The Whole Gang: Unlimited India

Abhisarika

The heroine who goes out to meet her lover, braving darkness, storms, or danger to reach the tryst. She is one of the eight ashta nayikas, representing bold, eager longing.

Abhiyoga

An approach, advance, or effort, meaning the man’s attempts to win her.

abhyanga

Ayurvedic therapeutic oil massage used for relaxation, nourishment, and balancing the doshas.

Aditi

A Vedic mother goddess associated with infinity, cosmic freedom, and the mother of the Ādityas.

agni

The digestive and metabolic fire responsible for digestion, transformation, and assimilation of nutrients.

Agni-sākṣika

“With fire as witness”: a marriage solemnized before the sacred fire.

Ākāra

Outward appearance or demeanor that reveals a person’s feelings.

Āliṅgana

Embracing. The text gives eight kinds, in two groups of four: those between people who have not yet united (e.g., spṛṣṭaka, a touching embrace) and those during union (e.g., latāveṣṭitaka, the “creeper’s twining”).

ama

Toxic metabolic residue believed in Ayurveda to result from incomplete digestion and obstruct bodily channels.

Amātya / Mahāmātra

Ministers or high officials, who also appear in the discussion of those with access to women.

Annaprasana

A Hindu rite of passage marking an infant’s first intake of solid food.

Annapurna

A goddess associated with nourishment, food, abundance, and the fulfillment of physical needs.

Antaḥpura

The inner or women’s quarters of a palace, covered in the final chapter.

Antaḥpurikā

A woman of the harem.

Antyesti

The final Hindu rite of passage, referring to funeral rites and ceremonies after death.

anubhava

The “consequent” or outward expression of an emotion: the gestures, facial expressions, and bodily actions an actor uses to make an internal feeling visible to the audience. Along with vibhavas (causes) and vyabhicaribhavas (transitory states), it is a component that combines to produce rasa.

Anukala

(Also anukula.) The “faithful” or devoted hero, one of the four nayaka types. He is committed to a single beloved and remains loyal to her alone. Rama is often cited as the model.

Anurāga

Passion or growing attachment, the emotion that develops as courtship progresses.

Anurakti

Devotion or affection. The wife is advised to keep her husband’s affection through attentiveness and good conduct.

Ārṣa

The “sage’s” form: the groom gives a token gift (traditionally a cow and a bull) to the bride’s father.

Artha

One of the four puruṣārthas (goals of life), referring to prosperity, material well-being, and worldly success.

Artha-anartha

Gain and loss, the profit-and-loss accounting a courtesan keeps

Aryaman

A Vedic deity associated with hospitality, social bonds, nobility, and marriage alliances.

Āsana

Posture or position in union. The book catalogs many, often named for animals or actions.

ashru

An involuntary physical response (sattvika bhava): tears or weeping, which can come from sorrow, joy, or other overwhelming emotion.

Ashvins

Twin Vedic gods associated with healing, medicine, rescue, and youthful vitality.

ashwagandha

An Ayurvedic adaptogenic herb (Withania somnifera) traditionally used to support strength, stress resilience, and vitality.

asthi

The Ayurvedic dhatu corresponding to bone tissue and skeletal structure.

asthiyana

A term related to therapies or processes associated with strengthening the asthi dhatu (bone tissue).

Āsura

Marriage by purchase: the groom pays the bride’s family.

Aśva

“Horse”: the man of the largest type.

Atharvaveda

One of the four Vedas, containing hymns, prayers, healing rituals, household rites, and practical knowledge.

Atithi-satkāra

Hospitality to guests and relatives, a duty the wife oversees.

Aupanishadika

“Secret” or esoteric; the seventh part, on improving appearance and attracting others

Auparaṣṭaka

Oral congress. The text discusses it with notable ambivalence, noting that regional customs and personal taste differ, and that some authorities disapprove.

Avapīḍita

The lower lip is pressed firmly. Some translators add a “greatly pressed” variant.

Āya-vyaya

Income and expenditure, meaning household accounts and budgeting. The text expects the wife to be careful with money and to avoid waste.

Ayurveda

An ancient Indian system of medicine focused on maintaining health through balance of body, mind, environment, diet, and lifestyle.

Ayyappa

A Hindu deity primarily worshiped in South India, especially at Sabarimala, associated with devotion, discipline, and harmony between traditions.

Bālā

A young girl or newly married bride, often a very young or inexperienced one, who must be won over gently.

Bhaga

A Vedic deity associated with fortune, prosperity, blessings, and the distribution of wealth.

Bhāryā

Wife, literally “one to be supported or maintained.”

Bhāryādhikārika

The book’s title: “pertaining to the wife” (bhāryā), meaning her duties, status, and conduct.

bhava

An emotional state or feeling, portrayed by the performer, that the audience perceives and that gives rise to rasa. Bharata describes bhavas as what “bring into being” the meaning of a performance. Includes the stable, transitory, and involuntary types.

bhaya

The stable emotion of fear or terror, which becomes the rasa bhayanaka (the terrible or fearful sentiment).

Bhaya

Fear or timidity

Bhoga

Enjoyment; also used for “payment” or “gain” in the courtesan’s trade

Bhumi

The personification of the Earth as a goddess, representing fertility, stability, and nourishment.

Brahma

The creator deity in the Hindu Trimurti, associated with creation, knowledge, and the origin of living beings.

Brāhma

The “Brahmanic” form: a father gives his daughter, adorned, to a worthy man. It is considered the most respectable.

Brahmacharya

The stage of life dedicated to education, discipline, celibacy, and spiritual development in the traditional āśrama system.

brahmi

An Ayurvedic herb (commonly Bacopa monnieri) traditionally associated with memory, intellect, concentration, and nervous system support.

brahmin

The priestly and scholarly varna traditionally associated with ritual duties, teaching, learning, and preserving sacred knowledge.

Brihaspati

The guru of the gods in Vedic tradition and the deity associated with the planet Jupiter, wisdom, sacred speech, and knowledge.

Budha

The deity associated with the planet Mercury in Hindu astrology, representing intellect, communication, and reasoning.

Catuḥṣaṣṭi-kalā

The “sixty-four arts”: accomplishments such as singing (gīta), instrumental music (vādya), dance (nṛtya), drawing (ālekhya), poetry, perfumery, and games. They are the cultivated skills of an educated person.

Chandra

The Hindu moon deity associated with the moon, emotions, fertility, plants, and time cycles.

chhath puja

A Hindu solar festival dedicated primarily to Surya and Chhathi Maiya, involving prayers, fasting, and offerings near water.

Chudakarana

A Hindu rite of passage involving the first shaving of a child’s head.

Cumbana

Kissing. The text classes kisses by the part of the body kissed and by the circumstances, such as those between lovers who are new to each other.

Daiva

The “divine” form: the girl is given to a priest officiating at a sacrifice.

Dakshina

The “courteous” or impartial hero. He loves several women and treats them all with equal fairness and attention, so that none feels neglected.

dalit

A modern term for communities historically subjected to caste-based exclusion and discrimination outside the traditional varna system.

Dantakṣata

Marking with the teeth (biting), with its own named types, discussed with the same attention to suitability and restraint.

Dāra-rakṣita

Guarding one’s own wife: the closing section, which treats the topic from the husband’s side.

Dāsa / Dāsī

Male or female servants, whom she supervises.

Dashana

Biting, as a form of love play

Dhanurveda

The traditional Upaveda associated with archery, martial arts, warfare, military science, and combat training.

Dhanvantari

The divine physician associated with Ayurveda, healing, medicine, and the nectar of immortality (amrita).

Dharma

The principle of cosmic order, duty, righteousness, morality, and ethical living.

Dhātreyī

A foster-sister or nurse’s daughter, a trusted female companion who carries messages.

Dhrishta

The “bold” or brazen hero. He is unfaithful and shows no remorse, continuing to deny or brush off his infidelity even when it is plainly evident (for example, bearing marks of another woman).

dinacharya

The Ayurvedic daily routine of lifestyle practices designed to maintain health and balance.

Diwali

The Hindu festival of lights symbolizing the victory of light over darkness and associated with prosperity, devotion, and renewal.

dosha

The three fundamental biological energies in Ayurveda—vata, pitta, and kapha—that regulate bodily and mental functions.

Durga

A warrior goddess representing divine protection, strength, and the triumph of good over evil.

Dūtī

A female go-between or messenger who carries communications between lovers.

Dviṣṭā

A woman her husband dislikes or neglects, with advice on how she should behave.

Ekacāriṇī

A woman who is her husband’s only wife, “one who moves alone” in the household. The first chapter’s heading is the conduct of such a wife.

Gāndharva

A love marriage by mutual consent, without family arrangement. The text speaks favorably of it, as it is based on affection and brings the couple together by their own choice.

Gandharvaveda

The traditional Upaveda associated with music, dance, drama, and the performing arts.

Ganesh Chaturthi

A festival celebrating the birth of Ganesha, marked by worship, rituals, and public or household celebrations.

Ganesha

The elephant-headed deity associated with wisdom, intellect, beginnings, prosperity, and the removal of obstacles.

Ganga

The goddess personifying the sacred Ganges River, associated with purification, grace, and spiritual liberation.

Gaṇikā

A courtesan, a woman of high accomplishment and social standing, distinct from a common prostitute

Garbhadhan

A Hindu rite of passage associated with conception and the beginning of family life.

Ghaṭaka

A matchmaker or go-between who helps arrange a marriage.

Ghats

Steps or embankments leading to rivers, especially sacred bathing and ritual sites along Indian rivers.

Ghaṭṭitaka

The woman touches her partner’s lip with her tongue.

Goṣṭhī

A social gathering or circle for conversation, arts, and entertainment among cultured people.

Gṛha-kṛtya

Household tasks and management, the wife’s main sphere of responsibility.

Gṛhiṇī

Mistress of the house, the woman who runs the household.

Grihastha

The householder stage of life focused on family, livelihood, social responsibilities, and worldly duties.

guduchi

An Ayurvedic medicinal plant (Tinospora cordifolia) regarded as a rejuvenative herb supporting immunity and vitality.

guggulu

A resin from the Commiphora mukul tree used in Ayurveda for metabolism, joint health, and purification therapies.

guna

Fundamental qualities or attributes that describe substances, energies, and states of mind in Ayurveda and Sāṃkhya philosophy.

Hanuman

A divine monkey deity and devotee of Rama, associated with strength, courage, devotion, wisdom, and selfless service.

Hastinī

“Elephant-cow”: the woman of the largest type.

hasya

The stable emotion of mirth or laughter, which becomes the rasa hasya (the comic sentiment).

Holi

A Hindu spring festival celebrating renewal, joy, and the triumph of good over evil, traditionally associated with colors and community celebration.