7.2. The Sixty-four Coition Arts

According to Vātsyāyana, the coition or sexual intercourse is called the Catuṣaṣṭhi or sixty four, because it comprised in sixty four chapters. The Bābhravīyas state that coition contains eight subjects as, embrace, kissing, scratching, biting, lying-down, uttering various sounds, playing the part of the man and mouth congress respectively^[1]. The elaboration is these subjects are seen in the second Adhikaraṇa of Kāmasūtra named Sāmprayogika.

Vātsyāyana strictly says that man should know about the Catuṣaṣṭhi and essential techniques for approaching lover before he is entering to the sexual intercourse with women.

“The girl’s state of mind changes as a result of marks of love. When the girl is relaxed, she gives him signs of affection. If out of excessive modesty, he does not touch the girl, she, seeing his lack of initiative, will consider him an animal. If on the contrary, he suddenly attacks the inexperienced girl, he will only manage to arouse fear and disgust, and she will become hostile to him. A woman who has not received any signs of love is wounded and becomes hostile, an enemy of men. She will either reject them all, or else will go with another”^[2].

“Vātsyāyana and the other authors of texts on erotics describe sex (Kāma) vividly as an art. They have depicted various steps of de-tumescence and tumescence. Vātsyāyana depicts all the eight steps which are mentioned by Bābhravya. Viz, āliṅgana, cumbana, nakhacchedya, daśanacchedya, samveśana, sītkṛta, puruṣāyita and aupariṣṭaka. Kokkoka describes all the steps except aupariṣṭaka. Padmaśrī describes only six steps. He does not deal with puruṣāyita and aupariṣṭaka. Jyotirīśa in his Pāñcasāyaka mentions seven steps. He describes cumbana under two divisions viz saśabda and niśśabda. He uses the term nakhapada and daśanapada instead of nakhacchedya and daśanacchedya. Kalyāṇamalla in his Anaṅgaraṅga, narrates all the steps except mouth congress. He calls samveśana as bandha and puruṣāyita as viparīta. Thus all authors have described the various steps of sex-sport.” (Hampiholi V. K., 1998: 69-70).

This clearly declares that the importance of integration of men and women as well as body and mind, also proclaims sex-sport is an art and which is to be learned with all its specialized sense.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

saṃprayogāṃgaṃ catuḥṣaṣṭirityacakṣate | catuḥṣaṣṭiprakaraṇatvāt | śāstramevedaṃ catuḥṣaṣṭirityacāryavādaḥ | kalānāṃ catuḥṣaṣṭitvāttāsāṃ ca saṃprayogāṃgabhūtatvātkalāsamūho vā catuḥṣaṣṭiriti | āliṃganacuṃbananakhacchedyadaśanacchedyasaṃveśanasītkṛtapuruṣāyitaupariṣṭakānāmaṣṭānāmaṣṭadhā vikalpabhedādaṣṭāvaṣṭakāścatuḥṣaṣṭiriti bābhravīyāḥ || (kāmasūtra, 2. 2. 1-4)

[2]:

ātmanaḥ prītijananaṃ yoṣitāṃ mānavardhanam |
kanyāvisrambhaṇaṃ vetti yaḥ sa tāsāṃ priyo bhavet ||
atilajjānvitetyeyaṃ yastu kanyāmupekṣate |
so'nabhiprāyavedīti paśuvatparibhūyate ||
sahasā vāpyupakrāntā kanyācittamavindatā |
bhayaṃ vitrāsamudvegaṃ sadyo dveṣaṃ ca gacchati ||
sā prītiyogamaprāptā tenodvegena dūṣitā |
puruṣadveṣiṇī vā syādvidviṣṭā vā tato'nyagā || (kāmasūtra, 3. 2. 32-35)