Masculinity in Ancient India

[jkirk]

> Quoting Dr. John Powers:
> Could anyone recommend Indic sources on masculinity, from around 5 BCE
> to 10 CE? I'm particularly interested in notions of the ideal male body
> and what makes one a real man.

I would recommend you to take a look at "Conjugal Love in India: Ratisastra 
and
Ratiramana: Text, Translation and Notes" by Kenneth G. Zysk, Brill 2002. 
This
book contains many explanations on physical signs considered auspicious in
either the male or female bodies, especially in terms of marriage and
fertility. Although the Sanskrit texts studied here are later than the 
period
you specified, the general tradition of physiognomy can be traced back to 
the
period you are interested in.

With best wishes,
Tim
______________________
Dr. Ulrich Timme Kragh
Post-Doctoral Associate
Dept. of Sanskrit and Indian Studies
Harvard University
1 Bow St., Cambridge
02138 MA, USA
Tel. +1-617 625 7078
===========================
As I recall, Vatsyayana's Kamasutra has descriptions of ideal male and 
female beauty and it does fit with the period prescribed by Dr. Powers.

Hopefully, Joanna Kirkpatrick



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