Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics

Author(s): Richard Shusterman

Source: The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism , Winter, 2007, Vol. 65, No. 1,
Special Issue: Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics (Winter, 2007), pp. 55-68
Published by: Wiley on behalf of The American Society for Aesthetics

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4622210

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 RICHARD SHUSTERMAN

Asian Ars Erotica and the Question

of Sexual Aesthetics

Faire l'amour n'est pas moderne, pourtant c'est encore cepher, whose gaze is turned away, his lips pursed,
que j'aime le mieux. and his face flushed red (whether from mere em-
barrassment or other passions). In the chiaroscuro
There's nothing modern about making love, yet it's still
what I like best.
style of the painting, the woman's confident, open,

Francis Picabia
naked posture is bathed in painterly light, while
the philosopher's figure contrastingly shrinks de-
fensively toward the shadows. Not only uninter-
ested in engaging in the pleasurable beauties of
sexual seduction, he also seems, with his averted
On a recent visit to Vienna's opulent Kunsthis-
gaze, resolutely unwilling to face up to the real-
torisches Museum, I unexpectedly encountered ity
a of their attractions-personifying philosophy's
willful, fearful blindness to the aesthetics of erotic
genre painting that expressed, with art's most pow-
erful immediacy, a central theme of this paper. experience, a blindness that the painter van Hon-
The theme is philosophy's persistent pose of re- thorst seems to portray with some critical irony.1
sistance to the seductive aesthetics of sex, and the If the painting reminds us of the familiar an-
painting, The Steadfast Philosopher by Gerrit vancient quarrel between philosophy and the mimetic
Honthorst (1592-1656), depicts the attempted se- arts, it should also recall philosophy's traditional
hostility and neglect regarding erotic arts, ex-
duction of a diligent philosopher by a lovely young
woman with fully exposed breasts (Figure 1). tending back to Socrates's condemnation of sex
The philosopher in the painting is a manly,as "a savage and tyrannical master" and despite
his provocative self-definition as "a master of
moustached figure in the prime of life, seated at
his desk with a pile of books to his right and an
erotics."2 Making a case for the aesthetic poten-
open book directly in front of him. He has appar- tial of lovemaking means confronting the problem
ently been interrupted in the act of writing, since that modern Western philosophy has tended to de-
fine aesthetic experience by contrast to sexual ex-
his right hand holds a feathered-quill pen, while his
left arm is raised forward with its fingers spread in
perience.3 Consider this history in brief summary.
a gesture of "stop," as if to ward off both physically Shaftesbury defined the contemplation of
and symbolically the advances and attractions of
beauty as disinterested and distanced by explicitly
the seductress who stands near the desk and seems contrasting it to sexual feelings aroused by (and in)
to be removing the wrap covering his left shoulderhuman bodies-"a set of eager desires, wishes and
hopes, no way suitable ... to your rational and re-
and tugging gently on the upper sleeve of his shirt.
The woman's blue dress and undergarments hang fined contemplation of beauty." Though "wonder-
about her waist, while under a matching blue cap ful as they are," sexually attractive bodies "inspire
(whose feather corresponds nicely to the philoso-nothing of a studious or contemplative kind. The
pher's quill) her open-mouthed smile and intent more they are viewed, the further they are from
eyes are invitingly directed toward the philoso- satisfying by mere view."4 Kant made this notion

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56 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

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a .'.v:

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FIGURE 1. Gerrit van Honthorst, Der Standhafte Philosoph [The Steadfast Ph

property, currently on display at Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.

of contemplative disinterestedness malion wasanot entirely devoid of esthetic feeling."

cornerstone
for defining aesthetic pleasure But (and
even if judgment)
Nietzsche astutelyin admits "the possibil-
opposition to the agreeable feelings of sensual-
ity that the peculiar sweetness and richness proper
ity and the satisfactions of appetite to the esthetic
that condition
also may give involve a sexual in-
pleasure. Refining still further gredient,"
the notionhe still refuses to affirm that erotic ex-
of aes-
thetic disinterestedness and linking perience ofit sexual
to activity
the per- can be aesthetic. Insist-
ception of Platonic Ideas, Arthur ing that Schopenhauer
the "emergence of the esthetic condition
draws the contrast of sexual and transmutes
aesthetic[sexual feeling]
experi- in a way that it is no
ence still more sharply and explicitly. longer experienced as a sexual incentive," Niet-
In "aesthetic
pleasure" we enjoy the disinterested zsche follows the anti-sexual aesthetic tradition by
experience
of "delight in the mere knowledge warning that ofactual sexual activity is detrimental
perception
as such, in contrast to the will"; "aesthetic
for aesthetic creation and con-
recommending "sexual
templation" is "pure will-lesscontinence" knowing for artists
and and with philosophers. "Every
the knowledge, which necessarily artist is familiar
appearswith the there-
adverse effect which sex-
with, of the Ideas." Sexual experience, ual intercourse instead,
has during times in- of great intellec-
volves the "strongest" of life'stual tension and preparation.
interests-"the will-The strongest and
to-live"-and is cognitively deficient instinctually andstrongest among them do not need
distorted
by this insistent will. For Schopenhauer, to learn this by experience,
"the geni- since their 'maternal'
tals are the real focus of the will, instinct
and has are
from therefore
the start made its strict disposi-
the opposite pole to the brain,tions, the putting all animal instincts at the service of
representative
of knowledge.'" that one great end, so that the lesser energy is ab-
Deriding the prudishness of this
sorbed by the anti-sexual
greater dangers of such activity."6
aesthetic tradition, Friedrich The Nietzsche
erotic play of remarks:
human sexual behavior is thus
"When our estheticians tirelessly relegated to the realm of
rehearse, inmere
sup-animal instincts and
port of Kant's view, that the spell deprived
of of aesthetic recognition.
beauty enables
us to view even nude female statues 'disinterest- Contrasting sexual and aesthetic experience
edly' we may be allowed to laugh a little at their has become so deeply entrenched in our West-
ern philosophical tradition that the authoritative
expense. The experiences of artists in this delicate
matter are rather more 'interesting'; certainly Pyg-Oxford Companion to Aesthetics even insists that

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Shusterman Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics 57

one of the four major desiderata for a theoryeven ofcommercial sex."9 His provocative claim is
aesthetic experience is explaining the difference
motivated by an equally bold assertion that "the
between such experience and the experience projectof of romantic love is in essence incoherent or
sex and drugs.7 A careful analysis of the concept
impossible" because such love involves conflicting
commitments
of aesthetic experience, however, reveals that the to both consummation and the im-
most crucial features attributed to such experience
possibility of possession, to Platonic idealization
of what is loved and anti-Platonic affirmation that
seem also attributable to certain sexual experi-
ences. If we put aside philosophical prejudice
it isand
a concrete particular, to unique novelty and
recall our most gratifying sexual performances,
the desire for permanence that instead involves
do we not recognize that some such experiences
repetition of consummation with the beloved.
can be truly aesthetic? Many of us, I sincerely Given the alleged impossibility of realizing such
hope, have had experiences of lovemaking thatromantic
are love, de Sousa argues that individuals
rich in beauty, intensity, pleasure, and meaning,
committed to its ideal (and seeking consolation for
that display harmonies of structure and develop-
its perceived impossibility) can seek satisfaction
in and
ing form, and that deeply engage both thought what he calls "the theater of love" that "mixes
feeling, stimulating body, mind, and soul. real sex and aesthetic imagination." In contrast to
If human sexual performance can be signifi-the theatrical traditions of marriage ceremonies
cantly aesthetic, then we can think of the (which
eroticde Sousa claims are essentially opposed to
arts as arts in a truly aesthetic sense rathererotic
thanlove because they highlight social and fam-
simply in the general (nonaesthetic) meaning of
ily relations), "the theatrical ceremonies" he rec-
ommends
the word 'art' as any organized expertise, skill, or are sexual encounters that "consist in
branch of learning. Such a reorientation notstaging
only the erotic gestures of love with a view to
has value in expanding our theoretical perspec-
pleasure and an aesthetic creation or re-creation
tives on aesthetics and erotics while challenging
of the poignancy of love, of the impossibility of
the presumption that art must be distinguished possession and the irreplaceability of time." "Such
from performances in "real life," but it could also
ceremonies," he insists, "require some of the same
enrich, in a most practical and pleasurable way, the of art and of the best kinds of nonerotic
qualities
actual aesthetic experience of our lives by enhanc-
love-integrity, honesty, intense attention, gen-
ing the artistry and appreciation of our erotic ac- imagination, and a capacity to take plea-
erosity,
tivity. This in turn could deepen our appreciation
sure in the pleasure of the other. It can therefore
of the aesthetic potential of other somaticbe prac-
demanding in the sense in which all aesthetic
tices, thus promoting further explorations in the
experiences can be demanding. Nevertheless it can
emerging field of somaesthetics.8 Since our remain
West- primarily an aesthetic experience, a piece
ern intellectual tradition seems to offer veryoflittle
theater, a form of play, because both parties
guidance or encouragement in sexual aesthetics,agreeitto keep the experience of romantic love con-
seems worth exploring the Asian traditions fined
of ars inside a kind of frame isolated from the rest
erotica. of their lives and expectations."
Unfortunately, de Sousa does not adequately
elucidate the dimensions in which such sexual ex-
periences are aesthetic. The required qualities he
mentions clearly refer to qualities demanded of
The erotic arts of ancient China and (especially) the persons engaged in the ceremonies rather than
India form the core of my study, but their distinc- aesthetic qualities of the experience of such cer-
tive character can be brought into sharper focus emonies. His assertion of the aesthetic status of
by examining them against the background of two these sexual engagements seems to rest wholly on
interesting contemporary exceptions to Western their theatrical nature, and their theatrical nature
philosophy's resistance to the aesthetics of sex, seems to rests almost entirely on the idea of some
which I first briefly discuss. One is a short arti- sort of fictionality of simulation and separation
cle by the distinguished Anglo-American analytic from life. The aesthetics of his theater of love is
philosopher Ronald de Sousa, who "argue[s] for constituted by "the self-conscious playing out of
the rehabilitation of certain forms of imaginative an emotion relatively insulated from the rest of
rehearsals of love in 'casual,' 'uncommitted,' or reality." Though such theater is not explicitly and

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58 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

fictionally "scripted" ern

as most
exception I shallplays are, and
consider, highlights de op-Sou
poses to the scientia
argues that it is implicitly scriptedsexualis of modern
by Western
our pa
performances-and, one culture. could add, by our fan
tasies. Further, its fictional, simulational
Unlike de Sousa's, Foucault's advocacy ofessence
sex-
he assumes, is already ual aesthetics has been extremely
established by the influential.
fact His th
most prominent advocatory
the romantic love it expresses cannot theorizing of sexual Wi
be real.
an obliging nod "to the artistryaesthetics
concerns gay sex and, and ethics o
more particularly,
prostitution," de Sousa consensual homosexual S/M, which
concludes: "If Foucault
the cel-con
ebrates as
scious simulation of love "a whole new art of
bolstered sexualthe
by practicepow
of sex is a valuable form
which triesof theater,
to explore why
all the internal shou
possibilities
some people not makeof a sexual conduct." This art, a of
profession "mixture of rules
it?"
I shall not pause hereand
to openness,"
examine combines consensual codes (that
the contested
significantly
reality of romantic love as de script sexual behavior)
Sousa defines with experi-
it, no
to insist that there are other notions of roman- ments "to innovate and create variations that will
tic love worth exploring that do not seem caught enhance the pleasure of the act" by introducing
in the web of contradictions that make him think novelty, variety, and uncertainty that otherwise
the whole notion is incoherent. Nor shall I bela- would be lacking in the sexual act.12 Moreover,
bor the point that reality need not imply perma-despite its use of scripting and special fictional
nence and consistency, so that romantic love canframes of performance (for example, the sexual
be real even if transient and conflicted. Instead,
dungeon), this sexual activity is not portrayed by
I wish to underline how his defense of the aes- Foucault as isolated from the rest of one's life and
subjectivity. One's formation as a sexual subject
thetics of sex is essentially committed to the idea
is an important part of one's thoughtful shaping
that sexual performance is aesthetic only in so far
that it involves a theatrical fiction or simulation of of one's self in terms of one's "aesthetics of exis-
tence."13
something else (that is, an impossible ideal or feel-
ing of romantic love). It is not aesthetic because Foucault's sexual theorizing was not principally
(or in terms) of the intentional and appreciated inspired by the Asian erotic arts but rather by
aesthetic qualities of the sexual performance ashis study of ancient Greek and Roman litera-
a real event that is deeply embedded in (ratherture on the erotic and by his own erotic desires
and activity. However, he does enlist the Asian
than "isolated from") the rest of the lives and ex-
pectations of the performing lovers. This sexual erotic arts to demonstrate the valuable importance
of an alternative to our modern Western "scien-
aesthetics, with its double commitment to fiction-
tia sexualis."14 In contrast to our sexual science,
ality and isolation, reflects the old philosophical
dogmas of contrasting art to reality and dividing whose discourse of truth combines the ancient
aesthetics from the affairs of real life-whether tool of confession with the modern "imperative
of medicalization" (HS, p. 68) of sexual behav-
practical, political, or sexual. In contesting these
dogmas, pragmatist aesthetics not only makesior a and function, the erotic arts draw their truth
case for the robust role of the arts and aesthetics "from pleasure itself, understood as a practice
in the diverse currents of real life, but also arguesand accumulated as experience" (HS, p. 57). In
that the very doctrine that relegates them to thethese arts, the pleasure of erotic practice, Foucault
realm of fictional simulations implies the regret- explains:
table counterpart and consequence that real life is
robbed of artistry and beauty.1o is not considered in relation to an absolute law of the per-
A post-Puritan pragmatism should recognizemitted and the forbidden, nor by reference to a criterion
that sexual performance provides a realm of
of utility, but first and foremost in relation to itself; it is
human artistry and aesthetic experience to be experienced as pleasure, evaluated in terms of its inten-
practiced and enjoyed in real life and real lovesity, its specific quality, its duration, its reverberations in
(marital or extramarital) without invoking thethe body and the soul. Moreover, this knowledge must be
deflected back into the sexual practice itself in order to
need for theatrical fictions."11 The possibility of
practicing and theorizing such real-life sexual aes-shape it as though from within and amplify its effects. In
thetics is shown in the Asian ars erotica, whichthis way, there is formed a knowledge that must remain
Michel Foucault, the second contemporary West-secret, not because of an element of infamy that might

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 Shusterman Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics 59

attach to its object, but because of the need to as treating

hold it "the Art of the Bedchamber" or as
"handbooks
in the greatest reserve, since, according to tradition, it of sex") were instead very much con-
cerned
would lose its effectiveness and its virtue by being di- and largely motivated by health issues; so
much
vulged. Consequently, the relationship to the master so that when they are listed in the biblio-
who
graphical
holds the secrets is of paramount importance; only he, sections of the ancient written histories
of the various dynasties, they often appear under
working alone, can transmit this art in an esoteric manner
the heading of medical books or, when listed sep-
and as the culmination of an initiation in which he guides
arately, after the medical books (SL, pp. 71, 121,
the disciple's progress with unfailing skill and severity.
193). Van Gulik himself repeatedly affirms that the
The effects of this masterful art, which are considerably
"handbooks of sex ... constituted a special branch
more generous than the sparseness of its prescriptions
of medical
would lead one to imagine, are said to transfigure the literature" because their two primary
one fortunate enough to receive its privileges: angoals
abso-of sexual intercourse were focused on pro-
moting
lute mastery of the body, singular bliss, obliviousness to health-that of the husband, his wife, and
the and
time and limits, the elixir of life, the exile of death child to be conceived (SL, p. 72).18 "Primar-
its threats. (HS, p. 57) ily," he argues, "the sexual act was to achieve the
woman's conceiving" (preferably a male child) so
Refining, in a later interview, his views on as to
arsperpetuate the family. "Secondly, the sexual
erotica and summarizing the differences betweenact was to strengthen the man's vitality by mak-
ing him
Greek, Christian, and Chinese cultural attitudes to absorb the woman's yin essence [held to
be "act,
sexual practice in terms of the three factors of an invigorating power], while at the same time
pleasure, and desire," Foucault claims that inthe woman would derive physical benefit from the
con-
stirring
trast to the Greeks, who focused on the act and its of her latent yin nature" (SL, p. 46).
control as "the important element" by definingThis
thesuggested the following twofold sexual
quantity, rhythm, occasion, and circumstances economy.
of Since "a man's semen [where his yang
its performance, but also in contrast to the force
Chris- is concentrated] is his most precious posses-
tians, who focused on desire in terms of how sion, to
the source not only of his health but of his
fight it and extirpate its slightest roots whilevery life[,] every emission of semen will diminish
limit-
this the
ing or even avoiding pleasure when performing vital force, unless compensated by the acquir-
act, the Chinese elevated pleasure as the highest, ing of an equivalent amount of yin essence from
most valuable factor in sex. "In Chinese erotics, the woman" (SL, p. 47). Therefore, a man's sex-
if one believes van Gulik, the important element ual activity should seek to ensure that his female
was pleasure, which it was necessary to increase, partners be given full satisfaction so that he can
intensify, prolong as much as possible in delaying absorb the yin essence that will flow from their
the act itself, and to the limit of abstainingmultiple
from orgasms, "but he should allow himself
it. "15 to reach orgasm only on certain specified occa-
As this interview indicates, Foucault's under- sions," notably those most suitable for conceiving
standing of the Asian ars erotica rests largely a child with his wife (SL, p. 47). A plurality of wives
on Chinese sources, particularly those compiled, and concubines was accordingly recommended to
translated, and analyzed by Robert van Gulik in provide this abundance of yin, since relying on a
his groundbreaking classic Sexual Life in Ancient single woman for multiple orgasms would eventu-
China.16 Unfortunately, Foucault seems to have ally drain her of the yin essence needed both to
misconstrued the texts and gloss that van Gulik maintain her own health (and consequent power
provides in some important ways, which I shall to conceive) and to increase the health of her male
presently demonstrate. partner.19 By copulating with many women each
night without reaching orgasm and saving his se-
men only for occasional ejaculations, the man not
III
only increased his vitality and yang (that is, male)
essence, but in doing so raised the chances of con-
First, it is very misleading to characterize the classi- ceiving a male child to perpetuate the family name.
cal Chinese texts of ars erotica in sharp contrast to These principles of sexual logic, explains van
sexual science and the medical approach to sex.17 Gulik, "implied that the man had to learn to
These writings (which the Chinese often described prolong the coitus as much as possible without

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 60 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

reaching orgasm; for respites

the inlonger theonly
periods of mourning) member
ceased when s
inside, the more yin the husband "reached
essence the the age
man of seventy"
will (SL, p.
abso
thereby augmenting60). and
Withoutstrengthening
saving his yang through coitus reser- his v
force" (SL, p. 46). The sex
vatus and handbooks
without theref
the erotic ability to consistently
give his wives and
advise the man of methods toconcubines
"preventreal sexual (andejacu
tion either by mental emotional)
disciplinegratification, or
a husband
by with a large ph
such
ical means as compressing thecould
household of women seminal duct w
easily exhaust himself
his fingers. Then his without
yang-essence,
satisfying his females, thusintensified
creating a dis-
gruntled, disorderly
its contact with the woman's yin homewill
whose ill-repute
flow as mis-
upwa
along the spinal column
managed and fortify
"could ruin his
a man's reputation brain
and break
his entire system. If his career" (SL, p. 109). the man limits
therefore
It should already
emissions to the days when the be clear
womanfrom this brief
is ac-liabl
conceive, his loss of count
Yang (and there is an overwhelming
essence [sic] wealth
on of th
occasions will be compensated
further evidence in vanby Gulik)
the that,pace
obtaining
Foucault,
children perfect in body
the Chineseand mind"
ars erotica (SL,
were very deeply p. 47)
motivated
Moreover, according toissues
by health some and very of the radica
much concerned with
Taoist-inspired texts,medical
a matters
man andwho
sexual science
thus(albeit not
preser
in
the dominant
his semen through such coitusforms of reservatus
modern Western medical while
science).
sorbing the yin of the many Foucault thus is wrong in highlighting
women he brings
orgasm will not only sustain
pleasure his health
as the most important aspect of China's but
become more youthful and
erotic arts, since age-resistant,
matters of health clearly trump eve
the point of achieving it.22 He also is confused in thinking that
immortality.21 To pleasure,
quote
of the Tang Dynasty for textsthem, is more
that important
van thanGulik
the sexual act supp
(whose title Fang-nei-pu-i
because it is is "freely
pleasure that they seek translated
to prolong by
'Healthy Sex Life"'): delaying
"If and one can from
even abstaining copulate
the act. Instead, wi
twelve women without it is theonce
act itself that the Chinese male seekssemen,
emitting to
will remain young and prolonghandsome
so as to magnify his yinfor and yangever.
powers I
man can copulate with and 93the salutary
women benefits these
and bring. Pleasure cont
still is
himself, he will attainindeedimmortality"
significant for Chinese sexual theory(SL,butp. 1
Though most potent in it is integrally
the woman's bound up in the act genitalia,
and cannot be
increasedcould
invigorating flows of yin by being separated
also be from drawn
it. Foucault's fr
the secretions of her mouth
error seems to be in and breasts,
identifying the sexual act withbot
erotic foreplay and in the
the act of orgasm
act of rather than the act
coitus of coitus Th
itself.
secretions were often referred to as the "Medicine or the broader act that we could call the entire
of the Three Peaks" (SL, pp. 96, 283). erotic performance and that would include fore-
Coitus reservatus served another health-related play, coitus, and (when present) also postcoital
function-the emotional stability and peace of play.
mind that depends on a harmoniously managed Though sometimes celebrating sexual pleasure
and satisfied household of women. Already in the as "the supreme joy" and "climax of human
ancient Confucian Book of Rites (Li-chi), a man'semotions" and affirming its embodiment of "the
sexual duty to both his wives and concubines wasSupreme Way" (SL, pp. 70, 203), classical Chi-
firmly asserted and even inscribed in strict pro-nese sexual theory embedded its importance into
tocols of sequence and frequency of intercourse,the larger goals of health and good management
the violation of which was "a grave offense." As(of self and household). The view was that sex-
the Li-chi states: "Even if a concubine is growingual pleasure should be used to regulate and re-
older, as long as she has not yet reached the agefine one's body, mind, and character through the
of fifty, the husband shall copulate with her onceritual shaping of the rules of ars erotica. As one
every five days. She on her part shall, when sheFormer Han Dynasty document puts it: "'The an-
is led to his couch, be cleanly washed, neatly at-cients created sexual pleasure thereby to regulate
tired, have her hair combed and properly done up,all human affairs.' If one regulates his sexual plea-
and wear a long robe and properly fastened house sure he will feel at peace and attain a high age.
shoes" (SL, p. 60). These duties (apart from briefIf, on the other hand, one abandons himself to

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 Shusterman Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics 61

its pleasure disregarding the rules set forth teenth

in thecenturies, respectively.23 The founding and
most influential work of this tradition, the Kama
abovementioned treatises [i.e., the sex handbooks]
one will fall ill and harm one's very life" (SL, pp.
Sutra, was written in prose by a religious student,
70-71). Vatsyayana, on the basis of more ancient texts
If the classical Chinese erotic arts were largely (now lost) that, according to legend, stretch back
aimed to promote practical matters such as health, to the God Shiva who, after falling in love with his
does it then follow that we cannot speak of them own female emanation, discovered sexual inter-
as having aesthetic character? That misguided in- course and then celebrated its pleasures in many
ference rests on the common error of assuming thousands of books. In contrast, the Koka Shastra
(because of the dogma of disinterestedness) that and Ananga Ranga are shorter works composed
functionality and aesthetic quality are incompati- in poetry and, because they were written in much
ble. The fact that religious paintings and sculptures later times when Indian society was increasingly
have spiritual functions and that protest songs more chaste and morally restrictive, they also dif-
have political goals does not rob them of having fer from the Kama Sutra in some of their sexual
aesthetic value and of being appreciated for their attitudes or emphases. While the Kama Sutra was
aesthetic qualities even while we appreciate their directed to a more promiscuous and wide-ranging
other functions. Such appreciation of functional- population of lovers intent on engaging with mul-
ity can even feed back into our aesthetic apprecia- tiple partners in both marital and extramarital sex,
tion by adding dimensions of meaning to aesthetic the Koka Shastra and Ananga Ranga were essen-
experience of these works. Intrinsic value is not tially addressed to husbands and their wives, pri-
inconsistent with instrumental value. We can ap- marily aiming to promote the couple's conjugal
preciate the intrinsic taste of a meal we are eating satisfaction so as to enable them to avoid the temp-
even if we know that the meal is also nourishing tations of extramarital erotics; they therefore con-
us; likewise our intrinsic enjoyment of good sex is tain far more sexual prohibitions (relating to part-
no less in knowing that it is also good for us. ners, times, and places) than the Kama Sutra.24
One can indeed make a case for the presence of Nonetheless, because these later works were sub-
aesthetic dimensions in the classic Chinese erotic stantially derived from the Kama Sutra, they es-
arts, as these are described in the texts presented sentially agree with its fundamental principles, in-
by van Gulik. These aesthetic elements can be cluding the aesthetic character of erotic arts as nec-
discerned in certain remarks relating to the cos-essary for the proper realization of kama-a term
mic meanings of the sexual relations between manthat signifies not only sexual love but sensuality in
and woman, to issues of harmonizing the cou- general, and that together with dharma (duty or
ple's energies through foreplay, to the aesthetic right conduct) and artha (practical activity) con-
arrangement of "the bedstead" as the stage of the stitute the traditionally requisite three-part way
erotic encounter, and to the blending of different of life leading to the goal of moksha or liberation
erotic movements and pleasures, including the or-(KS, p. 102).
chestration of different styles, depths, speeds, and In making a case for the aesthetic character
rhythms of the penetrating strokes of the penis. of Indian erotic arts, the first point to underline
But since discussion of the aesthetic aspect of theseis that expertise in sexual artistry implies profi-
elements is rather limited and is overwhelmingly ciency in the arts more generally. Though recog-
overshadowed by the emphasis on health issues, nizing that brute animals have sex and that hu-
the case for the aesthetic character of the erotic
mans can also engage in it at this brute level, the
Kama Sutra insists that human sexuality is mo-
arts can be much better made by moving from Chi-
nese to Indian sexual theory. tivated primarily by attractiveness and pleasures
rather than dictated by the seasonal instincts of an-
imals in heat, and that human sexual performance
iv therefore can and should be rendered more en-
joyable and rewarding through the application of
My discussion of Indian ars erotica is based on knowledge, methods, and refinements introduced
three classic texts from three different periods: the by learning, thought, and aesthetic sensitivity-
Kama Sutra, the Koka Shastra, and the Ananga exactly the sort of mastery "of proper means"
Ranga, from around the third, twelfth, and six- that the erotic texts aim to promote (KS, p. 103).

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 62 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

Unfortunately, as thebyAnanga
Vatsyana, "the beginning
Ranga of sexual union" in-
laments, m
typically neither give volves
their the gentleman
wives receiving his lady love in conte
"plenary an
ment nor do they themselves thoroughly
aesthetically arranged "pleasure room, decorated en
their charms" because "they
with flowers and are
fragrantpurely
with perfumes,"ignora
where
of the erotic arts "and, despising
he and his the
lover are "attended by differe
his friends and
between the several servants."
kinds "He should
of then seat her on his left
women side,
[elabor
with colorful detail in
and the texts
holding her of erotic
hair, and touching theor
also the end and
they regard them only in
knot of her an animal
garment, point
he should gently of v
embrace her
(AR, p. 1). with his right arm.... They may then sing ... and
The artistic training considered essential for play on musical instruments, talk about the arts,
mastering the erotic arts and perfecting sexual and persuade each other to drink" until her loving
performance emphatically includes and highlights feelings and desire for coitus are strongly aroused
those arts Western culture distinctively denotes as (KS, p. 167).
fine arts, though it ranges far wider. In urging that Then, when the other people are dismissed,
both men and women "should study the Kama Su- more intimate foreplay ensues that leads to the
tra and the arts and sciences subordinate thereto," consummation of "congress." The end of coitus,
Vatsyana insists on the study of sixty-four arts from however, does not terminate the sexual perfor-
which the book's erotic artistry draws its skills. mance, which instead continues into postcoital
"Singing, playing on musical instruments, dancing, embraces, massage, sweet refreshments, and en-
union of dancing, singing, and playing instrumen- tertaining conversation, including the gentleman's
tal music, writing and drawing" are the first to be pointing out the different celestial beauties of the
mentioned, but the list also includes other prac- night sky that his lady contemplates, lying "in his
tices central to the Western fine arts tradition, such lap, with her face towards the moon." Only at this
as "picture making," "scenic representation" (or point does Vatsyana demarcate "the end of sexual
"stage playing"), "architecture," "composing po- union" (KS, p. 168). The clear sense of a staged,
ems," and "making figures and images in clay." choreographed structure with a beginning, middle,
Other arts among the sixty-four also clearly have and end in the sexual performance suggests a dra-
aesthetic character-from tattooing, working in matic, stylized mis-en-scene with aesthetic intent.
stained glass, bed and flower arrangement and the The aesthetically designed stage for the erotic
making of artificial flowers, to the fashioning of event is reaffirmed in the Koka Shastra and

jewelry and other ornaments and further to vari-
ous cosmetic and culinary arts (KS, pp. 108-111).
To regard these diverse arts as contributing to
ars erotica is not, however, to assert that their high-
est purpose is sexual, for the expressed goal of
even the Kama Sutra itself is not merely the sat-
isfaction of erotic or more broadly sensual desire.
It is rather to deploy and educate one's desires
in order to cultivate and refine the mastery of
one's senses so that one can emerge a more com-
plete and effective person. Vatsyana concludes his
book by insisting that it "is not intended to be used
merely as an instrument for satisfying our desires"
but to enable a person "to obtain the mastery over
his senses" and thus obtain "success in everything
that he may undertake" (KS, p. 292).
Aesthetic arts are not only included in the rec-
ommended training for Indian erotics; they also
contribute significantly to the erotic performance
itself. This performance is not limited to the act of
coitus but includes an elaborate aesthetics of fore-
parts, and modes of foreplay (involving differ-
play and postcoital entertainment. As described ent styles of embracing, kissing, biting, scratching,
elaborated most fully in the Ananga Ranga,
whose recommended artistic furnishings include
not only musical instruments but "books contain-
ing amorous songs" and "illustrations of love-
postures" for "gladdening the glance," and "spa-
cious and beautiful walls" decorated "with pic-
tures and other objects upon which the eye may
dwell with delight," such aesthetic delights en-
hancing those of sex by quickening our sensory
imagination and pleasures (AR, pp. 96-97).25
The staging of the sexual performance does not
confine itself to aesthetic considerations of artfully
organized space and artistic activities; temporal
factors also need to be harmonized into the per-
formance. According to the type of woman and the
day of the (lunar) month, the woman lover will be
best aroused in different parts of her body and by
different forms of foreplay; in the same way, dif-
ferent kinds of women will enjoy sex at different
times of the day. These different times, days, body

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Shusterman Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics 63

rubbing, sucking, stroking, squeezing, andon the

the woman's brow, cheek, neck, and breast that
making of certain erotic sounds) are articulated
together form "the mouth-shaped oblong" of the
mandala
in great detail, and the lover is instructed that "by summarizing the different forms of bit-
ing, and, we are told, "it will add greatly to her
varying the site of your caresses with [the calendar]
beauty"
you will see her light up in successive places like (AR, p. 108). Such nail and bite mark-
ings also serve as symbols of affection that en-
a figure cut in moonstone when the moon strikes
on it." In short, not only the setting and acts
dure of
beyond the sexual performance and aesthet-
sexual arousal, but also the display of arousal it-
ically document it, serving as a comforting "token
self is clearly aestheticized (AR, pp. 6-14;ofKKS,
remembrance" that also rekindles love and de-
pp. 105-110, citation p. 107). sire between the lovers (AR, p. 106; KS, p. 144).29
Music, choreographed movement, artistic Such
deco-markings are also appreciated by strangers
rations of the erotic stage, and the lovers' aesthetic
who, when noticing them (on either the man or the
discourse form part of India's extended notion of
woman), are "filled with love and respect" for the
sexual performance; there are also distinctly aes-(AR, p. 144).30
lovers
thetic dimensions in its aims, methods, and princi-
Complementing the various styles of biting and
ples of sexual foreplay and coitus.26 Many ofuse of the nails are varieties of embraces, kisses,
these
methods and principles aim at both stimulating love sounds, modes of erotic striking of the body,
and harmonizing the energies of the lovers andand
ways of holding the hair. Indian ars erotica
ensuring that coitus brings fullness of pleasure to
is, however, probably most famous for its detailed
both man and woman. Hence the intense concern articulation, classification, and colorful naming of
a wide variety of coital positions. Variety here,
with classifying male and female types in terms of
size (and sometimes also texture) of the genitals,
as elsewhere, derives from the aesthetic impulse
force of desire, and time required for its satisfac-
for the richness of diversity that renews interest,
compounds pleasure, and so prevents the bore-
tion, so that disparities between the lovers regard-
ing these dimensions can be identified and then dom of monotony. As Vatsyayana argues, "if va-
remedied through appropriate foreplay and coitalriety is sought in all the arts and amusements, ...
positions, which overcome such disproportions how much more should it be sought in the present
that impinge on the aesthetic harmony, gracefulcase," that is, erotic arts; for just "as variety is nec-
balance, and pleasurable ease of the union. Pro-
essary in love, so love is to be produced by means
portionate unions are deemed best, and the opti-
of variety" (KS, p. 144).
mum desire cannot be the most intense, since ex- That many of these coital positions (or band-
treme intensity could so captivate the lovers thathas) seem somewhat to overlap or blend into
they would neither notice nor oblige the needs of each other suggests that this variety is to be de-
each other nor have the patient presence of mindployed within one act of coitus, rather than lim-
to stylize their sexual performance so as to maxi-iting the coital act to a single posture. In other
mize its beauties and draw out its pleasures to thewords, in any particular coital event, a number
fullest (AR, pp. 21-24; KS, pp. 127-130).27 of diverse bandhas can be aesthetically arranged
Aesthetic intent is clearly displayed in the mak-as sequenced dance steps into a choreography of
ing of certain representational forms on the body sexual performance. These postural changes not
of the lover through bites and nail markings, so only add variety and can help prolong the act by
that the sexual performance also becomes a per- delaying the male's ejaculation, but they also can
formance of figurative art. Besides the tactile plea-
have special symbolic significance in terms of the
sures they give the lovers, these erotic figurations
names and associations they bear. Thus, for exam-
are aesthetically appreciated as artful represen- ple, "by adopting successively the 'fish,' 'tortoise,'
tations.28 One variety of nail marks made on the 'wheel,' and 'sea-shell' position (matsya, kaurma,
neck and breasts "resembles a half-moon" (AR, p. cakra, ?ankhabanda) one identifies oneself with
105; cf. KS, p. 143), another "made on the breast the first four avatars of Vishnu."31 Moreover, in
by means of the five nails ... is called the pea-such animal-named positions, the lover is encour-
cock's foot" and "is made with the object of be- aged to dramatize "the characteristics of these dif-
ing praised, for it requires a great deal of skill to
ferent animals.., by acting like them," thus adding
make it properly" (KS, p. 143). The varieties of a further dimension of artistic representation to
bite marks include a special cluster of impressions the sexual performance (KS, p. 152).

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 64 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

ders performance
The analogy of sexual those practices replete with to
specialdance,
beauty,
though present in other
vividness, cultures, is especiall
and meaning. Such transfigured prac-
salient in the Indian tradition. Close affinities ex-
tices of the real can in turn inspire art's fictional
ist, for example, between its erotic texts and the figurations.
twenty-fourth chapter of the Bharata Natya Sastra It is therefore not enough to insist that India's
(the classic ancient text on drama, dance, and aes- erotic arts deploy the objects and practices of fine
thetics), which, as one commentator notes, treats art; we must acknowledge that its fine arts recip-
"the practice of harlotry ... as part of the tech- rocally draw on its ars erotica. The positions out-
nique of dance. Not only did the virtuosi of one lined in the Kama Sutra clearly helped inspire the
art practice the other, but judging from sculptural sculptural depictions of sexual union in medieval
representations [often found in holy temples] it Hindu temples, most notably in Konarak, Khaju-
was in the spirit of a dance that ritual [notably raho, Belur, and Halebid, and also in Buddhist cen-
Tantric], and possibly also secular, coition was un- ters, such as Nagarjunikonda, where many statues
dertaken."32 In this cultural context, sexual union of sexual congress "could be identified as sculp-
with its taste of heavenly pleasures and god-like tural versions of Vatsyayana's sutras-sometimes
feelings of radiating fulfillment could be seen both as interpreted by poets."35 His seminal text of ars
as an analogue and an instrument to the higher erotica indeed became the main paradigm for lit-
mystical union with God.33 erary depictions of love (and the characters of
Well beyond the sexually intense framework lovers) in Sanskrit poetry. Its influence was espe-
of Tantrism, Indian tradition regarded the proper cially strong in epics and dramatic works (which
pursuit of erotic arts as divinely inspired and lead- traditionally included also dance and music) and
ing toward religious progress. Vatsyayana insisted extended also to lyrics of love and even some re-
that his Kama Sutra was "composed according to ligious poetry (for example, the Gita Govinda,
the precepts of Holy Writ ... while leading the life which treats of the love of a girl cowherder for
of a religious student and wholly engaged in the the god Krishna as analogical to the human soul's
contemplation of the Deity" (KS, p. 222), and the thirst for the ecstasy of union with the divine). This
Ananga Ranga argues that having carefully stud- central role in literature and sculpture helped the
ied the arts of carnal knowledge and being fulfilled ars erotica further its influence also in other Indian
and refined through their pleasures, a man "as ad- fine arts.36
vancing age cooleth his passions, ... learneth to Unity in variety is among the most prominent
think of his Creator, to study religious subjects, of our traditional definitions of beauty. In Indian
and to acquire divine knowledge" (AR, p. 223). erotic arts, the richness of variety is found not only
The religious significance of the sexual union-- in the diversity of embraces, kisses, scratchings, bit-
whether symbolized in terms of copulating deities ings, strikings, hair fondlings, temporalities, love
(such as Shakti and Shiva) or in the more abstract noises, coital positions (which include oral and
terms of basic gender-related principles (such as anal sex37), and even different ways of moving
Purusha and Prakriti or, in Chinese theory, yin and the penis inside the vagina, but also in the ways
yang)-adds further richness of symbolic mean- these several modes of variety are combined into
ing to the erotic arts and encourages their ritu- an aesthetic unity, achieving, in the words of one
alized aestheticization even in contexts that are commentator, "the creation of an elaborate sexual
not explicitly religious.34 Recognition that such sensation as a positive work of art."38 Sexual per-
aesthetic ritualization can artfully transform the formance is heightened and harmonized by paying
most basic functions of life is a crucial insight careful attention to which elements of these vari-
of Asian culture that could be therapeutic for ous modes fit most successfully together so as to
our dominantly Platonic-Kantian aesthetic tradi- both stimulate and satisfy desire. An entire chap-
tion grounded on the art/reality and aesthetic/ ter of the Kama Sutra, for example, treats of "the
functional dichotomies. Art's transfiguration various
of modes of striking, and of the sounds appro-
the commonplace need not require the production priate to them," which should also appropriately
vary according to whether the man or woman is
of fictional counterparts to the real world, but sim-
ply a more intensified experience and mindfully striking or being struck, and according to the stage
stylized performance of the ordinary practicesof offoreplay or coitus in which the lovers find them-
living (whether having sex or taking tea) that ren-selves (KS, pp. 154-156). Guiding this aesthetic of

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Shusterman Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics 65

a dynamically harmonizing mixture is the fully recog- creating harmony and pleasure through skill
nition that these rules of art are not absolutely
in playing variations on an instrument of beauty
fixed prescriptions, but rather need to be applied
is stated most explicitly in the Ananga Ranga: "all
with a sense also to the varieties of context, you
rang-who read this book shall know how delicious
ing from the contingencies of the individual an instrument is woman, when artfully played
lovers
(their bodily condition, social status, habitual
upon;in-how capable she is of producing the most
clinations, and current feelings) to circumstances
exquisite harmony; of executing the most compli-
of time, place, and culture. "The various modescated variations and of giving the divinest plea-
of enjoyment are not for all times or for allsures"
per- (AR, p. xxiii). One might understandably
sons, but they should only be used at the proper
balk at objectifying woman as an aesthetic instru-
time, and in the proper countries and places" (KS,for man's pleasure, but the sting is somewhat
ment
p. 157). mitigated by Indian eroticism's insistent advocacy
In drawing on so many varieties of sensorial, for- that women reciprocally play on male instruments,
mal, cognitive, cosmic, sociocultural, and ethical and sometimes even play the male by taking on
aspects, the aesthetic variety of Indian ars erotica his actions and coital positions. Here, in the dif-
self-consciously served a variety of purposes. One ferent forms of Purushayita, the wife mounts the
purpose that became increasingly important was prostrate man, effects the penetration, initiates
the sustaining of sexual attraction and sexual love the rhythmic coital movement, and thus "enjoys
between the married couple in order to preserve her husband and thoroughly satisfies herself" (AR,
domestic harmony and through it social stability. p. 126).
"The chief reason for the separation between the Besides the aims of conjugal happiness through
married couple and the cause, which drives the the pleasures of love and the bonds of intimate
husband to the embraces of strange women, and friendship they can create, the aesthetic variety
the wife to the arms of strange men, is the want of of the Indian erotic tradition has broader cogni-
varied pleasures and the monotony which follows tive and ethical aims. Extending well beyond mat-
possession," concludes the Ananga Ranga. "There ters of sexual and sensual pleasure, kama con-
is no doubt about it. Monotony begets satiety, and cerns the whole domain of sensory cognition. Ars
satiety distaste for congress, especially in one or erotica's rich stimulation and sophistication of the
the other; malicious feelings are engendered, the senses, together with its mastery and refinement
husband or the wife yield to temptation, and the of a wide range of complex motor coordinations
other follows being driven by jealousy." From such and bodily postures, cannot help but bring signif-
monotony and discord "result polygamy, adulter- icant cognitive enhancement to both sensory and
ies, abortions, and every manner of vice" that even motor abilities. Its cultivation of perception in-
"drag down the names of deceased ancestors." The cludes an education in recognizing the enduring
book's study of erotic arts is thus dedicated to dispositions but also the changing thoughts and
showing "how the husband, by varying the enjoy- feelings of others, so that the lover can properly
ment of his wife, may live with her as with thirty- respond to them. Considerable attention is paid
two different women, ever varying the enjoyment to discerning the movements and expressions that
of her, and rendering satiety impossible" while indicate a woman's character, erotic accessibility,
also teaching the wife "all manner of useful arts interest, inclinations, changing moods, sexual pas-
and mysteries, by which she may render herself sions, and the means and degrees to which her
pure, beautiful, and pleasing in his eyes" (AR, pp. interests and passions are satisfied. Such percep-
128-129). tual training develops ethical sensitivity to others
If Indian erotic arts strive both to give women and to their diversity (reflected in the complex,
"plenary contentment" and to "thoroughly enjoy multiple classifications of different types of lovers
their charms," such satisfactions are characterized but also of go-betweens and courtesans).39 Con-
in clearly aesthetic terms of the participatory en- versely, ethical self-knowledge and self-discipline
joyment of sensorial harmonies of pleasurable per- are similarly deepened and honed through erotic
ceptions and movements, replete with representa- practices that probe our desires and inhibitions as
tional forms and complex meanings, and carefully they reshape them, while also testing and refining
structured with dramatic self-consciousness and our self-control, through artful, pleasurable mas-
performative stylization. The aesthetic goal of art- tery of our senses and sensuality. As "Kama is the

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 66 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

enjoyment of appropriate objects

3. See Richard by"Aesthetic
Shusterman, the Experience:
five
From Analysis
senses of hearing, feeling, to Eros," The Journal
seeing, of Aesthetics
tasting and Art
and
Criticism 64 (2006): 217-229.
smelling, assisted by the mind together with the
4. Anthony Ashley Cooper (Third Earl of Shaftes-
soul," so its practice in the
bury), ars erotica
Characteristics of Men, aims at a Times,
Manners, Opinions, var-
ed.
ied "mastery of [one's]Lawrence
senses" (KS,
Klein (Cambridge pp. Press,
University 102-103,
1999), p. 319.
5. Arthur Schopenhauer,
222). These aims of masterful sensuous The World as Will and Repre-
enjoyment
sentation, trans. E. F J. Payne (New York: Dover, 1958), vol.
remain aesthetic despite their practical value.
1, pp. 200-202, 330-331.
To conclude, ancient India (even more than an-
6. Friedrich Nietzsche, "The Genealogy of Morals," in
cient China) has muchThe
toBirthteach the
of Tragedy and West
The Genealogy about
of Morals, trans.
the aesthetic powers and possibilities
Francis of sexual
Golffing (New York: Doubleday, ac-
1956), pp. 238-240.
7. Gary is
tivity. Because our culture Iseminger, "Aesthetic Experience,"
dominated byin the
The Ox-
model of scientia sexualis and the Cartesian no- ford Handbook of Aesthetics, ed. Jerrold Levinson (Oxford
University Press, 2003), pp. 99-116.
tion of body as machine, it is obsessively preoccu-8. For my account of somaesthetics, see, for exam-
pied with improving sex through mechanical, non-
ple, Richard Shusterman, "Somaesthetics: A Disciplinary
Proposal," The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 57
perceptual means (such as pills, lubricants, penis
enlargements), thus neglecting the artistic tech-(1999): 299-313; Practicing Philosophy (New York: Rout-
ledge, 1997), chs. 4, 6; Performing Live (Cornell University
niques of enhancing erotic experience. Although Press, 2000), chs. 7-8. For further discussions of somaes-
Indian erotic theory (including the three exem- thetics, see, for example, the essays of Martin Jay, Gustavo
plary texts here discussed) likewise offers an abun-
Guerra, Kathleen Higgins, Casey Haskins, and my response
dance of mechanical devices (pharmacological, in The Journal of Aesthetic Education 36 (2002): 55-115; and
the symposium on PragmatistAesthetics, 2nd ed., with contri-
prosthetic, and even magical) for enhancing sex-
butions by Antonia Soulez, Paul Taylor, and Thomas Leddy
ual performance and desirability, its dominant em-
(and my response) in Journal of Speculative Philosophy 16
phasis is on cultivating erotic artistry through aes-
(2002): 1-38. See also Peter Arnold, "Somaesthetics, Ed-
thetic expertise and its perfection of sensorimo- ucation, and the Art of Dance," The Journal of Aesthetic
Education 39 (2005): 48-64; Eric Mullis, "Peformative So-
tor skills relating to lovemaking. For the nascent
maesthetics," The Journal of Aesthetic Education 40 (2006):
discipline of somaesthetics, a field of theory and104-117.
practice devoted to the study and cultivation of9. Ronald de Sousa, "Love as Theater," in The Philos-
our bodies as loci of aesthetic perception and self-
ophy of (Erotic) Love, ed. Robert Solomon and Kathleen
Higgins (University of Kansas Press, 1991), pp. 477-491, ci-
fashioning, the Asian erotic arts, especially as the-
tations on pp. 478, 479, 483, 489, 485, 486, 488.
orized and practiced in classical Indian culture,
10. See, for example, John Dewey, Art as Experience
constitute an exemplary resource and an invalu- (Southern Illinois University Press, 1987); Richard Shuster-
able inspiration.40 man, Pragmatist Aesthetics (Oxford: Blackwell, 1992).
11. There is not much emphasis on the erotic in the clas-
sical pragmatists, and William James even affirms, in his fa-
RICHARD SHUSTERMAN
mous Principles of Psychology, the role of an "anti-sexual
Department of Philosophy instinct" (Harvard University Press, 1983), pp. 1053-1054.
Florida Atlantic University Noting Dewey's neglect of the erotic, Paul Taylor argues
Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA that Du Bois's frank recognition of sexual dimensions of
self-realization usefully enriches the classical pragmatist no-
INTERNET: shusterl@fau.edu tion of perfectionism. See Paul C. Taylor, "What's the Use
of Calling Du Bois a Pragmatist?" in The Range of Pragma-
tism and the Limits of Philosophy, ed. Richard Shusterman
(Oxford: Blackwell, 2004), pp. 95-111.
1. The resistance of philosophers to the beauties of erotic
seduction is a classic theme in the arts, exemplified by Keats's12. Michel Foucault, "Sexual Choice, Sexual Act," in Es-
famous poem "Lamia," in which the philosopher seeks sential
to Works of Michel Foucault (New York: New Press,
rescue his student from the wiles of a beautiful woman who 1997), vol. 1, pp. 151-152. In making his case for "aesthetic
is actually a lamia (a creature with the head and breast appreciation of the sexual act as such," Foucault praises
of a woman and the lower body of a serpent and that is gay S/M because "all the energy and imagination, which in
said to suck the blood of those it seduces). The female fig- the heterosexual relationship were channeled into courtship,
ure depicted by Honthorst, with her head and breast ex- now become devoted to intensifying the act of sex itself. A
posed but her lower body concealed, could represent such a whole new art of sexual practice develops which tries to ex-
creature. plore all the internal possibilities of sexual conduct." Liken-
2. See Plato's Republic 329c, where Socrates confirms ing the gay leather scenes in San Francisco and New York to
this condemnation, originally attributed to Sophocles. "laboratories
See of sexual experimentation," Foucault claims
also Symposium 198D for his self-description as erotic such experimentation is strictly controlled by consensual
mas-
codes,
ter and 203C-212B for his account of the philosophical questas in the medieval chivalric courts "where strict rules
of proprietary courtship were defined." Experimentation
in the erotic terms of seeking and giving birth in beauty.

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Shusterman Asian Ars Erotica and the Question of Sexual Aesthetics 67

is necessary," explains Foucault, "because the sexual act has Chinese culture, but nor did it form part of the
in classical
become so easy and available ... that it runs the ancient
risk of sexual handbooks (SL, p. 48).
21. In one document from the Later Han period, we read
quickly becoming boring, so that every effort has to be made
to innovate and create variations that will enhance theof aplea-
Taoist master who "lived to the age of over 150 years by
sure of the act." "This mixture of rules and openness," Fou- the art of having sexual intercourse with women"
practicing
cault concludes, "has the effect of intensifying sexualand rela-
that by such art "one's grey hair will turn black again
tions by introducing a perpetual novelty, a perpetualand new teeth will replace those that have fallen out" (SL,
tension
p. 71).
and a perpetual uncertainty which the simple consummation
22. Another
of the act lacks. The idea is also to make use of every part of passage from the Fang-nei-pu-i that empha-
sizes multiple partners nonetheless makes clear that this
the body as a sexual instrument" (Foucault, "Sexual Choice,
Sexual Act," pp. 149, 151-152). For a critical study multiplicity
of Fou- does not have pleasure as its highest end. "The
cault's somaesthetics of sex as part of his idea of philosophy
method is to copulate on one night with ten different women
as an art of living, see Richard Shusterman, "Somaesthet-
without emitting semen even a single time. This is the essence
ics and Care of the Self: The Case of Foucault," Monist 83 of the Bedchamber. A man must not engage in
of the Art
(2000): 530-551. sexual intercourse merely to satisfy his lust. He must strive
13. Michel Foucault, History of Sexuality (New to control his sexual desire so as to be able to nurture his
York:
Pantheon, 1986), vol. 2, pp. 12, 89-93. vital essence. He must not force his body to sexual extrav-
14. Michel Foucault, History of Sexuality (New agance
York:in order to enjoy carnal pleasure, giving free rein to
Pantheon, 1980), vol. 1, pp. 57-71 [hereafter HS]. his passion. On the contrary, he must think of how the act
15. A version of this interview, "On the Genealogy of
will benefit his health and thus keep himself free from dis-
Ethics: An Overview of Work in Progress," was first ease.
pub-This is the subtle secret of the Art of the Bedchamber."
lished in English in Michel Foucault: Beyond Structuralism
The text also discusses the method for controlling ejacula-
and Hermeneutics, ed. Herbert Dreyfus and Paul Rabinow
tion and making its energy "ascend and benefit the brain"
(University of Chicago Press, 1983), but I am citing (SL,(and
pp. 193-194). A Sui Dynasty sex handbook, Fang Nei
translating) from the more complete French version Chi,that
offers a health-oriented graduated schedule of ejacu-
was revised by Foucault and published in his Dits et lations Ecrits,according to one's age and strength of constitution,
vol. 2 (Paris: Gallimard, 2001), pp. 1428-1450, quotations on from strongly built fifteen-year-olds who can ejacu-
ranging
p. 1441. In this interview, Foucault acknowledges that the a day to strong men of seventy who may ejaculate
late twice
ancient Greeks and Romans did not really have an elab-
once a month; "weak ones should not ejaculate anymore at
orate ars erotica comparable to that of the Chinese that(see
age" (SL, p. 146). A different Sui Dynasty handbook,
p. 1434). The Ars Amatoria of Master Tung-Hsuan, which also of-
16. R. H. van Gulik, Sexual Life in Ancient China: A fers methods of controlling ejaculation, is less nuanced in
Preliminary Survey of Chinese Sex and Society from ca. 1500 prescriptions of frequency: "only emit semen two or three
B.C. till 1644 A.D. (Leiden: Brill, 2003) [hereafter SL]. times in ten" (SL, p. 132).
17. It is also worth noting that Chinese texts on the erotic 23. See Richard Burton and E E Arbuthnot, trans., The
arts are not a monolithic unity but rather display some va- Kama Sutra of Vatsyayana, including a preface by W. G.
riety in different historical periods and according to the dif- Archer and an introduction by K. M. Panikkar (Unwin: Lon-
ferent dominant philosophical ideologies that inspired their don, 1988), page references will be to this edition [hereafter
authors (for example, the more sexually liberal Taoist ver- KS]. Besides this famous (and controversial) translation, I
sus the more straight-laced Confucian). The classic texts of have consulted two other translations: W. Doniger and S.
Indian ars erotica also display clear differences that reflect Kakar (Oxford University Press, 2003); S. C. Upadya (Cas-
the different mores of different periods. tle Books: New York, 1963). Alex Comfort, ed. and trans.,
18. Foucault's emphasis on the essential esoteric nature The Koka Shastra, with a Preface by W. G. Archer (Stein &
of these arts is also rather misleading. For many periods of Day: New York, 1965) [hereafter KKS]. See also E E Ar-
China's long history, according to van Gulik, the handbooks buthnot and Richard Burton, ed. and trans., Ananga Ranga
of sex, which were frequently illustrated, "circulated widely" (Medical Press: New York, 1964) [hereafter AR]. The dat-
and "were well known and the methods given by them widely ing of the Kama Sutra is particularly uncertain, ranging from
practiced" not only by esoteric specialists but "by the people 300 BCE to 400 CE, while that of the Koka Shastra (whose
in general." The handbooks began to fall into decline in the formal title is Ratirahasya or Secrets of Rati) ranges from
Sung period, and still more in the Ming period with its greater the eleventh to twelfth century, and Ananga Ranga's from
Confucian prudishness, but the handbooks' practices and the sixteenth to the seventeenth. Besides these primary texts
"principles still pervaded sexual life" (SL, pp. 79, 94, 121, (and the commentary of the editions cited), my research also
192, 228, 268). draws on J. J. Meyer, Sexual Life in Ancient China, 2 vols.
19. See SL, p. 138: "If a man continually changes the (London: Kegan Paul, 2003) and S. C. Banerji, Crime and
woman with whom he copulates the benefit will be great. If Sex in Ancient India (Naya Prokash: Calcutta, 1980).
in one night one can copulate with more than ten women 24. This is especially so with the Ananga Ranga, which,
it is best. If one always copulates with one and the same Archer notes, excludes more than 30 kinds of women as
woman her vital essence will gradually grow weaker and in partners for sexual intercourse, while the Kama Sutra only
the end she will be in no fit condition to give the man benefit. excludes two (KS, pp. 30-31).
Moreover, the woman herself will become emaciated." 25. The Koka Shastra (p. 133) recommends the staging
20. It followed from this logic that male masturbation of the act in a "brightly-lit room filled with flowers[,] incense
was "forbidden (except for extreme occasions) and noctur- ... burning," "lively conversation," and with the gentleman
nal emissions were viewed with concern." As long as it did "singing ... cheerful songs," while Ananga Ranga (pp. 96-
not involve ejaculation, homosexuality was not condemned 97) describes the setting "best fitted for sexual intercourse

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 68 Global Theories of the Arts and Aesthetics

almost worn out, the

with women" as follows: "Choose becomes again fresh and new.
largest, andIf therefinest,
be
the most airy room in the no marks
house,of nails topurify
remind a person it
of thethoroughly
passages of love,
then love
whitewash, and decorate its is lessened in theand
spacious same way as when no union takes
beautiful walls
pictures and other objects upon
place for which
a long time" (KS, p. 144). the eye may d
with delight. Scattered about31. Alexthis
Comfort, apartment
"Introduction," in KKS, p.place
63. mus
instruments, especially the32.pipe
Comfort, "Introduction,"
and the pp. lute;
49, 63. with refr
ments, as cocoa-nut, betel 33.leaf, and milk,
See the Brihadaranyaka which
Upanishad: is so u
"In the embrace
of his beloved,
ful for treating and restoring a man forgets the
vigour; whole world--everything
bottles of rose w
and various essences, fans,both and
within andchauris for
without; in the same way hecooling
who embraces the
the Self knows neither
and books containing amorous songs, within nor andwithout." Comfort, "In-
gladdening
troduction,"
glance with illustrations of p. 28.
love-postures. Splendid Divai
or wall lights, should gleam 34. Such ritualized aestheticization
around the hall, can be foundreflected
in the
hundred mirrors, whilst Japanese
both man which
tea ceremony, and has woman
its roots in ritual should
tea drink-
ing in
tend against any reserve, or Zen monasteries
false shame, (in China before Japan)
giving but has long
themselve
flourished beyond these religious
complete nakedness to unrestrained contexts while still main-
voluptuousness, u
taining a strong
a high and handsome bedstead, sense of aesthetic
raised on tall ritual with a Zen-like
legs, de-
furni
votion to harmony,
[with] many pillows and covered bygentleness
a rich of spirit, reverence, purity,
chatra, or can
the sheets being besprinkledand tranquility.
with See D. T. Suzuki, Zen and
flowers andJapanese
the Culture
cove
scented by burning luscious (Princeton University Press,
incense, 1989), pp.as
such 272-274.
aloes and o
35. K. M. Pannikar,
fragrant woods. In such a place, let "Introduction,"
the man, in KS,ascending
pp. 74-75.
throne of love, enjoy the woman36. Painters thus
incameeaseto deploy,
and as classical
comfort, represen- g
fying his and her every wishtations and
of love, whim."
the various female types and situations de-
26. The methods and joys of
lineated by foreplay
the erotic texts and by the and coitus
literary works these a
distinguished (in the Koka Shastra
texts inspired. and
See Pannikar, Ananga
"Introduction," Rang
p. 75; Comfort,
"Introduction,"
"'outer' and ... 'inner' forms p. 70. Eight of these classical
of lovemaking" figures p.
(KS, are de-
125
"external enjoyments" and scribed in AR (pp. 113-114).enjoyments" (AR
"internal
37. The Kama Sutra
97, 115). The Indian classification devotes a chapter (ch.
recognizes 9) to positions
that outer
tions and pleasures (kissing, for
and methods example)
of oral sex but has nothingcan continue
to say about methods
beyond foreplay. of anal sex, merely noting that it is done (KS, p. 153). In the
27. Nor can desire be too later, moreweak.
straight-laced Indeed
Koka Shastra veryit little
is is the
said of pr
oral sex and
portionate fit of the organs and anal sex is not production
its mentioned. Neither oral nor anal
of suffi
enjoyment and desire thatsex is discussed
"enables in the still more
the prudish Ananga Ranga, to t
husband
his mind [away from the though later erotic writers of
problems recognize oral sex. See Comfort, of p
mechanics
KKS, p.arts
tration] towards the usual 124. which bring women u
38. Comfort,
subjection" to the enthralling KKS, p. 49.
pleasures of sexual love (
p. 22). 39. The Kama Sutra also contains elaborate recommen-
28. Some styles of nail scratching and biting are not dations for the aesthetic stylization of life in general, not
meant to leave visible marks, but simply to give more tactile just for specifically erotic matters. See its chapter "On the
pleasure (see AR, pp. 105, 107; KS, pp. 143, 146). Arrangements of a House, and Household Furniture; and
29. Indian erotic arts also deploy elements of symbolic about the Daily Life of a Citizen, his Companions, Amuse-
action that refer suggestively to other elements of the sex- ments, etc.," which contains suggestions of how to aesthet-
ual performance, thereby seeking to promote them. The ically organize the living conditions and daily routines of
"transferred kiss" is one given not to the lover but to a gentleman or man about town (which I prefer to "citi-
a child or object simultaneously viewed by the lover so zen" for translating the Sanskrit term nayaka) These lifestyle
as to suggest the desire to kiss the lover (KS, p. 141). recommendations range from ablutions, cosmetics, clothes,
The "Ghatika" kiss, designed to stimulate the man to- meals, and siestas to amusements such as festivals, drink-
ward the act of coitus by also symbolizing it, is when the ing parties, discussions of the arts, and aesthetic pastimes
woman "thrusts her tongue into his mouth, moving it to (for example, games of verse and decorating oneself with
and fro with a motion so pleasant and slow that it at flowers).
once suggests another and a higher form of enjoyment" 40. I am grateful to Pradeep Dhillon for help with San-
(AR, p. 102). skrit and to Naked Punch, who first invited me to address
30. Vatsyayana also cites some ancient verses on this mat- this topic at the London School of Economics in February
ter: "The love of a woman who sees the marks of nails on 2006. I also thank the owners of Der Standhafte Philosoph
the private parts of her body, even though they are old and for permission to use this image.

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