Ruth Vanita

Saleem Kidwai

Same-Sex Love in India presents an array of writings on same-sex love from over 2,000 years of Indian literature. Translated from more than a dozen languages and drawn from Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, and modern fictional traditions, these writings testify to the presence of same-sex love in various forms since ancient times. An eminent group of scholars have translated writings for the first time and have retranslated well-known texts to correctly make evident previously underplayed homoerotic content. Selections range from religious books, legal and erotic treatises, story cycles, medieval histories and biographies, to modern novels, short stories, letters, memoirs, plays, and poems. From the Rig Veda to Vikram Seth, this anthology will become a staple in courses on gender and queer studies, Asian studies, and world literature.--From publisher description.

Readings from Literature and History

Same-sex Love in India

In 2009, the Delhi High Court's historic judgment overturning Section 377 as violative of the Indian Constitution referred to Same-Sex Love in India. So did the 2018 Supreme Court decision which upheld that judgment. All the petitions against this anti-sodomy law have cited this landmark book to prove that homosexuality is not a Western import. Same-Sex Love in India is the book that brought to light the long, incontestable history of same-sex love and desire in the Indian subcontinent. Covering over 2000 years, from the Mahabharata to the late twentieth century, the book contains excerpts from stories, poems, letters, biographies and histories in fifteen languages. The editors' introductions to each period and text trace the changing depictions of and debates around same-sex relations, illuminating their social, political and literary contexts. These essays have been called 'outstanding works of scholarship'. Including writings that range from romantic to analytical, playful to thoughtful, this classic work will help you see Indian culture and society with new eyes.

Saleem Kidwai

About

Books

Join the club