The Pop-Up Kama Sutra: Six Paper-Engineered Variations
What do you get when you combine the classic, almost 2,000-year-old Indian treatise on the art of love with the most up-to-date paper-engineering techniques? The Pop-Up Kama Sutra!This lively distillation of the world's most famous sex guide features choice excerpts from the original text, translated in 1883 by the renowned explorer Sir Richard Burton, and is illustrated w...more
Hardcover, 48 pages
Published
October 1st 2003
by Stewart, Tabori and Chang
(first published 500)
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Don't believe the hype...I think I even pulled a hammy one night when we...well I won't divulge the details as we probably looked like a bunch of motards doped up on crack trying to install a satelite dish in a blizzard while trying to get our gutters free of debree. Needless to say I still walk with a limp.
Missionary Style? Sometimes when I wake up, I look up at the mirr...I mean ceiling and think: why reinvent the wheel?
Missionary Style? Sometimes when I wake up, I look up at the mirr...I mean ceiling and think: why reinvent the wheel?
view all 6 comments
This is a funny book! Since the book was written in the ancient India, many of the non-sexual instructions like courtship, concubines, courtesan, prostitutes, are just passe and ridiculous!
However, the sexual parts (which is just 1 out of 7 parts of the book)are still thought provoking and could still bewilder one's imaginations! This being an instruction book and an undeniably an indespensable part of classic literature is nothing but a must read piece of work of art.
Th...more
However, the sexual parts (which is just 1 out of 7 parts of the book)are still thought provoking and could still bewilder one's imaginations! This being an instruction book and an undeniably an indespensable part of classic literature is nothing but a must read piece of work of art.
Th...more
Arguably the hottest non-fiction book I've ever read - the translator has done a fantastic job of not only providing a translation of the original text, but also including translations of the commentaries by ancient Hindu authorities.
The book is less pornographic than you would think - I have seen countless "reproductions" that merely involve couples photographed in the positions. These detract from the content of the original, as does the reputation that proceeds this boo...more
The book is less pornographic than you would think - I have seen countless "reproductions" that merely involve couples photographed in the positions. These detract from the content of the original, as does the reputation that proceeds this boo...more
I've always wondered about this book after I heard about it in my history class in 8th grade. When I was downloading things on ibook I saw this and I felt myself enough of an adult to finally read it without being embarrassed.
It was a historical guide to relations with the opposite sex in all different castes in India. So this included the beggar all the way to royalty. To be honest much of it was tiresome and repetitive, but then every once in awhile you would stumble on something int...more
It was a historical guide to relations with the opposite sex in all different castes in India. So this included the beggar all the way to royalty. To be honest much of it was tiresome and repetitive, but then every once in awhile you would stumble on something int...more
I read the complete original text and I found it interesting in the fact that the content wasn't what I thought it would be. Most of the reading is outdated in the sense that it was written for the culture of that time. For example, I skipped the chapters about how to acquire a wife and what should be included in a dowry. I learned more about Chinese history and culture than anything else.
admittedly i did not read cover to cover, but i read enough to get a good sense. i was surprised to discover that much of it read like emily post's book of etiquette but for subjects such as kissing, scratching and biting (as in love play), how to behave toward the first wife if you are the second wife, personal adornment, and lying with courtesans.
Coming from a strong background in philosophy and the Classics, I found this book to be an invigorating read.
In general, nobody has any idea what Kama Sutra means, what the books is or what the author intended it to be. Simply put, dispel yourself of any preconceived notions before you read even the first paragraph of this opus or my review.
I was consistently intrigued by the exotic perspective and expansive scope of the Kama Sutra. In a sentence, the book is an expos...more
In general, nobody has any idea what Kama Sutra means, what the books is or what the author intended it to be. Simply put, dispel yourself of any preconceived notions before you read even the first paragraph of this opus or my review.
I was consistently intrigued by the exotic perspective and expansive scope of the Kama Sutra. In a sentence, the book is an expos...more
I have read many negative reviews for this book. I think if one starts reading a book with presumptions then he or she may not enjoy the literature as intended by the author. The best way to read and enjoy a book is to begin with an empty expectation and build the expectations as the pages are gradually turned.
For me this book was good. I enjoyed reading it for the most part. It gives a very good vivid picture of the contemporary Indian society (without any pornographic picture if one ...more
For me this book was good. I enjoyed reading it for the most part. It gives a very good vivid picture of the contemporary Indian society (without any pornographic picture if one ...more
This is definitely a manual on human courtship. Don't expect a story or epic tale of sorts -- there aren't any characters, no plot, etc... it seriously reads like a text book, as I think that's how it was intended. What's interesting about the book is how a lot of human behavior, with respect to sensuality and gender roles, has remained constant over time. You'll probably come across of a lot of, "Hmmm I've done that before" moments, hopefully you'll learn something, as well ;) It was...more
So, this is the best translation by the experts. It reads like a dry history text and figuring out any useful information is rather wearing. I suspect the Burton translation, while less reverent, is probably more useful.
My (wild?) guess is that probably less than 1% of the people who have heard of the book have actually taken a look at it. And of this already small minority, I do not think that more than again about 1% have read it completely. A shame, because it is an interesting treatise rather on being a well-rounded man in almost all social circumstances, and has much more recommendations than the ones usually highlighted in popularisations of the ancient classic. A bit tedious at parts, hence I cannot give...more
That's right, Bonnie read a dirty book. Snicker, snicker. What can I say? It came up in a fanfic story of mine and I was curious about this well-known "sex manual". It was ... unusual, a pretty mixed bag. The illustrations are indeed explicit but rather crude to the point of amusement and offered far fewer "positions" than I guess I thought were in the book. The instructions were at times somewhat romantic, at times bland, at times convoluted, and at times just worthy o...more
Free download:
Richard Francis Burton & Foster Fitzgerald Arbuthnot Translators
Kama Shastra Society (1883)
Free Online Version of the Original Text
Presented by 4 Freedoms Relationship Tantra
Images from Exotic Indian Art
Note from 4 Freedoms Relationship Tantra
This document includes the complete text of the 1883 Burton/Arbuthnot translation of the Kama Sutra by Vatsyayana. All footnotes attached are from the translation. There are links from the ...more
Richard Francis Burton & Foster Fitzgerald Arbuthnot Translators
Kama Shastra Society (1883)
Free Online Version of the Original Text
Presented by 4 Freedoms Relationship Tantra
Images from Exotic Indian Art
Note from 4 Freedoms Relationship Tantra
This document includes the complete text of the 1883 Burton/Arbuthnot translation of the Kama Sutra by Vatsyayana. All footnotes attached are from the translation. There are links from the ...more
So I was kind of puzzled when I went of Project Gutenberg and the top books were, in order, 'Kama Sutra, Sherlock Holmes, Pride & Prejudice'. Um. I decided to give it a go and read it in a good hour.
All I can say is that I now know how to enlarge a 'lingam' by rubbing ants or some bug on it. Great. Mmm, what a hot, juicy read. Sure, it's a good book on morals and enjoying sexual activity and such but a lot of it just seems like common sense. Of course, excluding the extremely racist ...more
All I can say is that I now know how to enlarge a 'lingam' by rubbing ants or some bug on it. Great. Mmm, what a hot, juicy read. Sure, it's a good book on morals and enjoying sexual activity and such but a lot of it just seems like common sense. Of course, excluding the extremely racist ...more
"Get a bigger flute!" "Increase ur Size! 6" "Don’t walk with tail between your legs." "V|agr.a, C|a.li5, and Phen.term.|ne CHeep!!"
Was the Kama Sutra the original idea for spam email?
"Take pomegranate and cucumber seeds, extract the juice of elabāluka (eluva, Gisekia pharmaceoides) and bhatakataiyā (Solanum indicum, eggplant). Cook in oil over a low heat. Use it to massage the penis. It will remain swollen for six months."...more
Was the Kama Sutra the original idea for spam email?
"Take pomegranate and cucumber seeds, extract the juice of elabāluka (eluva, Gisekia pharmaceoides) and bhatakataiyā (Solanum indicum, eggplant). Cook in oil over a low heat. Use it to massage the penis. It will remain swollen for six months."...more
The 1964 publication of Sir Richard F. Burton’s translation marked the first wide appearance in English of the Kama Sutra and was celebrated as a literary event of highest importance. As vital to an understanding of ancient Indian civilization as the works of Plato and Aristotle are to the West, the Kama Sutra has endured for 1,700 years as an indisputable classic of world literature.
Written with unassuming candour, the Kama Sutra remains one of the most readable and enjoyable of al...more
Written with unassuming candour, the Kama Sutra remains one of the most readable and enjoyable of al...more
You won’t find any picture there ;) Book describes social norms, custom behaviors related to sexual life, relationships between men and women. For us, living in Europe, in modern times, it’s rather a source of knowledge of different culture, or a comic book, not guidebook telling us how to live. I’m not a big fan of kidnapping women that don’t want to have a sexual relationship with a man or of a thought that my spouse will have few other wives and even more courtesans. In a very detailed way au...more
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Ok, I don't propose to claim that my reading is accurate, for it is not an intensive one, I admit, but, at least, I don't think devouring this ancient text is likely a waste of time. I would like to express some commentaries, which indeed I believe that many readers would not agree with me. I think this is not merely a 'how-to-have-sex' text. For the readers is told how s/he should deal with other people and/or institutions before or after s/he engages with sexual affairs. 'What is taboo? Or how...more
I give this a two star, almost one. Not Vatsyayana's best work. I found it somewhat anti-climatic in the middle, not to mention the lack of full disclosure, which as Chase mentioned, did lead to injury. I do, however, look forward to the sequel.
Not a must read. I find it somewhat similar to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. If you're not in some sort of high while "in the act," there is nothing wrong with the old fashioned way.
Not a must read. I find it somewhat similar to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. If you're not in some sort of high while "in the act," there is nothing wrong with the old fashioned way.
Erik Graff
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
students of Gupta culture
Recommended to Erik by:
parents
Shelves:
political-social-science
Like most children, my brother and I knew where everything was in our house, paying particular attention to the things we weren't supposed to know about. This book was contained in a shoebox in the closet of my parent's bedroom.
The Kama Sutra is commonly mismarketed as a sex guide or as pornography. Although courtesans are mentioned, it is not about the sex trade but includes discussion of marriage, adultery, transvestism, homosexuality etc. Most memorable from the childhood perus...more
The Kama Sutra is commonly mismarketed as a sex guide or as pornography. Although courtesans are mentioned, it is not about the sex trade but includes discussion of marriage, adultery, transvestism, homosexuality etc. Most memorable from the childhood perus...more
Alex
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Daring couples with a degree of open-mindedness..
I flicked through this one. Not really *reading* material, per se. More of a look, and learn.. Be warned, however, you need to be into Yoga, relatively flexible, or extremely well-hung to achieve a good 60 - 70% of the positions here-in. I was pleasantly surprised to learn that at least half of the more extreme positions were ones I'd already thought of. It's interesting how each recurring generation 're-invents' sex for itself. Wouldn't it be great if sexual education at schools came...more
... this book helped me and my daughter A LOT!!!! She is 16 and she incorporated her son into the mix sometimes. My mom and papa also helped me and my doughier with A LOT of these position. Super fun book!! Brought it to work and my co-workers had a LONG meeting (if you're catching my drift, Have fun!!!!!!!
The translation is absolutely flawless. Not only does it provide the original Sutras, but the reader is also provided with descriptions and advice from other parties. It's not just a book to give to your friend at her bachelorette party. It's a fabulous and educational read.
A lot of text instead of instructional photos. But the interactive pop-ups aid in that area. Beautifully done and well constructed pop-ups...except the first one in my used copy is broken. :( Expect to learn some Indian culture.
When I finally get to read this book I will be able to let my imagination go wild for all the sex that I have not had in years and will probably never experience again. This is one of the down sides of being single, alone and 50.
I read this book when I was 15 expecting that it would be the written equivalent of watching the fuzz, steamy, interesting, and worth staying up till 1:00 am to see. The Library version of Kama Sutra I checked out devoid of any pictures delivered a decorum guide on: sexual positions, devirginizing brides, keeping the harem in check, all interesting to boys. It also covers bathing before meeting the opposite sex, hugging, arranging the proper marriage, and courtesans all not so interesting to b...more
It wasn't what I thought it would be. There's some pretty cool historical information and some fun new ways to refer to genitals. I think more than anything it showed a level of comfort with anything sexual.
I admit, I was sort of hoping it would be spicier even as I reminded myself that Kama Sutra is actually a book of cultural and historical significance. This version should be read from that standpoint.
The translation seemed to be alright, but unfortunately the actual kamasutra that Vātsyāyana wrote wasn't at all what I expected it to be, it is a very dark and deceptive and selfish approach to life.
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Vātsyāyana is the name of a Hindu philosopher in the Vedic tradition who is believed to have lived during time of the Gupta Empire (4th to 6th centuries AD) in India. His name appears as the author of the Kama Sutra and of Nyāya Sutra Bhāshya, the first commentary on Gotama's Nyāya Sutras.
His name is sometimes confused with Mallanaga, the prophet of the Asuras, to whom the origin of er...more
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His name is sometimes confused with Mallanaga, the prophet of the Asuras, to whom the origin of er...more
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