The Perfumed Garden
The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight, also known as the Arabic Kama Sutra, is a fifteenth-century Arabic sex manual and work of erotic literature by Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Nefzawi, also known simply as "Nefzawi". It has been compared to the ancient Indian Kama Sutra.
The book presents opinions on what qualities men and women should have to be attractive and gives advice on sexual technique, warnings about sexual health, and recipes to remedy sexual maladies. It gives lists of names for the penis and vulva, has a section on the interpretation of dreams, and briefly describes sex among animals. Interspersed with these there are a number of stories which are intended to give context and amusement.
History
According to the introduction of Colville's English translation, Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Nafzawi probably wrote The Perfumed Garden sometime during the fifteenth century. Sheikh Nefzawi, full name Abu Abdullah Muhammad ben Umar Nafzawi, was born in the south of present-day Tunisia. He compiled the present work at the request of the Hafsid ruler of Tunis, Abū Fāris ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz al-Mutawakkil. The reputation acquired by this work in the Arab world was similar to that of the Arabian Nights.Content of the book
The Perfumed Garden is composed of an introduction followed by 21 chapters. Neither the first French translator nor Sir Richard Burton provides the 21st chapter. In these two translations, the book is about 100 pages long.Introduction
The author praises God for having given us the pleasures of love-making. He says that God endowed women with beauty to inspire men to make love to them. He says that men have a natural weakness for the love of women. He says that he is a Muslim, that there is only one God and that Mohammed is his prophet. He says that he is the servant of God. He says that he wrote this book in Tunis for the Grand Vizir. He says that he had divided his work into different chapters to make it easier to read and understand.Chapter 1: The Man of Quality
Nefzawi quotes a poem which describes what it is that women desire in a man. These things are described as "youth, health, wealth, and not coming too fast". According to Nefzawi and the quoted poem, a man of high sexual quality has a large and vigorous shaft, possesses thick thighs and is not big bellied. Such a man should be quick to become erect in response to desire, yet slow to spend its passion by ejaculating. After orgasm, his penis is capable of becoming erect soon afterwards. His member is long enough to reach the end of his partner's vagina and large enough to fill it.Nefzawi suggests pleasant scents can excite women, and with that in mind, he regales the reader with a tale which illuminates the potency of scent in the sensual arts. He tells the story of a scurrilous man called Musaylima and his seduction of Sajah, two figures who are despised in Islamic history as false prophets. Musaylima attempted to fashion scriptures that might resemble the Qur'an and imitate the miracles of healing that occurred at the hands of the Prophet Muhammad, but woefully failed on both counts. According to the story that Nefzawi recounts, Musaylima and Sajah were disturbed that one another were competitors, and so agreed to meet at her invitation. Musaylima is said to have panicked, until he was advised by an old man of his tribe, who suggested that Musaylima set up "a vaulted tent of coloured brocade" in which silks and perfumed waters of "lily, rose, carnation, violet" were spread out, along with censers of "Khymer aloes, ambergris and musk". The tent ropes were then loosened so the perfumes were not overpowering. When Sajah later meets with Musaylima, she is confused and loses her presence of mind in such an environment, whereupon Musaylima seduced her reciting a poem, asking her to lie on her back, or take it bending, squatting or on her hands and knees. Sajah finds his poetry and perfumes desirable and fornicates with him. After the story, the author describes the marriage of Musaylima and Sajah, the humiliating death and defeat of the false prophet Musaylima, and how Sajah later repented of her ways and became a true Muslim.
Nefzawi adds that a man worthy of praise is anxious to please women. He takes care of his appearance; he is truthful and sincere; he is brave and generous; he can be trusted; he is a good conversationalist. However, he does not boast about his relationship with other women.
To illustrate all this, the author tells the story of Bahloul, a buffoon who managed to make love to Hamdonna, the daughter of the King and the wife of the Grand Vizir. He first seduced her with his words. He then showed her his erected penis, which was strong and large. Upon doing this, she desired him and they made love. After they had climaxed, he kissed her lips and her breasts and then gave her cunnilingus. By that time, Bahloul was stiff again. They made love a second time; and then, when they had both climaxed, a third time.
Chapter 2: The Woman of Quality
A woman of high sexual quality, according to Nefzawi, has a perfect waist and is plump and lusty. She has black hair, large black eyes, an elegant nose, and vermilion lips. Her breath is of pleasant odour. Her breasts are full and firm. Her vulva does not emit a bad smell. Her hips are large. Her hands and her feet are of striking elegance.Furthermore, she speaks and laughs rarely. Nefzawi adds that she never leaves the house and that she is not treacherous. If her husband shows his intention to make love, she complies with it. She assists him in his affairs. She does not complain or cry much. When her husband is downhearted, she shares his troubles. In public, she hides her secret parts and does not let anyone see them. She always dresses well and avoids showing her husband what might be repugnant to him.
At this point, the author tells the story of Dorerame, a slave who enjoyed making love with the most beautiful and well-born young women of his time, even if they belonged to other men. It is the longest story of The Perfumed Garden. We learn various things. For example, a woman says that a well-born lady could remain as long as six months without sex. We also learn that women can be very dangerous: he concludes this second chapter by saying that the moral of this tale is that "a man who falls in love with a woman imperils himself, and exposes himself to the greatest troubles."
Chapter 3: The Unattractive Man
Men who are misshapen, whose member is short, who do not make love with vigour or in a manner that gives women enjoyment, who skip foreplay, who are quick to discharge their sperm and leave their partner right after the ejaculation, are men who are held in contempt by women.Men who lie, who cannot be trusted, who conceal to their wives what they have been doing, except their adulterous affairs, are also men worthy of contempt.