History Literature / KamaSutra

A couple of thousand years or so ago, a man called Vatsyayana Mullanaga got it into his head to compile a book of all the sex tips he could find in his homeland of India. This tome was called the ''Kama Sutra'' (lit: ''Pleasure Sayings'') and even today it is a byword for sexuality around the world. Yet, like so many classic literary works, [[MainstreamObscurity it's one of those famous works that a lot of people have heard of, but few have bothered to read (in full)]]. PopCulturalOsmosis has reduced it to supposedly being nothing but a pornographic book with a lot of naughty pictures. In reality there is an entire philosophy behind the sexual acts described in the book. Another {{Urban Legend|s}} claims it is a religious work, which isn't true either, although some cultures may regard sex as an act of worship.

Trope Namer For:

!!This book has examples of the following tropes;

* AnythingThatMoves: More of a trigger to this than a philosophy it espouses.
* BiggerIsBetterInBed: DownplayedTrope. Men are divided up into 3 categories by penis size: "hare", "bull", or "stallion". However, the same is done for women: "doe", "mare", or "elephant". The question then is not about the ''absolute'' size of a man, but his ''relative'' size compared to his partner. Equal-size unions are considered the best, and 2 degrees of size difference are considered the worst. 1 degree of size difference is considered middling, and in such cases, ''then'' it says the man being slightly larger is preferable to the woman being slightly larger.

* ForeignFanservice: A large part of the appeal of the book among people outside India is that it provides exotic eroticism from the mysterious Orient.

--> ''When a man and a woman support themselves on each other's bodies, or on a wall, or pillar, and thus while standing engage in congress, it is called the 'supported congress'.''

* BiggerIsBetterInBed: ZigZaggingTrope. Men are divided up into 3 categories by penis size: ''hare'', ''bull'', or ''stallion''. However, the same is done for women: ''doe'', ''mare'', or ''elephant''. The question then is not just about the ''absolute'' size of a man, but the ''relative'' size between him and his partner. An ideal union is between partners of equal size. 1 degree of size difference is considered workable, but in such cases, it ''is'' agreed than the man being bigger is better than the woman being bigger. 2 degrees of size difference is considered the worst.

* BiggerIsBetterInBed: ZigZaggingTrope. Men are divided up into 3 categories by penis size: ''hare'', ''bull'', or ''stallion''. However, the same is done for women: ''doe'', ''mare'', or ''elephant''. The question then is not just about the ''absolute'' size of a man, but the ''relative'' size between him and his partner. An ideal union is between partners of corresponding size.

* WalkingKamaSutra

->''"Hey Marge! This guy looks like Apu."''
-->-- '''Homer Simpson picking up a copy of the ''Kama Sutra''''', ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E10GrampaVsSexualInadequacy "Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequacy"]]

[[quoteright:166:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kama_sutra_2_631.png]]
[[caption-width-right:166:The only image we could use without offending prudish users.]]

References in Other Works;
* ''Film/{{Hipsters}}'': Given to a less experienced character.
* ''Film/ShanghaiNoon'': In the sequel, ''Shanghai Knights'', Roy happens upon a copy in the BigBad's personal library and becomes {{distracted|ByTheSexy}} from the mission at hand.
* ''Film/TheLastRemakeOfBeauGeste'': During his bedroom scene with Flavia, General Pecheur picks up and reads an illustrated edition of the Kama Sutra. He holds the book horizontally at first, then [[HeadTiltinglyKinky turns it at a 90-degree angle to study the pictures better.]]
* In Creator/ArthurCClarke's ''Literature/ImperialEarth'', travelers from Saturn to Earth have a few hours of zero-gee halfway along, while the ship is flipping over to decelerate.
--> ''No wonder that the most popular item in the ship's library these last few days had been the Nasa Sutra, an old book and an old joke, explained so often that it was no longer funny.''
* In ''Animation/DragonAndSlipper'' the book Merlin looks up the recipe for the love potion from is the ''Kama Sutra''. By the way, [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar this is a children's cartoon]]...!
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''
** Homer picks up a copy in "Grampa vs. Sexual Inadequency".
** Marge and Homer are given a copy by Apu in "The Sweetest Apu".
** In "I'm With Cupid", when Apu and Manjula are having a fight, a copy of the book is thrown out their window and found by Homer, who decides to read it (while driving).
** In "O Brother, Where Bart Thou", Bart uses a digital version to try and get Homer and Marge to conceive another baby, but it ends up putting them both in traction.
* ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'': Mentioned by Raj while wooing Sheldon's sister Missy.
-->'''Raj:''' Have you ever heard of the ''Kama Sutra''?\\
'''Missy:''' The sex book.\\
'''Raj:''' The ''Indian'' sex book. In other words, [[WaxingLyrical if you ever wondered, wondered who wrote the book of love...]] it was us.
* In WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic's review of ''Film/CoolAsIce'', the Critic calls Music/VanillaIce's questionable dance moves as being like "five pages of the ''Kama Sutra''."
* On ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', Dr. Zimmerman asks a female alien if she's familiar with the book.
----
This book has examples of the following tropes;

There is also a film, released in 1996, starring Indira Varma (Lucius's wife in ''Series/{{Rome}}'', Suzie in ''Series/{{Torchwood}}'') and Naveen Andrews (Sayid from ''Series/{{Lost}}''). So something for everyone there. Not to mention numerous 'ahem!' educational [=DVDs=].

-->-- '''Homer Simpson picking up a copy of the ''Kama Sutra''''', ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', [[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E10GrampaVsSexualInadequacy "Granpa vs. Sexual Inadequacy"]]

A couple of thousand years or so ago, a man called Vatsyayana Mullanaga got it into his head to compile a book of all the sex tips he could find in his homeland of India. This tome was called the ''Kama Sutra'' (lit: ''Pleasure Sayings'') and even today it is a byword for sexuality around the world. Yet, like so many classic literary works, [[MainstreamObscurity it's one of those famous works that a lot of people have heard of, but few have bothered to read (in full)]]. PopCulturalOsmosis has reduced it to supposedly being nothing but a pornographic book with a lot of naughty pictures. In reality there is an entire philosophy behind the sexual acts described in the book. Another UrbanLegend claims it is a religious work, which isn't true either, although some cultures may regard sex as an act of worship.

* {{Walking Kama Sutra}}
* {{Comic Sutra}}

* ''Film/ShanghaiNoon'': In the sequel, ''Shanghai Knights'', Roy happens upon a copy in the {{Big Bad}}'s personal library and becomes [[DistractedByTheSexy distracted]] from the mission at hand.

* In ''Animation/DragonAndSlipper'' the book Merlin looks up the recipe for the love potion from is the ''Kama Sutra''. By the way, [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar this is a children's cartoon...!]]

** Homer picks up a copy in "Granpa vs. Sexual Inadequency".

* {{Anything That Moves}}: More of a trigger to this than a philosophy it espouses.
* {{A Date With Rosie Palms}}: Although the advice usually assumes a couple.

* {{Erotic Eating}}: Plenty of advice on how different tastes in food can enhance things.
* {{Erotic Literature}}: This is the oldest sex manual in existence and probably the most famous.

* {{Hot Blooded}}

* {{Lotus Position}}: One positional approach (her, not him).
* {{Sex Tropes}}: Pretty much all of them on the list that don't involve cultures not found/invented yet or devices not yet imagined (although some devices are {{Older Than You Think}}).

-->-- '''Homer Simpson picking up a copy of the ''Kama Sutra''''', ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E10GrampaVsSexualInadequacy Granpa vs. Sexual Inadequacy]]"

* ''Film/{{Hipsters}}'' - Given to a less experienced character.
* ''Film/ShanghaiNoon'' - In the sequel, ''Shanghai Knights'', Roy happens upon a copy in the {{Big Bad}}'s personal library and becomes [[DistractedByTheSexy distracted]] from the mission at hand.

* ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'' - Mentioned by Raj while wooing Sheldon's sister Missy.

* {{Anything That Moves}} - More of a trigger to this than a philosophy it espouses.
* {{A Date With Rosie Palms}} - Although the advice usually assumes a couple.

* {{Erotic Eating}} - Plenty of advice on how different tastes in food can enhance things.

* {{Lotus Position}} - One positional approach (her, not him).
* {{Sex Tropes}} - Pretty much all of them on the list that don't involve cultures not found/invented yet or devices not yet imagined (although some devices are {{Older Than You Think}}).

-->''"Hey Marge! This guy looks like Apu."''
-->-- '''Homer Simpson picking up a copy of the Kama Sutra''', ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E10GrampaVsSexualInadequacy Granpa vs. Sexual Inadequacy]]"

-->'''"Hey Marge! This guy looks like Apu."'''
--> -- Homer Simpson picking up a copy of the Kama Sutra in "Granpa vs. Sexual Inadequacy"

* ''Film/TheLastRemakeOfBeauGeste'': During his bedroom scene with Flavia, General Pecheur picks up and reads an illustrated edition of the Kama Sutra. He holds the book horizontally at first, then [[SomethingElseAlsoRises turns it at a 90-degree angle to study the pictures better.]]

* ''{{Hipsters}}'' - Given to a less experienced character.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' - Homer picks up a copy in "Granpa vs. Sexual Inadequency". Marge and Homer are given a copy by Apu in "The Sweetest Apu".

* ''Film/ShanghaiNoon'' - Roy is engrossed in the Kama Sutra at one point. Not that the Sutras are Chinese but hey ho.

* In Creator/ArthurClarke's ''Literature/ImperialEarth'', travelers from Saturn to Earth have a few hours of zero-gee halfway along, while the ship is flipping over to decelerate.

A couple of thousand years or so ago, a man called Vatsyayana Mullanaga got it into his head to compile a book of all the sex tips he could find in his homeland of India. This tome was called the ''Kama Sutra'' (lit: ''Pleasure Sayings'') and even today it is a byword for sexuality around the world. It is not actually a religious work, despite rumours to the contrary, although some cultures may regard sex as an act of worship.

* ''ShanghaiNoon'' - Roy is engrossed in the Kama Sutra at one point. Not that the Sutras are Chinese but hey ho.

%%* {{Erotic Literature}}

* ItsNotPornItsArt: The book is a bit more enlightened than just being a collection of "bawdy" pictures.

* {{Erotic Literature}}

* ItsNotPornItsArt: The book is a bit more enlightened than just being a collective of "bawdy" pictures.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' - Marge and Homer are given a copy by Apu.

* {{Oral Sex}}
* {{Sad Slow Soulful}} - One approach.

References in Other Works;
* ''{{Hipsters}}'' - Given to a less experienced character.
* ''ShanghaiNoon'' - Roy is engrossed in the Kama Sutra at one point. Not that the Sutras are Chinese but hey ho.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' - Marge and Homer are given a copy by Apu.
* ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'' - Mentioned by Raj while wooing Sheldon's sister Missy.
-->'''Raj:''' Have you ever heard of the ''Kama Sutra''?\\
'''Missy:''' The sex book.\\
'''Raj:''' The ''Indian'' sex book. In other words, [[WaxingLyrical if you ever wondered, wondered who wrote the book of love...]] it was us.