The World of Courtesans c9.68

c9.68

In the post-Gupta period the pattern of life continued as in the previous centuries—only in a more elaborate form. As a matter of fact, the literature of the time reveals a luxurious mode of existence. This was reflected in the highly decorated palaces which housed a multitude of attendants, courtesans and harem inmates. The king led a life of comfort and he showed the same interest in festivals, music, dancing and *goshthi* that he had displayed in the Gupta period. The *goshthi*, with its well organized membership, continued to exist. Gambling, drinking and prostitution were widely prevalent and in spite of the *shastric* injunctions against these vices, human nature seemed to have found delight in all of them.