About This Text
Amaru, from the Amarusataka. The poem is composed of one hundred stanzas describing the various phases of a woman’s life and love.
c.
800 | India
Topography
A story told on the bed sheets.
Scarlet betel-nut juice
spattered about,
aloe paste
dashed here and there
in yellow streaks.
Richer stains—
impressions
of sandalwood oil,
red footprints
from the rouge on her feet.
Petals that
clung to her hair
have dropped in the
scattered folds—
every position
a woman took pleasure from
is told on these bed sheets.
