Attached are the previous works you’ve done for this assignment and an example for the proposal paper. Rough draft is due March 26
detailed_outline.docx
proposal_paper.docx
paper_proposal.example_1.docx
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Patrice Dukes
Dr. Scheid
Hinduism and Buddhism SP19
March 13, 2019
Detailed Outline
Sexuality, Eroticism and Emotional Fulfillment in the Spiritual Life: Kama Sutra
I.
Introduction
a. In Indian civilization, the Kama Sutra is widely regarded as the seminal love text.
b. In Sanskrit literature, it’s a masterpiece that has achieved a legendary status and
has attained an indomitable place in pop mythology.
c. However, it is widely thought to be a sex manual, though in reality only a small
percentage of the content is about sexual instruction.
d. Working thesis: While the Kama Sutra is primarily depicted as a sex
manual, a careful examination of the text shows that it is more of a text about
the philosophy of sexuality, relationship between the sexes, eroticism, and
emotional fulfillment, and desire overall.
II.
The background of Kama Sutra
a. The word ‘Kama’ is of Sanskrit origin. It denotes pleasure, love, desire. The
original connotations associated with this word was not only related to sexual
desire, but it was broadly sensual and included other aspects such as good food,
perfume, music, and more (Doniger 371).
i. “”Kama is the enjoyment of appropriate objects by the five senses of
hearing, feeling, seeing, tasting and smelling, assisted by the mind
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together with the soul. The ingredient in this is a peculiar contact between
the organ of sense and its object, and the consciousness of pleasure which
arises from that contact is called Kama” (Burton n.p.)
b. Indian scriptures have many stories associated with Kamasutra, especially its
origin and history.
c. One key theory argues that the collection of Kama Sutra was granted to
humankind by the sacred bull, Nandi, who was the doorkeeper of God Shiva.
Nandi had overheard the god making love with his wife, and this inspired him to
create the Kama Sutra collection.
d. Another theory points out that it was created by Prjapati, the Indian deity widely
regarded as the god of creation. He created 10,000 chapters of the book. The
compilation was done by Lord Shiva, and later it was summarized by Shvetaketu,
and finally Vatsyayana transcribed it into Sutras.
e. Vatsyayana converted the chapters into a systematically flowing work
f. He organized it into such sections as sexual union, acquisition of a wife, about a
wife, wives of other people, group-sex relationships, caste and class, among other
areas.
III.
Kama as one of the goals of life
a. Kama was regarded as one of the three core goals of life. The other two were
dharma, which concerns itself with religion, morality, duty, law, justice, and
social obligations; and artha, which is about money, politics, power, and success
(Danielou n.p.).
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b. Dharma focuses on social and religious aspects of life; artha on politics, and
Kama on the individual:
i. “Dharma is better than Artha, and Artha is better than Kama. But Artha
should always be first practiced by the king for the livelihood of men is to
be obtained from it only. Again, Kama being the occupation of public
women, they should prefer it to the other two, and these are exceptions to
the general rule.” (Burton 1.2.14).
IV.
Misconceptions and various lines of reasoning about the Kama
a. Recent reviews of the Kama Sutra have had misleading titles, such as “Position
Impossible” and “Assume the Position” (Doniger 18).
i. A unique perspective:
1. “Despite the “Kama sutra”, Indian society is extremely
conservative about sex and is ambivalent about sex” (Manjula et
al. 701).
b. Pop culture has been responsible for the over-emphasis of the text’s chapters
dealing with sex and sex positions, leading to the other sections being ignored.
c. Doniger argues that Kam Sutra “is a book about the art of living” (20).
d. Various interpretations and conclusions about the Kama Sutra from diverse
philosophical realms include:
i. Kama Sutra as a text furthering the concept of orientation (this view is
racist and romanticized, and has a European origin (Mulchandani 103)
ii. From Michel Foucault’s perspective, Kama Sutra is about power
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iii. From the dimension of contemporary feminism, it’s “about the control of
women” (Doniger 20).
V.
What Kama is all About?
a. In a nutshell, the book is all about the good things in life: pleasure, love, and
desire, and reading it from a philosophical perspective gives the reader a lot of
knowledge that can be applied in countless domains of life.
i. “Kama Sutra, the ancient fourth century work compiled by Vatsyayana, is
an extensive treatise on the on the art of making love, accepting and
including without inhibitions, physical and mental pleasures as an integral
part of human existence” (Sathyanarayana, Tandon, and Keya Das 88).
b. Kama Sutra discusses the philosophy of sexuality, relationship between the sexes,
eroticism, and emotional fulfillment, and desire overall (Sonntag and Vātsyāyana
n.p._
c. It is about the obsession with earthly pleasures, and how to do this in a befitting
way.
i. “[Kama Sutra] aims at teaching a person the best method to control and
properly guide the desires, particularly the sexual urge, so that the person
may be a useful member of the family, society and his country and
contribute his mite to their welfare by his way of life” (Puri 631)
d. It teaches us on how to have a virtuous life:
i. The kind of hobbies that men and women should indulge in,
ii. How to properly arrange our homes,
iii. Hygiene and keeping our bodies clean and properly shaved,
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iv. Picnic etiquettes and how to enjoy a life outdoors with one’s family or
spouse, public swimming and bathing, etc.
e. It teaches how to have a fulfilling and happy relationship:
i. Learning all the 64 arts presented in the book
ii. A full life entails learning many unrelated concepts and skills:
1. Tattooing,
2. All forms of fighting
3. Storing water and food properly
4. Teaching birds of the sky how to sing and speak
5. Making artificial flowers and ornamental plants
6. The art of disguise
f. It teaches romance:
i. The mind of the woman and how to understand her better
ii. Body image versus the body; and how to compensate for any deficiencies
in any of them.
iii. Participation in romance
1. The text calls for active participation of both sexes
iv. Touch matters.
v. Dressing is an important aspect of sex and sexuality
vi. It also highlights some viewpoints on same-sex relationships (Vanita)
VI.
Conclusion
a. Overall, the Kama Sutra has many aspects of living a fulling life that are not
necessarily about sex positions
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b. However, the over-arching theme has some connections to sex, in one way or
another.
c. It should not be read as a sex manual; rather, it should be viewed as a guide on
how men and women can attain a positive mindset in relationships in order to gain
maximum enjoyment of the goodies that come alongside love.
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Works Cited
Burton, Richard. The Kama Sutra of Vatsyayana. Modern Library, 1883. http://www.sacredtexts.com/sex/kama/
Danielou, Alain. The Complete Kama Sutra: The First Unabridged Modern Translation of the
Classic Indian Text. Park Street Press, 1994.
Doniger, Wendy. “Reading the Kamasutra: It Isn’t All about Sex 1.” On Hinduism, 2014, pp.
371–380., doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199360079.003.0026.
Manjula, M., et al. “Sexual dysfunction in single males: a perspective from India.” Journal of
clinical psychology 59.6 (2003): 701-713.
Mulchandani, Sandhya. Erotic Literature of Ancient India: Kama Sutra, Koka Shastra, Gita
Govindam, Ananga Ranga. Lustre, 2006.
Puri, Jyoti. “Concerning Kamasutra s: Challenging Narratives of History and Sexuality.” Signs:
Journal of Women in Culture and Society 27.3 (2002): 603-639.
Sathyanarayana Rao, T. S., Abhinav Tandon, and Keya Das. “Sexual Myths and
Misconceptions.”
Sonntag, Linda, and Vātsyāyana. The Bedside Kama Sutra: 23 Positions for Pleasure and
Passion. Fair Winds Press (MA), 2001.
Vanita, Ruth. Queering India: Same-sex love and eroticism in Indian culture and society.
Routledge, 2013.
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Patrice Dukes
Dr. Scheid
Hinduism and Buddhism SP19
February 15, 2019
HINDUISM: Proposal Paper
I. Tentative Paper Title
→ Sexuality, eroticism and emotional fulfillment in the spiritual life: Kama Sutra
II. Statement of the question or problem to be explored.
→ Many texts tend to portray Kama Sutra as a manual enlisting various sex positions attributed
to Vātsyāyana. What aspects of the Kama Sutra show that it is not just about sex positions, but
more of the philosophy of sexuality, eroticism, and emotional fulfillment in the spiritual life?
III. Abstract
→ In this paper, the concept of Kama Sutra will be examined in detail. The paper will first
explore the background of Kama Sutra and try to highlight some of the key philosophers and
thinkers who led to the development of this text. Vātsyāyana will be the main philosopher to be
explored in this section. Next, the misconceptions and falsehoods about Kama Sutra will be
covered, including the factors that could have triggered the increased perception of Kama Sutra
as being synonymous to sex positions. Next, the sources of the text, including manuscripts and
references that have been commonly used when compiling the complete work of Vātsyāyana on
sexuality and eroticism. The next part, which will be the most important, will involve an
extensive discussion of what the Kama Sutra is all about. Here, the paper will debunk the
existing hollowness about the text and provide an in-depth analysis of other contents that are
rarely highlighted when people are talking about it. Some of the concepts that will be covered
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here include flirting and courtship, caste and class, other sexual relationships apart from
heterosexuality, adultery, intimacy and foreplay. All these concepts will be examined from the
perspective of how Kama Sutra portrays emotional fulfillment, sexuality, and eroticism. Finally,
the practices and ideas highlighted in Kama Sutra will be critically examined from various
dimensions and in the light of modern spiritually and sexual beliefs.
IV. Working Bibliography
Danielou, Alain. The Complete Kama Sutra: The First Unabridged Modern Translation of the
Classic Indian Text. Park Street Press, 1994.
Doniger, Wendy. “The” Kamasutra”: It Isn’t All about Sex.” The Kenyon Review 25.1 (2003): 1837.
Mulchandani, Sandhya. Erotic Literature of Ancient India: Kama Sutra, Koka Shastra, Gita
Govindam, Ananga Ranga. Lustre, 2006.
Puri, Jyoti. “Concerning Kamasutra s: Challenging Narratives of History and Sexuality.” Signs:
Journal of Women in Culture and Society 27.3 (2002): 603-639.
Sonntag, Linda, and Vātsyāyana. The Bedside Kama Sutra: 23 Positions for Pleasure and
Passion. Fair Winds Press (MA), 2001.
Vanita, Ruth. Queering India: Same-sex love and eroticism in Indian culture and society.
Routledge, 2013.
I. Tentative Paper Title
→ Bhakti Yoga and Its Growth
II. Statement of the question or problem to be explored.
→ Just as Hinduism cannot be nailed down to one specific practice and/or belief, Bhakti Yoga
cannot be understood in one set way. So how can Bhakti Yoga be understood through its varied
practices in Hinduism?
III. Abstract
→ In this paper the practice and meaning of Bhakti Yoga will be explored, in its varying lights.
While the words are mentioned in the Upanisads, it will only briefly be mentioned due to its
briefness in the actual text. The paper will begin with the account of Bhakti Yoga in the earliest
text, Bhagava Gita. This is due to the severe importance that Krishna puts on his description of
the yoga, especially with the differing types of people who practice it. Also, why it is this seems
to be the best manner of worship for Krishna/Vishnu. Then, the paper will discuss Bhakti Yoga in
the Bhagavata Purana. It is important to follow with this text because it was created to highlight
the weaknesses in the Bhagava Gita. It is thought to better teach the meaning of Bhakti, and how
to practice it. Next, the paper will focus on how Bhakti Yoga and related practices spread through
the people. One of the most inspired uses is in Tamil poetry. This poetry was a form that showed
great love and devotion to the god(s). It will also be highlighted that this poetry became so
influential that it has become another Veda in the Hindu tradition. Finally, the paper will
investigate Bhakti Yoga in today’s Hindu practices.
IV. Working Bibliography
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, A.C. The Nectar of Devotion; the Complete Science of the
Bhakti. Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, 1970.
Plott, John C. A Philosophy of Devotion: a Comparative Study of Bhakti and Prapatti in
Visistadvaita and St. Bonaventure and Gabriel Marcel. Motilal Banarsidass, 1974.
Rouner, Leroy S. Selves, People, and Persons: What Does it mean to be a Self? University of
Notre Dame Press, 1992.
“Bhakti Yoga: Tales and Teachings from the Bhagavata Purna.” Publishers Weekly, no.19, 2017.
Dines, Mike. “The Sacralization of Straightedge Punk: Bhakti-Yoga, Nada Brahman and the
Divine Received: Embodiment of Krishnacore.” Muzikoloski Zbornik, vol. 50, no. 2, 01
Jan. 2014. Page 147-156.
Pai, Vatisala. Isvarapranidhana: The Power of Surrender and Bhakti Yoga: An Analysis.
Integrative Medicine International. Oct 2016.
Holdrege, Barbara A. The Gaudiya Discourse of Embodiment: Re-visioning Jnana and Yoga in
the Embodied Aesthetics of Krsna Bhakti. Journal of Hindu Studies, Aug 2013.
…
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