Kama

Key takeaways

Kama belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Kama to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Kama from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Kama (Sanskrit: काम, IAST: kāma) is the concept of pleasure, enjoyment and desire in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. It can also refer to "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature. However, the term is also used in a technical sense to refer to any sensory enjoyment, emotional attraction or aesthetic pleasure experienced in connection with the arts, dance, music, painting, sculpture, and nature. In contemporary literature kama is often used to connote sexual desire and emotional longing, but the ancient concept is more expansive, and broadly refers to any desire, wish, passion, pleasure, or enjoyment of art and beauty, the aesthetic, enjoyment of life, affection, love and connection, and enjoyment of love with or without sexual connotations. In Hindu thought, kama is one among the three items of the trivarga and is one of the four Purusharthas, which are the four beneficial domains of human endeavor. In Hinduism it is considered an essential and healthy goal of human life to pursue "Kama" without sacrificing the other three Purusharthas: Dharma (virtuous, ethical, moral life), Artha (material needs, income security, means of life) and Moksha (liberation, release, self-realization). In Buddhism and Jainism kama is to be overcome in order to obtain the goal of liberation from rebirth. But while kama is viewed as an obstacle for Buddhist and Jain monks and nuns, it is recognized as legitimate domain of activity for laity.

Definition in Hinduism In contemporary Indian literature, kama is often used to refer to sexual desire. However, Kama more broadly refers to any sensory enjoyment, emotional attraction and aesthetic pleasure such as from the arts, dance, music, painting, sculpture, and nature. Kama can refer to "desire, wish, or longing". The concept of kama is found in some of the earliest known verses in the Vedas. For example, Book 10 of the Rig Veda describes the creation of the universe from nothing by the great heat. In hymn 129 (RV 10.129.4) it states:

The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, one of the oldest Upanishads of Hinduism, uses the term kama, also in a broader sense, to refer to any desire:

Ancient Indian literature such as the Epics, which followed the Upanishads, develop and explain the concept of kama together with Artha and Dharma. The Mahabharata, for example, provides one of the expansive definitions of kama. The Epic describes kama to be any agreeable and desirable experience (pleasure) generated by the interaction of one or more of the five senses with anything associated with that sense, and whilst in harmony with the other goals of human life (dharma, artha and moksha). Kama is often used to refer to kamana (desire, longing or appetite). Kama, however, is more than kamana. Kama includes desire, wish, longing, emotional connection, love, appreciation, pleasure, and enjoyment. Vatsyayana, the author of the Kamasutra, describes kama as happiness that is a manasa vyapara (phenomenon of the mind). Just like the Mahabharata, Vatsyayana's Kamasutra defines kama as any pleasure an individual experiences from the world, with one or more senses: hearing, seeing, tasting, smelling, and feeling, in harmony with one's mind and soul. Experiencing harmonious music is kama, as is being inspired by natural beauty, the aesthetic appreciation of a work of art, and admiring with joy something crafted by another human being. Vatsyayana's Kamasutra is often misunderstood to be a book solely about sexual and intimate relationships, but it was written as a guide to the nature of love, sexuality, finding a life partner, maintaining one's love life, and emotional fulfillment in life. In its discourse on kama it describes many forms of art, dance, and music, along with sex, as the means to pleasure and enjoyment. Kama is one's appreciation of incense, candles, music, scented oil, yoga stretching and meditation, and experiencing the heart chakra. The heart chakra is associated with love, compassion, charity, balance, calmness, and serenity, and is considered to be a seat of devotional worship. Opening the heart chakra is to experience an awareness of divine communion and joy in communion with deities and the self (Atman). John Lochtefeld describes kama as desire, noting that it often refers to sexual desire in contemporary literature, but in ancient Indian literature kāma includes any kind of attraction and pleasure such as those deriving from the arts. Karl Potter describes kama as an attitude and capacity. A little girl who hugs her teddy bear with a smile is experiencing kama. Two lovers in an embrace are experiencing kama. During these experiences the person feels more complete, fulfilled, and whole by experiencing that connection and nearness. This, in the Indian perspective, is kāma. Hindery notes the varying and diverse descriptions of kama in ancient Indian texts. Some texts, such as the Epic Ramayana, describe kama as the desire of Rama for Sita — a desire that transcends the physical and marital into a love that is spiritual, and something that gives Rama his meaning of life, his reason to live. Sita and Rama both frequently express their unwillingness and inability to live without the other. This romantic and spiritual description of kama in the Ramayana by Valmiki is more specific, observes Hindery and others, than the broader and more inclusive descriptions of kama, for example in the law codes of smriti by Manu. Gavin Flood describes kama as experiencing the positive emotional state of love whilst also not sacrificing one's dharma (virtuous, ethical behavior), artha (material needs, income security) and one's journey towards moksha (spiritual liberation, self-realization).

Importance of kama in Hinduism In Hinduism, kama is regarded as one of the four proper and necessary objectives or goals of human life (purusharthas), the others being Dharma (virtuous, proper, moral life), Artha (material prosperity, income security, means of life) and Moksha (liberation, release, self-actualization).

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Kama

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Kama claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Kama before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Kama ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Kama

In research: Kama appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Kama in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Kama is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Buddhist philosophical concepts, Concepts in ethics, Happiness, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Kama outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Kama in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Kama means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Kama out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kama in simple terms?

Kama (Sanskrit: काम, IAST: kāma) is the concept of pleasure, enjoyment and desire in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. It can also refer to "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature.

Why does Kama matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Kama?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Kama.