The ''Ratirahasya'' (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

) (translated in English as ''Secrets of Love'', also known as the ''Koka Shastra'') is an early medieval Kashmiri sex manual written by Kokkoka, a poet, who is variously described as Koka or Koka Pandit. The exact date of its writing is not known, but it is estimated the text was written in the 11th or 12th century. It is speculated that ''Ratirahasya'' was written to please a king by the name Venudutta. Kokkoka describes himself in the book as ''siddha patiya pandita'', i.e. "an ingenious man among learned men". The manual was written in

Historical context

Unlike the ''

Kama Sutra The ''Kama Sutra'' (; , , ; ) is an ancient Indian Hindu Sanskrit text on sexuality, eroticism and emotional fulfillment. Attributed to Vātsyāyana, the ''Kamasutra'' is neither exclusively nor predominantly a sex manual on sex positions ...

'', which is an

ancient Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient h ...

sex manual related to Hindu literature, ''Ratirahasya'' deals with

medieval India Medieval India was a long period of post-classical history in the Indian subcontinent between the ancient and modern periods. It is usually regarded as running approximately from the break-up of the Gupta Empire in the 6th century to the star ...

n society. A sex manual was needed that would be suitable for the medieval cultural climate, and ''Ratirahasya'' was written, quite different from the ancient text ''Kama Sutra''.

Structure

There are fifteen ''pachivedes'' (chapters) and 800 verses in ''Ratirahasya'' which deal with various topics such as different physiques,

lunar calendar A lunar calendar is a calendar based on the monthly cycles of the Moon's phases ( synodic months, lunations), in contrast to solar calendars, whose annual cycles are based on the solar year, and lunisolar calendars, whose lunar months are br ...

, different types of genitals, characteristics of women of various ages,

hug A hug is a form of Affection, endearment, found in virtually all Communities, human communities, in which two or more people put their arms around the neck, back, under the armpits or waists of one another and hold each other closely. If more th ...

kiss A kiss is the touching or pressing of one's lips against another person, animal or object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely; depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sex ...

es,

sexual intercourse Sexual intercourse (also coitus or copulation) is a sexual activity typically involving the insertion of the Erection, erect male Human penis, penis inside the female vagina and followed by Pelvic thrust, thrusting motions for sexual pleasure ...

and

sex position A sex position is a positioning of the bodies that people use to engage in sexual intercourse or other sexual activities. Sexual acts are generally described by the positions the participants adopt in order to perform those acts. Though sexua ...

s, sex with a strange woman, etc. Kokkoka describes various stages of love in ''Ratirahasya'', the fifth stage being

weight loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...

, the ninth is

fainting Syncope , commonly known as fainting or passing out, is a loss of consciousness and muscle strength characterized by a fast onset, short duration, and spontaneous recovery. It is caused by a decrease in blood flow to the brain, typically from ...

, and the tenth and last stage is death. ''Ratirahasya'' makes classifications of women, and describes

erogenous zone An erogenous zone (from Greek , ''érōs'' "love"; and English ''-genous'' "producing", from Greek , ''-genḗs'' "born") is an area of the human body that has heightened Sensory processing, sensitivity, the sexual stimulation, stimulation of wh ...

s and days that lead to women's easy arousal. ''Ratirahasya'' is describes in detail Indian

feminine Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and Gender roles, roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as Social construction of gender, socially constructed, and there is also s ...

beauty, similar to that found in Kamasutra. The book classified women into four psycho-physical types, according to their appearance and physical features. # Padmini (lotus woman) # Chitrini (art woman) # Shankini (conch woman) # Hastini (elephant woman) On the basis of the size of the genitals, the text classifies sexual intercourse into nine different types.

Aphrodisiac An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases libido, sexual desire, sexual attraction, sexual pleasure, or sexual behavior. These substances range from a variety of plants, spices, and foods to synthetic chemicals. Natural aphrodisiacs, such as ...

s are also described in the book.

Analysis

According to W.G. Archer, Kokkoka "is concerned with how to make the most of sex, how to enjoy it and how to keep a woman happy." In writing this text, Kokkoka depended on a number of other authors including, among others

Nandikeshvara Nandikeshvara (; 5th century – 4th century BC) was a major theatrologist of ancient India. He was the author of the . Influence on Bharata Nandikeshvara seems to have preceded Bharata, according to Ramakrishna Kavi. Some consider him to be ...

, Gonikaputra, and Vatsyayana.

Translations

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

, Persian and Turkish translations of the book are entitled '' Lazzat Un Nisa''. Alex Comfort, author of '' The Joy of Sex'', made an English translation of ''Ratirahasya'' in 1964 titled ''The Koka Shastra, Being the Ratirahasya of Kokkoka, and Other Medieval Indian Writings on Love'' (London: George Allen and Unwin). Another English translation was made by S. C. Upadhyaya, entitled ''Kokashastra (Rati Rahasya) of Pundit Kokkoka''. Some commentaries have been written on this text by Avana Rama Chandra, Kavi Prabhu, and Harihara. It is a popular text in India, second only to the ''

'' among sex manuals.

References

{{Sex 11th-century Indian books 12th-century Indian books Kamashastra Sex manuals Hindu texts Hinduism and sexuality Sexology literature 11th-century Sanskrit literature 12th-century Sanskrit literature