The World of Courtesans c13: 10 Courtesans in South India

The World of Courtesans c13

Language: English

10 Courtesans in South India

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COURTESANS IN SOUTH India had almost the same kind of life as the courtesans in northern India. They were expert dancers and singers They were proficient in several arts and attracted customers with all the charm at their command They were also employed by the kings for certain kinds of services and were engaged as temple dancers. This is indicated in Chapter X of the *Shilappadikaram*, dated between the second and the fifth century A.D The work contains a convincing account of the life of a courtesan who lived in the great city of Puhar.

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The story runs thus. There lived two merchants. One had a son named Kovalan, and the other a daughter named Kannaki. They were married when they were sixteen and provided with a separate establishment. They led a happy life for some time. One day when Kovalan was passing through the busy street of Puhar, he happened to see Madavi, a charming courtesan of the city. She had just won acclaim from the king. Madavi is described as a beautiful girl with broad shoulders and beautiful tresses which scattered the pollen of flowers decorating her hair She had been trained in dance and music for seven years and demonstrated her proficiency in these arts before the king The stage on which the performance took place had two doors and on each door were placed pictures of the *bhutams*. A graceful lamp illuminated the stage. It was so placed that the pillars did not cast shadows. The screen and curtains were manipulated with ropes. From the painted canopy hung garlands of pearls.

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There was a staff of an umbrella covered with gold which represented Indra's son. On the auspicious day it was used by Madavi. She bathed and then garlanded it. Then she placed the staff on a decorated elephant. To the accompaniment of music, the king and his advisers circumambulated the elephant and then he handed over the staff to the musicians and poets. Then the party went round the town in a procession and finally entered the theatre when the staff was placed in its appointed place. After that Madavi gave a dance recital.

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When she went back home, Madavi sent out a hunchbacked attendant with a garland. She told him to stand in the street which was frequented by the rich citizens of the city and announce that the garland was for sale for 1008 *kāḻañjus* of gold and that whoever was prepared to offer the price would have her Kovalan purchased the garland and accompanied by the hunchback entered Madavi's bed chamber The bed was strewn with fragrant flowers. Her clothing on the waist had slipped and consequently the coral girdle had become displaced. They went to the moonlit terrace and made love there.

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Besides Madavi there were other girls in the establishment. They were sleeping blissfully, their heads resting on the chests of their lovers. Their rooms were fumigated with the smoke of black *agaru*. The girls painted their bodies with sandal paste and wore green *pāṭalai* garlands interspersed with segments of tender lotus flowers and pearl necklaces.

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One day during Indra's festival Madavi decked herself with fragrant flowers and sought to sport in a garden Kovalan went about accompanied by minstrels singing the *kural* tune. His city companions who were skilled in the arts of love talked about their amours and went with him.

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On this occasion there was a lover's quarrel between Kovalan and Madavi To please him she bathed her fragrant black hair in perfumed oil, fumigated it, and perfumed it with the paste of musk. She dyed her feet with lac dye, and wore ornaments on her feet She encircled her waist with a girdle of thirty-two strands. She had wound her blue piece of cloth embroidered with flowers. She also wore armlets, and bracelets with costly gems, and bangles made of conch shell and coral. She wore necklaces and ear-rings. Thus Madavi offered Kovaian the happiness of union.

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It was a full-moon day and Madavı saw people in search of amusement. They were hurrying to the beach and she was eager to follow them. Kovalan mounted his mule and Madavi got into her chariot. They passed through the bazar street. The shops displayed goods. Lamps were lit everywhere and courtesans scattered flowers, tender grass and paddy.

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Then they entered the central highway of the city. They saw goods brought into the city by foreign merchants, florists, goldsmiths, and vendors of different articles of food had their shops here. The beach glittered. Madavi came there with her playmates. She saw on the beach princes and their confidantes. She saw other groups of maidens who were also skilled in dance and music. They were in curtained enclosures.

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Courtesans who lived in Madurai are also described at some length. Kovalan on his visit to the city saw courtesans lost to all sense of shame and chastity. They accompanied their rich lovers to the pleasure garden situated on the banks of Vaigai. He also found them engaged in water sport. They sat in boats with high cabins and in canoes. They were busy swimming and holding on to the rafts. Kovalan also saw courtesans putting fragrant flowers in their hair and anointing their bodies with sandal paste.

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At nightfall the courtesans lay on their flower-strewn beds on the moonlit terraces, their lovers assuaged their fatigue by recalling their experiences during the different seasons of the year. In the rainy season the courtesans of Madurai, wound round their waist red silk with a design of flower. They adorned their hair with flowers and wild olives. They painted their breasts with red sandal-paste and further decked them with garlands of coral and flowers.

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In the cold season, modest courtesans and their lovers painted their chests with fragrant pastes, fumigated themselves with incense smoke and closed the latticed windows of their lofty houses. In the season of early dew the lovers sat on terraces to receive the warmth of the rising sun.

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In Phalgun or the month of "late dew" they talked about the king's participation in Kama's festival and about a fleet of high, broad ships carrying different kinds of incense, silks, sandals, scents and camphor. Spring united joyful lovers. Cool breeze began to blow and the season brought forth fragrant flowers.

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The summer season was hot and the wind scorching. In this season the courtesans who were loyal to the king received from him a present of covered carts, palanquins, and sleeping cots with jewelled legs. They found happiness in the pleasure gardens and received *chauris* made of yak-hair, golden betel boxes, and sharp swords. These courtesans drank wine from goblets held by their maid-servants. They were soon quite drunk. When they tried to sing the words refused to come, their red eyes indicated their anger; perspiration gathered on their foreheads marked with the *tilakas* and the eyebrows pointed downward.

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Kovalan passed through the *vesha* quarters. He saw lofty buildings. Crowned kings frequented this area secretly. The courtesans here were proficient in music and dance. Young men who were living with those courtesans, and new initiates both refused to leave those mansions without listening to their music and to the interesting conversation of these women skilled in the sixty-four arts.

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The *Manasollaa* of Someshvara, though composed as late as 1131 A.D., yet gives us interesting details about courtesans and *vitas*. It mentions that courtesans were closely connected with the palace. There they served the king. In summer they sat in a pavilion where the floor was covered with sand and provided with *khas*-grass. The curtains were sprinkled with perfumed water. The courtesans fanned the king at midday when the heat was intolerable. At night the courtesans gave musical performance on the palace terrace which were decorated with fragrant flowers. Jesters amused the king and literateurs, poets and story tellers engaged his interest till midnight when he retired with his women.

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Courtesans had their work to do in the ceremony of the king's bath. The bath was an elaborate affair. It was provided with golden columns, crystal railings, and tiled floors.

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Its walls were painted with minium and it was provided with a canopy made of Chinese silk. After the king entered the bathroom, his body was massaged by expert masseurs. They used fragrant medicated oils. Afterwards the oiliness of the body was removed with perfumed unguents. Finally perfumed water was poured over the head of the king out of gold and silver pitchers. These pitchers were held aloft by beautiful dancing girls who moved gracefully and exposed their charms to him. They applied the myrobalan paste to his hair and then bathed him with tepid water.

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Courtesans also helped the king to get into his clothes. They decked him with flowers, scents, and ornaments. The cool and comfortable audience hall had golden columns, painted walls and canopies of different colours. Near the lion throne stood courtesans carrying flywhisks and fans of different types.

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Women attendants and courtesans from the palace played an important part in the court ceremonials. The queens were brought there in silk-draped litters attended by the umbrella-bearers, *chauri*-bearers and the mace-bearers who kept asking people to make the passage clear for them The queens naturally wore the choicest jewellery, inlaid with precious stones, and silk and fine cotton garments. Flower garlands and scents enhanced their charm. Their bodies were lightly smeared with sandal and saffron paste, and floral patterns on cheeks and breasts were drawn with musk paste. Their foreheads were marked with the *tilakas* of different kinds and in many colours.

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After descending from their litters they were conducted to the seats reserved for them They were followed by a retinue of women attendants and courtesans, who employed horses and mules to transport them or came there on foot. They wore ornaments made of gold and conch shells, red, green and blue garments, garlands of lotuses and other fragrant flowers. The women from the Tamil country exposed their breasts, and the women from Maharashtra had smeared their foreheads with cinnabar. The women from Karnataka wore their *uttariya* on the left and the Gujarati girls wore full-sleeved bodices. They took their seats on both sides of the throne and behind the king.

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The king had a large number of mistresses (*avarodhavadhu*) who were not only accomplished dancers, and musicians but also knew the mind of their master. The courtesans employed by the king had to be young, beautiful and coquettish. They were properly rewarded by the king. They received gifts of precious jewellery, clothes, garlands, unguents, conveyances, seats, houses and so on. They amused their masters with their coquetry, jokes, sports, pleasantries. The courtesan, when she invited him to dally with her, spoke to him sweetly. Courtesans were also employed to serve food. They worked as bathroom attendants, applied unguents, and prepared scents. They were shampooers and hair dressers They could sing and dance well and joined the king in water sport

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The *Manasollasa* also mentions the participation of the courtesan in a cockfight. The Chapter deals at length with the various species of cocks, their feeding habits, the rules of the fight and the basis of giving a verdict of victory and defeat After describing their various species and the sort of food that they needed, the *Manasollasa* reveals how cocks should be exercised in sand-pits and then locked in different coops.

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When everything was ready the king challenged his queen to match her cock with his cock on a Saturday night. The ground was cleaned and the cockpit made according to the prescribed rules. Different parts of the pit were assigned to gods and goddesses Sharp knives were tied to the legs of the cocks. Thereafter their movements were watched and victory or defeat could be predicted.

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In the morning of the cockfight, dancers, musicians, the participants in the sport, the referees and the contestants all assembled at this spot. The king took his seat in a specially prepared pavilion and the queen sat on the opposite side. Finally spurs were tied to the legs of the cocks and the fight started. The final victory was celebrated with great applause. The victorious side mounted the shoulders of the vanquished party, made fun of them and forcibly snatched their party flag. The victorious cock was mounted on an elephant and taken round the city in a procession which was accompanied by dancers and musicians. It is significant that a water clock was provided to mark the time of the fight. Courtesans also participated in the ram fights. The author defines the different species of rams used in the fight. Betting was usually very heavy.

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Dance and music was the natural field of the courtesans. The king who presided over a musical soiree (*gītavrinda*) was considered to be a pleasant person, a well-educated person, magnanimous, and partial to virtue and well-versed in the intricacies of music. The members of the assembly were good linguists and had a keen aesthetic sense. The king when he was present at the musical soirees was accompanied by jesters and courtesans who sat by his side and behind him.

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The hill sports (*bhudharakrīda*) were held in the forest planted by the king in which he had built an artificial hill complete with peaks and covered with all kinds of trees. It was provided with an artificial lake and a sandy beach. The king accompanied by his palace women, his courtiers and courtesans entered the forest and climbed the hill. It was a kind of picnic party. The women laughed and played and the king sat under a picturesque tree and gave away gifts to the attendants Then under the shade of a tree or on the bank of a river he dallied with the women. He personally picked up flowers and offered them to the women who sang and danced to please him. Finally he mounted an elephant and returned to the city.

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In spring when the mango and other trees blossomed and the waters of the lakes, rivers and pools were cold and limpid, the king went with the inmates of the harem and his courtesans to the forest for a picnic. They diverted themselves by picking up flowers and fruits. They penetrated deep in the forest, the women running helter-skelter and the king following them. After this game the party rested under a tree, drank wine, chewed betel leaves etc. The king himself tied *venis* to their hair and everybody was given bouquets. This picnic is technically known as *vana-krida*.

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In spring a colourful swing decorated with floral, bird, and animal motifs was furnished with soft cushions. On full moon day the king accompanied by his courtesans and attendants raising the slogan "Victory" ascended the swing.

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Bards kept reciting passages and courtesans exposed their body and sat by the king's side. This was known as *andolana-krida*.

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The "sprinkling sport" (*lechana-krida*) was held in spring during marriage festivals and during victory celebrations. After bathing in a river the king invited the members of his family, officers, musicians, poets, jesters and others. The distinguishing feature of this festival was that the courtesans had all to dress in white garments, wear gold ornaments and garlands. They bore a sandalwood *tilaka* on their foreheads. The inmates of the harem also participated in the festival. A tank within the palace was filled with water mixed with saffron, sandalwood, musk, camphor, agallochum and sweet smelling flowers. The women sat round the tank. They held pitchers and syringes in their hands. At a given signal they drenched the king with coloured water and he in his turn pelted them with silk balls. They threw coloured water upon him and sported with him in other ways. The festival lasted till the evening.

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Water sport (*salila-krida*) was very popular in summer. Then the trees were denuded of leaves, the water had dried up and both men and women suffered terribly on account of the heat. The king chose a *vapi* separated on the water front of a river or a bank The *vapi* was square in form and provided with steps, an enclosure with a white painted house, canvas screens or simply rows of trees. It was filled with water lifted by the Persian wheel or by manual labour. It was provided also with fish and aquatic birds. Accompanied by his harem women and by courtesans clad in white garments, the king entered the *vapi*. He dallied with them for some time and threw gold coins and precious stones in the *vapi* to encourage his women to dive and claim them. After the water-sport was over the king and others changed their clothes, The king made them presents of pieces of Chinese silk, flowers, scents and jewelry.

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The *shadvala* or the "green sport" was arranged in a meadow in the rainy season. Then the clouds rambled, the flowers spread their fragrance and the ground was covered with soft green grass. This green plot was screened. After performing his daily ablutions the king ordered the women of his harem and courtesans to assemble at one place. While the members of the palace rode on elephants, the courtesans and musicians rode horses. The king then ordered the courtesans to occupy the bamboo huts and to enjoy the food and drinks provided for them. After the king had dined with his sons and friends, he applied sandal and scents to his body and put on jewelled silk and jewelry, and the women donned their finery. The folk singers and other women sang for a while and were suitably rewarded.

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The "sand sport" (*valuka-krida*) took place in winter when the sky was clear, and the water of the river and tank had settled down. The sport was held on sparkling sand and the area was screened. Bamboo huts and tents were set up on the occasion. The women, including the courtesans, sat around the king and dug holes in the sand. When the oozing water had become clear they put lotuses and other fragrant substances in it. Then they built temples of sand provided with tanks. They threw sand-balls at each other, arranged sham fights of cocks fashioned with sand. Those which disintegrated first were considered defeated. The victorious girl rode on the back of the vanquished and when both tumbled on the sand, it excited the mirth of the king. After it was all over the party returned to the palace.

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The *jyotsna-krida* or "moonlight sport" was held in the months of Ashvina and Kartika or sometimes even in winter and summer on moonlit nights. It was held in a spacious courtyard. The king wore a short, tight loin cloth with a flowered belt, jewelry, and the top-knot was covered with a scarf. The participants in the game were divided into parties of five to ten members. They were young and almost of the same age. The game they played was somewhat like the present day *kabbadi* (i.e. the "touch and go" game).

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In the *madhupana-krida* sport a drinking party was held in a forest, in a sward, on a river bank, in a garden or even in a well furnished house. In this festival all kinds of drinks and delicacies were provided. There were various kinds of meat, rice with *dahi*, ginger and lime juice, parched grains, radishes etc. The cups, bowls and trays were made of glass of various colours. They enhanced the glamour of the place Naturally, charming girls formed an indispensable part of the gathering. They sat on the grass, in bamboo groves and under the trees, hidden by a screen. Before them were leaf platters, bowls and cups made of gold and glass which were filled with *madya*, *sura* and *asava* and well-cooked relishes were served. The women decorated themselves with lotus and jasmine flowers.

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Then the drinking party began and white, yellow, black, bitter wines and liquors were served Strong grape wine was drunk only after they had taken some *ghee*, for it was supposed to lessen its potency Now and then the participants bit their teeth into pieces of green ginger and munched meat or parched grains They talked among themselves, spoke of the excellence of the drinks and the food. In drunken torpor some saw the reflection of their eyes in a mirror; some of them ran hither and thither for fear of black bees, while some others kissed the face of his beloved reflected in the wine cup An inebriated girl kissed the lover who had filled her with drinks. Another in her drunken state quarrelled with her lover. The cheeks of men and women soon became flushed, the eyes reddened, their spirit broke and their bodies were no longer taut and firm They fought among themselves, abused each other and laughed.

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Some dragged their feet, some dragged themselves as they danced and some girls simply stamped their feet on the ground. Some girls yawned, some of them recited obscene verses. A girl wept, feeling that some dire calamity had overtaken her, while another slept on the floor. Some girls fell down unconscious. Their hair was in a dishevelled state and their garments hung loose on their bodies. A girl losing control over herself showered abuses upon the king, another tried to embrace him while another openly invited him to unite with her in sexual embrace. Some girls hung on his neck and kissed him. Some girls were in such a drunken state that they threw away their clothes.

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*Nisha-krida* (nocturnal sport) was held in a cellar or an inner apartment. All the windows and holes of the apartment were closed to prevent the sunlight from entering. The doors were firmly closed. The dark chamber was then fumigated with incense and all impediments were removed so as to prevent the participants from stumbling. The king then asked his women to discard their shyness. He ordered some girls to enter the room unseen, approach the other women stealthily and pull their hair or their ears, to strike some on their backs, or scratch their bodies. The girls struck the other with their feet, or talked to the others lovingly. They used flattering language and squeezed the breasts of other girls. These preliminaries made the girls bolder and they were ready to participate in the orgy that was to follow.

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Some girls barked like dogs while others struck one another. They could not recognize those who struck them on account of the darkness. They exchanged filthy abuses, all of which amused the king. This led to further incidents. Some men and women pulled each other's hair, while some ran helter-skelter or slipped and fell. They did not hesitate to abuse the king.

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The king also participated in the game; he pulled the braids of girls, squeezed their breasts and pulled their cheeks. He touched a girl's zone, the navel, the lips and the necklaces. When his passion was aroused he dragged the others. He struck one girl with his foot; another girl embraced him; with difficulty he managed to get rid of yet another who was trying to hold him in a tight embrace. When she tried to run away with his garments he held her on the floor. Two girls fought among themselves. In this way the orgy continued till everybody was completely tired out.

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The king generally decided to visit the *vesha* on the pretext of taking a round of the city. He mounted an elephant and was followed by a host of attendants, some of whom were armed. They cleared the way for the royal procession. Some of his trusted servants kept advising him to hold on to the seat when the road became rough. A din was created by the king's guards, by the tinkling of the elephant's bells, by the beats of the drivers and the blowing of the conch-shells. The beautiful girls of the *vesha* decked their bodies with flowers and came out to receive the king. Some of them had a crescent *tilaka* mark on their foreheads, the golden *nupuras* shone on their feet. Some held their braids in their left hands and a flower garland in the right. Some held mirrors; their toilet was only half finished. Some in a hurry loosened the ends of their *saris* and gazed at the king. They were all young and beautiful. After watching all of them the king sent his Superintendent of Pastimes (*narmasachiva*) to select a suitable girl for him. Then the king returned to the palace.

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When night fell he washed his body with perfumed water and enjoyed a good meal of vegetables, meat and some milk preparations. After cleaning his teeth and rinsing his mouth, he applied sandalwood to his body. The Superintendent of Pastimes came with the message that he had selected a beautiful girl who had fallen in love with the king. She was getting ready to receive him. Pleased at the news, the king called his chamberlains to help him with his toilet and dress. He applied to his body a perfume made of musk; drew a *tilaka* on his forehead and wore costly garments. The attendants carried with them *pan*-leaves, camphor, garlands of fragrant flowers, clothes, ornaments and gold in sufficient quantity. Trustworthy guards and personal servants accompanied him. To ensure the king's safety royal guards were posted on the main road under patrol leaders.

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When all the arrangements had been completed the king accompanied by the Superintendent of Pastimes started for the *vesha*. The area was provided with palaces, *gopuras*, gardens etc. The king moved slowly, listened to the delightful music of *chandala* girls in one house; in one courtyard a girl was seen dancing to the accompaniment of music. In a second courtyard a musical concert was in progress. At one spot a girl was seated on an ivory chair. She had a jasmine chaplet in her hair. In a third courtyard a girl was looking into a mirror intently and was drawing a *tilaka* on the forehead. At the door of a house a girl was waiting to look at the king. One of the girls sang a song in which the king's name appeared again and again.

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Slowly the king proceeded to the main quarter of the *vesha*. On both sides stood rows of double storeyed and whitewashed houses. They were decorated with various patterns and provided with balconies. On these gates fresh *toranas* were tied and the floors inside were red and caged parrots prattled away gaily. The doors inside were curtained.

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There the king met the keepers of prostitutes (*bhujangas*) and rakes from different parts of the country. They wore the distinctive costumes of their lands. One class wore white earrings and creased white garments (*tungabhanji samanoitam*). To their white tunics (*angika*) were attached knives. Some wore chaplets and held daggers in their hands and were clad in strange costumes. Their foreheads were marked with a conch-shaped *tilaka*. Some wore doublets (*varahana*) and held knife-shaped sticks. Some were equipped with swords and shields and guarded the houses of the courtesans. One of them wore a green jacket (*kurpasaka*). He had covered his hair with a green scarf and was wielding a knife. A young man in white wore ornaments. He was followed by swordsmen. A *vita* wearing a saffron tunic (*angika*) and equipped with a knife walked with a following of swaggering companions. Another man came there mounted on a horse. He wore a tunic and a chaplet in his top-knot. He was decked in ornaments and was accompanied by seven or eight attendants. These well dressed *vitas* from Karnataka walked haughtily with upraised heads.

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The *vita* from Andhra walked with his face slightly turned away. He had wrapped himself with a saffron *chadar* with a border and his hair was tied in a top-knot. He had even and gleaming teeth. His earrings were made of palmyra frond and on his forehead appeared a sandal *tilaka*. On his chest was the impression of a palm and he wore figured muslin from Avanti.

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The *vita* from Tamil Nadu had applied turmeric paste to his body. He wore white garments, a tight tunic (*virakanchuka*) and pearl earrings. He bore the sandal *tilaka* on his forehead. The *vita* from Lata wore magenta coloured garments. There was a *tilaka* on his forehead and his entire body was covered with sandal paste. The *vita* from Gujarat had anointed his body with sandal paste, wore a jacket (*angika*), a magenta-coloured *dhoti* and dupatta. He had applied musk *tilaka* on his forehead. He carried a sword. The *vita* from Maharashtra wore a dull-coloured tunic reaching to the knees, coiled golden earrings and bangles, and his tiger tail shaped top-knot was circled by a chaplet. He was followed by three or four attendants with drawn swords.

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Visitors to the *vesha* also included renegade monks of different sects. A Jain monk still had his *kurcha* and staff. He had put aside his begging bowl and now wore a *topi* using its ends to hide his face. A piece of coloured cloth covered his body and thus camouflaged, he wandered in the *vesha*. The Saiva monk had lowered his *jata* and covered his head. He moved secretly and was led by his servants. The Sanyasi visitor wore new saffron cloth, but carried a knife in place of the staff. His shaved head was covered with a *topi* and he wore a chain necklace, bracelets and finger rings. He chewed *pan* and was followed by a boy. The Brahman *vita* had covered his head with a silken scarf. He wore a green tunic to which was attached a knife. He had hidden his sacred thread and *pavitrakas*.

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One *vita* waited near the threshold of a courtesan's house. A second one hearing the endearing words of his beloved, felt elated and ceased to care for others; one *vita* was forbidden further entry into the house. He left the courtyard in a dejected state. A *vita* was seen presenting perfumes, garlands and *pan* to a girl. Another was trying to propitiate his beloved with folded hands. Some irate *vita* was pushing out the husband of a prostitute and trying to gain entry to her house. Another *vita* unmindful of the reproaches of the bawd, persisted in his mission. Another shameless *vita* fought with the bawd. Some rascal saw a *vita* entering the bedroom. He hid himself under the bed to save his life. One *vita* gave away clothes to the attendants. Another sat on the bed with his beloved on his lap.

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One irate lover held his beloved's hair and struck her with his fist. A lover's eyes fell on his rival; he followed him with an open knife till darkness swallowed them both. Another lover felt pleased when his beloved struck him with her foot. One lover held a wine cup to the lips of his beloved. An expert in wreathing flowers was arranging a jasmine chaplet on the top-knot of his beloved. A rake was engrossed in food and drinks. He was in the company of his beloved Another was painting a *tilaka* mark on the forehead of his beloved.

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The king saw a large number of courtesans engaged in different occupations. One of them had drawn her *tilaka* and was waiting for a client; another stood between the door. Her breasts were tied securely, and her presence there was indicated by her bracelets. A prostitute with slightly sagging breasts was standing in the house. Only her beautiful face was visible. A middle-aged woman was hiding herself She indicated her presence by her bracelets and her hands adorned with rings Another girl had her face averted She was arranging her black hair with her nails. One of the girls had exposed her breasts and her earrings moved playfully Another had pulled up the parrot cage and stood exposing her abdomen Yet another had loosened her *chadar* and began to expose her breasts One girl had deliberately allowed flowers to fall from her hands. One of the girls tried to expose her thighs and attract customers One girl exposed her scratched breasts as she pretended to apply sandal paste to them. One of the girls sang a beautifully composed song, another had her firm breasts dressed in fine muslin and as she walked her toe-rings tinkled sweetly

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On the orders of the king the servants gave advance money to the courtesan who had already been selected for him. On the threshold of the house stood the grey haired and red eyed bawd; her body still bore the signs of old wounds. She wore earrings (*pavitrika*), a coin necklace and bracelets. She was deceitful and greedy. She cared only for those customers who had plenty of money. She told the king's messenger that a customer had just presented clothes and money to the girl and therefore she was not prepared to leave the place. She was ready to return the advance money. The king's messenger was aware of the bawd's deceitful ways. He promised to pay a bigger sum. The bawd could not resist the new offer and at once started flattering the new customer, saying that her daughter had waited for him all the time.

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The king was told about this arrangement made by his servant. He decided to enter the house of the courtesan. He sent her *pan* and flowers He proceeded slowly and entered the house Its door was decorated with a *torana* and it had latticed windows. There was a balcony and a beautiful garden and there the king sat on a bed inlaid with ivory. Then the courtesan came in. She washed his feet and simulating shyness took her seat by his side. She cast side glances. The king offered her *pan* perfumed with camphor and other ingredients. Then they talked for a while till their passion was aroused. After the visit was over, the king offered ornaments, clothes and money to the bawd

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Distinguished Paperbacks

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Linked texts (2)

Cilappatikāram — Iḷaṅkō Aṭikaḷ, Tamil
Mānasollāsa (Abhilaṣitārthacintāmaṇi) — Someśvara III, Sanskrit