If a woman has manifested her love or desire, either by signs or by motions of
the body, and is afterwards rarely or never seen anywhere, or if a woman is
met for the first time, the man should get a go-between to approach her.
Now the go-between, having wheedled herself into the confidence of the
woman by acting according to her disposition, should try to make her hate or
despise her husband by holding artful conversations with her, by telling her
about medicines for getting children, by talking to her about other people, by
tales of various kinds, by stories about the wives of other men, and by praising
her beauty, wisdom, generosity and good nature, and then saying to her: `It is
indeed a pity that you, who are so excellent a woman in every way, should be
possessed of a husband of this kind.
Beautiful lady, he is not fit even to serve
you.' The go-between should further talk to the woman about the weakness of
the passion of her husband, his jealousy, his roguery, his ingratitude, his
aversion to enjoyments, his dullness, his meanness, and all the other faults that
he may have, and with which she may be acquainted. She should particularly
harp upon that fault or that failing by which the wife may appear to be the most
affected. If the wife be a deer woman, and the husband a hare man, then there
would be no fault in that direction, but in the event of his being a hare man,
and she a mare woman or elephant woman, then this fault should be pointed
out to her.
Gonikaputra is of opinion that when it is the first affair of the woman, or when
her love has only been very secretly shown, the man should then secure and
send to her a go-between, with whom she may be already acquainted, and in
whom she confides.
But to return to our subject. The go-between should tell the woman about the
obedience and love of the man, and as her confidence and affection increase,
she should then explain to her the thing to be accomplished in the following
way. `Hear this, Oh beautiful lady, that this man, born of a good family, having
seen you, has gone mad on your account. The poor young man, who is tender
by nature, has never been distressed in such a way before, and it is highly
probable that he will succumb under his present affliction, and experience the
pains of death.' If the woman listens with a favourable ear, then on the
following day the go-between, having observed marks of good spirits in her
face, in her eyes, and in her manner of conversation, should again converse
with her on the subject of the man, and should tell her the stories of Ahalya1
and Indra, of Sakoontala2 and Dushyanti, and such others as may be fitted for
the occasion. She should also describe to her the strength of the man, his
talents, his skill in the sixty-four sorts of enjoyments mentioned by Babhravya,
his good looks, and his liaison with some praiseworthy woman, no matter
whether this last ever took place or not.
In addition to this, the go-between should carefully note the behaviour of the
woman, which if favourable would be as follows: She would address her with a
smiling look, would seat herself close beside her, and ask her, `Where have you
been? What have you been doing? Where did you dine? Where did you sleep?
Where have you been sitting?'
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