Kama

Kama (Sanskrit: काम, IAST: kāma) is the concept of pleasure, enjoyment and desire in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. It can refer to "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature, however, the term also refers to any sensory enjoyment, emotional attraction and aesthetic pleasure such as from arts, dance, music, painting, sculpture, and nature.

For the Hindu god, see Kamadeva. For other uses, see Kama (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Karma.
Kama
Holi festival, where Hindus enjoy celebrating colours, love and spring
Kamadeva whose arrows trigger desire
Vishnu and Lakshmi, Hoysaleswara Temple, 12th century
Litti chokha - sensory pleasure from food
Aesthetic pleasure from the arts and nature
The Gods Sing and Dance for Shiva and Parvati, late 18th century
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In contemporary literature kama is often used to connote sexual desire and emotional longing, but the ancient concept is more expansive, and broadly refers to any desire, wish, passion, pleasure, or enjoyment of art and beauty, the aesthetic, enjoyment of life, affection, love and connection, and enjoyment of love with or without sexual connotations.

Kama is one of the four Purusharthas, which are the four objectives of human life. It is considered an essential and healthy goal of human life to pursue Kama without sacrificing the other three Purusharthas: Dharma (virtuous, ethical, moral life), Artha (material needs, income security, means of life) and Moksha (liberation, release, self-realization).

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