1. One of the five vital airs in the body, which goes downwards and is concerned with the evacuation of excrement, urine, and semen. 2. A fart. 3. The anus.
अपान (apāna) [Printed book page 185-b] अपान (apāna) Tatpur. m. (
-नः (-naḥ))
1 The air which goes downwards; in
the Vedas, in the doctrine of the Upanishads as well as in
the philosophical and medical systems, the air (comp. वात, (vāta,)
वायु (vāyu)) which is inhaled and descends the body, one of the
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five vital airs which are supposed to pervade the latter; (op-
posed to प्राण, (prāṇa,) the air which is exhaled or proceeds from the
body; comp. besides उदान, समान, व्यान (udāna, samāna, vyāna) and see अन (ana)); in
the legend of the Aitareya Upan. it is therefore this vital air
which is able to seize food, (for it introduces it into the body),
and to give support to life; comp. अन (ana)् (an)नायु (annāyu). In the Śatapath.
and Bṛhadār. Upan. it is called, from the same reason, the
function of smelling (and the odour inhaled): प्राणो वै ग्रहः (prāṇo vai grahaḥ)
सोऽपानेनातिग्राहेण गृहीतोऽपानेन हि गन्धं जिघ्रति (so'pānenātigrāheṇa gṛhīto'pānena hi gandhaṃ jighrati). In the
Vedānta-Sāra it is defined: अपान (apāna)ो नामावाग्गमनवान्पाय्वा- (apāno nāmāvāggamanavānpāyvā-)
दिस्थानवर्ती (disthānavartī) (comm. अधो नाभेरधस्ताद्गमनवान्मलाद्यानयन- (adho nābheradhastādgamanavānmalādyānayana-)
व्यापारेण । पायुर्गुदम् । तत्स्थानवर्तीत्यर्थः । आदिशब्दादुपस्थग्र- (vyāpāreṇa . pāyurgudam . tatsthānavartītyarthaḥ . ādiśabdādupasthagra-)
हः । तत्रापि मूत्ररेतोविसर्गस्यापानकर्मत्वात् (haḥ . tatrāpi mūtraretovisargasyāpānakarmatvāt)); in the Sāṅkhya it
is like the other four vital airs the function which is common
to बुद्धि, अहङ्कार (buddhi, ahaṅkāra) and मनस् (manas) qq. vv. (Sāṅkhya prav. सामान्यक- (sāmānyaka-)
रणवृत्तिः प्राणाद्या वायवः पञ्च (raṇavṛttiḥ prāṇādyā vāyavaḥ pañca)) and explained by the comm.
अपनयनादपानस्तत्र यत्स्यन्दनं तदपि सामान्यवृत्तिरिन्द्रियस्य (apanayanādapānastatra yatsyandanaṃ tadapi sāmānyavṛttirindriyasya).
In the Kaṇāda-Sūtra प्राणापाननिमेषोन्मेष (prāṇāpānanimeṣonmeṣa)°° (°°) it is explained
as having the property of अधोगमनं फुत्कारादौ वा तिर्यग्ग- (adhogamanaṃ phutkārādau vā tiryagga-)
मनम् (manam). This theory is then more fully developed in Su-
śruta's Nidānasthāna where the inhaled vital air ‘resides in
the rectum and in time draws down the excrements, urine,
semen, fœtus and menses’ (पक्वाधानालयोऽपानः काले (pakvādhānālayo'pānaḥ kāle)
कर्षति चाप्ययम् । समीरणः शकृन्मूत्रशुक्रगर्भार्तवान्यधः (karṣati cāpyayam . samīraṇaḥ śakṛnmūtraśukragarbhārtavānyadhaḥ)), and
‘when obstructed by bile produces burning, heat and a little
blood, when obstructed by phlegm, heaviness in the lower
part of the body’ (अपान (apāna)े पित्तसंयुक्ते दाहौष्ण्ये स्यादसृग्द- (apāne pittasaṃyukte dāhauṣṇye syādasṛgda-)
रम् । अधःकाये गुरुत्वं च तस्मिन्नेव कफावृते (ram . adhaḥkāye gurutvaṃ ca tasminneva kaphāvṛte)). Comp. also the
following from the musical work Saṅgītadarpaṇa: प्राणापा- (prāṇāpā-)
नौ तथा व्यानसमानोदानसंज्ञकाः । नागं कूर्मं च कृकलं देवदत्तं (nau tathā vyānasamānodānasaṃjñakāḥ . nāgaṃ kūrmaṃ ca kṛkalaṃ devadattaṃ)
धनंजयम् (dhanaṃjayam) (sic, neuter; comp. these latter words in the Vedānta-
Sāra p. 9) । तेषां मुख्यतमः प्राणो नाभिकन्धादधः स्थितः । (. teṣāṃ mukhyatamaḥ prāṇo nābhikandhādadhaḥ sthitaḥ .)
शब्दोच्चारणनिःश्वासोच्छ्वासकासादिकारणम् । अपान (apāna)स्तु गुदे (śabdoccāraṇaniḥśvāsocchvāsakāsādikāraṇam . apānastu gude)
मेढ्रे कटीजङ्घोदरे तथा । व्यानोऽक्षिश्रोत्रगुल्फेषु कट्यां घ्राणे च (meḍhre kaṭījaṅghodare tathā . vyāno'kṣiśrotragulpheṣu kaṭyāṃ ghrāṇe ca)
तिष्ठति । समानो व्याप्य निखिलं शरीरं वह्निना सह । उदानः (tiṣṭhati . samāno vyāpya nikhilaṃ śarīraṃ vahninā saha . udānaḥ)
पादयोरास्ते हस्तयोरङ्गसंधिषु । त्वगादिधातूनाश्रित्य पञ्च ना- (pādayorāste hastayoraṅgasaṃdhiṣu . tvagādidhātūnāśritya pañca nā-)
गादयः स्थिताः (gādayaḥ sthitāḥ).--An improvement on Suśruta seems to have
been intended by Hemachandra who makes the अपान (apāna) run
down from the nape of the neck to the heels (अपान (apāna)पवनो (apānapavano)
मन्यापृष्ठपृष्ठान्तपार्ष्णिगः; (manyāpṛṣṭhapṛṣṭhāntapārṣṇigaḥ;) comm. पृष्ठान्तो गुदः । पार्ष्णी पादप- (pṛṣṭhānto gudaḥ . pārṣṇī pādapa-)
श्चाद्भागौ (ścādbhāgau)). 2 A fart. 3 The anus. E. अन (ana)् (an) with अप, (apa,) kṛt aff. घञ् (ghañ).
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