Part
II
On
Seduction
A man may resort to the wife of another, for the purpose
of saving his own life, when he perceives that his love for her proceeds from
one degree of intensity to another. These
degrees are ten in number, and are distinguished by the following marks: love of
the eye; attachment of the mind; constant reflection, destruction of sleep;
emaciation of the body; turning away from objects of enjoyment; removal of
shame; madness; fainting; death.
Ancient
authors say that a man should know the disposition, truthfulness, purity and
will of a young woman, as also the intensity or weakness of her passions, from
the form of her body, and from her characteristic marks and sighs.
But Vatsyayana is of the view that the forms of bodies, and the
characteristic marks or signs are but erring tests of character, and that women
should be judged by their conduct, by the outward expression of their thoughts,
and by the movements of their bodies.
Now
as a general rule, Gonikaputra says that a woman falls in love with every
handsome man she sees, and frequently does not take any other steps, owing to
various considerations. In love the
following circumstances are peculiar to the woman. She loves without regard to right or wrong, and does not try
to gain over a man simply for the attainment of some particular purpose.
Moreover, when a man first makes up to her, she appears unwilling to
unite herself with him. But when the attempts to gain her are repeated and renewed,
she at last consents. But with a
man, even though he may have begun to love, he conquers his feelings from a
regard for morality and wisdom, and although his thoughts are often on the
woman, he does not yield, even though an attempt is made to gain him over.
He sometimes makes an attempt or effort to win the object of his
affections, and having failed, he leaves her alone for the future.
In the same way, when a woman is once gained, he often becomes
indifferent about her.