The Kamasutra: The Original Sanskrit and An English Translation Hardcover – September 1, 2012

One of the first things I noticed about this edition was the inclusion of the original Sanskrit text. The second thing I noticed was that the illustrations matched the clothing and jewellery of the era that the Kamasutra was written. These two details made reading the main text a lot more enjoyable and enriching for me (even though I can't read the original Sanskrit, it makes me feel more "connected" to the original writing from ancient Indian culture, especially since I've always had an interest in ancient civilisations).The brief introduction of the book (around a succinct 5 pages) states to the reader very clearly what the book is and isn't:* * *"Do not blindly use this booka as a how-to manual.""...it abscribes a deep, positive value to sex: it isn't simply for reproduction--sexual happiness matters, and it's important for one's physical and mental health.""Perhaps our challenge is to learn what we can without damaging who we are...One could even use this knowledge to find and nurture true love."* * *With this clear introduction in place, the reader is then invited to peruse the rest of the book, which covers subjects such as sexual intercourse (ten chapters with seventeen sections--lots of juicy/useful details about ways of biting, unusual sex acts, beginning and conclusion of intercourse, etc.), conduct of a wife, courtesans (a very lovely and exotic section, for me!), and advanced methods (this one covers how to achieve luck in love, etc--albeit set in "the ancient world," still very educational and illuminating).This book is also published by YogaVidya, which is "dedicated to publishing quality books about Yoga." I like that the company is completely independent of any commercial, governmental, educational or religious institutions, as I trust that this means the product/book is more like to be presented as what it is "in essence" (i.e. uninfluenced by personal and/or some other kind of moral or political agenda).I am glad to say this was my experience with this textual edition and presentation of The Kamasutra. I'd recommend it to anyone who was interested in what the original text really is all about. The easy reading and nice accompanying illustrations help ensure this ancient (and practical) guide continues to be available to the masses in its original non-gimmicky state, so that we too can continue to explore the psychology and practice of pleasure through sexual behaviour.

Don’t waste your money on it, one of the guys at my work mentioned it so I purchased it to see what it was about for myself but would return it if I had not removed from its original packaging what a waste of money.

It's ok. I bought it out of curiosity. Very interesting to hear and see some of the positions.

This is just a poor translation, and it is sadly obvious that it was translated by a non-native English speaker. One star. Instead of this translation, read the translation by Alain Danielou.