. Try doing this
with your partner as you fall asleep together, and share your
dreams and visions when you wake up.
To throw off staleness or release stress and revive yourself after
a wearing day, lie down and close your eyes. Relax, breathing
deeply. Focus your attention on the place where your third eye is
situated — just above and between your eyebrows. Let it fill with
coloured light and roll out a bright carpet before you. Now step
out on to it and imagine you are in a magical forest where the laws
and limitations of the everyday world have been suspended and
you can be entirely yourself for as long as you like. Allow yourself
to wander freely in the wildness of your imagination. When you
wish to return, roll in the carpet and focus your attention again on
your third eye. Lie still for a few moments before rejoining the
world outside.

Centre Yourself 18
Tne Ears
Our ears provide us with the longest living of all our senses. When
the body is on its deathbed and can no longer feel, taste, smell or
see, it can still recognize the voices of those it has loved. The sense
of hearing is also the first to develop — the inner ear begins to form
as early as the seventh day after conception, and by four and a half
months, it has reached its final size. The newborn baby has
considerable experience of the world of sound. For nine months it
has listened to its mother's heartbeat and a constant symphony of
bloopings, rumblings and gurglings.

Music
Our heartbeat is the rhythm of life; it measures every moment
Below: Listening to the music of until our last and places us firmly at the centre of our own
nature brings peace, power and a universe. The first sounds — the beat of the heart, the melodic
sense of oneness with the rushings inside the womb — are the beginnings of music. Music
universe. transports the soul through a vast range of emotions, from sadness
and pain to exultation. With our ears full of music, we are carried
back to that blissful state when we were protected from all harm,
had no responsibility and perceived the world only as sound.
From the beginning music was at the heart of religious life; it
celebrated, commemorated and mourned each coming and going.
Today at the touch of a button we can call on musicians from
around the world to play in our homes and bring us healing,
dissolve blockages, lift our spirits and drift us back into memory.
The music of the West is built on time, but the music of the
East is composed of repeating melodies that spiral into eternity.
To centre yourself, listen to the music of eternity. Hang wind
chimes in a tree by your window, close your eyes when rain beats
on the roof, lose yourself in the howling of the wind and the
crashing of the waves. Hold a shell to your ear. Do you hear the
roar of the ocean or is it the tumult of your own heart? They are
one and the same. One spring dawn, record the birdsong in your
garden. Then play it back on winter mornings when you get up in
the dark to remind you of what is to come.

14 Centre Yourself
Words of love
Remember that the inner ear is also the organ of balance. And as
befits an organ whose job is to keep us upright, the ear is objective.
Sound waves — vibrations in the air — are funnelled by the outer ear
to the inner ear, then taken as electrical signals to the brain, where
they are interpreted as sound. This precise process gives us
understanding of language. Thus the ear is crucial in the
formation of the questions and answers on which all human
relationships are built, and in the development of our spiritual and
mental faculties.
The ear is a receptacle. When a man speaks words of love, they
pour like warm honey into the ear of a woman just as his sperm
shoots into her vagina. It takes words as well as sperm to find a
fertile womb. In the Christian religion, the word of God took the
role of sperm when it entered Mary's ear through the angel
Gabriel and she conceived his son.
Your ears take in so much information all day long that the time
comes to unplug and free yourself from the residue of it all, the
babble of nonsense that still blares inside your head. Teach yourself
to empty your head and listen to the silence and be silent with your
partner. It is a skill worth learning, to trick the indefatigable brain
into switching off so we can commune with ourselves in silence. All
sound aims to return to the silence from which it sprang.

Left: Shiva and his consort

entertain friends with music and

song. In ancient India music was

often the prelude to love.

Centre Yourself 15
Tne Nose
Breath is the symbol of life; amongst its blessings are inspiration Below: In a private moment after
and understanding. The nose through which we breathe is a night of passion, a woman offers
associated with intuition, the mysterious sixth sense that is her loverasweetly scented rose.
illogical but uncannily right. In ancient rites, the magic powders its perfume brings back a memory
used in making contact with spirits and unseen forces were of the garden where they first met.
prepared from the noses and snouts of wild animals.
The average human nose can detect around 4,000 different
smells, each one bringing its own message. Invisible and yet very
real, scents such as the perfume of a rose, the smell of your lover's
sweat or the aroma of a delicious meal make experience vivid and
fix us firmly in the present. Scents are also the food of memory,
bringing back past scenes and sensations with a sudden wave or
jolt of emotion. Scents are so closely related to feelings that the
ancient Indians regarded the sense of smell as the most spiritual of
all the senses. Perfume, distilled from essences of healing, mood-
enhancing plants, stood for purity, and was used liberally to anoint
the body for the sacred rites of sex. In temples, it was burned as
incense to please the gods. At funerals, it was burned and used in
embalming to remember the dead and to purify them for the next
life. The essential oils of plants were also important to the yogis.
Each perfume symbolized a degree of spiritual perfection; the
highest yogis smelled of lotus blossoms.

Breath control
Breath is life, but we pay very little attention to breathing. Most
people breathe shallowly through the mouth and hardly use the
diaphragm at all. In this way, only a small amount of oxygen is
taken into the lungs and only the top of the lungs is used. The
lungs are never thoroughly aired and the result is low vitality and
low resistance to disease. Good breathing practice will fill the
blood with life-giving oxygen to-refresh the brain. It will control
prana or vital energy, which leads to a balanced and harmonious
state of mind. When you are agitated, your breathing is shallow,
rapid and irregular. When you are relaxed or deep in thought your
breathing is slow and measured. By controlling your breathing

16 Centre Yourself
Above: Alternate nostril you can control your state of mind and prepare yourself for
breathing helps to clear the concentration and meditation.
head and lungs. Inhaling The science of breath control is called pranayama, a series of
the perfume of your exercises that keeps the body in vibrant health. Breathe through
partner's skin is one of the your nose with your mouth closed, so air that enters your lungs is
greatest pleasures of love. warm and filtered. Above all, breathe deeply to exercise the whole
of the lungs. Exhalation is the key to good breathing, for the more
stale air you expel from the lungs, the more fresh air you can take
in. When you exhale, the abdomen contracts and the diaphragm
moves up, massaging the heart; when you inhale, the abdomen
expands and the diaphragm moves down, massaging the
abdominal organs.
Practise breathing sitting down with your spine, neck and head
all in the same line. Try this exercise to get rid of stale air. Inhale
gently and deeply, retaining your breath for four counts, then
exhale forcefully. Do this twenty times. Alternate nostril breathing
is another way of clearing the system. Breathe in through the left
nostril, closing the right one with your thumb. Hold your breath,
closing both nostrils. Breathe out through the right nostril,
closing the left with your fingers. Then breathe in through the
right nostril. Repeat the pattern. For a final exercise, try sipping
the air. Stick out your tongue and curl the sides up, making a pipe
through which to sip the air as you inhale. Close your mouth while
you hold your breath, then exhale through the nose.

Centre Yourself 17
tne Mouth
Below and bottom: The lovers

of ancient India perfumed their

breath with scented seeds. Frult

offers luscious refreshment

between bouts.

Like perfumes, flavours are elusive and impossible to define.

Biologists tell us that the tongue is divided into areas that
appreciate just four basic tastes: sour, sweet, salty and bitter. But
the world of taste is as rich and full of subtlety as the world of
colour, and influenced as much by emotion, circumstances and
memory as it is by the chemical reaction in the mouth.
The sensual pleasures of eating and drinking are heightened
when they are a prelude to love. Food tastes so much more vivid
when it's shared, and better still in fresh air — lush grass, birdsong,
and strawberries passed in a laughing struggle mouth to mouth.
Food for love should be inviting, a captivating arrangement spread
simply on a white cloth, colourful, fresh, surprising, and all the
better if it needs to be eaten with the fingers, as in India. Salty,
fishy tastes, sweet juices that squirt and stream, a rough nutty loaf,
thick creams, rich and smooth, that comfort and nourish, sharp
sparkling wines that tingle on the tongue and whisk the breath
away — all stimulate the palate for the feast that is to follow,
the ultimate taste sensations of your lover's skin, mouth and
intimate secretions.
The lovers of ancient India paid a great deal of attention to the
pleasures of the mouth. The daily toilette included dental hygiene,
and sometimes the teeth were blackened for cosmetic effect. The
mouth was stimulated prior to lovemaking by singing, laughter
and amusing conversation, the drinking of fruit cordials and
alcoholic beverages and the eating of delicate sweetmeats. Once
their companions had withdrawn for the night, the lovers used
their mouths on each other in a complex ritual of kissing and
biting, and refreshed themselves between bouts with ripe fruits
from the garden. After sex they chewed perfumed seeds to freshen
the mouth, and betel nuts wrapped in betel leaves, which give a
warm, pleasantly numbing sensation. They also shared a hubble-
bubble water pipe or hookah to smoke intoxicating drugs, such
as cannabis and magic mushrooms, which were first consecrated
to the gods. Like sex itself, these pleasures formed a sacred part
of worship.

18 Centre Yourself
The tongue
At the moment of orgasm during mating with Shiva, the goddess
Kali (according to the artists who painted her) stuck out her
tongue. The Latin word for tongue, lingus, comes from the
Sanskrit for phallus, lingam, and gives us our word language,
which we also call tongue. To poke the tongue out between the
lips was once a sacred gesture representing the lingam in the yoni,
and still today the folds of the vulva are called the labiae, lips. In
the West, to stick out your tongue at someone is an insult, but in
the East, where sex is not linked with shame or disgrace, sticking
out the tongue is a polite greeting.

Centre Yourself 19
Tne Arms
Below and bottom: Meeting in

a pleasure grove, the lovers

entwine arms and hands. The

hands especially are eloquent

and Hands
in the language of love.

After the face, the arms and hands are the most expressive parts of
our body. We use them in conversation, in wordless contact and
in dance to convey a rich range of emotions, both positive and
negative. Acceptance and rejection, welcome and threat, happiness
and sorrow, triumph and defeat can all be conveyed in a universal
language of simple gestures. All over the world, the arms are
raised above the head to signify surrender and hopelessness. ‘The
hands are used to bless and to curse, and the laying on of hands
effects a transfer of energy or power.
Arms stand for strength, power, help and protection, and are
also the instruments of justice. The Indian god Brahma is pictured
with four faces and four arms to show that he is omnipresent and
all-powerful. Ganesh, the elephant-headed god of knowledge, has
four arms to symbolize his diversity, and Shiva's countless arms
whirl about him as he dances.
The Hindus have a special language of the hands. Fearlessness
is expressed by a raised hand, palm forwards and fingers extended.
To denote giving, the hand is pointed downwards, palm up, with
fingers extending. A clenched fist with the index finger pointing
upwards is a threat. Hands join and fold together in a gesture of
adoration and prayer, and for meditation the hands rest palms-up
on the knees.

Snake dance
Supple, graceful arms and hands can best express your feelings.
The snake dance will help you free them up. Stand comfortably
upright with the palms of your hands facing towards the floor.
Start the movement with a gentle shake of your shoulders as if you
were unfurling laundry in the wind. Let the movement roll down
your arms so they flow as though they were boneless. This will

20. Centre Yourself

free your shoulders of tension and leave them warm and tingling.
Open your chest. Lift up your arms and let them find their own
level and rhythm, as if they were being blown by the wind. Let go,
fill your lungs with air and let your whole body become energized.

Giving is the mother of receiving

The first physical contact we make with each other is usually with
our hands. When two people are sensitive to one another, a simple
touch can convey a world of meaning. People in a close
relationship build up a whole vocabulary of touch. Be conscious of
the emotions you are transferring to your partner with your hands,
such as warmth, confidence, strength, vulnerability, caution,
encouragement, desire.
Massage provides a sensual opportunity for wordless
communication. Warm the oil in your hands before you begin,
then keep the pressure firm and gentle as you move your hands
over your lover's body, using fluid strokes that merge into one
another. Don't break contact or make any sudden moves that
might startle. Follow your instincts, not a sequence from a book.
Concentrate on the immediacy and uniqueness of the sensation of
touch rather than planning your next move. As you work each
area, close your eyes and really learn the body under your hands.
Understand the texture of the flesh, the shape and direction of
muscles, sinews, bones. Close your eyes and really feel. Work
gently on tightened areas to free the tension. For the one who is
massaged, your touch becomes their only connection with the
world. As the sensations grow more intense, you exist only in the
contact between your two bodies. Then let the massage move on,
becoming like a dance, like water flowing over stones or the wind
blowing through a field of corn. You will find you are receiving as
well as giving. Afterwards, lie down side by side and sleep.

Above left and left: We use our

hands in dance and worship, and

to groom, comfort and caress our

own bodies as well as to give love.

Centre Yourself 211

Ine Breasts
The breast is the source of the baby's first nourishment, the milk
of human kindness. Breasts stand for comfort, compassion,
security and plenty, intimacy and protection. They are also
powerful sexual symbols. 'In our maturer years,’ wrote Darwin,
‘when an object of vision is presented to us which bears any
similitude to the form of the female bosom . . . we feel a general
glow of delight which seems to influence all our senses, and if the
object be not too large we experience an attraction to embrace it
with our lips as we did in early infancy the bosom of our mothers.’
Only one third of the breast tissue is concerned with milk
production. The firm rounded shape has everything to do with
sexual signalling. Yet the two functions, to attract and to feed, are
inextricably meshed in the mind. A fascinating piece of research
into the behaviour of American soldiers in the Vietnam War
showed that the closer they were to the battle zone, the more
bare-breasted pin-ups they displayed — and the more milk they
drank. In a life-threatening situation, the Gls craved a return
N
ee

through sex to the safety of their mother's breast.

Bosom friends, the bosom of the family, returning to the Above: Shiva dreamily

bosom of the earth, all these phrases show the strong contemplates his consort’s beauty

connection between the chest, which houses the heart, and a while caressing her breasts. They

feeling of origin and end, home and belonging. To cuddle close seem to arouse in him a special

and lay your head on your partner's chest in a secure embrace is degree of tenderness.

a potent antidote to worry and stress. It's a taste and a memory

of the unconditional love in which we imagine we basked as
babies. In holding and being held and loved we relax and revive
into a stronger sense of self.
The breasts extend from the second to the sixth rib and are
composed of milk glands encased in fatty tissue. They are
supported by suspensory ligaments called the ligaments of Ashley
Cooper, which give them their line and lift. Breasts are at their
fullest and perkiest at around age 22, the optimum age for
reproduction in a woman's life when she is most likely to bring a
foetus to full term. Gravity, lack of support and ageing are the

22. Centre Yourself

Here is an exercise for the chest for warmth, generosity and openness.
Position yourself with your arms at your sides, then clasp your hands in
front of you with arms relaxed. Slowly raise your clasped hands up and
lift them high over your head, then let them drop behind it down to the
base of your neck. Press your hands together against your back. Bring
them slowly back up and over to where you began. Repeat the exercise
three times when you get up in the morning.

biggest enemy of firm breasts. Because they have no muscles,

exercise does little to preserve shape and tone. Nevertheless,
activities such as swimming and dancing strengthen the
underlying pectoral muscles and give good posture and a sense of
wellbeing. A massage from your lover using warm oil and gentle
caressing strokes is both relaxing and stimulating. It can be a
prelude to making love, or drifting off to sleep — or both!

A note on size
As with other sexual organs, the size of the breasts doesn't matter.
Big or small they function equally well as milk providers. But to a
baby suckling at its mother's breast, the breast is enormous,
physically and in terms ofits importance. This helps to explain the
visual appeal to some men of breasts that have been enlarged by
plastic surgery to unnatural proportions. They may be pumped
full of silicone and hard to the touch, but their sheer size triggers
fantasies of comfort and bliss.

Centre Yourself 23
ine belly
‘Belly’ is an unattractive word in the Western world, associated
with greed and too much to drink. It is considered unfashionable
to have a belly at all — both sexes aim at a stomach that is hard,
muscular and completely flat. But in the East, the smoothly
rounded belly of a woman is one of her most sensual attributes.
The belly is the outward manifestation of the womb, and stands
for fertility. It is symbolized in nature by caverns, gorges, springs
and mines, hidden places deep in the earth that yield up sparkling
treasures. Indian tradition holds that precious stones grow in rock
like embryos in a womb. Inside the womb, Kundalini, the serpent
of energy, lies slumbering coiled round a lingam of light.

The womb
The womb is the original safe place where the mystery of life
begins. But it can devour as well as provide protection and
nourishment. A mother can be a cruel tyrant who stunts her
children's growth by keeping them enslaved to her despotic rule.
In all mythologies, mother goddesses have two sides, one loving
and compassionate, the other tyrannical and smotheringly jealous,
and the goddess Kali with her evil black face and insatiable sexual
appetites is no exception. In the west, we are fearful of accusing
mothers of evil feelings — hence the invention of the wicked
stepmother in fairy tales.
The womb of the Earth is the place to which we all return after
death. Tomb and womb are linguistically related. Tumulus, meaning
burial mound, comes from tumere, the Latin for to swell, which also
Above: Two young wo men means to be pregnant. The word tummy comes from the same root.
perform a joyful fertility dance. The How should you hold your belly? If you tug it in, you distort
shape made by their ar ms is the smooth functioning of the lungs and put stress on the
echoed by the frame of the shoulders and the back of the neck. If you let go completely, you
miniature, suggesting a egg Or sag and slump. The answer is to stand freely, feeling yourself
womb. centred in your belly. An awareness of the belly as the centre of
the self gives confidence and solidity, a feeling of having both feet
placed firmly on the ground.

24 Centre Yourself
The belly roll
To exercise the belly and relax and sensitize the whole body,
try the belly roll, one of the key movements of belly dancing.
It imitates the contractions of labour and gives sexual
confidence. Begin by placing both thumbs on your navel with
your palms flat on your lower belly. Push the lower belly out,
then pull it in and up as far as you can, pulling in your
diaphragm too. Now push your diaphragm out and let your
belly roll down and out. Begin slowly, then repeat the
sequence, speeding up and maintaining.a soothing rhythm.
Some women like to practise the belly roll together in a group,
to the rhythm of a drum. It can be a good starting point for
meditation. A variation, the belly flutter, concentrates on the
diaphragm. For this movement, you can either hold your
breath, or keep your mouth open and pant. Contract the
diaphragm and then push it out. Start with a slow repeat, then
build up speed until your belly is vibrating fast.

The hip roll

Another good exercise for the belly is the hip roll. Stand
relaxed and upright, with your arms out to the side, palms
facing up. Push the right hip out to the right side. Push the
pelvis forward as far as you can and roll your hips over to the
left. Push the pelvis back to the rear, sticking your bottom out.
Straighten your knees, roll the hips to the right. Roll the hips
in a large smooth circle, as if you were swinging a hula hoop
round your waist.

Centre Yourself 25
The Genitals
The tantric sages of ancient India worshipped the goddess Kali,
because to them she symbolized the female sex organs, the fount
of all life and the most sacred pleasure of living. Kali was also
called Cunti and her sign was the yoni or vagina, which was
represented by a mouth shape, such as a fish or a double-pointed
oval, or by a simple triangle. The triangle was as important to the
tantrists as the cross is to Christians, only of course the triangle
symbolizes life and sex, whereas the cross means death.

The yoni
The yoni is the symbol of a gateway to secret knowledge and the
buried treasure of ecstasy. It is both mouth and well, taking and
giving. The yoni swallows the lingam and brings forth life.
Swallowing the lingam has its terrifying aspect, just as Kali is also
a force of darkness and destruction. According to a Muslim
proverb, three things on this Earth are insatiable: the desert, the
grave and a woman's yoni. The idea of the castrating and all-
devouring toothed vagina is present in all mythologies and reveals
the deep male fear of losing himself in an ocean of love and desire,
the birth trauma the wrong way round.
The mouth and vagina have many connections. The word
mouth comes from the same root as mother. Yawn comes from
yoni. The yoni has labiae — lips — and men have feared that, when
bared, these lips might reveal teeth. Up until recently the male
fear of castration led to the belief in many parts of the world that
a male snake fertilizes the female by putting his head in her mouth
and being swallowed alive. The ancients described sexual
intercourse in similar terms. To them, the man did not take the
woman, but was taken by her. When he ejaculated, the woman
consumed his vital fluid. Semen means both seed and food, and
consummating a sexual union was tantamount to eating the man.
When the woman ate the food of the man, her stomach was seen
to swell with pregnancy. For men, every orgasm is a little death,
the death — albeit temporary — of the phallus.

26 Centre Yourself
The lingam
Where goddess-worshippers adore the yoni, god-dominated
religions worship the phallus. The Jews of the Old Testament
worshipped their own genitals and swore oaths by laying a hand
on each other's private parts. Words like testimony — and
testament itself — derive from testicles, whose original meaning i

was witnesses. Phallic symbols everywhere are the marks of god-

dominated religion. They can be seen in standing stones, columns
and towers, and also in guns, missiles and other weapons. Terms
like big shot, hit and score show how phallus worship can confuse
sex and aggression.
Those who worship the yoni like it to be strong and muscular
so that it can hug the lingam tightly, pulsating and squeezing it to
build up a rhythm without moving any other parts of the body. Or
the yoni can remain still while the lingam pulsates. Thus the
couple can have exciting tantric sex while remaining outwardly
motionless. For this kind of sex you need strong pelvic floor
muscles. ‘To strengthen them, practise regulating the flow of urine
vigorously all the time, slowing it, then forcing it to flow more
powerfully. Contract the pelvic floor muscles at least 70 times a
day to make them really strong. You can do it at any time, as no
one will know. Strengthening the perineum is particularly
important after childbirth when these muscles have been severely
strained. These exercises will also guard against incontinence in
old age. As you contract your muscles, tune in to how much is
contracting and where the muscles reach to. Do the exercise in
bed with your partner and feel the contractions of each other's
perineum with your fingers.

Above: |n an unusually graphic

The pelvic tilt depiction of oral sex, the woman is

The pelvic tilt is a primitive dance step much used in belly shown sucking her partner’s

dancing. Its message is explicit. Stand with knees flexed, lingam. This practice was not

feet comfortably close together, arms held out to the sides always approved of in ancient

with palms upwards. Tighten the buttocks, thrust the India, except when performed on

pelvis forward and tilt upwards. Then relax the buttocks men by male masseurs.

and push back. Practise until you can tilt your pelvis
forward and backward smoothly and effortlessly.

Centre Yourself 27
Ine Legs
and Feet
Women walk differently from men, rolling their hips and taking
smaller steps. This is because a woman's pelvic girdle is wider than
a man's, allowing her to give birth between her legs. Down the
ages, women have emphasized their feminine walk, by wearing
sheathlike skirts that restrict their movement, and high heels,
which make walking difficult and even dangerous. To balance in
high heels, a woman has to tighten her calf muscles, giving the legs
a more curvaceous shape. She also arches her back, which thrusts
out her buttocks and breasts. In addition to curving the body into
an S-shape, high heeled shoes make the wearer totter, creating an
impression of vulnerability.
In China the fashion for female vulnerability centred on the
foot was taken to grisly extremes. From the 11th century until it
was banned in 1902, the Chinese upper classes practised the cruel
custom of footbinding. From the age of five, a girl's feet were
tightly bound in strips of cloth until by the time she had finished
growing, they were completely deformed, the foot curled under
like a closed fist with only the big toe protruding. This ‘lotus foot’
proclaimed a woman's status, because it prevented her from
working, and even from walking without the aid of servants. The
ultimate sexual pleasure for Chinese men was to have intercourse Above: Here Shiva is shown

with the sole of the lotus foot, and crippled women were taught performing an act of unusual

how to satisfy their husbands in this way. tenderness: anointing the feet of

his beloved with scented oil. Her

attendants stand by to complete

her toilette.

28 Centre Yourself
 Left: A foot massage can bring

relief and revitalization to the

whole body. Use warm oil and

knead each toe and joint gently

but thoroughly.

Footcare
The foot was also an erotic part of the body in India. Many
miniatures feature an Indian prince enjoying sex with several
companions, using his big toes to stimulate the clitorises of two of
his consorts. Women in India paint delicate henna patterns on
their feet, wear bright tinkling anklets and colour their toenails
with henna too. Care of the feet is important for general
wellbeing. Think of sexuality as freedom and choose shoes that
allow your feet to express your vitality instead of cramping their
style. Pamper your feet — and your partner's — with a warm foot
bath followed by a massage, a treatment that will revive your body
and spirits. Washing the feet is an act of forgiveness and
acceptance because it symbolizes purification from walking the
wrong paths of life. Rub your heels with a pumice stone to get rid
of hard dead skin and make them soft and supple. Feel your
connection to the earth by walking and dancing barefoot on the
grass. Try walking not by putting your heel down first in the
normal way, which is hard and jarring, but landing on your toes
and the ball of the foot. This silent, sensual walk gives greater
exercise to the calf muscles.
As for your legs, forgive them their imperfections. Beauty lies
more in the way you move than in shapeliness. Good exercises to
tone the leg muscles are swimming, cycling and dancing.

Centre Yourself 29
Yoga Practice
Yoga is the world's most ancient system of personal development.
The word ‘yoga’ means joining — the joining of the body and the
consciousness to an unchanging reality that lies beyond. Yoga
allows you to float free of personal worries and leave the clutter of
everyday life behind. It strengthens and tones the body, improving
the functioning of muscles and joints. The spine grows more
flexible and the exercises also work on the internal organs, the
glands and the nerves. The physical and emotional effects of yoga
open your mind and body to deeper sexual feelings.

Right: \ntroducing simple yoga

poses can add a new dimension to

making love. Yoga brings a sense

of wholeness and personal balance

to an intimate relationship.

eiatiasiane,

32 Yoga Practice
 Yoga can help with sex because it's difficult to get in tune
with your partner if one of you is distracted or tense. You both
need to be centred — in touch with yourselves — before you can
connect with each other. Yoga can help you relax. It is possible
to be tense all the time without realizing it, even to lie rigidly in
bed, grimly awaiting sleep with your mind and body galvanized
for the sound of the alarm clock and the next headlong dash into
action. Try tensing and relaxing your muscles to see just how
keyed up you are.
Physical relaxation brings a feeling of wellbeing, as well as
freedom from aches and pains, but yoga gives more than this. As
you continue to practise it, yoga brings a sense of the harmony and
peace of mind that are the foundations of true self-knowledge. It
provides a touchstone of relaxation and stillness that will always
enable you to get your bearings in the confusion of everyday life.
The exercise of yoga consists of getting into and out of a series
of postures, or asanas. The movements are slow and graceful,
never jerky. They extend your reach gradually and should not be
forced. After a yoga session, you should feel relaxed and full of
energy, not exhausted or strained. Deep, measured breathing is
especially important to help you move correctly.
When you start following the sequences in this book, you may
find some of the positions difficult to get into, unless you are
already practising yoga. Don't push yourselves to do anything that
is uncomfortable, or hurts. Just imagine forming the shapes in the
photographs even if you can't actually achieve them. With
practice, you will become more supple. Alternatively, use the
positions shown here as an inspiration for your own individual
sequence of movements.

Above: Sometimes life is so full of

stresses that it’s difficult to relax

together. Meditation and yoga can

clear the mind and make space for

peace and intimacy.

Yoga Practice 33
Tne Frog
The pleasure here lies in the man keeping up a gentle rocking
motion while the woman stays perfectly still, moving only the
muscles of her yoni to let her partner in gradually. After a
tantalizingly slow build-up, he can pump vigorously to a climax.
The man needs to develop strong thigh muscles to maintain this
position of deep penetration without tiring. Comfort is important,
so if the strain tells, the man can roll backwards into the sitting
position and let the woman bounce in his lap.

A First arrange your cushions. When the woman lies

back, her body will need to be slightly raised and

: a pillow under her buttocks will allow her partner

deeper entry. The man squats with legs apart. The woman

sits on his lap, with her legs over his. In this position the
lovers can kiss and stimulate each other's genitals with
na
their hands, using a massage oil to enhance the sensa
In this way, the man can bring his partner to orgasm.

34 Love Positions
 Love and money
courtesan should always keep her emotions in check,
remembering that her independence is her livelinood.
If she does happen to fall in love, she shouldn't let it

get the better of her. On the other hand, the courtesan should
always act as though she is in love with her man, even when
she despises him, because this is the way to gain his
confidence. He will tell her what is in his heart and look after her

well, so that she doesn't need to trick him out of his money.
However, if he is not generous, Vatsyayana advises that there

are 2/ ways in which a clever woman can persuade a man to

part with cash and jewels. Among his list of suggestions are
hese. The woman can rush to her lover, weeping and gnashing
her teeth, wailing that her house has been burned down by the
carelessness of her servants, and that she has no money to

rebuild it. Or she may appear at his door in tears, pretending

,
hat she has been robbed of her possessions by the king's
guards and desperately needs to replace them. In a more
houghtful moment, perhaps while he is still lying in her bed,
she can mention in passing that she needs to buy food, drink,
flowers, perfume and cloth, none of which she can afford. Or

she might reveal that she can't go visiting to friends’ houses,

because when her friends come to her, they bring costly
presents, and she has nothing to give them. Behaving listlessly,
she can admit after anxious questioning that she Js ill, but has
not the wherewithal for medical treatment. Finally, she can

5 When the time is right, the woman slides her always fall back on making her lover jealous, by telling him how

" partner's lingam inside her yoni, She will be extra generous his rivals are.

~ sensitive to the delicious sensation. Clenching

and releasing the muscles of her yoni, she begins to rock
gently, supporting herself with her arms around her lover's

shoulders.

Love Positions 85
 The man lowers his partner on to the pillows, ;
sliding his hands down to support the small of her ila G e ark side
back. In this position he can raise her pelvis
towards him and thrust gently, bouncing on his haunches. Or Kal |

ali, the mother goddess, the Earth goddess, ruled

over every aspect of life, but she was also feared as
goddess of destruction, disease and death. In some
paintings she appears suffused with blood and passion, with a

red face and eyes, long pointed teeth bared in a terrible snarl
and a noose in her hand. At other times she is seen devouring
he entrails of her dead consort Shiva, while squatting on him | Sy
sexual: ecstasy. Kali is also shown triumphantly garlanded with
human skulls, or holding a sword and a severed head, and
wearing Corpses as earrings or amputated hands linked round
her waist in a belt. As goddess of death she appea (ep)

emaciated, with sunken eyes, shrivelled breasts and ragged

hair, but always ecstatic, her volcanic emotions sweeping all
before her.

For the tantric sages, it was important to accept the whole

£
range of human experience, and to embrace Kali as the one

who gave life in the beginning and who would finally take it

away at the end. Kali was the ocean of blood that existed before
birth, and she is the nothing-at-all that happens after death —

both womb and tomb.

Sex and death are powerfully linked in our unconscious minds.

The one transcending power, sexual passion is where we lose

Above: Though the man is on top, ourselves in the rush of orgasm, called by the French ‘the little

the woman can still change the death’. Giving oneself completely in sex does have a frightening
mood and the tone of the aspect, because it means negating the self, letting go of
experience by opening her yoni control, and existing purely in the present moment, in sensation

wider or tilting herself towards or and emotion. Giving oneself in love can be terrifying, because
away from him. it leaves us vulnerable to overwhelming loss and destruction.
Accustomize yourself gradually to the dark face of Kali as your
intimacy grows and your risks will be rewarded with deeper,
richer feelings.

Love Positions G7
tne Hunter
Hunting was one of the favourite pursuits of upper-class Indians.
Some liked to combine it with sex. In this position (see page 41)
the Indian prince takes up his rifle to shoot a gazelle. Modern-day
Western lovers rock gently backwards and forwards. This position
is more exciting if all the movement is left to the woman.

% The lovers stand facing each other. The man f She lowers herself on to his thigh, circling his
drops to his right knee and keeps his left knee # ‘ight shoulder with her left arm. He embraces
up with his foot firmly on the floor at right
ROTARY . her, drawing her to him, and they kiss.
angles to it, The woman lifts her right leg up and
places her right foot delicately on his left hip bone. Her
toes point outwards and her heel points to his groin.
Her standing leg remains straight.

88 Love Positions
 Krishna and
the gopis
rishna is the god Shiva in another incarnation. Many
detai S of his story were borrowed for the life of Jesus.

When the Lord Krishna was born to a goddess, his

advent was proclaimed by angels and a new star appeared in the
sky to mark hiS birthplace. Shepherds and wise men came from

afar to worsh ip the baby and bring gifts. Shortly afterwards

Krishna survived a massacre of the innocents. He performed

many miracles , Including parting the waves of a stormy river while

still a baby by touching the waters with his tiny foot. Eventually he
was hailed as a redeemer of sins and met with a sacrificial death,

in which his blood rained down on the Earth and made itfruitful.

But unlike Christ, Krishna was an erotic god, adored for his
youthfulness a nd beauty. As a child, he was known for mischief

verging on juveline delinquency. He untied village cattle and

pulled their tails, was rude his elders, urinated in the houses of his
neighbours an d stole their sweets and butter. A precocious and
= He grips her more tightly around the waist and > ighly sexed adolescent, he played his f| ute (flute being another

< draws her closely towards him. She puts her word for the sacred lingam or penis) to charm the gopis, beautiful

right hand on his left knee and her left hand girls who looked after the cows. A Hindu poet wrote: ‘How can |

behind his neck to support her ba ance and pulls describe his 1elentless flute, which pulls virtuous women from

herself closer to him. In this position he enters her. their homes and drags them by their hair to Krishna as-thirst and
hunger pull the doe to the snare?’

One day while the gopis were bathing in a river, Krishna hid in a
tree to watch them_and stole their saris. At the sound of his flute
they left the water and began to dance, shyly at first, but soon with
wild abandon, Krishna's music was so ravishing that each believed

herself to be dancing with him alone. He made love with them all,
but his favourite was Radha. This dark, isatiable beauty was
honoured with the name ‘cow elephant’, as the female elephant

was considered the epitome of sexual appetite and desire.

Love Positions GO
 Af She drops down to her left knee and curves
her right leg aro und his waist so their bodies
1 are close, yet ba anced away from each other.
She points her toes and takes hold of her left foot with
her left hand. He draws her body even closer as they
gaze directly into each other's eyes. The lotus
robably best known in the West as the meditation pose
of the yogis, the lotus flower with its many layers of
petals symbolizes the yoni and is central to tantrism. All
life springs from the lotus — even the god Brahma, who claimed
to be the creator, was born from the yoni of the primal
goddess. All power also springs from the lotus, and the only
way a man can have power and recharge his vital energy is to
unite himself with the yoni of the goddess in sacred sex.

The tantric sages held that carnal knowledge was the gateway
to spiritual Knowledge, so only through union with the lotus
could the inner mysteries of life be revealed. The phrase ‘Jewel
in the Lotus’ means the lingam in the yoni, the foetus in the
womb, the corpse in the earth and the god in the goddess. The
phrase ‘Lotus-Eater’ refers to ritual cunnilingus, which was
another way of communing with the goddess. Mystics sitting in
the lotus pose aimed through their sexual Knowledge to awaken

the slumbering serpent Kundalini, which lies dormant, coiled

round the lower chakras of the spine, and cause it to rise right
up through the body, flowering in an invisible emanation of light
as a fully formed lotus from the top of the head. Well aware of
the sexual connotations of sitting cross-legged, the medieval
Church in Europe denounced the pose, accusing all who sat

Above: Perhaps the ultimate this way of sorcery.

exercise in warding off premature

ejaculation was to transfer the

release to a firearm! The modern-

day equivalent might be sex while

watching football on television —

something few women would

appreciate.

Love Positions 41
The Cow
This sequence offers an exciting way into a simple position. The
man can thrust vigorously and the woman can respond by
slamming her buttocks into him. Or she can begin to subside on
to a cushion, leading him into a more gentle lying down position,
often referred to in the West as spoons.

The man kneels on the floor with his knees close

together and his buttocks on his heels, his feet

' flat down behind him. The woman half kneels

down close to him on his left side. Their bodies are

touching and their arms caressing one another. She has

her right arm round his right shoulder and her left hand on

his right forearm. He has his left arm around her back and
his right hand on her waist.

y She lunges her right leg over his thighs, creating

foe right angle to the floor, making sure that her
zwm IUNge IS deep enough so that her knee does not
extend over her foot. She balances on her left knee and

her left hand moves to his leg. He supports her right thigh
with his right hand.
 The courtesan’s
mother
courtesan had to earn good money for the upkeep of

her house and garden and to pay her retinue of

servants, jugglers and masseurs. And only by living in

style and dressing richly could she attract the right kind of
wealthy and cultivated lovers. On top of this financial chicken-
and-egg situation, the courtesan had a difficult emotional
juggling act to perform. She was a woman of independent
character and mind, too individual and spirited to be a wife, yet
in order to live she had to please her lover in every way, making
herself totally subservient to his whim. How could she both

control the course of the affair and agree to every demand her
lover made? The answer is, with the help of her mother.

fe
The courtesan’s mother — or, if she was unavailable, her old

nurse — was a shadowy figure kept in the background of her

life. When talking to her lover, the courtesan would complain
that her mother was a harsh old woman whose only interest
From this position she slides her right leg in a was money. She would confide haltingly that her mother
perfectly straight line and extends her left leg disapproved of their union, and of her lover's treatment of her.

behind her until her weight is fully on his body. So he knew there was an enemy in the camp who could
She points both her feet and balances between her right threaten his happiness, and it made him anxious. If the tactics

heel and her left knee. She gently lifts her spine up towards of love demanded that the courtesan withdrew from her lover
her partner so her back is leaning on his chest and she can to increase his ardour, she could blame her absence on her
twist towards him to gaze lovingly into his eyes. cross old mother. Or if she was short of money, she could ask
for it on behalf of the difficult old crone who pestered her night
and day for cash. In effect, Vatsyayana recommended that the

courtesan split her personality in two, and piled all the difficult
aspects of it on to her mother. Of course, in reality, mother and
daughter were totally in tune, working as a team.

Love Positions 48
 As he enters her, she turns her back to him and

bending forwards, rests both hands on the

ground. She swings both legs back next to his.

" He clasps her around the waist with both hands,

\ and rising on to his knees, lifts her up and forward
until her feet come together in front of his knees.
Resting her head on a cushion, she clasps her hands as if
in prayer under her cheek.

44 Love Positions
 The nails
he Kama Sutra instructs lovers on how to ‘press with
the nails’. Vatsyayana constructed an elaborate

language of erotic scratching, which left marks that

could be flaunted as sexual trophies alongside love bites. For
this purpose, lovers were advised to keep their nails clean
and glossy and to stain them tawny with henna. Appropriate
times to mark a lover included during leave-taking before a
journey, after returning home, on becoming reconciled after
a quarrel, and whenever a woman became intoxicated. Nails
+
could be pressed into the lover's armpits, throat, breasts,
lips, midriff, buttocks and thighs. The marks left behind
formed certain shapes or patterns. They looked like half
moons, the jump of a hare or the leaf of a blue lotus.
+
Sometimes they appeared to have been made by a
peacock's foot or a tiger's claw. Such marks were worn with

Above: The carefully arranged pride by young women, for the sight of a woman wandering

accessories and impassive through a scented pleasure garden with marks of passion on
expressions speak ofart rather her bare breasts would inflame the heart of any man. Men
than passion. In the background a were warned, however, not to mark married women in this

servant does a little light dusting. way. Married women could only bear secret marks on their

private parts, which they could contemplate while sighing

with longing for the absent lover. How their husbands failed
to notice these marks is not made clear.

Love Positions 45
Chariot
For this highly erotic pose, make sure the woman sits on a cushion
to bring her up to a comfortable height, and that she also has
plenty of soft pillows to lean on. Chariot is a delicate balancing act
that needs strong leg muscles to prevent the couple tiring and a
sense of strain taking over from the ecstasy of contact through just
the hands and genitals. The lovers gaze into each other's eyes to
deepen the sensation of blissful intimacy.

~~) Now the woman leans back, supporting her

~ weight by gripping his forearms. She slides her

| :esse Mands down his arms, then rests her palms on the

ground behind her.

The man squats wi =h his knees turned outwards,

His back is straight. His partner sits on a cushion

in between his legs, with her legs over his and her

knees Clasping his waist. Her feet are soles-together

behind his back, She puts her arms round his back and he

holds her tenderly by the waist.

46 Love Positions
 The harem
he women of the harem have to share one man. Even

a generous Man who uses aphrodisiacs that enable him

to enjoy severa women in one night can not possibly

satisfy all his wives, so they have to find other ways of having
fun. Some dress up as men and use a bulbous root as a dildo.
Others work themselves into a frenzy on the phallus of a statue.

Sometimes the women enjoy oral sex with the e unuchs who

guard them, or with each other, But the bes and most
+
dangerous sexual trea is to smuggle a man in 0 the royal
apartments. He may be disguised as a woman or arrive rolled
ina carpet. If the intruder is discovered, his advent € will Surely

cost him his life, so he is well advised to make frie nds with the

harem guards and nurses and get them on his s ide. A good
The woman lifts first her ight leg, then her left, ime to be smuggled ir to the palace is during the confused
over her partner's shoulders. The man stretches comings and goings that surround a drinking festival or a fair or
his arms out behind him wi h palms flat on the floor he preparations for a pi grimage. Even so he would-be lover

and mirrors the woman's movement , Putting his feet on her is advised to make him Self invisible with a magic potion. He

shoulders. This is the moment of en ry. should burn the eyes o a serpent and smear a paste of the
ashes on his eyelids, then he can go about unseen.
 mm
Se

The couple now clasp forearms under the man’s

knees, as he lowers his feet to the floor.

The woman leans back and lowers her feet to the

floor over the man's hips and under his arms.

They rock gently in a see-saw motion,

48 Love Positions
 Magic potions
he men and women of ancient India had access to a

wide variety of potions, charms and philtres to help

them in their amorous adventures. If a couple's genitals
were ill-matched in size, th€ man could enlarge his lingam by

rubbing it with the bristles of certain insects that liv€ in trees,

then for ten nights rub it with oil, followed by anothe treatment
with the bristly insects. After this, his ngam was so swollen that
he had to lie down a d let it hang through a hole |n the bed,

then massage it with cooling ointments. The pain would

disappear but the swe ling wou Id remain. A woman could rub
ointment into her yoni to mak e it smaller, and another salve

5S) omised to enlarge th € breasts.

Vatsyayana recommen ds several ways of transforming an ugly

person into a magneti ¢ beauty, including eating the pollen of

Above: The endless variety and the blue lotus with ghee and honey and tying a gilded peacock
richness of repeat patterns on or hyena bone to the right hand. To prevent a woman being
fabrics, wall hangings and carpets given in marriage to anyone else, a m an should sprinkle her

says much about the Eastern way with monkey dung. To increas € sexual vigour, a man should
of life. The seamlessness of Indian drink sugared milk in which he has boiled up a goat's testicle.
art and music is found again in Other magic recipes guaranteed to bring a woman quickly to

India’s attitude to love: the orgasm, and to delay ejaculation in a man. Herbs were widely
et
emphasis is on the continuum, not used to regulate menstrual periods and O eNCOUrage or prevent

on beginnings and endings. conception.

Love Positions 49
 anopy of otars
On a hot summer night, experience the cosmic bliss of tantra
under the stars. Walk out with your lover to a secret moonlit
place. Spread a thick rug on the ground and lay a pillow at either
end. Feel the earth move within you as comets explode, trailing
fiery showers above.

The man sits down on the rug, stretching his legs out

in front of him and keeping his back firm and straight.

The woman sits sideways between his legs with her
legs and feet together along his right hip. They embrace, she
around his shoulders and he around her hips.

Leaning back, the woman suppor S herself with

rer right hand on the rug. She cur s her right leg

i itly round her lover's waist. Then, slowly and

gracefu she lifts her left foot in her le t hand like a

dancer,‘ aightening her leg and pointing he foot over his

left shoulc He leans back to allow her leg 0 pass in fron

of his face, jen supports her body under the small of he

back. | > pose IS open and provocative, he moment is

mystical.

SQ) Love Positions

 The Kama
Shastra
ccording to Vatsyayana, every woman should learn

the sixty-four arts of the Kama Shastra, a sort of

finishing school for upper-class wives. The ideal

teacher of these arts was a female confidante, perhaps the

daughter of a nurse brought up with the family or a sister
already married. A woman accomplished in the Kama Shastra
would gain the favour of her husband, even if he already had
thousands of other wives. Her knowledge and skills would
enable her to converse interestingly with educated men, and
should she ever get separated from her husband or find herself
in distress in a foreign country, she could put her talents to
“S, When the moment is right, coitus can begin. The good use to earn a decent living by teaching.
woman lets go of her foot, signalling her
4 readiness, so her left leg lies hard against his Among the arts a woman would learn were singing, dancing
shoulder. Her hands are on the ground behind her to and drawing, cooking, perfumery, jewellery, tattooing, reading,
support her weight. He clasps her back and draws her on composing poems, play-acting, clay modelling, archery,
to him. United, the lovers maintain this deeply penetrative languages and hairdressing. She would also discover how to fix

pose with very little movement until they feel full of each stained glass into a floor, make lemonades and sherbets,

other's presence. fashion parrots out of thread, play a tune on glasses filled with
water, fight with a sword, gamble, trick people out of their
rightful property by magic and sorcery, and teach parrots and
4
starlings to speak. Add to this an understanding of fighting with
cocks, quails and rams, knowledge of mineralogy and warfa (ap)

and expertise in gymnastics, and the picture of a leisured life =

ancient India is complete.

Of course the Kama Shastra is just part of the Kama Sutra,

which even young girls studied avidly before marriage.

Love Positions 51
 me a
=
OF AF

Then the man clasps her wrists, she clasps his,

and they both lower themselves gently down into

the pillows. Her legs slide along his sides,

mirroring the pose of his legs. They each raise one arm

above their heads in a gesture of openness to the heavens,

still clasping each other with the other hand.
 as

The child bride

t was common in ancient India for girls to be married off by
arrangement at a young age, but a child-bride still had to be
won over by her prospective husband. He could start to
interest her by playing games like hide-and-seek or blind man's
4
buff, or finding a trinket hidden in one of several little heaps of
wheat. He could bring her wooden dolls, balls of coloured
thread, cages of partridges, little clay figures, buffalo horn
carvings, paints and dyes, even ‘machines for throwing water
about’ — the more unusual the gift, the greater his chance of
success. He could perform juggling tricks to make her laugh,
act out fictitious stories about members of her fami y, pick

flowers and show her how to make garlands, teach her how to
play with dice and cards and buy her earrings and a guitar.
Having made an impression, he should use her nurse's
daughter as a go-between, telling the child of his great skill in
the art of sexual enjoyment.
Above: |n this love pose, gazing

into each other's eyes is followed Once this subject has been broached, it is the turn of the young
by gazing into heaven to discover girl to show how she feels. If she finds him attractive, she will

the direct experience of ever- blush and look away when he speaks to her, or gaze at him
lasting power and transcendence. secretly from under her eyelashes. She will hang her head

The stars are symbols of the spirit, when he asks a question and answer indistinctly, letting her

guiding lights shining in the words trail shyly away. She can shower kisses on the young

darkness. children in her care, behave affectionately to his servants and

wilfully with her own. Finally, she can send him a ring or a
garland by a female friend, upon which he must do everything
he can to gain her hand in marriage.

Love Positions 53
Feeding
the Peacock
The title of this love pose comes from the Indian miniature shown
on p.57, in which the woman holds out a golden cup for the male
peacock to peck out of, while her lover's lingam is inside her. The
peacock's beak is a metaphor for the lingam, and the gold cup
stands for the yoni. Lovers have to be the right height to achieve
the pose illustrated in the miniature, but if they are not, the
woman can stand on a bench or on the bottom step of a flight of
stairs. This pose is one that can be adopted in a hurry, for example,
while out for a country walk, in which case a tree would provide
useful support.

A good way to get into the simple standing pose

is for the woman to sit with her legs apart on a

+
piece of furniture, such as the back of a sofa, so

that she is slightly higher than her partner's genitals. The

man squats on his haunches between his partner's legs,

from where he can kiss ner breasts. She can bend to kiss

his mouth.

54 Love Positions
 The virtuous
WITe
virtuous wife in ancient India was one who regarded

her husband as a god and did everything to please

him. Under his direction, she was to take care of the
family, keep the house neat and clean and full of flowers, tend
the garden and the sanctuary of the household gods, and get
everything ready for the sacrifices held in the morning, noon

and evening. The garden she should plant with green

vegetables, radishes, potatoes, beets, mangoes, cucumbers,

aubergines, pumpkins, garlic, onions, sugar cane, fig trees,

mustard, parsley, fennel and scented flowers and grasses. In

secret corners of the garden she should have seats and

arbours, and in the centre a soothing water feature, such as a
pool or well.
‘yWhen the time is right, the man stands and lifts
VA his partner on to his lingam. She holds on firmly A good cook who pays attention to her husband's preferences
vom (OUNC his neck and shoulder and grasps his waist and nutritious requirements, the wife leaps up when she hear: n
with her thighs. In this position the couple can have her husband returning home and washes his feet. She avoid (Sp)
vigorous intercourse. The woman moves strongly against making unsuitable friends, such as beggars, fortune tellers an d
her partner, while he supports -her bottom with his arms, witches, takes care not to discuss her husband's affairs behind

helping to thrust her against him. his back and keeps scrupulous household accounts. She turns
effover milk into ghee and makes rope and cords from the bark
of trees. She supervises the tilling of the fields, the pounding of
the rice and the care of the livestock — rams, cocks, quails,
parrots, starlings, cuckoos, peacocks, monkeys and deer. She
gives her worn-out clothes to the servants, and presents her
husband's visitors with flowers, ointment, incense and betel
leaves. For everyday she dresses modestly with few
adornments, but for her husband she will wear her most

colourful clothes, jewellery, flowers and perfumes. When her

husband is away, she spends her time fasting and waiting
anxiously for news of him.

Love Positions 55
 f 2 In this position it is easy to tire. The man can
, lower his partner gently to the ground, or to a
' stool or cushion of the right height, so they can
stand, still united, ‘feeding the peacock’, Stillness is an J 1

important part of tantric sex. It allows exquisite sensations The love iS ttt
to build up in all the sexual nerve endings, until some kind

of movement is urgently required. Now the couple can he lovers of the Kama Sutra live in a world of formalized

move very gently, tuning completely into the feelings in behaviour where problems must be driven
their genitals. Finally, when they can stand gentleness no underground. Women must learn to bite their lips and
more, the man picks up his partner again and carries her to be submissive. If a husband behaves badly, his wife should not

the couch, where vigorous thrusting is resumed. blame him excessively, even though she might be hurt. She
should avoid black looks, talking behind his back, and standing
around in doorways where people can see and admire her,
Above all, she should not take her revenge by wandering in
£
pleasure groves, where there is certain danger of meeting
tractive men with time on their hands. Instead, she should
fad)

remain dutifully indoors, keeping her body, her teeth, her hair
and everything belonging to her tidy, sweet and clean.

Should a love quarrel erupt despite the woman's best efforts to

grit her perfectly clean teeth and avoid marring her beauty with
murderous looks, it must follow a prescribed pattern. The wife

is allowed to pull her husband's hair and kick him, but she
should withdraw no further than the doorway. Aggressive
feelings are to be contained in ritual striking, crying out, biting
and piercing with the nails. It is not surprising, since there is no
other outlet for negative feelings, that Vatsyayana conside n

sadism part of normal lovemaking. He gives lists prescribing

with what force and on which parts of the body cruel practices

may be carried out.

Above: Here it is the woman who

engages in a diversionary tactic to

take her partner’s mind off the

urgency of sex and make him last

longer. If you don’t have a peacock

to hand, feed your lover grapes.

Peel them first of course.

Love Positions 57
The Plough
If you are going to try this position on the bed, make sure that it
is firm — a soft surface might wobble and upset the lovers’ balance.
A thick duvet is more comfortable for the man's knees than a
bristly carpet. Allow plenty of soft cushions for the woman to rest
on. This gentle pose can subside into ‘spoons’, in which the man
rolls over to lie behind his partner, so that both are on their sides,
with her fitting into his lap. 'Spoons' is a late-night position, a
comforting one in which to fall asleep with the promise of
continuing lovemaking in the morning.

The woman bends forward, placing her palms flat

on the ground at either side of her knees. Her
forehead touches the ground in front of them.
When the moment is right, he enters her.

The man kneels down and the woman sits astride his

lap, facing away from him. He has his arms around

her waist. In this position he can caress her breasts.

58 Love Positions
 Biting
ot just nibbling but passionate devouring with lips,
teeth and tongue and even angry vicious biting were

apparently commonplace in the lovers’ repertoire of

ancient India. Perhaps boredom led the indolent upper classes

into sadistic practices, Vatsyayana favoured bright strong teeth

that would take well to dyeing red or black. He liked to s ee
them even, unbroken and above all sharp. Good teeth could be
used to inflict various bites on the lover's skin, such as the

hidden bite, the swollen bite, the line of jewels, the brok en

cloud and the bite of the boar. The left cheek was consider ed

a prime site for biting, as well as the throat, the armpit and the
joints of the thighs.

Vatsyayana had a curious idea that if men and women enjoyed

biting each other, even the passing of a hundred years would
not dim the fire of their love. He was keen that anger should be
expressed as violently as possible and advocated the
dangerous practice of biting in a love quarrel. ‘When a man
bites a woman forcibly, she should angrily do the same to him
with double force.’ The quarrel, he believed, would turn into
ecstatic lovemaking: '...she should take hold of her lover by the
hair, and bend his head down, and kiss his lower lip, and then

being intoxicated with love, she should shut her eyes and bite
him in various places.'

She stretches her right leg back along the side of When the lovers next met, she would show him the wounds he

“his right leg, supporting herself on the ground had inflicted on her, her eyes flashing with rage, and the painful

’ while keeping her left leg bent. She lowers herself business would begin all over again.

on to the cushions, resting her head on her right arm.

Love Positions 59
i AN
AN
 Stretching his arms along her back, the man can
now rock gently into her. All she has to do is
concentrate on the sensations in her yoni,
hugging his lingam tightly.

A day of
oleasure
n rising, the student of the Kama Sutra performed an
elaborate toilet, which included shaving all body hair
bathing, perfuming his body and making up his eyes
and mouth in front of a mirror. He would chew betel leaves to

freshen his breath, perhaps stain his teeth red or black, then
take breakfast, after which he spent some time training hin
parrots to speak and his quails, cocks and rams to fight. The

remaining hour or two before lunch were devoted to literature

and drama. A nap followed during the heat of the day. Then th (a>)
citizen dressed in his finery and ornaments and went out
visiting. Sitting with friends, he would talk and drink cordials
made from the bark of trees as well as from fruits and flowers.

Other social diversions included picnics, singing, walks in the

garden and pelting one another with the scented blossoms of
4
he kadamba tree. Sometimes there were swimming parties,
though the servants were instructed to make sure no
dangerous animals lurked in the water. At other times the
rlends were entertained by acrobats or jesters. All this was a
gentle build-up to the pleasures of the night. When dusk fell,
the men waited in a room full of perfume and flowers for the
women of their choice to arrive.

Above: Though the woman’s body

remains still, she can exercise Tym

control by clenching the muscles

of her yoni. In tantric sex, it is

these small internal movements

that make all the difference,

creating a rich symphony of subtle

sensations.

Love Positions 61
Temple
The temple is not as difficult as it looks for those with yoga
training who have very supple legs. The final tantric pose is
outwardly motionless, but the feelings are intense if the couple
have strong pelvic muscle control. Lovers who are daunted by the
exotic leg bends could follow the instructions to stage three for a
gentle rocking pose that is easy to achieve.

The surface should be firm — a futon would be

excellent, but most beds are too soft for this

pose, as any movement would tip the couple

over. The man em sits on the floor with a straight back, 1 his

knees pointing outwards and the soles of his feet together.

The woman sits inside his legs, with her legs round his
waist and her soles together behind him. He holds her
gently round the waist, while she grips his back. In this
position the lovers can kiss until they are well aroused,

When the time is right the man lifts his partner up

and forward and penetrates her. She now leans

back to support herself with her palms flat on the

gro Ind behind | er, She lifts her buttocks off the floor and
her right leg ove his shoulder. She follows with her left leg
SO hat both legs are parallel. The lovers gaze into each
other's eyes a id the man rocks his partner gently

bac wards and orwards,

IND}
 Sex aids
ildoes were common sex aids in ancient India. They

were often fashioned in the form of a sheath to be

worn over the lingam and increase its size. They were
made of precious materials, such as gold, silver and ivory, and
+
sometimes of wood, tin or lead. The consequences of rubbing
4
he delicate mucous membranes of the vagina with poisonous
ead do not bear thinking about. For solitary pleasure or mutual
use in the harem, women used bulbous gourds or roots, well
oiled, or bundles of reeds tied together and softened with the
extracts of plants.

In southern India there was a strong fashion for piercing. In fact

it was believed that women could not get true sexual pleasure
unless their partner had a ring or other ornament attached to his
lingam. Vatsyayana instructs his student to pierce the lingam
with a sharp instrument, then stand in water until the blood

stops flowing. That night he should have vigorous sex, ‘in order
to clean the hole’. Thereafter, he should clean the hole regularly
“Y Now the man leans back to support his own with liquorice and honey and gradually increase the size of the
weight on the floor with palms flat and fingers hole by putting into it small pieces of cane and fruit stalks, until
/ pointing backwards. He lifts first his right leg and it is big enough to take a heron bone or other ornament.
then his left on to her shoulders. In this position the couple
can rock gently against one another.

Love Positions 68
 The man moves his right leg to the grou id and
the w oman clasps his foot in he r right hai d. She

now drops her le leg to the —loor alongside his

body. The man holds up | s right arm, s le raises rer left

arm and they c asp hands a ove their hea ds (above). If this

pose is uncomfortable, the couple can ¢ rop bath egs to

the ground anc lean close 0 kiss (left),

 Cegaesens
he world's first prostitutes were priestesses who

performed sacred sexual rites in temples dedicated to

the goddess. By the time of Vatsyayana, prostitution

had moved out of the temple and into the boudoir, but the

tantric sages still Saw Sex as a mystic and healing experience

and courtesans were held in the highest regard.

The life of a courtesan was in many ways preferable to the life

a wife. Courtesans were usually women of considerable

intellect and much better educated than their married sisters.
Witty, amusing, talented and amorous, they were the equals of

the interesting and powerful men they attracted. Part of their

allure was that they were also the only women of their day to
enjoy financial and social independence.

Though courtesans were in the business of love to earn money,

hey didn't sit back and wait for customers to come to them.
=
=nstead, a clever courtesan soug ht out a rich and influential man

and set about seducing him, by giving him garlands of flowers

and precious ointments, telling h im entertaining stories, sending
fad) jester or masseur to his house , OF inviting him to a cock fight.

Above: The four-poster bed with Once the man was snared, she kept his interest by treating him

its rich canopy and pure white quilt ike a god and making herself indispensable while remaining
aloof from him in her heart. This made him shower her w h
4
provides the perfect setting for a

pose dedicated to the goddess. riches, always wanting more.

Indian lovers surround themselves

with a variety of plump cushions

for comfort and support.

Love Positions 65
shoal of Fish This position is so-named because the woman looks as though she
is swimming. She supports her torso on a convenient piece of
furniture, such as the back of a couch, and the man moves, first
gently and then more vigorously, between her legs.

The man puts his left knee on the floor and his

right foot on the floor with his right knee at a right

angle. The woman sits on his lap facing away

from him with her right knee forward and her left knee

pointing down to the ground. The man supports her round

the waist and she rests her hands on his. In this position he

can kiss the nape of her neck and caress her breasts.

66 _ Love Positions
 S oe
ot
mistress
he courtesan of the Kama Sutra is a skilled manipulator
of male vanity. Socially and intellectually the equal of
her lover, her job is nevertheless to make herself into
his slave. This she does by presenting a perfect mirror to his

feelings, laughing when he is happy, pining away when he is

sick, looking downcast even when he sighs or yawns, hating his
enemies, never showing irritation or anger, pretending jealousy

of other women, wishing to have a child by him, eating the food

he leaves on his plate, pleasuring him in any way he wants and

expressing amazement at his accomplishments and his rare

knowledge of the sexual arts. If anyone should try to come

between them, she should threaten to take her own life by

poisoning, stabbing or hanging herself.

For these services, the courtesan is deservedly well rewarded.

Yet still she may feel like tricking more money and gifts out o
f

her lover, probably out of a mischievous desire to exploit him in

revenge for subjugating her personality to his every whim.

Vatsyayana lists twenty-seven ways in which a mistress can

He holds her by the waist and she drops her torso wheedle money out of a gullible lover, including pretending tha
gracefully forwards, supporting her weight on her her house has burned down and her jewels have been stolen,
arms on a piece of furniture. or that she needs to buy new clothes or upgrade her cooking

utensils in line with those of her friends.

Love Positions 67
“eo sion its

Seem
ie
 The man stands up, sliding his hands along his

partner's sides to grip her by the thighs and lift

her on to his erect lingam. She keeps her legs

straight behind her to allow him freedom of movement. The

Adultery
man controls the pace, thrusting first gently and then
passionately as both lovers thrill to the depth of penetration
this position affords.

dultery was a popular pastime in ancient India and

daily life offered plenty of opportunities for adventure.

The man who delivered corn and filled the
householder's granary was invited indoors by his wife, as were
the handyman, the cleaner, the labourer in —he fields and the

door-to-door salesmen of cotton, wool, flax, hemp and thread.

+
While the cowherds enjoyed the cow girls, the superintendents
of widows enjoyed the widows in their charge and the

superintendents of markets found secret corners in which to

entertain their female customers. On warm evenings villagers

roamed the streets looking for excitement, while those left at
home bedded the wives of their sons.

A king with a harem needed to make more elaborate plans for

seduction. During the spring festival of the eighth moon it was
4 4
he custom for the townswomen to visit the ladies of the harem

and chat, drink cordials and play games until dawn. If one of
4 hi
hese visitors pleased the king, he would instruct one of his

wives to accost the woman as she left the palace and invite her
to look around. She would be shown the bower of the coral

creeper and the bower covered in vines, the garden house with
its floor inlaid with precious stones, the pavilion on the lake, the

Above: The lovers choose the secret passages in the walls of the palace, the priceless works

paved terrace of a roof garden in of art, the aviaries of birds and the cages of lions and tigers.
the palace for this pose. There is a While the visitor was being impressed by the king's wealth and

special freedom in making love taste, his wife would tell her of her husband's love for her and
outside. promise her good fortune if she agreed to a rendezvous, at the
same time giving her a promise of absolute secrecy. In the
unlikely event of her declining to lie with the king, she would be
sent away with friendly wishes and gifts.

Love Positions 69
The Wheel
Yoga practice will give the woman the strength, flexibility of
spine and stamina she needs for this love pose. The angle of
penetration ensures that her G-spot is stimulated, which gives
some women heightened pleasure. However practised and supple
his partner is, the man should be gentle in this pose, taking care
to support the small of her back and avoiding vigorous thrusting.
He should also protect his own back by bending at the knees
when he lowers her to the ground, and again when he lifts her
back up to face him. The couple can continue lovemaking with
her arms around his neck.

First the woman lies flat on the ground with her

feet in line with her hips. She brings her arms up

and over her head to place her hands as flat as

she can on the floor by her ears. Her fingers should point
towards her toes.

She inhales and arches her back to lift her hips

high off the floor, dropping her head back in line

with her arms. This is the Wheel position. The

man kneels inside her legs on his left knee. His right foot

is flat on the ground and his right leg bent at a right angle
at the knee

7O_ Love Positions

 On polygamy
he status of a wife in ancient India was poor. Vatsyayana
decla es that a man is justified in taking another wife if

his first wife is ill-tempered, if she produces no children,

or only daughters, or merely if he has a roving eye. For this

reason, he advises the wife to work very hard to secure the
heart of h er husband, Bu —"if a second wife is chosen despite all

her efforts, the first wife has to become even more subservient,

biting back her jealou sy and giving the new wife pride of place.
She should even help the bride to adorn herself in front of their

husband, and show her every kindness and attention. But if a

third wife appears, the elder wi € attains a position of some
£

power. Having befriended wife number two, she can instigate

quarrels between her and the new favourite, which will hopefully
turn her husband against both of them. Everywhere in the Kama

Sutra the message abo ut bad feelings is the same: don't

express them openly, but if you get the chance to be devious,
your revenge will be all th € sweeter!
f ) The man holds his partner round the waist to
< support the small of her back. When she fee S A wife who Is disliked by her husband and his other wives is in

ar, comfortable and ready, he lifts her off the ground, an unenviable position. Her route back to favour lies in

bending his knees to protect his own back from the strai n befriendin g the favourite wife, teaching her all she knows and

of her weight. She wraps her right leg around him, keepin g ooking after her children as if they were her own. She can also

her left foot on the ground for support. He can now gent take on religious duties and lead in vows and fasts, endearing

enter her, herself by doing jobs no one else wants to do. She can
reconcile quarrelling wives and become her husband's
confidante, procuring him secret meetings with other women.
n this way she regains his affection.

Love Positions 71
 When the man is standing firmly with straight

legs, and can support her weight with his hands

=

under her waist, the woman lifts her left foot off

the ground and wraps both her legs round his back. In this

highly sensitive position the couple can move very gently

against each other.

72. Love Positions

 Seduction
he way to charm a woman, says Vatsyayana, is with

omantic conversation. The citizen is advised to show

‘an increased liking for the new foliage of trees and
such things’. If his sweet words fall on deaf ears, he is advised
to give the object of his desire some intoxicating substance,

carry her off and enjoy her before she has time to come round,
then immediately set up the marriage ceremony. Neither should
fe
he be afraid of going to even greater lengths. Vatsyayana
advises his student to ambush the reluctant woman of his

dreams while she is walking in the garden. He should attack

and kill her guards, then carry her off and proceed as before.

A married woman needs a different approach. Poetic talk of

budding leaves will be wasted here. Instead, the citizen should

adopt the discreet language of amorous signs: pull on his
moustache, make a clicking sound with his fingernails, cause
his ornaments to tinkle and bite his lower lip. His object in
seducing a married woman may not be lust after all, but a
burning desire to injure her husband. Once she has been won

over, the husband can safely be killed and robbed of his money
Above: When the lovers are ready and possessions.

for more vigorous thrusting, the

man can lift his partner up,

supporting her back and bending

his knees, so that she is sitting

upright with her legs clasped

behind his back and her arms

around his neck. From this

position, she can lower her feet

to the ground to come out of the

love pose.

Love Positions 73
Cocoon
This close embrace can lead quite naturally into Butterfly, page 76.

oo The man kneels on the bed on both knees,

squatting comfortably on his heels. The woman

ze8
1 sits astride his lap with her feet on the bed behind

him and they kiss and caress each other.

) The man embraces his partner closely, wrapping his

| arms lovingly round her back. She lifts her feet off
sxx the ground and leans back into his embrace, raising
her legs as high as she can for the deepest possible angle of
penetration. The man rocks her gently back and forth,

74 Love Positions
 TMOw a poor Girl
Can win a good
Nusband
irl who comes from a poor family or who has been

phaned may wish to arrange her own marriage. If

6S}
ey

W 4
she can't find a strong, good looking man to be her
husband, she would do well, says Vatsyayana, to pick one with
vi
a weak mind, whom she can persuade to act in defiance of his
parents. Having selected her target, she should study his habits
so she can bump into him at every opportunity, and also use

her mother and her female friends as go-betweens. When she

gets her beloved alone in a private place, she can give him
flowers, betel nut leaves and perfumes. She can also

demonstrate her skills in the delightful arts of scratching him

and pressing him with her nails, and in shampooing

(massaging) his body. Flirtatious talk is the order of the day, so

she asks him coqueitishly how he would go about winning the

heart of a pretty girl.

Above: The calmness of the

lovers’ expressions and the cosy While pretending to hold back, the girl nevertheless lets her

warmth of their embrace shows beloved take certain liberties. She acts as though she doesn't
that this pose is meant to give understand his motives, but allows him to kiss her, and when
+
gentle comfort. he begs to have sex, she protests, but eventually and with a

great deal of feigned resistance allows him to touch her private

parts. When she is thoroughly convinced that he will never
leave her, she gives herself to him on the understanding that
i
they will be married quickly afterwards. Scented grasses and
Te
fire are brought immediately from the house of a Brahman and
the couple exchange vows.

Love Positions 75
putter
The potential for movement in the Butterfly position is limited,
but this is more than made up for by the intense genital pressure,
which makes contractions of the pelvic muscles more strongly felt.
The woman leans back to increase the pressure. The man has his
right knee raised, which balances her weight and reduces strain on
his back. From this position, the couple could move into the
Wheel (p.70).

The man kneels on both knees, squatting on his

heels with the balls of his feet on the ground. The

woman sits astride his lap with her feet on the

floor behind him and they kiss and caress each other.

4 When the moment is right, the man raises his

right knee, putting his right foot flat on the floor in

front of him. At the same time he lifts his partner

with his right arm around her waist and his left hand on her
shoulder. She supports her weight on both feet, leaning

against his right leg as he enters her.

76 Love Positions
 Courting
hen aman loves a girl he should sit next to her at

parties and gathe rings and take every opportunity

to touch her. He places his foo on hers and
4
touches each of her toes with h is own, pressing the ends of her

ails. If she lets him do this, he -s

fab) <es her foot in his hand and

presses her toes with his finge a f he is a visitor at her house

and she is washing his feet, he squeezes one of her fingers

Netween two of his toes, an whenever their eyes meet we he

ooks significantly at ner and with longing. When he is brought

f,
ragrant water for rinsing his moutn, he sprinkles it on his
beloved instead. As she bedi ns to fall in love with him, he

Now she lifts her right leg over his left upper arm craftily pretends illness and begs ner to come to his house.
and her left leg over his right upper arm. She There she finds him lounging on a couch in a darkened room
¥ i
4
maa’ \eans back, clasping her arms round his neck, and he presses her cool hanc on his forehead, moaning that

and he supports he weight against his leg and in his arms, only she can prepare the med icine that will cure him. He then

The balance and tension of this pose are important to persuades her to tend him wit herbal remedies for three days

prevent damage to the man's back. and three nights, during which =" ne he talks softly to her, lettinc Si®

her into the secrets of his nea t. Vatsyayana notes that though

a man loves a woman ever so much, he will never be able to ey

ence
at
RS
ARAR
AARSON2). igre
Ste
.
SRhmRacAinegte
4%at
sae
eJ

win her over without a great deal of talk.

al
Mea
She
kong
Left: A perfect way to enjoy a
Sth
eR
EI
Soke
radiant afternoon. The majestic

panorama and gilded weapons tell +

eat

of wealth and power. The princ e

and his consort have no need tO

hide themselves from the world

because they own all they can See.

Love Positions 7
 tan
In this position the woman is in control — the man is both vulnerable
and totally pampered, lying back on cushions with his legs in the air,
while she clasps him and bounces gently up and down. Or she can
decide to be motionless, gazing into her lover's eyes and using her
pelvic floor muscles to alternately grip and release his lingam. Make
sure the man's back is comfortable, as the woman is holding on to
him to keep her balance, not to support him.

The woman sits upright on the bed with her knees

pointing outwards and the soles of her feet pointing

towards each other in front of her. The man sits

inside her legs, with his legs over hers and the soles of his fee
together behind her back. He clasps her around the shoulder
d fo) she embraces his waist. She puts her feet flat on the bed

to support herself. In this position the couple can kiss and

arouse each other,

78 Love Positions
 Heaven
and Earth
efore the beginning was chaos, an ocean of menstrual
blood raging in the swollen womb of the goddess Kali,
Out of her cosmic period pain, Kali created the
universe in the form of an egg. It rose to the surface of the
primeval waters of birth then split in two: the top half blazed

sun-gold and became the heavens, the bottom half shimmered

moon-silver and was the Earth.

Ever since the split of the Cosmic Egg and the birth of the
world, there has been polarity and attraction and a desire for

Opposites to fuse in a union of everlasting orgasmic bliss. This

desire is the creative force, the sexual energy that dwells in all
£
living things. In many anc ent cultures, the creative orce was
+
represented by a spiral, a movement that can rise and expand
infinitely, as it can fall and dwindle, without ever changing. The
symbol of both the orgasmic clitoris and the horn of plenty, the
+
spiral stands for the repetitive rhythm of life. The 20th-century

discovery of the double helix of DNA, the genetic material that

holds the code of life, would not have surprised the ancients.

The man now puts his arms back to lower himself

among the cushions, and when he is
sea COMfortable, he lifts first his right leg and then his
left over his partner's shoulders and rests his ankles at
either side of her neck. She clasps her lover to her, with
her arms over his uplifted legs.

Love Positions 79
 The woman orings | er feet back towards her, a 71d

plants them lat on t re bed so she is squatting on

her haunches. Whe 1 they are both aroused, sh e

guides his lingam ins yoni, pressing down on th €

floor with her feet and |i her buttocks to receive him.

 VVoman on top
hen Kali and Shiva join in sexual union, Shiva is
often seen in the corpse pose, while Kali takes the

energetic role, squatting on top of him, bouncing

energetically on his cosmic phallus. This was the ideal of

maithuna, where Kali took her orgasmic pleasure while Shiva
controlled and reserved his own, thus recharging his powers
from her sexual energy.

This position was forbidden by the patriarchs, who didn't like

the idea of a woman on top. According to Hebrew mythology,

the first woman was not Eve but Li ith, and God created her in
the same moment that he created Adam, by breathi ng life into
a lump of clay. God told the couple + to go forth and multiply, and
Lilith responded enthusiastically, jumping on top of Adam like
Kali did with Shiva. But Adam didn't like it. The first man was
also the first male chauvinist, and he insisted that Lilith, as a

subordinate woman, should lie underneath him. Lilith argued

logically that she was his equal and could have sex any way she
wanted. Frustrated,
she used her magical powers to fly away to
Above: The sultan lies back, the desert, where she made love imaginatively with many
Sipping a delicious cordial from a spirit beings.
silver goblet, and abandons himself

to the attentions of his consort. Adam was upset and complained to God that he had lost his

Note how Indian lovers of both companion, so God created Eve out of one of his ribs. And

sexes removed all body hair — for Eve was subservient, because she came afterwards. But
hygiene, aesthetics, and greater Lilith heard about this and returned as a serpent to tempt her

skin-to-skin feel. sister with the fruit of knowledge. Everyone knows what
happened next, but no one has ever been clear what the

original sin was. Perhaps God had forgotten his command to

multiply, or that he had given the humans sexual organs with

which to do it.

Love Positions 81
Antelope
Antelope provides the woman with a gracefully seductive sequence
of sliding movements against her partner's body; she will benefit
from the strength and suppleness that comes with yoga training.
She needs to trust that her partner will support her weight as she
lifts off into his arms, and he should protect his back at moments
of strain by bending his legs at the knee. This is not the easiest
pose, but practice will develop a fluid dance-like style that has its
own excitement.

~\ The man stands slowly, supporting her around

the back. She lifts both feet off the ground,
clasping her legs behind his back.

The lovers stand facing each other with feet

together. The man kneels at his partner's feet

with his right knee on the ground and his left knee
bent. He clasps her round the waist as she sits on his left
thigh and puts her arms round his neck.

82 Love Positions
 Congress with
the mouth
unuchs disguised as women specialized in performing

oral sex — congress with the mouth — on their male

customers. Many were employed in massage parlours.

A homosexual eunuch giving a man a massage — or
shampooing him, as it was called — would pay particular

attention to his client's upper thighs and abdomen. If the man's

lingam became erect, the eunuch pressed it between his

hands, chiding his client for gettingug into such a state. If the man
said nothing, the eunuch would proceed with congress of the
mouth. But if the man ordered him to do it, he would protest,

and pretend to give in only reluctantly.

Oral sex began with ‘nominal congress’ — holding the man's

lingam in his hand and moving it about in his mouth. After each

Stage of the congress, the eunuch expressed a wish to stop,

but would be told by the man to carry on, with increasing

urgency. Stage two was to cover the end of the lingam with the
§ The man now bends forward to lower his partner fingers pressed together like the bud of a plant and lick and
in front of him. Clasping her firmly round her nibble the shaft. The next phase was to suck and nibble the

d back, he lifts her on to his erect lingam, and she head of the lingam, gradually taking more and more of It into
of
pushes against him with her legs to position herself he mouth in a deliciously vigorous action called ‘sucking

comfortably, In his position both lovers are excited by the nango’. Finally, the client could bear it no longer and asked for

limited opportunity for movement. he finale, ‘swallowing up’.

many parts of India, oral sex was practised exclusively by

men on men, but the liberal Vatsyayana was of the opinion that

everyone should act according to their own inclinations. He

describes how some men have servants employed to suck the

mango, while friends do it among themselves. The women of

the harem perform the acts of the mouth on one another's

yonis, while for many heterosexual couples it provides the

ultimate experience of bliss.

Love Positions 83
ANAT
Neal
Nh
 Finally, the man lowers his partner to the ground,
and she places her palms on the floor in front of
G

&i
Gounss

4q
his feet to support herself. In this position, the
energy flows between them.

On jealousy
hen a woman is very much in love with a man, she

can't bear to hear him talk of other women,

especially not women he admires and might prefer

to her. The worst insult is to be called another woman's name

by mistake. If this happens, she becomes enraged, cries out,

tosses her hair about, hits out at her lover, falls out of bed or
off her chair, or flings her garlands and jewellery to the floor and
hurls herself after them, beating the rug with her fists in a
violent tantrum,

t is time for her lover to effect a reconciliation. He should pick

her up and lay her gently on the bed. But she is not ready for
soft words, and in her fury she grabs hold of his head and tries
0 rip. Out chunks of his hair, kicks him as hard as she can in

the back or on his chest or head or any other available part of

his body, then heads for the door. Now she has reached the
imit of her anger. To leave the house would be considered
unforgivable, so she sits in the doorway shedding tears of rage
and despair. This prompts him to redouble his efforts to

apologize and reassure, and when she judges that she has
driven him far enough, she puts her arms around him,
continuing to berate him, but showing him all the while that she
wants to go to bed, where the quarrel is made up with the most

passionate sex.

Above: The couple are oblivious

of the rose gardens beneath the

moody sky. Later they will walk

there and breathe in the heady

perfume as the first drops of

monsoon rain begin to fall.

Love Positions 85
 asthan
The miniature on p.89 shows two Europeans, a Portuguese naval
officer and his lover, practising the tantric arts in Rajasthan in the
latter half of the 17th century. Foreign visitors to India were often
enthusiastic exponents of tantra, though sometimes their clumsy
efforts caused amusement among local yogis. The sideways pose
shown in the miniature is a comfortable one for beginners, who
can achieve it easily from a sitting position. The sequence below
demonstrates a more advanced version, showing how the pose can
be greatly enhanced for lovers experienced in yoga.

The man sits on the floor with his back straight

and his legs stretched out in front of him. His

partner sits sideways on his lap, with her right arm

around his shoulder. Her legs are together, with feet

pointing behind him. The couple gaze into each other's

eyes as he embraces her lovingly.

86. Love Positions

 The eleonant
woman
he Kama Sutra calls the energetic female lover an
(4p) ephant woman. When her partner has tired himself
out with lovemaking and his desire remains unsatisfied,
she encourages him to lie on his back so that she can take the
more vigorous role. With flowers twisted into her loosely
hanging hair and her smiles broken by hard breathing, she
presses her lover's chest with her breasts. At first she is bashful

and ashamed of her eagerness, but then she is overtaken by

passion and performs her part with abandon.

The woman can perform any of the acts done by the man, and
in addition, her specialities are ‘the pair of tongs’, ‘the top’ and
The woman leans back, placing her left hand on ‘the swing’. The pair of tongs is so named because the woman
his leg to support her weight. She curls her left holds the lingam in her yoni, sucking it inside her and squeezing
leg around the man's waist and clasping her right ittight for a long time. The top is a more difficult and acrobatic
ankle in her right hand, raises her leg gracefully in front of movement. With the lingam inside her yoni, she spins round on
his face, bringing it down to rest on his right shoulder, with her lover's body like a top. The effect is almost impossible to
toe pointing skywards. The man places his right palm imagine. Finally, in the swing, she rocks back and forward with

behind him to balance her movement. his lingam inside her.

When she is tired, she touches his forehead with her own and
+
rests in the tongs position until they are ready for the man jo)

resume the energetic role. Vatsyayana cautions against the

woman-on-top positions if she has her period, has recently
a
given birth, or is too heavy for her partner to bear her weight.

Love Positions 87
 ‘\ Now the man draws his
partner to him with his

: , right arm around her waist and she places her left
¥ foot flat on the bed to support herself. This is the
moment of entry. The woman puts her right arm around
her lover's neck. This pose offers little opportunity for SEXCSIne
movement. Instead, the couple feel love energy flowing
between them. Constant deep eye contact gives a powerful violence
feeling of bliss.

atsyayana was of the opinion that sexual intercourse

could be compared to a quarrel and he saw no
difference between sexual passion and violence.
Though he recognized that beating each other up during
lovemaking would be repugnant to some people, it may comé
as a surprise to the modern reader that for him, physical abuse
4
was the norm. Both men and women would wear their bruises

with pride, as sexual trophies. Any part of the body, including

the head, breasts, back and groin, were fair game, and striking
could be done with the flat of the hand, the back of the hand,
and even the fist. Our author recommends a series of ritual

sounds to accompany this unsavoury art. The one who

administers the blows makes sounds like ‘phut’ — something
falling into water, ‘phat’ — bamboo being split, ‘plat’, ‘hin’ and
the roar of thunder. The victin makes appropriate weeping or

cooing sounds, and may imitate the dove, cuckoo, bee,

pigeon, parrot, duck, goose or quail. As passion accelerates,
so the couple hit each other harder and faster to the end.

Vatsya reports that in some parts of the country, the people use

Above: When in Rajasthan... instruments when striking each other. A wedge of wood is the
tourists try love Indian-style, preferred weapon for wounding the bosom, scissors are aimed

complete with exotic drinks, at the head, a piercing instrument is used on the cheeks and

weaponry, and a view to write pincers on the back and sides. Vatsya draws the line at these

home about. practices — he calls them barbarous and base. He points out
that they have been known to cause fatalities. The King of the
Panchalas killed the courtesan Madhavasena with a block o
wood while they were having sex. King Shatakarni deprived
Queen Malayavati of her life with a pair of scissors in the marita
bed and Naradeva, hindered by his deformed hand, blinded a

dancing girl with a piercing instrument. Hopefully these salutary

tales spared the lives of some of his readers.

Love Positions 89
The Abduction
The man needs strong leg muscles to carry away his beloved in
this dramatic pose, which ends with her nestling among cushions,
secure in his arms. If other means failed to win a bride, Vatsyayana
recommended abduction. If the girl was a virgin, her lover would
be prepared to wait days to gain her confidence before the union
was consummated. If the woman was married, on the other hand,
her suitor might have to take his life in his hands and murder her
husband, before carrying her off into the woods, which is the story
told in the sequence below.

& 4%, The man stands tall, then lunges into the dramatic

Warrior pose, bringing his left leg forward so it is

soe bent at right angles at the knee, and leaving his

right leg stretched far behind him. His right foot is at right

angles to his body for extra grip and support, while his left
foot points forwards, His arms are at his side. Balance is all

important, and this simple move needs plenty of practice to

achieve gracefully.

\ The woman, who has been standing nearby ready

5
to meet her destiny, now places h er right foot on

a fis upper thigh and her left a m around his

shoulders in an attitude of sexual accepta nce. He gazes

into her eyes, placing his left hand under he ight knee and
his right arm around her waist. She puts her arms around
him in affirmation,
 On different
ways of lying
down
ouples should lie together, according to Vatsyayana,
according to the fit of their genitals. For the tightest fit
to accommodate small genitals on both sides, the
woman lies on her back with her buttocks on a pillow. The man
4
should apply oil to her yoni, to make entry easy. The next stage

for slightly larger genitals is called the yawning position. The

woman lies on her back and raises her thighs, bending her legs
at the knees. She lowers her knees to the sides. Th S affords
re
penetration that is both sharp and deep. In the position of the

wife of Indra, the largest genitals are accommodated. The

O Now with his help she swings her body round as woman lies on her back with her buttocks raised, bringing her
», though mounting a horse for the getaway. She thighs up to her sides and folding her legs at the knees like a
f sits astride his left leg, supporting herself on the frog. As Vatsya notes, this position requires some practice.

ground with her left foot, and embracing her lover in her
arms. She curls her right leg around him and he holds her Sometimes, the legs of both woman and man are stretched out
back in both his hands, straight. This can be done with the woman on her back or with
the pair on their sides, facing each other. In this position, the
woman can arch her groin towards her lover and clench her

yoni tightly. This is called the pressing position. If she puts her
upper thigh over that of her lover, this is the twining position,
Holding his lingam forcibly inside her yoni by practised muscle
control is called the mare's position. The woman can also lie on

her back and raise her legs up vertically, clasping them round
her lover's neck. From there, she can bring his torso down to
lie upon her own. She can vary the sensation by stretching out

one leg and not the other,

Love Positions 91
 When they are perfectly balanced, she lifts her

left leg off the ground and clasps it around his

back. She should weigh only lightly on his leg

as he maintains this powerful dynamic pose. He can

enter her now.

In the fina Stage of Ab duction, the man lowers his

lover to the pile of ct shions. t Is crucial here to

avoid bac Strain, So he shou ld bear her weight

on his leg as he lets her dow n, drawi Ng up his right leg

parallel with his lef . Gripping her arms in his, he is in a

position to rock backwards and forward S into her,

 IVING together
ome tantric sages were of the opinion that difficult love
poses were best practised in water. This might make
the standing position easier, as where the pair support

themselves leaning against a pillar. In a more difficult variation

of this position, the man supports himself against a wall and the
woman unites with him, sitting on his clasped hands and

throwing her arms around his neck. Her thighs are bent up
against her sides and she pushes against the wall with her feet,
bouncing his lingam in and out of her yoni. This is called
Suspended congress.

Sometimes the woman stands on all fours and her lover mounts
£
her like a bull. This is called the congress of the cow. If a man
enjoys two women together, this is called united congress. If
+
he's lucky enough to enjoy many women at once, it's called a
herd of cows. This happens quite often when a man Is

smuggled into the king's harem. In some parts of India, marvels

our author, it's common for one woman to share many men
Above: The prince has his way simultaneously — her husband and his friends. Vatsya finishes
with the young girl he has brought his treatise on different ways of congress with a brief mention

back to his palace. When their of anal sex — apparently it was especially enjoyed by the people

union has been consummated he of the south.

will call a Brahman priest to marry

them in front of a holy fire.

Love Positions 93
Startlower
The name of this pose comes from the calm elegant shapes the
lovers' bodies make as they entwine and subside, like a flower
unfolding. Starflower allows the couple to relax after an energetic
session of lovemaking. It is a warm and intimate pose that also
gives each person the space to remember and savour the
sensations they have just shared. In this comforting position it is
easy to drift off into a blissful sleep.

Cr) The woman sits dia

gonally on top of her partne
r
Jf with her knees up and her feet flat on the floor.
ot Her left leg is t hreaded under his right leg. Like
him, she leans back with her left arm and supports herself
on the floor with her han d. Now he enters her. Their right

arms cross, and they put their right hands on each other's
right shoulder, gazing ca mily into each other's eyes.

The man sits on the bed with his back straight

and his legs stretched out in front of him. He
: brings his right knee up and puts his foot flat on
the bed, level with his left knee. He leans back and puts his
hands behind him to support himself.

QA Love Positions
 Choosing a wife
he reward for choosing a good wife is a lifetime of
blessings, for she will give untarnished love, produce
healthy offspring and draw good friends. Vatsyayana
advises his student to look for a girl of his own social level. She
should come from a good family that is well connected with
many wealthy relations. She should also be beautiful, in
excellent health and of a placid disposition. However, the

number one requirement in a bride is virginity, which, given the

liberal morals of ancient Indian society, must have been hard to
ind unless the bride was very young indeed. Therefore, a man
f,

is advised to choose a prepubescent girl.

Before he proceeds, he should assure himself that she has no

concealed defects, such as a hook nose, upturned nostrils,
male genitalia, crooked thighs, a projecting forehead, sweaty
palms and feet, or a bald head. If she has been named after a

star, a tree or a river she will bring him bad luck, and also if her
name ends in ‘ror ‘I’.

The lovers begin to lower themselves gently on to Once he is satisfied that his choice is a good one, th aq)
the bed, letting their hands run down each other's prospective husband needs to enlist the help of his friends and
fs
arms as they bend their left elbows and go down relations. They will make it their business to get to know the
on their forearms. The woman slides both her legs out girl's family and promote his superior candidacy as her

straight at either side of her partner's body. husband, boasting of his fine ancestry and noble character, and
at the same time denigrating those of his rivals. One of his
friends should disguise himself as an astrologer and produce
lucky omens and signs and favourable conjunctions of the
planets to prove how fortunate the match is destined to be.

0 —sher friends can be employed to create jealous insecurity in

the girl's mother, by suggesting that other women are
scheming to have him marry their daughters. In this way, he will
quickly settle the matter so that a date can be fixed for the

wedding ceremony.

Love Positions 95
 As their hands part, the man stretches his right
leg out to touch the woman's left side, The lovers
gently twist their lower bodies towards each other
and their upper bodies away, so they are both together and
separate, joined, but each looking into his or her own
individual world. The woman rai ses her arms above her The Venus
head and clasps her hands in a sign of wholeness and
satisfaction, while her partner rests his left hand calmly and @mineia.
lovingly on her leg.
indu writers have left vivid descriptions of their ideal

woman, the goddess personified. They called her

Padma, meaning lotus, the symbol of the yoni. She
was heavily built and voluptuous, with fine textured skin as light
and yellowish as a mustard flower and a face as serene as a full

moon. Her flesh was soft and abundant, falling in three deep
folds across her belly. Her arms and legs were well rounded
and dimpled. Padma's bright amber eyes shone with gentle
shyness like a fawn's, and tilted upwards at the outer corners.
Special mention was made of her clear red caruncles, the

fleshy dots at the inner corners of the eyes, a beauty asset

neglected in the West. She had a straight, elegant nose. The
4
breasts of the goddess were — unsurprisingly — firm, full and

round, with dusky, well-defined nipples. Her yoni resembled the

otus bud unfurling into its full beauty and her love juices were
perfumed like a lily newly burst into flower,

Padma walked as gracefully as a swan glides across a mirror

pond and her low musical voice reminded those who heard it

of the sweet song of the kolika bird. Padma wore richly

Above: |n a variation of this love decorated garments of pure white, and adorned herself with
i,
pose, the young wom an prepares fine jewels. She ate little and slept lightly. Sne was meant to be

to strike her lover with a flower. looked at and enjoyed, but to keep herself quiet and

More violent forms of sado- unobtrusive. Her main virtues were her loyalty, obedience,

masochism were used by the courtesy and respectfulness towards her husband, and her |

leisured classes of ancient India to main pleasures lay in worshipping the gods and cultivating her . :A

release emotions stifled by an mind in intellectual conversation with holy men.

elaborate code of behaviour.

Love Positions Q7
Ine Horse
The woman needs a flexible back to be entirely comfortable with
this pose, which demands a certain amount of spine-twisting. ‘The
man should take care to be guided in the depth of his thrusting by
the receptivity of the woman’s yoni — the most comfortable final
position for her is with head down resting on her arms and
buttocks up, so her back is not hurt when she opens right up to her
lover’s vigorous enthusiasm.

‘ She lunges her left knee over his thighs. He

supports her round the waist with his left arm, and

his right hand encircles her right thigh.

The man kneels on the floor with his legs

ia together, his buttocks on his heels and his toes

H
@
2 and the balls of his feet on the floor. His partner
kneels at his left, their sides touching, their arms around
each other, his round her waist and hers round his head

and shoulders.

98 Love Positions
 Tne go-between
n cases where it's difficult to approach the object of your

love or to ascertain her feelings, Vatsyayana reckons it's

useful to employ a go-between. Thus a man who is in love oe

with a married woman and unsure of how she will react to his

proposal sends her a female servant of his whose job it is to

wheedle her way into the woman's confidence and beguile her
with flattery. The go-between whispers stories into the
beloved's ear, telling her that a woman of her wit, beauty and
good nature deserves far better than the husband she has, who
is hardly worthy to be her servant. She will blacken the man's
reputation, pointing out that he is dull, mean and untrustworthy.

If he is a small man lacking in passion — a hare man — and his

wife is a voluptuous woman and highly sexed — an elephant

woman — the discrepancy between them will be noted in mock

surprise. Once the ground has been prepared, the go-between

introduces the subject of her master, praising him to the skies

and announcing that he has fallen madly in love with her. On
the following visits she brings presents from the man —
ay
ornamental figures cut from leaves, earrings and garlands of
flowers concealing love letters.

A woman can also act as her own messenger, going herself =to sph
be
ty
hp
rad
Piety
ay
oe

the man she desires and telling him that she made passionate
FSS
oe’arinyae
Fe)
ag
yetoha
f ~) In this position the lovers can kiss and the man love to him in a dream. She gives the man a sweet-smelling
wi can caress his partner's genitals. flower whose stalk bears the marks of her teeth and nails and
%

emctt Y ss
gs
4,
says she knows that he has always been attracted to her. Then
she asks him who is better looking, she or his wife? Vatsya
recommends that such a woman should be met and

interviewed by the man in complete privacy and secrecy,

Love Positions QQ
 They clasp right hands and he guides her arm

over her head. She is now ready to lower herself

on to the pillows.

Supporting her hips with both hands, the man

now rises up on to his knees, sliding her further

’ forwards into the cushions. In the Horse position,

he can thrust more vigorously the more her pelvis is tilted

towards him.

100. Love Positions

 going wrong
S part of his advice to courtesans, Vatsyayana listS
eight ways of te ing when a man is going off you. She

should look out for changes in his temper and in the

colour of his face. She wi know something is wrong if he starts

letting her down, or fobbi ng her off with extravagant promises

he will never keep. Anoth ef sure sign is finding him whispering

mysteriously to his entourage, or, worse still, to a servant who

brings a private message from an unknown person,

As soon as the courtesan discovers that her lover's feelings

towards her are changing , she should act swiftly to get hold of
as much of his wealth as she can, even sending servants round
to his house disguised as bailiffs to remove his most valuable
possessions. Thus fortified, she can get rid of her lover before
he ditches her. Vatsya recommends disagreeable behaviour to
put him off.
yee
ae
eee
neve
Reece

The sage advises her to cut the man down to size by sneering
at his opinions and his learning, and by speaking knowledgeably
on topics he doesn't unde rstand. She can criticize other men for
faults and defects he knows he shares, or interrupt him when he
is in the middle of telling a story, or roll her eyes at her servants

and laugh when he tries to impress her. She can let him know
most plainly that she is disenchanted with him by her behaviour
Above: This colourful miniature in bed. She will refuse to let him kiss her mouth and neglect to

shows the richness and symmetry press her body against his when he embraces her, pretending

of the sultan’s pleasure garden. to be tired and lying as still as a log while he makes love. If he

Tinkling fountains, shady pavilions Still persists in visiting her after this, she should throw him from

and scented bowers were essential her house, Then according to Vatsya, she will have carried out

props in the art of seduction. her duty as a courtesan, which is to enjoy a man for the good

times and the rewards he gives her, then to take him for all he

has and send him packing,

Love Positions 101

rternity
This position is so called because of its spiral shape. Renewing his
pledge of love after an absence from home the man curls his body
protectively over the woman’s. This is an intimate, deeply
penetrating pose that can be achieved quite simply. The lovers gaze
forwards into the unknown, shielded from its terrors by their
engagement with one another. She pushes against him with her feet,
indicating separation; he hugs her to him with his arms in response.

The woman sits on the floor clasping her knees,

thinking of her lover. In sadness at his absence
she turns her body away from the door, bringing
her knees down to her left side and supporting herself on

the palms of her hands.

102. Love Positions

dy / ‘Shr
 eid

OV 1O.ecO@ ©
with separation -
f a man has to leave the country or is banished from |

temporarily by the king, his mistress will want to express he

love for him and her dread of their separation in the mos
ce rgent terms. First, says Vatsyayana, she should beg to

accompany him on his journey. If this is not possible, she wil

fall into a swoon and declare that her only obj ect in life is to be

united with her lover and that she does not wish to live withou
4
him. She can remind him of the times her mo her tried to come

between them, when she threatened to kill herself by taking

poison, starving to death, stabbing herself or tying a noose

round her neck and jumping from the branc h of a tree. If her

plea fails and he is determined to leave without her, she should

make him swear that he will return quickly.

While the man is away, his mistress pines and neglects herself,

wearing no ornaments except lucky charms and giving up her

Her lover returns unexpectedly, kneels at her feet daily routine of prayers and visits to acquaintances in favour of

and begins to caress them. The woman, who has anxious waiting. If the time for his return passes without news
i
zA
Goce 52, been weeping, fearing him dead, half-turns of him, she should try every means of finding out the true date

towards him. So his homecoming, including reading omens and portents,

interpreting her dreams and consulting the configuration of the
planets. If there are signs that some mishap has befallen her

lover she should perform rites and sacrifice S to appease the

gods. When he finally does return home, his |oving mistress will

(co) ive thanks to the goddess and perform the worship in honour
oO the crow to her dead relations.

Love Positions 108

 ee,

{
a aa He moves slowly up her body, caressing her back
Ke» to life, then
iy,
embraces her left shoulder and kisses

wy, her mouth. She rolls over into the pillows and he
enters her from behind, curling his body protectively
over hers. IOV AG WNekea
man fall in love
with you
+
he first thing is not to appear too eager, because,

Vatsyayana says, men are apt to despise things that are

too easily acquired. Instead of visiting the man she has
set her sights on herself, a woman should employ her servants
to discover his state of mind. She may send her jesters,
masseurs and confidants to entertain and beguile him. When
they return, she will question them closely to find out whether
he is genuine or affected, capable of attachment or committed
elsewhere, indifferent or hard-hearted, generous or mean. If
she likes what she hears, she will invite the man to her house
on the pretext of watching a battle between her fighting cocks,
or a contest between her rams or quails, or to hear her starlings
sing. Then, when he visits her, she can give him a well-chosen
present, something especially designed to rouse his curiosity
and inspire affection. Once she has his attention, she can
captivate his imagination by telling him intriguing stories. To
keep herself in his mind after the visit is over, she will send her

Above: The citizen reassures his female attendant to his house from time to time, to bring him
wife of his continued ardour after a witty and mischievous messages and small amusing gifts. In

long absence. She gazes sadly into this way he will be won over.

her loneliness, but in a sigh of

forgiveness and acceptance, lays When he first comes to her house as her lover, she will give him
her hand on his. Meanwhile, their betel nuts to chew, wrapped in their own soothing aromatic

bodies rejoice in togetherness. leaves. She will put garlands of fresh flowers around his neck
and offer to rub his body with perfumed ointments. During an
entertaining conversation she can present him with small
intimate gifts, suggesting that he gives her something of his
own in return. Finally, when he is fully aroused to her charms

she will demonstrate her knowledge of the Kama Sutra and

show him her exquisite skill in the sexual arts,

Love Positions 105

Frenzy
The Indian miniature that inspires this position (page 109) is a
curious one. The calm, luxurious surroundings show nature getting
on with its business as usual — flowers twining in the carpet and
birds quite rightly oblivious to the naked lovers below. Though the
lovers gaze serenely at one another, their clothes are discarded in a "oe ahgel

heap (compare this to the carefully arranged swords, fruits and

cordial glasses in other pictures) and their internal turmoil is
betrayed by the whirling of their legs. Hips, thighs, calves, ankles
and feet just go berserk. The artist has been carried away by his
own passion and nothing matches up. If you are supple, strong and
practised in yoga, try this pose, and see where it takes you.

The man sits on the grout d with his lec

out in front of him and his ack erect. TI e€ woman

kneels astride his lap, close against him, het

knees at his hips and her feet folc ed under at h is knees

She has her hands round his wais ; he clasps | is behind

her back. She rests her foreheac ovingly on WS brow.

When the time is right, he can enter her.

, The man continues to support her waist as the

woman leans back to place her palms flat on the

ground with her fingers pointing towards hel

partner. She lifts her left leg over his right shoulder,

106 Love Positions

 How aman
likes to be
treated
man likes to be treated like a god. In a long chapter,

Vatsyayana gives detailed instructions for flattering the

male ego. He comes up with some ingenious ideas.
A woman should send her servant to the man's house to fetch
the flowers his gardener had arranged for him the day before,
so she can take pleasure in what he has already enjoyed. The
4
servant should also ask for any betel leaves and nuts that were
Now the man leans back, placing his palms on prepared for him the day before, but which he has not yet
the ground below his shoulders. He pushes up on chewed. A woman should always keep her lover's secrets and
his arms to raise h is hips and the woman arches tell him her own. She should take care to hide her anger. She
her back to lift with him. He legs open wider, but the right should express wonder at her lover's knowledge of sexual
foot remains as a support on the ground. technique and never neglect him in bed, touching any parts of
7
his body according to his wish and kissing and embracing him
+
even when he is asleep. She should provide a perfect mirror for

his emotions, looking at him anxiously when he is deep in

thought, hating his enemies, being subdued when he is
depressed, pretending jealousy of any woman he admires and
appearing dismayed if the slightest accident should befall him,
or even if she hears him sigh or yawn. The attentive woman is

quick to say ‘Live long’ when her lover sneezes, but wisely
remains silent when he appears intoxicated. If he is sick, she
plunges herself into a kind of mourning, refusing to eat, wearing
only her simplest clothes and rejecting her servants’ offers to
bring her perfume and jewels. Lastly, she should take his sins
upon herself, offering to carry out vows and fasts he has
committed himself to in atonement.

Love Positions 1O7

 She raises her left leg so that he can slip his right The man draws his partner to him. They clasp
_leg between her legs, crossing in front of her each other, kissing and rocking in an urgent
body and placing his foot at her right side. embrace.

Ses ge Oeoe
os :
 The king's day
hen the king awakes late in the morning, tne
female attendants of his harem bring him flowers,
scented ointments and rich robes chosen for him
by his wives. In exchange he gives them presents, and returns
the clothes he wore the previous day. By noon, the king is
dressed in his finery and ornaments. He then visits his wives in
turn, in their private rooms, and his concubines and dancing
girls. After a short nap in the royal apartments, he receives th >)
servants of the wives whose names have been put forward to
spend that night with him. Each wife has sent an unguent
marked with the seal of her ring, and her reasons for wishing to
lie with the king. The king listens carefully, then makes his
choice. The wife whom he chooses is informed and her

servants bathe, groom, perfume and dress her for the night.

A king who has many wives should behave fairly to all of them,
cautions Vatsyayana. If his harem is large — maybe running into

thousands of women — he should try to satisfy several of them

in one night, simultaneously if possible.

Above: Artistic licence shows an

impossible tangling of limbs.

Despite their frenzy, the lovers

manage to lock each other's eyes in

a Steady sultry stare — true tantra.

Love Positions 109

Jacaranda
The miniature on page 113 shows a wild scene. The woman's hair
flies loose as she swoops over her lover's body in a passionate
embrace. Their arms and legs entwine spontaneously and the man
lies back among the pillows, his lingam erect, waiting for her to
take him.

The woman sits on the floor with her back straight The woman slips her arms down to the small of

and her legs open. The man sits inside her legs the man's back and supports him as he lowers his

with his legs over hers and his feet touchi = co) torso to lie on a pile of pillows behind him,
behind her. They embrace and kiss, and she closes her

feet behind him. They can stay like this for a long whi §2
fully aroused.

110. Love Positions

 How to tell
Its love
ccording to Vatsyayana there are ten symptoms of
being in love, and 4
hey get m ore severe as the
obsessi ON PrOgresses. At first there is attraction of the
4
eye, then attach ment of the mi nd. This is followed by thinking
constantly abou the beloved and tossing and turning at night in

an agony of insomniac despair. At the fifth stage the love

appetite disappears and his body begins to waste away. At the
+
sixth he loses interes in all the things that previ ously gave him
n
pleasure. At the seventh stage he becomes quite shameless
his behaviour, loitering in public places in the hope of catching
a glimpse of h is beloved and not caring who knows how

desperate he feels. At the eighth stage th é lover loses his mi 5Sd

completely and he begins to rant, calling out to his loved one in
delirium. At the ninth he passes out in a faint and finally,
consumed by h is passion, stage ten arrives, his heart breaks
and he dies.

He raises his legs, clasping his thighs and holding Hopefully before this drastic stage is reached, the beloved will
; them open with his hands, and she leans forward have given him a sign that she returns his ardour. Vatsyayana
over him, sliding her hands down and helping him gives a list of the ten ways in which a woman can show her
support his thighs. ove. These include calling out to him without being addressed
irst, showing herself to him in secret places, speaking haltingly
and inarticulately and showing-him a face blooming with delight,
while her fingers and toes are beaded with nervous sweat. The
final five ways are all to do with how the woman shampoos his
body. Shampoo is a Hindi word meaning to knead: suddenly
the couple seem to have become intimate. As she massages
his body, sighs and rests her cheek upon his thighs, surely even
the most unselfconfident lover will have got the message.

Love Positions 111

 Still leaning forw ard, the woman brings first one
leg back, then the o ther, so she can kneel with
her legs apart a nd her feet resting on her toes
behind her. Then swoop ng forward over her lover and
pressing his thighs against hi(ep) torso, she guides his lingam In tame Mood
into her yoni. This is a passionate and precarious position,
and the woman must ake care not to bounce too for love
vigorously, or she will lose him,

he student of the Kama Sutra receives his beloved =

the pleasure room, which is decorated with flowers an

heady with perfume, in the company of his friends an

servants. The woman enters, freshly bathed and scented, an eS
&

wearing beautiful robes, jewellery and flowers. She sits at his

left hand and he invites her to drink. Touching her hair and the
knot of her garment, he embraces her gently while they talk and
+,
amuse one another by embarking on subjects not normally
discussed in polite society. The assembled company play
musical instruments, sing and drink, until the woman is
overcome with love and desire. Then at a signal from the
citizen, his friends and servants depart, taking with them gifts of
flowers, ointments and betel leaves. The two are left alone to

celebrate their passion.

When their lovemaking is over, the pair part with modesty and

go separately to the washing room. After this they. sit together

£
and eat betel leaves to freshen their mouths, and the citizen

Above: The sultan abandons rubs sandalwood oil into his lover's body. He gives her

himself to exquisite pleasure as his sweetmeats and feeds her a drink from his cup, Vatsyayana

consort hovers tantalizingly above suggests a number of beverages that might be suitable for the
his erect lingam. She is at once his occasion, including mango juice, sweetened lemon juice

slave and the greedy goddess Kali. sherbet, soup, gruel and meat extracts. Then the lovers retire
to the terrace to enjoy the moonlight and continue their

agreeable conversation. The woman lies with her head in the

man's lap and he wraps a quilt around them both, then points
out the stars to her, and shows her the constellations. ,

Love Positions 113

Hiding ine
Elepnant
Indian lovers were nothing if not inventive. This position is ideal
for an intimate session in a howdah, the ornate canopy that keeps
the sun off the elephant rider. The rolling movement of the beast
as it walks along transmits itself to the lovers, who make no
voluntary movements themselves. The pose can be practised in
the bedroom if no elephant is available.

The man kneels with knees apart and legs flat —to

the floor, his toes pointing straight out behind

him. His back \s erect. The woman sits facing

him, astride his lap, with her knees in the air and her feet

flat on the ground. The couple embrace. In this position

they can kiss and arouse each other.

114 Love Positions

 A \ite of leisure
he charm of the Kama Sutra lies in the exotic evocation

of a life dedicated to sensuality. The pleasure quarters

of the ideal citizen comprised an i nner room, to which

his wives were confined, and an outer room with a soft bed

covered with a clean white counterpane. There were pillows a

either end of the bed, and above it a canopy decorated with

garlands of flowers. The air was heady with rich perfumes,
Beside the bed was a couch and n ext to that a low table on
which were arranged fragrant ointm ents, pots of flowers and
di £
ISNES O scented bai k and seeds that were chewed to sweeten

the breath. The habit of chewing mildly anaest hetic betel nuts
which produces ain excess of pin k saliva, necessitated the
di
iscreet presence of a spitto on. Also to hand were various

trinkets and games: a box of ornam ents, a lute hanging from a

peg made of an elephant's tus , a drawing boa rd, story books,

board games and dice for gambling.

Outside the playroom was a te rrace that looked over a beautiful

+
garden. On hot su ltry nights he women of the harem would

spread rugs and cushions under the sta S$ and prepare to make

love 0 a loud cho us of crickets and ogs. In the garden the

itizen had installed relaxing water fea ures, Cages of singing

rds, a bower cov ered in creepers and a workshop equipped
i “y The man supports the woman's waist in both for diversions such as carving and spinning. Rigged up NEE

Lo hands as she guides his lingam inside her. They and there among the trees were various types of swing that

became (St for a moment in this position, feeling waves =| oved up and down as well as back and for h. Swings were

of energy flow between them. often used during lovemaking, particular y in scenes where the
ci fi
izen entertained several of his wives a ONCE.

Love Positions 115

 ow the woman gets into position for ‘riding the

elephant’. Her right arm circles her partner's lef

shoulder as she twists her body slightly to the

right, his hands still supporting her waist. She curls he
right leg behind the man’s back and holds it tight agains

him. His right hand slides down her left leg to clasp her
ankle. She supports herself with her left hand on his side.
n this position her yoni is tight around his lingam. Small
ocking movements prove very exciting, and the man

exercises some contro! by moving his partner's right leg.

For more control, he can move his left hand up under her

right buttock.

116 Love Positions

 KISSING
i
he Kama Su ra recommends kissing the following body

parts: the fo ehead, eyes, cheeks, throat, breasts, lips

and the ins ide of the mouth. Intense passion may

lame the lover to move on to the joints ofthe thighs, the arms
inf
SS

and the navel. At first, kissing involves the girl just brushing her
over's mouth with hef lips. When she becomes less bashful,

she may give a ‘throbbing kiss', moving her lower lip against the

ip her lover presses in between hers. But when she iS aroused,

she will shut her eyes, place her hands on her lover's hands and

touch his ips with her tongue.

Flirtatious overs play a kissing game to see which of them can

get hold of the other's lips first. If the woman loses, she
pretends to cry and protests that they must try again. If she

loses a second time, she must take her revenge by getting hold
of her lover's lower lio in her teeth and nippin g it hard. Then she

laughs to wake him up and derides him by rolling her eyes.

Vatsyayana devised a language of kissing. To kindl @ love, Kiss

you r beloved while he is asleep. To show you are attracted to
someone, kiss a child sitting on your lap in his p esence. Or

Above: This love pose is a tantric ile he is watching, kiss a picture, image or figu ine. Aman

classic. Its key features are minimal show his intent on when he meets a woman in the theatre

movement and sustained eye by issing one of hef fingers if she is standing, or one of her
contact. The lovers float into a toes if she is sitting. To inflame his passion, a wo man who is

realm of erotic transcendence shampooing her lover's body can rest her face agai nst his thigh

where sensation merges with as if she were sleepy, then kiss him there, or suck his big toe.

eternity.

Love Positions 117

Tne Pain
of Life
For this pose, the woman needs a strong, flexible back, and yoga The mai 1 lies on his right side on the bed with his

practice will help her achieve it. Once they are engaged, she twists right leg bent forwards in front of him and his left

her torso back round towards her lover, who lies behind her. Her leg ben behind him, as if running. The woman
TI

hips remain pointing forwards, away from him. With their legs leS 0 1 her back on top of his right leg. He has his right arm

entwined, the lovers look as though they are running together ound her back n this position he can caress her breasts

along the path of life. It is unclear from the miniature on p.121 and | er yoni with his left hand. Then he clasps her right

whether they are standing or sitting, but put this down to the and in his and s le turns her face to kiss him, cupping his

artist's fevered imagination. The pose should not be attempted £

ace | 1 her left ha nd

except when lying down.

18
 ee ag q
r a
els ;

The tirst time

he woman is lying on the bed. Appearing distracted by

conversation, the man loosens he under garments and

when she protests, he overwhelms her with kisses.

Now he touches her in various places. First he holds her hair

| nd her chin so he can iss her. Then he caresse S her breasts,

which, if it is their first time together, she will try 0 cover first with
+
her own hands. hen he moves his hand between her thighs,

which she may have clamped together. But as she becomes

more aroused, her body relaxes and she closes her eyes. He
C an rub her yoni with his fingers, then slip his lingam inside her.

The different types of cong ess involve angling the lingam to the

back or front of the yoni, holding the lingam in the hand and

~ When the time is right, she turns to her right so churning it round in the yon i, holding itsti inside the yoni, which
her back is towards him. She stretches her right g ips it tightly, and altern ate short and long strokes, which
n ve
volve bringing the lingam almost comple ely out 0 the yoni and
+,
wm \eQ back between his legs and tilts her torso
forward, bowing her head to his right knee _ In this position ramming it swiftly home. Vi gorous rhythmic thrusti ng, ‘the sport

he can enter ner. 0f the sparrow’, draws the ovemaking session to its climax.

Love Positions 119

 He draws her torso back up towards him with his
right arm, and curls his right ankle under her left
knee to anchor her leg to the bed. She brings her
left arm up to caress his neck and turns her face towards
his. He catches her right knee in his left hand and draws it The virgin bride
backwards.

atsyayana recognizes that tne seduction of a virgin

bride is a delicate business — the girl is likely to be both
young and terrified. He advises her husband to abstain
from sexual intercourse for as many nights as necessary after
the wedding to build up his bride's confidence, wooing her with
musical entertainments, visits to her relations and gentle
embraces, tactfully pressing against her the top half of his body
only. Once she has relaxed into his arms, he can offer her betel
nuts wrapped in betel nut leaves. When chewed, this will cause
her mouth to tingle with a pleasant numbness. He should kneel
at her feet to beg her to take them, then as he puts them into
her mouth he should kiss her softly and gracefully without
making any sound. Now he has symbolically entered her body,
he can begin to ask her questions to enter her mind. She may
pretend not to know the answers, or she may answer
coquettishly through a female friend.

When the bride is eager for more, she will give him the garland
or ointment that he has asked for, upon which he may caress
her breasts. The night after that he can proceed to stroke her
whole body, and when she is willing he will loosen her dress,

Above: |n another pose that and turning up her lower garment, rub the joints of her thighs.

would be impossible to achieve Once she is fully excited, the lover can move on to teach his

without breaking a leg, the artist bride the sexual arts, assuring her all the while of his love and

depicts the lovers entwined on the faithfulness. Vatsyayana cautions his student never to force his

path of life. Try your own variation embraces on his wife, or she will hate him: at the same time,

lying down. he should not give in readily to all her wishes, but steer a
masterful middle path.

Love Positions 121

(Ganges
A difficult pose to achieve, Ganges benefits from yoga practice to
give the woman strong arms and a flexible back. The man is in
control, but the unusually shallow angle of penetration in the final
step means that movement is restricted. Balance and grace are the \ The man braces himself with his right leg slightly
key here. If the woman tires, move back into stage three, where . ” bent and his right foot forward just inside her right
the man can support her weight more easily for a return to more (foot Supporting her weight on her hands, the
vigorous lovemaking. woman lifts her right foot off the ground and swings her leg
up behind her. Her partner rests his right hand under her

thigh and helps her lift her leg high until she can lean her
The woman stands erect, feet comfortably apart, shin against his chest, with her foot pointing upwards over

arms by her sides. She raises her arms in his right shoulder.

salutation to the sun, moving them in a wide arc

to meet over her head. Then, keeping her torso and arms
in line, she bends at the waist and drops her palms to land

flat on the ground between her feet. The man moves to

Stand behind her.

122 Love Positions

 seroent
he double spiral of energy that can be traced round the

two halves of the Cosmic Egg was discovered again by

the yogis in the energy that lies dor mant at the base of

the spine. They called this creative force Kundalini — Sanskrit for

snake, the serpent of Kali — and they medi ated ntil Kundalini

uncoiled and rose in a spiral to awaken the nerve centres of the

body. The first nerve centre is that of sexual awa ening.

AS sexuality demands its an Swer, SO Kali created the god Shiva,

who was both her son and her lover. The Tantric sages taught

hat a man can only realize divinity through sex with a woman
et

because women are alive with nnore spiritual and sexual energy

than men — they don't exhaust themselves in orgasm. But a

man can gain sexual energy from the orgasm of his partner.
This is why, in tantric sex, there is no th rusting or violent

movement, which would trigger ejaculatio elf d end it all.

Instead there are slow, controlled and graceft | movements and

almost static poses, Sex can go on as long as the couple like.

Combined with prolonged deep eye contac an d freeing the

mind in meditation, yogic sex poses produce an intense

f3 4 The woman now lifts her left foot off the floor and emotional and physical awareness, a brimful experience that
my
~ swings her leg back, repeating the action of her wi h minimal movement — or even no movement at all — can
y
LS right leg so that she is standing on her hands. Her send a woman spiralling into orgasm.

partner supports her thighs as her feet point upwards.

The god Shiva is credited with the inventio 1 O yoga, which

means yoke. The Lord of Yoga created posi tions in which the
body is wholly balanced ar d centred on itse f an d the serpen

of Kundalini can rise. By us ing these positions nt he sexual act,

which represents the strivin g in the universe orb alance, Shiva

could yoke himself to the goddess, ensur| ng ner orgasmic

pleasure while controlling his own, and thereby filling himsel
with her sexual energy.

Love Positions 123

a

‘th
tahiN
i

Hit
Mann
i
 fi The woman arches her back, pressing her yoni
/\ against him and resting her shoulder and cheek
ia J against a large cushion. As he supports her thighs
and buttocks in his arms, she bends her knees, dropping
her feet back towards her head. Leaning her torso against Vita |Statistics
his right leg, she grasps his ankle with her left hand,

atsyayana classifies lovers according to two systems:

genital size and intensity of passion. The male organ,

the lingam, he groups into three sizes. Men with small

lingams are called hares, those of average size are bulls and the
= ost generously endowed are horses. The corresponding sizes

for the female yoni are deer, mare and elephant. The best
matches are those between same-sized lingams and yonis.

Strength of desire is either small, middling or intense, and

again, an equal match is the most favourable.

The sages of ancient India were unanimous in agreeing tha

women get m ost satisfaction
|
from men who last longest, bu
+

they disagreed about whether women ejaculated or not. They

noted that a man could not continue to make love afte

ejaculation, whereas a woman could go on indefinitely. Some

said this was because she didn't ejaculate, others claimed tha
semen fell from her continually while she made love.

Vatsya says that the first time a man makes love with a woman,

he will usually come quickly, then gradually gain more control.

But it's the other way round for a woman, who grows more

Above: The prince proves his abandoned an d orgasmic with time.

strength, and his lover shows

absolute faith that he can hold her.

Beware of tiring in this position —

the woman’s neck is very

vulnerable to injury.

Love Positions 125

 ndex
suspended 93 footcare 29
united 93 Frenzy 106-9
see also names of individual friends 95
positions; positions The Frog 34-7
Cosmic Egg 79
courtesans 65, 67 G
A end of affair 101 Ganesh 20
The Abduction 90-93 love 35 Ganges 122-5
Adam 81 money 35 genitals 26—7
adultery 69 mothers 43 fit of 91
alternate nostril breathing 17 courting 77 size 125
anal sex 93 The Cow 42-5 go-betweens 99
Antelope 82-5 creative force 79 God 81
arms 20-21 Cunti 26 gopis 39

B D H
belly 24-5 Darwin 22 hair 10-11
belly roll 25 dildoes 63 hands 20-21
biting 59 harems 47, 109
body hair 11 e head 10-11
Brahma 20, 41 ears 14-15 hearing 15
braiding dances 10 ejaculation 125 herd of cows 93
breasts 22-3 elephant woman 87 hip roll 25
breath control 16-17 Eternity 102-5 The Horse 98-101
brides see wives eunuchs 83 The Hunter 38-41
bruises 89 Eve 81 husbands, winning 75
Butterfly 76-7 evil eye 12-13
exercises
C belly 25 ideal mistresses 67
Canopy of Stars 50-53 chest 23 India 6
castration, fear of 26 pelvic floor muscles 27 inner eye 13
Chariot 46-9 eye contact 12 intercourse see CONgTeSS

chest, exercise 23 eyes 12-13

child brides 53
China 28 r Jacaranda 110-13
Cocoon 74-5 Feeding the Peacock 54—7 jealousy 85
congress 91, 93, 119 feet 28-9 ‘Jewel in the Lotus’ 41
of the cow 93 first time 119
with the mouth 83 food 18 K
nominal 83 footbinding 28 Kah 7, 11, 19,24, 26,37, 729, S1,ela8

126 Index
Kama Shastra 51 0 R
Kama Sutra 6 oral sex 83 Radha 39
King’s Day, The 109 orgasm 37, 123 Rajasthan 86-9
kissing 117 relaxing 13, 33
Krishna 39 P Riding the Elephant 114-17
Kundalini 24, 41, 123 Padma 97
‘pair of tongs’ 87 5
L Panchalas, King of 89 sadism 57, 59
legs 28-9 passion, intensity of 125 see also violence
leisure, life of 115 The Path of Life 118-21 scents 16
Lilith 81 pelvic floor muscles 27 scratching 45
ingame 19, 27, 83, 125 pelvic tilt 27 seduction 73
piercing 63 penis see lingam separation 103
lotus 41, 97 perfume 16 Serpent 123
‘Lotus-Eater’ 41 phallus see lingam sex 6
tove 22, 35, 111 piercing 63 sex aids 63
make a man fall in 105 pleasure, day of 61 sexual intercourse see congress
words of 15 pleasure quarters 115 shampooing 83, 111, 117
lying together see congress The Plough 58-61 Shatakarni, King 89
polygamy 71 Shiva 71 1192205373946 tales
M poor girls, winning husbands 75 pictures of 15, 22, 28
Madhavasena 89 positions Shoal of Fish 66-9
magic potions 49 mare’s 91 silence 15
Malayavati, Queen 89 pressing 91 size
mare’s position 91 standing 93 breasts 23
massage 21 twining 91 genitals 125
see also shampooing of the wife of Indra 91 snake dance 20-21
massage parlours 83 yawning 91 spiritual sex 7
men, how to treat 107 see also congress; names of ‘the sport of the sparrow’ 119
mistresses, ideal 67 individual positions standing position 93
money 35 posture 10, 24 Starflower 94-7
mothers, of courtesans 43 pranayama 17 ‘sucking the mango’ 83
mouth 18-19 pressing position 91 Sultan 78-81
music 14 prostitution 65 suspended congress 93
see also courtesans ‘swallowing up’ 83
N ‘the swing’ 87
nails 45 Q swings 115
Naradeva 89 quarrels 57, 59 T
‘nominal congress’ 83
nose 16-17 tantric sex 27, 123

Index 127
tantrism 7 Vatsyayana 6 choosing 95
Temple 62-5 violence 89 virgins 121
third eye 13 see also sadism woman on top 81
tongue 19 virgin brides 121 womb 24
‘the top’ 87 virtuous wives 55 words of love 15

tumere 24
twining position 91 W "
walking 28, 29 yawning position 91
U water 93 yoga 7, 32=3, 123
united congress 93 weapons 89 youtZG, 41,125
‘The Wheel 70-73 yonic symbols 12, 41
V wives 55
vagina see yoni child brides 53

Executive Editor Jane McIntosh

Project Editor Trevor Davies
Executive Art Editor Leigh Jones
Picture Research Zoé Holtermann
Production Controller Viv Cracknell

Models Angela Langridge at Walpole Model Agency and Patrick Jones at Samantha Bond

Acknowledgements in Source Cambridge, UK 7 Top, 45 Top, 69, right, 55 Top, 56, 58 left, 58 Top
Order 77 Bottom, 85, 89, Right, 58 Bottom Right, 59, 60, 62
Jacket credits: 97, 121, /Private Collection 6 Top, 27 left, 62 right, 63, 64 Top, 64 Bottom,
AKG, London/Jean-Louis Nou front Centre Right.57,41, 5/5 01,605,100. 66, 67, 68, 70 left, 70 right, 71, 72, 74
cover bottom centre left, front cover {ISS ey, left, 74 right, 74 Centre, 76 left, 76
bottom centre right. Christie’s Images Ltd/1983 15, 20 right, 76 Centre, 77 Top, 78 left, 78
Bridgeman Art Library, Top. right, 79, 80 left, 80 right, 82 left, 82
London/New York/Victoria & Albert The Art Archive/JFB 101, /Victoria right, 83, 84, 86 left, 86 right, 87, 88,
Museum, London, UK front cover and Albert Museum, London/ Eileen 90 left, 90 right, 90 Bottom Centre,
bottom right. Tweedy 16, 28. 91, 92 Top Left, 92 Top Centre, 92
Christie’s Images Ltd/1983 front Octopus Publishing Group Ltd. 2, Bottom, 94 left, 94 Top Right, 94
cover bottom left. 4, 5, 6 left, 7 Bottom, 8-9, 10 Top, 11, Bottom Right, 95, 96, 98 left, 98 right,
Octopus Publishing Group Limited 13 Top, 13 Centre Right, 14, 17 left, 99, 100 Top Left, 100 Top Centre,
front cover top, back cover, spine top. 17 right, 18 Bottom, 19, 20 Bottom, 100 Bottom Right, 102, 103, 104, 106
21 Top, 21 Bottom, 23 Top Left, 23 left, 106 Top Right, 106 Bottom
Inside credits: Top Centre, 23 Top Right, 23 Right, 107 Top, 107 Bottom, 108
AKG, London/Jean-Louis Nou 10 Bottom Right, 25 Top, 25 Centre, 25 Top, 110 lefe-110 rrehe, 111, 112;
Centre, 12, 18 Top, 22, 33 Bottom, Bottom, 26 Top, 26 Bottom, 27 Top, 114, 115, 116, 118, 119, 120, 122 left,
AO’ 735, 755 Oly 93, LOS; UL 75, 1955 29, 30-31, 32, 33 Centre Right, 34, 122 right, 123, 124.
Bridgeman Art Library, 35, 36, 38 left, 38 right, 39, 40, 42 left, Thames’ & Hudson Ltd/ Ajit
London/New York/British Library, 42 right, 43, 44 left, 44 right, 45 Mookerjee Collection. From Sacred
london, UK 24. Bottom, 46 left, 46 right, 47, 48 left, Sex published by Thames & Hudson
/Fitzwilliam Museum, University of 48 right, 50 left, 50 right, 51, 52, 54 Ltd, London, 1997 53.

128 Index
Linda Sonntag is an experienced writer
on the subject of sex and relationships.

A
FAIR WINDS
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