Click on the pictures below for more information about positions.
Missionary Positions Rear Entry Positions Sitting Positions
Kama Sutra Tantric Sex Standing Positions
Brief History of Sexual Positions
Sexual positions have been written about more, and have generated more interest regarding methods and
guides, than any other topic in the history of sex writing. Since sexuality is inherent, it’s only reasonable to
assume that the practice of performing and exploring different sexual positions predates any recorded history
on sexual positions.
Guides teaching the methods of sexual positions can be traced back to about 1 BC to 1 AD, when the first two
books of Ars Amatoria ("The Art of Love") were written by the Roman poet Ovid. It was written in verse and
covers heterosexual love and sex, making it one of the earliest sex and sexual position manuals.
In the 4th Century, Vatsyayana wrote the Kama Sutra detailing almost 529 sexual positions, and it was
considered the standard work on love and sexual positions. Life-size stone sculptures of heterosexual couples
performing practically every sexual position were carved on the temple walls of Konarak in thirteenth-century
India. These sculptures are considered the finest erotic art in the world. In North Africa, Arabs produced the
sexual positions guide, The Perfumed Garden for the Soul’s Recreation in the early sixteenth century, and the
thousand-year-old Japanese medical text, Ishimpo, instructs students on healing sexual positions.
Illustrations of sexual positions present can be found in almost every religion and race as well. The Kama Sutra
included sexual position illustrations while the classic Japanese erotic art style, Shunga, offers a unique
rendering of sexual positions.
Early sex and sexual position researchers include Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing, whose 1886 book,
Psychopathia Sexualis, recorded a number of unusual sexual abnormalities. In the late 19th and early 20th
centuries, Sigmund Freud developed a theory of sexuality from his clients, while Otto Gross and Wilhelm Reich,
two Freud scholars, conducted revolutionary studies around human sexuality.
In 1919, Magnus Hirschfeld founded the Institut fur Sexualwissenschaft (Institute for Sexology) in Berlin, but
when the Nazis took power they destroyed it. Alfred Kinsey also studied sex and sexual positions and in 1947
founded the Institute for Sex Research at Indiana University at Bloomington, now called the Kinsey Institute for
Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction.
Sexual position experimentation should be one of the most exciting aspects of sex for a couple. Sexual positions
are merely different types of dances that help couples add excitement and variety to their sex lives. Some
sexual positions have a specific purpose, (e.g. trying to get pregnant or achieving orgasm). While other sexual
positions, like rear entry or female superior, might be explored simply to add variety to a
bedroom ritual. And some sexual positions found in guides like the kama sutra, tao, tantric sex, the Perfume
Garden and Ananga Ranga can supply a couple with a more spiritual level of sex.
Yet, many are afraid to try new and different sexual positions because they’re either unsure of their own ability
or not clear of the techniques involved. Some may be unsure of how their partner will react to a certain sexual
position or become embarrassed if they cannot perfect a different sexual position on the first try. So, the first
step to enjoying new and exciting sexual positions is communicating. Discuss what sexual positions you and
your partner like and are willing to try. It’s important to remember that a sexual position should make sex feel
good. It should bring a couple closer in their relationship while helping them enjoy each other. Besides having
fun, engaging in new sexual positions should help develop trust, and through practice, help you and your
partner learn something about each other.
Return to Sexual Health
Missionary Positions Rear Entry Positions Sitting Positions
Kama Sutra Tantric Sex Standing Positions
Brief History of Sexual Positions
Sexual positions have been written about more, and have generated more interest regarding methods and
guides, than any other topic in the history of sex writing. Since sexuality is inherent, it’s only reasonable to
assume that the practice of performing and exploring different sexual positions predates any recorded history
on sexual positions.
Guides teaching the methods of sexual positions can be traced back to about 1 BC to 1 AD, when the first two
books of Ars Amatoria ("The Art of Love") were written by the Roman poet Ovid. It was written in verse and
covers heterosexual love and sex, making it one of the earliest sex and sexual position manuals.
In the 4th Century, Vatsyayana wrote the Kama Sutra detailing almost 529 sexual positions, and it was
considered the standard work on love and sexual positions. Life-size stone sculptures of heterosexual couples
performing practically every sexual position were carved on the temple walls of Konarak in thirteenth-century
India. These sculptures are considered the finest erotic art in the world. In North Africa, Arabs produced the
sexual positions guide, The Perfumed Garden for the Soul’s Recreation in the early sixteenth century, and the
thousand-year-old Japanese medical text, Ishimpo, instructs students on healing sexual positions.
Illustrations of sexual positions present can be found in almost every religion and race as well. The Kama Sutra
included sexual position illustrations while the classic Japanese erotic art style, Shunga, offers a unique
rendering of sexual positions.
Early sex and sexual position researchers include Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing, whose 1886 book,
Psychopathia Sexualis, recorded a number of unusual sexual abnormalities. In the late 19th and early 20th
centuries, Sigmund Freud developed a theory of sexuality from his clients, while Otto Gross and Wilhelm Reich,
two Freud scholars, conducted revolutionary studies around human sexuality.
In 1919, Magnus Hirschfeld founded the Institut fur Sexualwissenschaft (Institute for Sexology) in Berlin, but
when the Nazis took power they destroyed it. Alfred Kinsey also studied sex and sexual positions and in 1947
founded the Institute for Sex Research at Indiana University at Bloomington, now called the Kinsey Institute for
Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction.
Sexual position experimentation should be one of the most exciting aspects of sex for a couple. Sexual positions
are merely different types of dances that help couples add excitement and variety to their sex lives. Some
sexual positions have a specific purpose, (e.g. trying to get pregnant or achieving orgasm). While other sexual
positions, like rear entry or female superior, might be explored simply to add variety to a
bedroom ritual. And some sexual positions found in guides like the kama sutra, tao, tantric sex, the Perfume
Garden and Ananga Ranga can supply a couple with a more spiritual level of sex.
Yet, many are afraid to try new and different sexual positions because they’re either unsure of their own ability
or not clear of the techniques involved. Some may be unsure of how their partner will react to a certain sexual
position or become embarrassed if they cannot perfect a different sexual position on the first try. So, the first
step to enjoying new and exciting sexual positions is communicating. Discuss what sexual positions you and
your partner like and are willing to try. It’s important to remember that a sexual position should make sex feel
good. It should bring a couple closer in their relationship while helping them enjoy each other. Besides having
fun, engaging in new sexual positions should help develop trust, and through practice, help you and your
partner learn something about each other.
Return to Sexual Health
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| Sexual Positions |
