Quotations by Bhoja from the Kamasutra
Summary
The article catalogues passages from the Kāmasūtra that King Bhoja quoted in his literary works. Dr A. Venkatasubbiah had previously identified six verses and a prose sentence cited in Anandagiri’s commentary on the Mahābhārata; the present author examines Bhoja’s Śṛṅgāra‑prakāśa and other texts to discover additional quotations. By comparing Bhoja’s verses with the Kāmasūtra, he demonstrates that Bhoja was familiar with Vātsyāyana’s treatise and borrowed specific phrases and imagery. The article notes that Bhoja sometimes paraphrased passages to suit his rhetorical purposes and occasionally misquoted or altered words. It highlights the intertextuality between kāmaśāstra and Sanskrit poetics: Bhoja cited the Kāmasūtra to illustrate poetic devices, ethical maxims and descriptions of love. The author provides the Sanskrit texts of the quotations and discusses their context in both works. This study sheds light on the transmission of the Kāmasūtra and its influence on medieval literature, showing that it was not merely a manual of eroticism but a source of poetic inspiration and moral instruction.
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Conclusion
The author concludes that Bhoja’s works consciously drew on the Kāmasūtra, demonstrating the prestige of Vātsyāyana’s treatise in courtly circles. By identifying these quotations, the article clarifies textual relationships and emphasises the need for critical editions of Bhoja’s writings and the Kāmasūtra.