# कूष्माण्डा (kūṣmāṇḍā)

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

कूष्माण्डा (kūṣmāṇḍā) is a Sanskrit word meaning variant reading of kushm, an epithet of Durga, the white gourd, a specific group of verses used in expiatory rites, a pumpkin gourd. Its 5 recorded definitions are grouped into 4 contexts, among them The Pumpkin/Gourd Fruit or Plant, Epithet of Goddess Durgā, Lexicographical Note on Word Form.

- **SLP1:** `kUzmARqA`  **IAST:** kūṣmāṇḍā  **Devanagari:** कूष्माण्डा
- **Wikipedia:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kushmanda
- **Declensions:** 24 forms — https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/kushmanda/declensions.md
- **Other headwords romanised the same way:** कूश्माण्ड (kūśmāṇḍa), कूष्मांड (kūṣmāṃḍa), कूष्माण्ड (kūṣmāṇḍa), कुष्मांड (kuṣmāṃḍa), कुष्माण्ड (kuṣmāṇḍa)

## Meanings by context

### The Pumpkin/Gourd Fruit or Plant (2 definitions)
- the white gourd  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > कूष्माण्डी (kūṣmāṇḍī) f. id. (see कुष्म् (kuṣm) ° (°) ) [ ID=54141.2 ]
- a pumpkin gourd  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H1B) [Printed book page 300,3] कूष्माण्ड (kūṣmāṇḍa) n. sg. and pl. id., Gautama-dharma-śāstra (Title); Manu-smṛti (Title) viii, 106. [ ID=54141.4 ]

### Epithet of Goddess Durgā (1 definition)
- an epithet of Durga  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H1B) [Printed book page 300,3] कूष्माण्डा (kūṣmāṇḍā) f. N. of Durgā [ ID=54141.1 ]

### Lexicographical Note on Word Form (1 definition)
- variant reading of kushm  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H1) [Printed book page 300,3] कूष्माण्ड (kūṣmāṇḍa) v.l. for कुष्म् (kuṣm) ° (°), q.v. [ ID=54141 ]

### Specific Vedic Expiatory Verses (1 definition)
- a specific group of verses used in expiatory rites  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > कूष्माण्डी (kūṣmāṇḍī) f. pl. N. of the verses, Vājasaneyi-saṃhitā (Title) xx, 14 - 16 (spoken in a certain rite for penance or expiation), Yājñavalkya (Author) iii, 304 [ ID=54141.3 ]

## Sources

Definitions from Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899).
Text from the Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, University of Cologne.

The Sanskrit Lexicon app for iPhone, iPad and Mac: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/sanskrit-lexicon-dictionary/id6746787546