Kamasutra 1.5

1.5

nāyakasahāyadūtīkarmavimarśaḥ

1.5.1

kāmaś caturṣu varṇeṣu savarṇataḥ śāstrataś cānanyapūrvāyāṃ prayujyamānaḥ putrīyo yaśasyo laukikaś ca bhavati//

When Kama is practiced by men of the four castes according to the rules of the Holy Writ (i.e., by lawful marriage) with virgins of their own caste, it then becomes a means of acquiring lawful progeny and good fame, and it is not also opposed to the customs of the world. On the contrary the practice of Kama with women of the higher castes, and with those previously enjoyed by others, even though they be of the same caste, is prohibited. But the practice of Kama with women of the lower castes, with women excommunicated from their own caste, with public women, and with women twice married, is neither enjoined nor prohibited. The object of practicing Kama with such women is pleasure only.

1.5.2

tad viparīta uttamavarṇāsu paraparigṛhītāsu ca/ pratiṣiddho 'varavarṇāsv aniravasitāsu/ veśyāsu punarbhūṣu ca na śiṣṭo na pratiṣiddhaḥ/ sukhārthatvāt//

1.5.3

tatra nāyikās tisraḥ kanyā punarbhūr veśyā ca/ iti//

Nayikas, therefore, are of three kinds, viz., maids, women twice married, and public women. Gonikaputra has expressed an opinion that there is a fourth kind of Nayika, viz., a woman who is resorted to on some special occasion even though she be previously married to another. These special occasions are when a man thinks thus:—

1.5.4

anyakāraṇavaśāt paraparigṛhītāpi pākṣikī caturthīti goṇikāputraḥ//

1.5.5

sa yadā manyate svairiṇīyam//

(a) This woman is self-willed, and has been previously enjoyed by many others besides myself. I may, therefore, safely resort to her as to a public woman though she belongs to a higher caste than mine, and in so doing I shall not be violating the ordinances of Dharma.

1.5.6

anyato 'pi bahuśo vyavasitacāritrā tasyāṃ veśyāyām iva gamanam uttamavarṇinyām api na dharmapīḍāṃ kariṣyati/ punarbhūr iyam//

(b) This is a twice-married woman and has been enjoyed by others before me, there is, therefore, no objection to my resorting to her.

1.5.7

anyapūrvāvaruddhā nātra śaṅkāsti//

1.5.8

patiṃ vā mahāntam īśvaram asmad amitrasaṃsṛṣṭam iyam avagṛhya prabhutvena carati/ sā mayā saṃsṛṣṭā snehād enaṃ vyāvartayiṣyati//

(c) This woman has gained the heart of her great and powerful husband, and exercises a mastery over him, who is a friend of my enemy; if, therefore, she becomes united with me she will cause her husband to abandon my enemy.

1.5.9

virasaṃ vā mayi śaktam apakartukāmaṃ ca prakṛtim āpādayiṣyati//

(d) This woman will turn the mind of her husband, who is very powerful, in my favor, he being at present disaffected towards me, and intent on doing me some harm.

1.5.10

tayā vā mitrīkṛtena mitrakāryam amitrapratīghātam anyad vā duṣpratipādakaṃ kāryaṃ sādhayiṣyāmi//

(e) By making this woman my friend I shall gain the object of some friend of mine, or shall be able to effect the ruin of some enemy, or shall accomplish some other difficult purpose.

1.5.11

saṃsṛṣṭo vānayā hatvāsyāḥ patim asmadbhāvyaṃ tad aiśvaryam evam adhigamiṣyāmi//

(f) By being united with this woman, I shall kill her husband, and so obtain his vast riches which I covet.

1.5.12

niratyayaṃ vāsyā gamanam arthānubaddham/ ahaṃ ca niḥsāratvāt kṣīṇavṛtty upāyaḥ/ so 'ham anenopāyena taddhanam atimahad akṛcchrād adhigamiṣyāmi/

(g) The union of this woman with me is not attended with any danger, and will bring me wealth, of which, on account of my poverty and inability to support myself, I am very much in need. I shall, therefore obtain her vast riches in this way without any difficulty.

1.5.13

marmajñā vā mayi dṛdham abhikāmā sā mām anicchantaṃ doṣavikhyāpānena dūṣayiṣyati//

(h) This woman loves me ardently, and knows all my weak points, if therefore, I am unwilling to be united with her, she will make my faults public, and thus tarnish my character and reputation. Or she will bring some gross accusation against me, of which it may be hard to clear myself, and I shall be ruined. Or perhaps she will detach from me her husband who is powerful, and yet under her control, and will unite him to my enemy, or will herself join the latter.

1.5.14

asad bhūtaṃ vā doṣaṃ śraddheyaṃ duṣparihāraṃ mayi kṣepsyati yena me vināśaḥ syāt//

1.5.15

āyatimantaṃ vā vaśyaṃ patiṃ matto vibhidya dviṣataḥ saṃgrāhayiṣyati//

1.5.16

svayaṃ vā taiḥ saha saṃsṛjyeta/ madavarodhānāṃ vā dūṣayitā patir asyās tad asyāham api dārān eva dūṣayan pratikariṣyāmi//

(i) The husband of this woman has violated the chastity of my wives, I shall therefore return that injury by seducing his wives.

1.5.17

rājaniyogāc cāntarvartinaṃ śatruṃ vāsya nirhaniṣyāmi//

(j) By the help of this woman I shall kill an enemy of the king, who has taken shelter with her, and whom I am ordered by the king to destroy.

1.5.18

yāmanyāṃ kāmayiṣye sāsyā vaśagā/ tām anena saṃkrameṇādhigamiṣyāmi/

(k) The woman whom I love is under the control of this woman. I shall, through the influence of the latter, be able to get at the former.

1.5.19

kanyām alabhyāṃ vātmādhīnām artharūpavatīṃ mayi saṃkrāmayiṣyati/

(l) This woman will bring to me a maid, who possesses wealth and beauty, but who is hard to get at, and under the control of another.

1.5.20

mamāmitro vāsyāḥ patyā sahaikībhāvam upagatas tam anayā rasena yojayiṣyāmīty evam ādibhiḥ kāraṇaiḥ parastriyam api prakurvīta//

(m) My enemy is a friend of this woman’s husband, I shall therefore cause her join him, and will thus create an enmity between her husband and him.

For these and similar other reasons the wives of other men may be resorted to, but it must be distinctly understood that is only allowed for special reasons, and not for mere carnal desire.

1.5.21

iti sāhasikyaṃ na kevalaṃ rāgād eva/ iti paraparigrahagamanakāraṇāni/

1.5.22

etair eva kāraṇair mahāmātrasaṃbaddhā rājasaṃbaddhā vā tatraikadeśacāriṇī kā cid anyā vā kāryasaṃpādinī vidhavā pañcamīti cārāyaṇaḥ/

Charayana thinks that under these circumstances there is also a fifth kind of of Nayika, viz., a woman who is kept by a minister, or who repairs to him occasionally; or a widow who accomplishes the purpose of a man with the person to whom she resorts.

1.5.23

saiva pravrajitā ṣaṣṭhīti suvarṇanābhaḥ/

Suvarnanabha adds that a woman who passes the life of an ascetic and in the condition of a widow may be considered as a sixth kind of Nayika.

1.5.24

gaṇikāyā duhitā paricārikā vānanyapūrvā saptamīti ghoṭakamukhaḥ/

Ghotakamukha says that the daughter of a public woman, and a female servant, who are still virgins, form a seventh kind of Nayika.

1.5.25

utkrāntabālabhāvā kulayuvatir upacārānyatvād aṣṭamīti gonardīyaḥ/

Gonardiya puts forth his doctrine that any woman born of good family, after she has come of age, is an eighth kind of Nayika.

1.5.26

kāryāntarābhāvād etāsām api pūrvāsv evopalakṣaṇam, tasmāc catasra eva nāyikā iti vātsyāyanaḥ/

But these four latter kinds of Nayikas do not differ much from the first four kinds of them, as there is no separate object in resorting to them. Therefore, Vatsyayana is of opinion that there are only four kinds of Nayikas, i. e., the maid, the twice-married woman, the public woman, and the woman resorted to for a special purpose.

1.5.27

bhinnatvāt tṛtīyā prakṛtiḥ pañcamīty eke//

1.5.28

eka eva tu sārvalaukiko nāyakaḥ/ pracchannas tu dvitīyaḥ/ viśeṣālābhāt/ uttamādhamamadhyamatāṃ tu guṇāguṇato vidyāt/ tāṃs tūbhayor api guṇāguṇān vaiśike vakṣyāmaḥ//

1.5.29

agamyās tv evaitāḥ ---kuṣṭhiny unmattā patitā bhinnarahasyā prakāśaprārthinī gataprāyayauvanātiśvetātikṛṣṇā durgandhā saṃbandhinī sakhī pravrajitā saṃbandhisakhiśrotriyarājadārāś ca//

The following women are not to be enjoyed:—

A leper.

A lunatic.

A woman turned out of caste.

A woman who reveals secrets.

A woman who publicly expresses a desire for sexual intercourse.

A woman who is extremely white.

A woman who is extremely black.

A bad-smelling woman.

A woman who is a near relation.

A woman who is a female friend.

A woman who leads the life of an ascetic.

And, lastly the wife of a relation, of a friend, of a learned Brahman, and of the king.

1.5.30

dṛṣṭapañcapuruṣā nāgamyā kā cid astīti bābhravīyāḥ//

The followers of Babhravya say that any woman who has been enjoyed by five men is a fit and proper person to be enjoyed. But Gonikaputra is of opinion that even when this is the case, the wives of a relation, of a learned Brahman and of a king should be excepted.

1.5.31

saṃbandhisakhiśrotriyarājadāravarjam iti goṇikāputraḥ//

1.5.32

saha pāṃsukrīḍitam upakārasaṃbaddhaṃ samānaśīlavyasanaṃ sahādhyāyinaṃ yaś cāsya marmāṇi rahasyāni ca vidyāt, yasya cāyaṃ vidyād vā dhātrapatyaṃ sahasaṃvṛddhaṃ mitram//

The following are the kind of friends:—

One who has played with you in the dust, i. e., in childhood.

One who is bound by an obligation.

One who is of the same disposition and fond of the same things.

One who is a fellow student.

One who is acquainted with your secrets and faults, and whose faults and secrets are also known to you.

One who is a child of your nurse.

One who is brought up with you.

1.5.33

pitṛpaitāmaham avisaṃvādakam adṛṣṭavaikṛtaṃ vaśyaṃ dhruvam alobhaśīlam aparihāryam amantravisrāvīti mitrasaṃpat//

One who is an hereditary friend.

These friends should possess the following qualities:—

They should tell the truth.

They should not be changed by time.

They should be favorable to your designs.

They should be firm.

They should be free from covetousness.

They should not be ceapable of being gained over by others.

They should not reveal your secrets.

1.5.34

rajakanāpitamālākāragāndhikasaurikabhikṣukagopālakatāmbūlika^s auvarṇikapīṭhamardaviṭavidūṣakādayo mitrāṇi/ tad yoṣin mitrāś ca nāgarakāḥ syur iti vātsyāyanaḥ//

Charayana says that citizens form friendships with washer-men, barbers, cowherds, florists, druggists, betal-leaf sellers, tavern keepers, beggars, Pithamardas, Vitas, and Vidushekas, as also with the wives of all these people.

1.5.35

yad ubhayoḥ sādhāraṇam ubhayatrodāraṃ viśeṣato nāyikāyāḥ suvisrabdhaṃ tatra dūtakarma//

A messenger should possess the following qualities:—

1.5.36

paṭutā dhārṣṭyam iṅgitākārajñatā pratāraṇakālajñatā viṣahyabuddhitvaṃ laghvī pratipattiḥ sopāyā ceti dūtaguṇāḥ// bhavati cātra ślokaḥ ---

Skilfulness.

Boldness.

Knowledge of the intention of men by their outward signs.

Absence of confusion, i. e., no shyness.

Knowledge of the exact meaning of what others do or say.

Good manners.

Knowledge of appropriate times and places for doing different things.

Ingenuity in business.

Quick comprehension.

Quick application of remedies, i. e., quick and ready resources.

And this part ends with a verse:—

1.5.37

ātmavān mitravān yukto bhāvajño deśakālavit/
alabhyām apy ayatnena striyaṃ saṃsādhayen naraḥ//

The man who is ingenious and wise, who is accompanied by a friend, and who knows the intentions of others, as also the proper time and place for doing everything, can gain over, very easily, even a woman who is very hard to be obtained.

1.5.37.p1

2. sāṃprayogikaṃ nāma dvitīyam adhikaraṇam

END OF PART I.