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The Seduction of Shiva
The god Shiva is utterly seduced by Mohini, the enchanting female form assumed by the god Vishnu during the churning of the ocean for nectar. A barber employs wit and wile and rumours of witchcraft to win his wife back from the lustful attentions of their king. The celestial nymph Urvashi curses the Pandava prince Arjuna when he rejects her sexual advances. A woman caught in adultery befools her elders with a religious ritual. A man with a disagreeable missing wife insists nevertheless that she be recovered by his ruler who has a similar problem. Refined, colloquial, romantic, cynical, satirical by turns, these stories of erotic love, elegantly translated from the Sanskrit classics, make a sustained argument for the secular ends of life of desire tempered with discrimination and pleasure with restraint.
256 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2014
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About the author
Kshemendra
29 books2 followersKshemendra (c. 990 – c. 1070 CE) was an 11th-century Sanskrit polymath-poet, satirist, philosopher, historian, dramatist, translator, and art-critic from Kashmir in India.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 13, 2025
A very brief collection of mostly very brief episodes from Sanskrit literature, intended to cover “worldly life, love, and human relations” (i.e. in contrast to the religious and philosophical stories that that ouvre is better known for). With what success? Mixed, to my mind. The episodes that were intended to be stand-alone stories, work as such, the episodes that weren't, don't. It's not like it was inherently crazy to extract individual episodes from larger works---people do that all the time, most obviously the Bhagavat Gita from the Mahabharata. But they've got to stand largely on their own, and these do so only sporadically.
I think the idea behind this anthology is really admirable to be clear---the epics, Puranas, and other pieces of Sanskrit literature contain huge numbers of stories that are functionally inaccessible to readers, in both the East and the West, and it's great that someone is trying to remedy that. But I simply cannot get behind the translator's choice of episodes, leaving this a somewhat disappointing experience. It's no coincidence that many of the more successful episodes are often from Ocean of Streams of Story, a vast collection of stand-alone stories; why not more of those (many of them totally inaccessible in English except in a poor Victorian translation) instead of context-less Mahabharata extracts?
Having given my wider opinion, here are my specific thoughts on specific works, for whatever interest they may hold:
“The Seduction of Shiva,” 3 pages. The episode where Shiva loses control of himself due to Mohini, is an intensely religious, sectarian jab by a Vishnaivic text, almost the opposite of what these stories are supposed to be per the introduction.
“Life and Love: An Allegory” 5 pages. What it says---there's a city, and it falls into ruin, and the king is sad because he is attached to it and attachment is bad.
“Mukta and Viveka: The Dialects of Intercourse,” 3 pages. A prince is going to go fight Krishna, even though it will doom him, but his wife convinces him to have sex with her first even though it's the wrong time of day. Alright then.
“The Sons of Vichitra Virya,” 4 pages. “Bhishma arranged for the new monarch to be married to Ambika and Ambalika,” did he? What a cute way of saying he abducted them. Anyway, this is the story of the birth of Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura, and without the context of the rest of the Mahabharata (which is about a great war between Pandu and Dhritarashtra's descendants), I don't know what we're meant to get out of this.
“An Appointment with Upakosha,” 3 pages. Not surprisingly, the episode written as a stand-alone story works better as a stand-alone story, quick and funny,
“The Barber's Tale,” 2 pages. See previous, although this is slightly incoherent---did barbers in ancient India shave the king's ass? How did he … well, never mind the spoiler, at least it's a story with a beginning, middle, and end.
“A Stupid Demon,” 2 pages. Very obscene, and funny. Given the putative purpose of the anthology, I'd have liked more stories like this; not the “obscene” part, necessarily, but self-contained, and otherwise inaccessible.
“Man or Woman?” So after the great war of the Mahabharata, Bhishma, lying impaled on a bed of arrows, but with the divine gift of not being able to die until he chooses, gives a lengthy (many hundreds of pages) discourse on basically everything. Good kingship, dharma, the gods, fate, and, apparently, whether men or women enjoy sex more. This rather bizarre story of a man being turned into a woman feels more like a self-contained story than the other extracts from that epic, to its benefit.
“The History of a Marriage,” 9 pages. This is the most story-like story in the collection, and the best of them---a woman is tricked into a marriage she does not want, and does not take it lying down.
“Agastya and Lopamudra,” 2 pages. “The adventures of Agastya while collecting the needed wealth are another story.” No! Those adventures are the story, you've gotten rid of the story and left us with the frame narrative!
“Vriddha Kanya,” 2 pages. Not a story in any real sense, what are we meant to get out of this?
“The Rape of Rambha,” 3 pages. Rambha's husband responds by cursing Ravana to die if he rapes another woman, explaining (apparently) why he didn't rape Sita. I find this incredibly distasteful, first because I don't think that needed an explicit explanation, second because it instrumentizes Rambha's own suffering as a tool to protect someone else, and victims of sexual violence deserve better than that. Obviously importing modern morals into a very old story, but … what can you do? My reactions are my reactions.
“The Life and Love of a Bodhisattva,” 11 pages. Another full-on short story. It's a little strange how much this Buddhist story feels like a Hindu story of the same vintage, complete with archery contest. In particular, this story is about a prince who is so obsessed with (attached to) his lover that it completely consumes his life, and … that's cool, I guess?
“Of Husbands and Wives,” 5 pages. Again, it might be useless to bring modern worldviews to bear on stories of this vintage, but again, there's no alternative---reading is a conversation between author and audience, you cannot excise yourself, and this story, where marital discord is resolved by magically altering the personalities of women, is weird and gross. But beyond that, what's the point? Where's the humor or drama or pathos or anything that allows this to succeed as a self-contained work?
“Arjuna and Urvashi,” 4 pages. Another one from the Mahabharata, Indra orders the nymph Urvashi to have sex with Arjuna. She's into it, but he isn't. Rather flat on its own---it's best read in contrast with other episodes where he is much less bashful.
“The Wedding of Radha and Krishna,” 4 pages. Krishna and Radha recite declarations of love, and are married. It's not that there's anything wrong with this; if I were reading the text where it came from, I'm sure it would fit right in. But again, this collection is putatively about “worldly life, love, and human relations,” an intensely devotional passage from a Purana is an odd choice.
“The Sage and the Siren,” 4 pages. A remarkably cynical little piece. The translator of this anthology has produced a full translation of the text it comes from, which I'll try to find time for; as has been the case for most of the more successful stories of this collection, it was always intended as a stand-alone episode, albeit embedded in a larger work.
“The Story of Devayani,” 6 pages. Another Mahabharata story, although the translation is of a version from the Matsya Purana. Because it's unrelated to the cousins and their war, this holds together much better than the other extracts from the Mahabharata found in this collection. Except! As with “Agastya and Lopamudra,” the translator guts this story of a major part of it---the king's liaison with Sharmishtha, in this case---and waves it off as “another story.” No! It's really important, and the scene where Sharmishtha uses the language of slavery to empower herself and get what she wants is in my opinion the climax of the whole thing; degraded, she uses her degradation as a weapon. Here, she is merely degraded.
“Shirya Devi's Ordeal,” 2 pages. A brief comedy story about an adulterous woman; it was intended to stand alone, and therefore does so, although I do think the frame narrative informs how it's meant to be read---Sukasaptati, or Seventy Tales of the Parrot, is about a woman being prevented from committing adultery by her pet parrot, who tells her stories to distract her.
“In Quest of a Consort,” 4 pages. From Harivamsa, the “appendix” of the Mahabharata. It's fine, but largely free of incident---it's really a prologue to a longer story (the bride's family detains Krishna's grandson leading to a divine war) that is not included.
In conclusion, then, a very mixed bag---successful stand-alone stories, largely unsuccessful excerpts.
I think the idea behind this anthology is really admirable to be clear---the epics, Puranas, and other pieces of Sanskrit literature contain huge numbers of stories that are functionally inaccessible to readers, in both the East and the West, and it's great that someone is trying to remedy that. But I simply cannot get behind the translator's choice of episodes, leaving this a somewhat disappointing experience. It's no coincidence that many of the more successful episodes are often from Ocean of Streams of Story, a vast collection of stand-alone stories; why not more of those (many of them totally inaccessible in English except in a poor Victorian translation) instead of context-less Mahabharata extracts?
Having given my wider opinion, here are my specific thoughts on specific works, for whatever interest they may hold:
“The Seduction of Shiva,” 3 pages. The episode where Shiva loses control of himself due to Mohini, is an intensely religious, sectarian jab by a Vishnaivic text, almost the opposite of what these stories are supposed to be per the introduction.
“Life and Love: An Allegory” 5 pages. What it says---there's a city, and it falls into ruin, and the king is sad because he is attached to it and attachment is bad.
“Mukta and Viveka: The Dialects of Intercourse,” 3 pages. A prince is going to go fight Krishna, even though it will doom him, but his wife convinces him to have sex with her first even though it's the wrong time of day. Alright then.
“The Sons of Vichitra Virya,” 4 pages. “Bhishma arranged for the new monarch to be married to Ambika and Ambalika,” did he? What a cute way of saying he abducted them. Anyway, this is the story of the birth of Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura, and without the context of the rest of the Mahabharata (which is about a great war between Pandu and Dhritarashtra's descendants), I don't know what we're meant to get out of this.
“An Appointment with Upakosha,” 3 pages. Not surprisingly, the episode written as a stand-alone story works better as a stand-alone story, quick and funny,
“The Barber's Tale,” 2 pages. See previous, although this is slightly incoherent---did barbers in ancient India shave the king's ass? How did he … well, never mind the spoiler, at least it's a story with a beginning, middle, and end.
“A Stupid Demon,” 2 pages. Very obscene, and funny. Given the putative purpose of the anthology, I'd have liked more stories like this; not the “obscene” part, necessarily, but self-contained, and otherwise inaccessible.
“Man or Woman?” So after the great war of the Mahabharata, Bhishma, lying impaled on a bed of arrows, but with the divine gift of not being able to die until he chooses, gives a lengthy (many hundreds of pages) discourse on basically everything. Good kingship, dharma, the gods, fate, and, apparently, whether men or women enjoy sex more. This rather bizarre story of a man being turned into a woman feels more like a self-contained story than the other extracts from that epic, to its benefit.
“The History of a Marriage,” 9 pages. This is the most story-like story in the collection, and the best of them---a woman is tricked into a marriage she does not want, and does not take it lying down.
“Agastya and Lopamudra,” 2 pages. “The adventures of Agastya while collecting the needed wealth are another story.” No! Those adventures are the story, you've gotten rid of the story and left us with the frame narrative!
“Vriddha Kanya,” 2 pages. Not a story in any real sense, what are we meant to get out of this?
“The Rape of Rambha,” 3 pages. Rambha's husband responds by cursing Ravana to die if he rapes another woman, explaining (apparently) why he didn't rape Sita. I find this incredibly distasteful, first because I don't think that needed an explicit explanation, second because it instrumentizes Rambha's own suffering as a tool to protect someone else, and victims of sexual violence deserve better than that. Obviously importing modern morals into a very old story, but … what can you do? My reactions are my reactions.
“The Life and Love of a Bodhisattva,” 11 pages. Another full-on short story. It's a little strange how much this Buddhist story feels like a Hindu story of the same vintage, complete with archery contest. In particular, this story is about a prince who is so obsessed with (attached to) his lover that it completely consumes his life, and … that's cool, I guess?
“Of Husbands and Wives,” 5 pages. Again, it might be useless to bring modern worldviews to bear on stories of this vintage, but again, there's no alternative---reading is a conversation between author and audience, you cannot excise yourself, and this story, where marital discord is resolved by magically altering the personalities of women, is weird and gross. But beyond that, what's the point? Where's the humor or drama or pathos or anything that allows this to succeed as a self-contained work?
“Arjuna and Urvashi,” 4 pages. Another one from the Mahabharata, Indra orders the nymph Urvashi to have sex with Arjuna. She's into it, but he isn't. Rather flat on its own---it's best read in contrast with other episodes where he is much less bashful.
“The Wedding of Radha and Krishna,” 4 pages. Krishna and Radha recite declarations of love, and are married. It's not that there's anything wrong with this; if I were reading the text where it came from, I'm sure it would fit right in. But again, this collection is putatively about “worldly life, love, and human relations,” an intensely devotional passage from a Purana is an odd choice.
“The Sage and the Siren,” 4 pages. A remarkably cynical little piece. The translator of this anthology has produced a full translation of the text it comes from, which I'll try to find time for; as has been the case for most of the more successful stories of this collection, it was always intended as a stand-alone episode, albeit embedded in a larger work.
“The Story of Devayani,” 6 pages. Another Mahabharata story, although the translation is of a version from the Matsya Purana. Because it's unrelated to the cousins and their war, this holds together much better than the other extracts from the Mahabharata found in this collection. Except! As with “Agastya and Lopamudra,” the translator guts this story of a major part of it---the king's liaison with Sharmishtha, in this case---and waves it off as “another story.” No! It's really important, and the scene where Sharmishtha uses the language of slavery to empower herself and get what she wants is in my opinion the climax of the whole thing; degraded, she uses her degradation as a weapon. Here, she is merely degraded.
“Shirya Devi's Ordeal,” 2 pages. A brief comedy story about an adulterous woman; it was intended to stand alone, and therefore does so, although I do think the frame narrative informs how it's meant to be read---Sukasaptati, or Seventy Tales of the Parrot, is about a woman being prevented from committing adultery by her pet parrot, who tells her stories to distract her.
“In Quest of a Consort,” 4 pages. From Harivamsa, the “appendix” of the Mahabharata. It's fine, but largely free of incident---it's really a prologue to a longer story (the bride's family detains Krishna's grandson leading to a divine war) that is not included.
In conclusion, then, a very mixed bag---successful stand-alone stories, largely unsuccessful excerpts.
February 8, 2017
The translation is cringe-worthy and grossly misleading to the nature of the original stories.
October 21, 2019
An absolute treat for anyone who enjoys mythical tales and classical sanskrit literature. Stories translated from classical Sanskrit texts by Mr. Haksar are a delightful mix of themes. Characters from Ramayan, Mahabharata and Vedic Gods and Goddesses appear in these stories and many sub-texts of epics are narrated. Portrayed with rich imagination, vivid characters and amazing word play , these stories provide a refreshingly different glimpse of values of Indian society. Many classical tales and characters have much more life in them than what we credit them in their modern retellings.
February 27, 2026
Its teach you so much. Give it a try~
April 27, 2014
This is a collection of stories from Sanskrit translated by A.N.D. Haksar, who has translated many other Sanskrit works. The subtitle 'Tales of Life and Love' is more descriptive of the content. The title 'The Seduction of Shiva' refers only to the first story.
The stories are taken from various sources - the Mahabharata, the Puranas, Kathasaritsagara, Harivamsa etc. Love and sex are recurring themes. About half the stories deal with the kind of frank sensuality that both shocks and delights Western readers of Indian literature and causes much embarrassment to westernized Indians.
What strikes me most about this collection is the portrayal of women. The accepted image of the traditional Indian woman is of one who accepts her fate unquestioningly and fulfills her role as wife and mother even if her husband and sons are unworthy. Women in these stories have a mind and will of their own and assert their rights, including the right to sensual enjoyment. Kundamalika in 'The Story of a Marriage' refuses to tricked into a marriage with an ugly and unworthy husband and uses a few tricks of her own to get out of that marriage and into one with a man she likes. In 'Shriya Devi's Ordeal' the eponymous heroine knows how to have her (illicit) fun and avoid its unpleasant consequences.
Overall the stories are interesting to read and whet the reader's appetite for more. One doesn't have to look far - Haksar himself has published many more such translations.
The stories are taken from various sources - the Mahabharata, the Puranas, Kathasaritsagara, Harivamsa etc. Love and sex are recurring themes. About half the stories deal with the kind of frank sensuality that both shocks and delights Western readers of Indian literature and causes much embarrassment to westernized Indians.
What strikes me most about this collection is the portrayal of women. The accepted image of the traditional Indian woman is of one who accepts her fate unquestioningly and fulfills her role as wife and mother even if her husband and sons are unworthy. Women in these stories have a mind and will of their own and assert their rights, including the right to sensual enjoyment. Kundamalika in 'The Story of a Marriage' refuses to tricked into a marriage with an ugly and unworthy husband and uses a few tricks of her own to get out of that marriage and into one with a man she likes. In 'Shriya Devi's Ordeal' the eponymous heroine knows how to have her (illicit) fun and avoid its unpleasant consequences.
Overall the stories are interesting to read and whet the reader's appetite for more. One doesn't have to look far - Haksar himself has published many more such translations.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews