Preface

As a result of the studies undertaken by colonial historians and writers on Indology, India is branded as the land of spirituality and homogenized culture. According to such a notion, the supreme aim of life was believed to be Mokṣa, the attainment of the ultimate liberation. It is obvious that such a Eurocentric view entirely expels the polyphonic nature of Indian culture. This view gained momentum during the colonial phase in Indian context. They divide the East and the West as the matrix of spirituality and materialism respectively. In other words, they observe that East stands for the state of inertia and the indisposition of spirituality and as a symbol of static culture; and the West is proclaimed as the centre of mighty dynamic way of life based on the well-being of all by means of materialism. Indian philosophers like S. Radhakrishnan also support that the schools of Indian thought are basically spiritual in nature.

But the history of Indian tradition reveals a strong foundation of materialism. It also illustrates the endless quest of the mind, ever old, ever new. There is a significant stream of metaphysics also in Indian Philosophical thought which has been traditionally pre-occupied over the questions of the nature of Godhead, the end of life and the relation of the individual to the universal soul. It was believed that the Trivarga or the three goals of human life viz; Dharma Artha and Kāma lead one to the path of Mokṣa. The Arthaśāstra puts forward the view that Trivarga is closely connected with each other. Disturbance to any one of the group will affect the other two also and the entire cycle. Here arises a question: What are the Puruṣārthas? Generally, Dharma stands for social and moral obligations and fulfillments of duties as prescribed in the law books designated as Dharmaśāstras. Artha includes all the means of livelihood and material prosperity. Among the three, Kāma occupies less prominence. Ancient Indian seers sometimes define Kāma as love, path of liberation or the basis of the cycle of creation.

Nobody has tried to define Kāma as mere sexuality. A number of texts have been written in the field of Kāma. It gives consolation that with its materialistic overtones, Kāmasūtra did not face the deadly situation of the lokāyata texts because of the belief that Kāma also leads to the path of Mokṣa. Even then, Indian philosophical systems do not view Kāma in high esteem. The octopus grip of spirituality based on the four-fold varṇa system is one of the main reasons for the negligence meted out to the Puruṣārtha called Kāma.