Category Archives: India

BOOK: “Venus in India” by Charles Devereaux

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Venus in India or Love Adventures in HindustanVenus in India or Love Adventures in Hindustan by Charles Devereaux
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Available online – Wikisource

This novel is presented as the erotically-charged memoir of a British military officer stationed in India. While separated from his wife by his assignment, he has a couple major (and many minor) dalliances with other women, one with the loose wife of another officer and the other the daughter of his commanding officer — who he is charged with mentoring.

Compared with other Victorian erotica, this book does have more story and character development than other books with which I’m familiar. In other words, what goes on between the sheets (or in the grass or on a table) is not the sum total of the book. Interesting events happen outside the sex and there is at least the pretense of emotional arcs for important characters. This makes the book feel more like a true memoir rather than a collection of “Dear Penthouse” tales.

If you like stories of the historic ex-pat life and / or Victorian erotica, you’ll likely enjoy this book.

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BOOK: “Mallapurana” ed. by Bhogilai Jayachandbhai Sandesara & Ramanlal Nagarji Mehta

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Mallapurana: A Rare Sanskrit Text on Indian Wrestling especially as practised by the Jyesthimallas (Gaekwad's Oriental Series No. 144)Mallapurana: A Rare Sanskrit Text on Indian Wrestling especially as practised by the Jyesthimallas by Bhogilal Jayachandbhai; Mehta Sandesara
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Available online – Internet Archive

The Mallapurana is a several hundred-year-old Sanskrit manual on wrestling as practiced in India, specifically by the Jyesthimalla caste. In 1964 two scholars from the University of Baroda released an edition that included a summary and detailed elaboration for an English-language readership, written to be understood by a reader without a background in the Indian wrestling tradition. (The text does include the original Sanskrit text for those who can read it, but I can’t comment on it.)

The manual is not just a discussion of wrestling techniques. In fact, a good portion of the manual covers issues like diet, training, the rites and logistical details of wrestling matches, characteristics of wrestlers, and strategies of matches. The authors include discussions of training methods and other details. The material is presented for a scholarly audience. While the readability is not challenging, it is arranged in a way that may feel tedious for the general readership. There are occasional descriptions that may leave a general reader befuddled.

I found reading this manual to be informative. It turned me on to many ideas with which I was unfamiliar. I’d highly recommend it for those interested in wrestling, martial sports, or the evolution of fitness practices.

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DAILY PHOTO: Doddagaddavalli Lakshmi Devi Temple

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Photograph of Doddagaddavalli Lakshmi Devi Temple in Karnataka, India.

DAILY PHOTO: Kote Sri Anjaneya Swamy Temple, Mysore

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Photograph of the Kote Sri Anjaneya Swamy Temple and Palace Gates in Mysore (Mysuru,) Karnataka, India.

DAILY PHOTO: Colorful Mural in Mussoorie

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Photograph of wall murals in Mussoorie, India.

DAILY PHOTO: Easter Island in Kolkata

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Photograph of replica Easter Island heads taken at the Seven Wonders display in the Eco Park of Kolkata, located in New Town.

DAILY PHOTO: Scene from Bateshwar Temple Group of Morena

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Photograph of a couple of shrines in the Bateshwar Temple Group of Morena, north of Gwalior, India.

DAILY PHOTO: Uttari Betta

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Photograph taken at Uttari Betta in Karnataka, India on a cloudy monsoon season day.
Photograph taken atop Uttari Betta in Karnataka, India with the farmland far below in the background.
Photograph of precariously positioned rocks atop Uttari Betta in Karnataka, India.

DAILY PHOTO: Man Mandir Gate, Gwalior

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A photograph taken at the Gwalior Fort that includes wall and gate of the Man Mandir.

Gaur [Lyric Poem]

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Photograph of a Gaur taken at the Mysore Zoo in Karnataka, India. 
Let me introduce the Gaur.
   It's a cow, but superpowered.

It's made of thick slabs of muscle,
   And I wouldn't suggest you tussle.
 They aren't cattle you can rustle,
   That is, unless - in point of fact --
 You're eager to be rustled back.