Kamasutra of Vatsyayana (Edited with English Translation and Notes)

Contents: I: Introduction. 1. Vatsyayana: the author of Kamasastra 2. Tradition of Kamasutra before Vatsyayana. 3. Kamasutra as a Sastra. 4. Scope of Kamasutra. 5. Structure and methodology of Kamasutra. 6. Outline of Kamasutra. 7. Theoretical framework. 8. Kamasutra and other Sastras. 9. Vatsyayana and his successors. 10. Vatsyayana and his successors on eroticism. 11. Vatsyayana in contemporary context. 12. Manuscripts and editions of Kamasutra, the present edition. Selected bibliography-texts of Kamasutra, other Sanskrit, other works abbreviations. II: Text with English translation. 1. General observations. 2. On sex. 3. On acquiring virgins. 4. About wives. 5. Extra marital relations. 6. On courtesans. 7. On secret devices. III: Notes. Indices: 1. Index of topics. 2. Authors and texts cited in Kamasutra. 3. Historical and mythological figures referred in Kamasutra. 4. Index of technical terms in Kamasutra.

"Kamasutra of Vatsyayana is the first available work in Indian tradition on sex and love and social issues related to these. It is a scientific work of encyclopedic nature. There is no other work in Sanskrit presenting such comprehensive documentation on sexual behaviour, life-styles, sports and festivals as prevailing in different regions of this vast peninsula in ancient times. An edition of the complete text of Kamasutra with an authentic English translation has been in need for the past two centuries. The present edition has been prepared by Prof. Radhavallabh Tripathi, a reputed scholar of Sahityasastra and Natyasastra, to meet this long standing requirement.

The present volume is divided in three parts. The first part presents a complete study of Kamasutra. In this erudite and extensive introduction, Prof. Tripathi has traced the origin of the tradition of Kamasutra on Vedas and Upanisads, and has presented an analysis of the contents of Kamasutra alongwith the holistic approach and world view of Vatsyayana, as well as his scientific perspective. In the second part, the text has been edited on the basis of various printed editions. Readings at a number of places have been corrected and readings accepted by Yasodhara and other commentators have been noted. The third part comprises detailed notes on the text. References from Arthasastra, smrtis and other texts have been given here for comparison. An index of proper names, technical terms and topics from the text of Kamasutra has been added with equivalents in English." (jacket)