# बन्ध (bandha)

Canonical page: https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/bandha

बन्ध (bandha) is a Sanskrit word meaning binding, tying, bond, or chain, a ligature or bandage, damming up a river, capture, arrest, imprisonment, connection or intercourse with, putting together or uniting. Its 37 recorded definitions are grouped into 17 contexts, among them Act of Binding/Tying; Bond, Fetter, Deposit, Pledge, Construction, Building, Damming.

- **Roots:** स्था (sthā), बन्ध् (bandh)
- **Etymology:** E. बन्ध to tie, aff. अच् — E. bandha to tie, aff. ac
- **SLP1:** `banDa`  **IAST:** bandha  **Devanagari:** बन्ध
- **Wikipedia:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandha_%28yoga%29
- **Declensions:** 48 forms — https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/bandha/declensions.md
- **Other headwords romanised the same way:** बंध (baṃdha)

## Meanings by context

### Act of Binding/Tying; Bond, Fetter (7 definitions)
- binding, tying, bond, or chain  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H2) [Printed book page 720,3] बन्ध (bandha) m. binding, tying, a bond, tie, chain, fetter, RV. &c. &c. [ ID=142631 ]
- a ligature or bandage  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a ligature, bandage, Suśr. [ ID=142632 ]
- 1. Tying, fastening, or bandaging. 2. Catching or capturing. 3. Fettering or arrest. 4. Joining or putting together. 5. Posture of the hands and feet. 6. Construction or building. 7. Damming up. 8. Bond, tie, or band. 9. Bandage or fillet. 10. Sinew or tendon. 11. Receptacle. 12. Combination of words or letters. 13. Pledge or deposit. 14. Mundane bondage.  
  *Macdonell Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 192-1 ] बन्ध (bandha) bandh-á, m. tying, fastening, bandaging; catching, capturing; fettering; arrest; connexion with ( —° ); intercourse with ( —° ); putting together, joining ( the hands etc. ); posture, position of the hands and feet; construction, building ( of a bridge etc. ); damming up ( of a river ); bridging; fixing on, directing towards ( lc. ); assumption or obtainment of a body ( —° ); manifestation, display, or possession of ( —° ); bond, deposit, pledge; mundane bondage ( opp. final emancipation ); bond, tie; band, fillet; bandage; fetter; sinew, tendon; receptacle; combination of words or letters: -ka, m. binder ( of animlas ); catcher ( —° ); rope, thong, fetter; part ( —° with an ordinal, e. g. tenth ); n. (?) pledging: ī, f. unchaste woman; -karaṇa, n. fettering or checking by magic; -kartṛ, m. binder, fetterer, restrainer (Śiva). [ ID=12684 ]
- 1. Binding. 2. Holding in fetters. 3. The body. 4. Building. 5. Forming. 6. Agreement or union. 7. A tie, fetter, or knot. 8. A pledge or deposit.  
  *Benfey Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 0626-b ] बन्ध (bandha) bandh + a, m. 1. Binding. Pañc. 248, 12; laying (snares), Pañc. 114, 11. 2. Holding in fetters, Man. 8, 310. 3. The body. 4. Building, Rājat. 5, 114. 5. Forming, 344. 6. Agree- ment, Daśak. in Chr. 183, 19; union, Pañc. 60, 19. 7. A tie, Vikr. d. 85; fetter, knot, Hit. i. d. 49, M.M. 8. A pledge, a deposit. — Comp. Aṅka-, m. branding with a dishonouring mark, Yājñ. 2, 294. Artha-, m. a text, Śāk. d. 164. Lalita-artha-, adj. composed in verses treating of love, Vikr. d. 32. Aśva-bandh + a, m. a groom, Rām. 2, 91, 55. Āśā-, m. 1. confidence, Megh. 10. 2. a spider's web, ib. Āsana-, m. sitting down, Ragh. 2, 6. Keśa-, m. a hair fillet, Bhāg. P. 8, 12, 28. Daśa- bandha, i. e. daśan-, m. a fine amount- ing to the tenth part, Man. 8, 107. Paśu-, m. immolation of an animal, MBh. 3, 184. Pāṇi-, m. union of the hands (as in marriage), MBh. 12, 9516. Pāda-, m. a chain for the feet, MBh. 8, 2586. Pāśa-, m. a net or noose, Hit. i. d. 44. Maṇi-, m. the wrist. Rāga-, m. true connection of the rāgas, Mālav. d. 29. Vatsa-, adj., f. dhā, anxious for (her) calf, Brāhmaṇav. 1, 12. Su-, I. Page0627-a+ 43 adj. well-secured. II. m. Sesamum. Setu-, m. 1. a dike, Rājat. 5, 92. 2. the ridge of rocks between the Coro- mandel coast and Ceylon. [ ID=10220 ]
- 1. Binding, tying, fettering, or capturing. 2. Custody or prison. 3. A band, string, or bodily sinew. 4. A chain, tether, or bondage. 5. Joining, connection, or position. 6. Union or intercourse. 7. Forming, constructing, building an embankment, or bridging. 8. Fixing or turning upon. 9. Manifestation, exhibition, or display.  
  *Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 358 ] बन्ध (bandha) m. binding, tying to ( esp. the sacrificial post), fettering, capturing; custody, prison; band, string, sinew (of the body); chain, tether, bondage ( opp. मुक्ति (mukti) ); joining together, connection, position ( esp. of hands, feet, etc. ); union, intercourse with (—°); forming, constructing; embankment, covering with a bridge; fixing or turning upon ( loc. ); manifestation, exhibition, show, display (—°). [ ID=21741 ]
- 1. A binding or sacrifice. 2. A band or string.  
  *Lanman's Sanskrit Reader Vocabulary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 199-b ] bandhá, m. —1. a binding; esp. a binding to the sacrificial post ( see bandh 1), sacrifice; —2. band, string. [ √bandh: cf. Eng. band. ] [ ID=2859 ]
- 1. Binding, tying, a bond, chain, or fetter. 2. A ligature or bandage. 3. Capturing or imprisonment. 4. Directing the mind towards anything. 5. Joining, uniting, or building. 6. An embankment or bridge. 7. Contracting the brows. 8. A physical posture or position of the limbs. 9. Connection, agreement, or union. 10. Manifestation or display. 11. A sinew or tendon. 12. A pledge or deposit. 13. A border, framework, or enclosure. 14. Spiritual bondage. 15. The construction of words. 16. A disease preventing the eyelids from closing.  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872)*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 0673-a ] Bandha, as, m. binding, tying, a bond, tie, chain, fetter, knot, halter, tether [cf. pāda-b° ]; a ligature, bandage; laying snares; catching, capturing, capture; binding in fetters, fettering, confining, imprisoning, confinement, imprisonment, custody [cf. rāja-b° ]; fixing, directing (the mind towards anything); bind- ing together, joining, uniting [cf. pāṇi-b° ]; joining the hollowed hands; forming, constructing, construc- tion, building, erecting (e. g. setor bandhaḥ, the construction of an embankment or bridge; cf. setu- b° ); embanking, an embankment, throwing a bridge across (a river); contracting or knitting the brows [cf. bhrukuṭi-b° ]; joining the hands or feet in particular positions, any posture or position of the limbs or body generally, a position, posture (e. g. āsana-b°, a sitting posture); a particular position of Page0673-b+ 81 the hands and feet [cf. mahā-b°, mūla-b° ]; a par- ticular position in coitus; connection, intercourse, society; agreement, union; manifestation, exhibition, display [cf. rāga-b° ]; consequence, result (e. g. ariṣṭa-b°, having welfare as a consequence, causing welfare); a sinew, tendon; a pledge, deposit, (per- haps rather) pledging [cf. bandhaka ]; that with which anything is bound together or bordered, border, framework, inclosure; (in philosophy) bon- dage, (opposed to mukti, mokṣa, and regarded in the Sāṅkhya system as threefold, viz. prakṛti-b°, vaikārika-b°, dakṣiṇā-b°; cf. karma-b°, dak- ṣiṇā-b° ); (in rhetoric) combination of sounds, con- struction of words; a disease in which the eyelids cannot be wholly closed; (in comp. with numerals) a part [cf. daśa-b°, pañca-b°; cf. also Lat. pondus; Lith. bandà, ‘a herd of cattle;’ Angl. Sax. bonda, bœnd, bœst; Hib. bad = Armor. bód, ‘a bunch, bush, cluster, tuft, thicket.’] —Bandha-karaṇa, am, n. binding, fettering, restraining, holding back, preventing, impeding. —Bandha-kartṛ, tā, trī, tṛ, a binder, one who fetters or restrains. —Ban- dha-tantra, am, n. a complete army, or one pos- sessing the four divisions of chariots, elephants, horse, and foot. —Bandha-deśa, N. of a country men- tioned in the Ratna-koṣa. —Bandha-pāruṣya, am, n. forced construction of words. —Bandha- maya, as, ī, am, consisting of bonds or ties, serving for a bond, being of the nature of a bond. —Ban- dha-mudrā, f. the impression or mark of fetters. —Bandha-mocanikā or bandha-mocinī, f. ‘re- leasing from bonds,’ N. of a Yoginī. —Bandha- stambha, as, m. ‘binding-post,’ the post to which an elephant is tied. [ ID=34403 ]

### Deposit, Pledge (5 definitions)
- anything deposited  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > anything deposited ( ° धे -√ स्था (°dhe-√sthā) = to remain deposited), Campak. [ ID=142638 ]
- a deposit or pledge  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a deposit, pledge, Rājat. [ ID=142639 ]
- 1. A pledge or deposit. 2. A tie, fetter, or binding. 3. The body.  
  *Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) m. ( - न्धः (-ndhaḥ) ) 1 A pledge, a deposit. 2 A binding, a tie or fetter, &c. 3 Binding, tying. 4 The body. E. बन्ध (bandha) to tie, aff. अच् (ac). [ ID=27600 ]
- 1. A pledge, deposit, or binding. 2. The body.  
  *Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 536-b ] बन्ध (bandha) ( न्धः ) ((ndhaḥ)) 1. m. A pledge, a deposite; a binding; the body. [ ID=27105 ]
- 1. A pledge or deposit. 2. A binding, tie, or fetter. 3. The body. 4. Joining or forming. 5. A bandage or ligature. 6. Connection or intercourse. 7. Agreement or union. 8. Result. 9. Border or framework. 10. Manifestation or display. 11. Bondage. 12. A posture. 13. A sexual position from the Kama Shastra. 14. Feeling. 15. Laying snares. 16. A stanza arranged in a specific shape.  
  *Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) m. ( - न्धः (-ndhaḥ) ) 1. A pledge, a deposit. 2. A binding, a tie or fetter, &c. 3. Binding, tying. 4. The body. 5. Joining. 6. Forming. 7. A ligature, a bandage. 8. Connection, intercourse. 9. Agreement, union. 10. Result. 11. Border, frame-work. 12. The body. 13. Manifestation, display. 14. Bondage, (opposite to annihilation.) 15. A posture. 16. The different forms of sexual intercourse mentioned in Kāma Shāstra. 17. Feeling. 18. Laying snares. 19. A stanza which can be arranged in a particular shape, as “Padma bandha,” &c. E. बन्ध (bandha) ् (bandh) to tie, aff. अच् । (ac.) [ ID=28435 ]

### Construction, Building, Damming (3 definitions)
- damming up a river  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > damming up (a river), MārkP. [ ID=142633 ]
- constructing and building  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > constructing, building (of a bridge &c.), MBh.; Rājat. [ ID=142642 ]
- bridging over the sea  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > bridging over (the sea), Vcar. [ ID=142643 ]

### Literary/Musical Composition or Arrangement (3 definitions)
- combination of sounds or arrangement of words  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > combination of sounds (in rhet. ), construction or arrangement of words, Kāvyād.; Pratāp. [ ID=142652 ]
- arrangement of a stanza in a particular shape  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > arrangement of a stanza in a partic. shape, Kpr. [ ID=142653 ]
- arrangement of musical sounds or composition  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > arrangement of musical sounds, composition, Śatr. [ ID=142654 ]

### Bodily Configuration, Posture (2 definitions)
- joining the hollowed hands  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > joining (the hollowed hands), Ragh. [ ID=142637 ]
- any configuration or position of the body  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > any configuration or position of the body ( esp. of the hands and feet), Ragh.; Kum. [ ID=142640 ]

### Connection, Union, Combination, Intercourse (2 definitions)
- connection or intercourse with  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > connection or intercourse with ( comp. ), Pañcat.; BhP. ( ifc. = connected with, conducive to, MBh. ) [ ID=142635 ]
- 1. Putting together or uniting. 2. Contracting or combining. 3. Forming or producing.  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > putting together, uniting, contracting, combining, forming, producing, MBh.; Kāv. &c. [ ID=142636 ]

### Fixing, Directing (attention); Knitting (brows) (2 definitions)
- knitting the brows  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > knitting (the brows), Rājat. [ ID=142644 ]
- fixing or directing  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > fixing, directing (mind, eyes, &c.), Cat. [ ID=142645 ]

### Philosophical/Mundane Bondage (2 definitions)
- mundane bondage or attachment to this world  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (in phil. ) mundane bondage, attachment to this world, ŚvetUp.; Bhag. &c. ( opp. to मुक्ति (mukti), मोक्ष (mokṣa), ‘final emancipation’, and regarded in the Sāṃkhya as threefold, viz. प्रकृति - (prakṛti-), वैकारिक - (vaikārika-), and दक्षिणा - ब् (dakṣiṇā-b) ° (°) ) [ ID=142651 ]
- Prakrita, Vaikarika, and dakshina  
  *The Purana Index*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 2-456 ] Bandhas — three, Prākṛta, Vaikārika and dakṣiṇa, which have their origin in ignorance. Vā. 102. 59, 60. [ ID=8861 ]

### The Body; Sinew, Tendon (2 definitions)
- a sinew, tendon  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a sinew, tendon, L. [ ID=142649 ]
- the body  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > the body, L. [ ID=142650 ]

### Verbal Root: To Bind/Tie (2 definitions)
- To bind or tie  
  *Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 598 ] बन्ध (bandha) r. 9th cl. ( बध्नाति (badhnāti) ) r. 10th cl. ( बन्ध (bandha) यति (bandhayati) ) To bind or tie; with आङ् (āṅ) prefixed, To loosen, to let loose. With अनु (anu), 1 To follow. 2 To be affixed or attached to. With नि (ni), to disunite. With सम (sama), to connect. [ ID=27599 ]
- 1. To bind or tie. 2. When prefixed with ang, to loosen. 3. When prefixed with anu, to follow or be attached to. 4. When prefixed with ni, to disunite. 5. When prefixed with sam, to connect.  
  *Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > बन्ध (bandha) [Printed book page 513-a ] बन्ध (bandha) r. 9th. cl. ( बध्नाति (badhnāti) ) r. 10th cl. ( बन्ध (bandha) यति - ते (bandhayati-te) ) To bind or tie; with आङ् (āṅ) prefixed. To loosen, to let loose. With अनु, (anu,) 1. To follow. 2. To be affixed or attached to. With नि, (ni,) to disunite. With सम्, (sam,) to connect. [ ID=28434 ]

### A Part (in compounds with numerals) (1 definition)
- a part  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > ( ifc. with numerals) a part ( cf. पञ्च - (pañca-), दश - ब् (daśa-b) ° (°) ). [ ID=142656 ]

### Assumption or Obtainment (of a body) (1 definition)
- assumption or obtainment  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > assumption, obtainment (of a body), Ragh. [ ID=142646 ]

### Border, Framework, Receptacle (1 definition)
- a border, framework, enclosure, or receptacle  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a border, framework, inclosure, receptacle, L. [ ID=142648 ]

### Capture, Arrest, Imprisonment (1 definition)
- capture, arrest, imprisonment  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > capture, arrest, imprisonment, custody, Mn.; MBh. &c. [ ID=142634 ]

### Conceiving, Feeling, Manifesting (emotions/states) (1 definition)
- conceiving, cherishing, feeling, or betraying  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > ( ifc. ) conceiving, cherishing, feeling, betraying, Hariv.; Kālid. [ ID=142647 ]

### Disease (of eyelids) (1 definition)
- a disease which prevents the eyelids from closing completely  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a disease which prevents the eyelids from quite closing, Suśr. [ ID=142655 ]

### Mode of Sexual Union (1 definition)
- a particular mode of sexual union  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a partic. mode of sexual union (there are said to be 16, 18, 36, or even 84 L. ), Caur. [ ID=142641 ]

## Sources

Definitions from Benfey Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Lanman's Sanskrit Reader Vocabulary; Macdonell Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872); Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899); Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary; The Purana Index; Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary; Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary.
Text from the Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, University of Cologne.

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