The ways in which the sexual body and sexual pleasure are viewed have changed drastically over time. This is due in large part to the teachings and interpretations of Saint Augustine and the Christian Church. Today and for the greater part of the last thousand years, the woman's body is constantly degraded through the use of slang terms, its depiction in movies, books, and magazines. Religion in general has made successful attempts in condemning the art of sexual pleasure through persecution and isolation.
             Throughout ancient times, especially in the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods, the male and female sexual organs were continually praised throughout different cultures. Archaeological remains of sculptures and art have shown this praise in all parts of the world. Even the structures or caves were considered symbolic as a sacred portal or a vaginal opening. Large numbers of sculptures and artifacts of the Neolithic period have been interpreted as emphasizing vulvas. It is obvious that these are religiously influenced because the art of this time is mainly concerned with myths and rituals. Another example is, "In ancient Indian religious tradition, the female pubic triangle was viewed as the focus of divine energy" (Eisler 17). Still today, kundalini energy involved in the pleasures of sex brings about a state of ecstatic bliss. There have been other findings in burial sites where the vulva is symbolized by an object such as a flower. Not only are the female sexual organs praised in ancient cultures, but also the male phallus is viewed as an object of worship especially in the Bronze Age. For example, "...A sculpture in a shape that suggests both a phallus and a highly stylized Goddess figurine was found in the Gaban cave, near Trento. As if to reinforce the sacral connection between female and male sexuality, there is also a carving on this sculpture. A pair of crescent horns symbo
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