Khajuraho: The Ancient City of Erotic Temples
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It is thought that the man and woman in erotic embrace, as so vividly portrayed in the temples of Khajuraho, signify the ultimate union of the soul with the divine. The Tantric Indian Sects who invested sex with a ritual symbolism considered yoga (spiritual exercise) and bhoga (physical pleasure) to be alternative paths leading to the same goal: the attainment of final deliverance. According to these sects, the controlled enjoyment of the senses was a surer, as well as easier, way to salvation.
The philosophy of the age dictated the enjoyment of the delights of artha, (material wealth) and kama (sensual pleasures) while performing one's dharma (duty) as the accepted way of life for the grihastha (householder). Hence, the powerful combination of the visual and sensual pleasures combined with the duty attributed to the worship of the dieties brings about a powerful transformation of the body and the soul. To include all of these aspects of life in one's early years makes it easier to renounce them without regret or attachment as one moves on to one's next stages of life toward moksha (liberation)...
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