"After reading and considering the works of Babhravya and other ancient authors, and thinking over the meaning of the rules given by them, this treatise was composed, according to the precepts of the Holy Writ, for the benefit of the world,... while leading the life of a religious student at Benares, and wholly engaged in the contemplation of the Deity. This work is not to be used merely as an instrument for satisfying our desires..."

“His travel with his father helped him to gather information about the sexual mores of different people of different parts of India and neighboring countries.”

“When a woman reproaches a man, but at the same time acts affectionately towards him, she should be made love to in every way. A woman, who meets a man in lonely places, and puts up with the touch of his foot, but pretends, on account of indecision of her mind, not to be aware of it, should be conquered by patience and by continued efforts.”

“A man practicing Dharma, Artha and Kama enjoys happiness both in this world and in the world to come.”

“Kama is also learnt from the Kama Sutra and from the practice of citizens.”

“The work being written in parts by different authors was almost unobtainable and, as the parts which were expounded by Dattaka and the others treated only of the particular branches of the subject to which each part related, and moreover as the original work of Babhravya was difficult to be mastered on account of its length, Vatsyayana, therefore, composed his work in a small volume as an abstract of the whole of the works of the above various authors.”

“...showing the difference between men and women in their enjoyment of sex, Vatsyayan offers a good deal of information about human sexuality in general, Vatsyana offers a taxonomical picture of men and women as far as their genitals are concerned....Vatsyana talks of the hare man, the bull man and the stallion...similarly according to the width and depth of the vulva, he speaks of gazelle woman, the mare woman and the elephant woman.”