प्राणprāṇa

प्राण (prāṇa) is a Sanskrit word meaning filled, full, breath of life, respiration, spirit, vitality, a vital organ or vital air, inhaled air or wind, breath, vigour, energy, or power, a breath as a measure of time. Its 47 recorded definitions are grouped into 8 contexts, among them Proper Name (Mythological/Divine/Sage), Breath, Life, and Vitality, Various Specific and Technical Meanings.

Roots: प्रा (prā), हन् (han), त्यज् (tyaj), मुच् (muc), हा (hā), रक्ष् (rakṣ), अन् (an)
Etymology: E. प्र before अन to breathe, aff. अच्
Definitions: 47

View Declension Tables , 48 forms

Meanings by context

Proper Name (Mythological/Divine/Sage)

18 definitions

of Brahma

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

of Vishnu

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

an epithet of a Vasu

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

a son of the Vasu named Dhara

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

of a Marut

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

a son of Dhatri

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

a son of Vidhatri

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

an ancient sage in the second Manvantara

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

breath

— Index to the Names in the Mahabharata

a name for certain fires

— Index to the Names in the Mahabharata

1. An epithet of Shiva. 2. An epithet of Vishnu.

— Index to the Names in the Mahabharata

a son of Vidhatri and Niyati

— The Purana Index

A Vasu and a son of Dharma, married to Urjasvati, and father of Saha and two other sons.

— The Purana Index

a Bhargava and a sage of the Svarocisha epoch

— The Purana Index

1. A son of Dhara. 2. A Sadhya.

— The Purana Index

1. A son of Angiras. 2. A Sadhya. 3. A Tushita. 4. An Ajitadeva.

— The Purana Index

A son of Dhatri and father of Dyutimat.

— The Purana Index

one of the seven seers of the Svarocisha epoch

— The Purana Index

Breath, Life, and Vitality

13 definitions

breath of life, respiration, spirit, vitality

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

life

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

inhaled air or wind

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

1. Breath, vital spirit, or life. 2. Vital air. 3. Inhaled air, wind, or breeze. 4. Breath as a measure of time. 5. Vigour, energy, or power. 6. Soul or intelligence. 7. An organ of sense.

— Macdonell Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Full, replete. 2. Breath or inhaled air. 3. Wind. 4. Life. 5. A vital organ. 6. Strength. 7. Myrrh. 8. Poetical talent. 9. A name of Brahma. 10. The supreme spirit. 11. An aspiration in speech. 12. The five vital airs collectively.

— Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Inhaled air. 2. Life.

— Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Breath of life or vitality. 2. The first of the five bodily airs. 3. Wind or air. 4. Digestion. 5. Strength, power, or muscle. 6. The soul. 7. The supreme spirit. 8. An organ of sense. 9. Anything as dear as life. 10. Poetical talent or inspiration. 11. Frankincense.

— Vaidya Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Full or filled. 2. Breath, inspiration, or inhaled air. 3. Wind. 4. Life or vitality. 5. A vital organ. 6. Strength or power. 7. Myrrh. 8. Poetical talent. 9. An epithet of Brahma. 10. An aspirated sound in letters. 11. The five vital airs collectively.

— Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Breath. 2. Air or wind. 3. A vital organ. 4. One of the five vital airs. 5. The Supreme Spirit. 6. A name of Brahman. 7. Life.

— Benfey Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Breath or vitality. 2. Wind in the human body. 3. Life or vital organs.

— Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary

1. Breath or vital breath. 2. Vital spirit. 3. Life.

— Lanman's Sanskrit Reader Vocabulary

1. Breathing, breath, respiration, inspiration, and expiration. 2. The breath of life, spirit, vital action, or life generally. 3. A vital organ, sense organ, or vital air. 4. Inhaled air or wind. 5. Circulation of nutriment or digestion. 6. Any beloved object or person as dear as life. 7. The spirit as opposed to the body, or poetical inspiration. 8. The soul. 9. Vigorous action, energy, strength, or power. 10. A breath as a measure of time.

[Printed book page 0654-c]
2. prāṇa, as, m. (for 1. see under rt. 1. prā, p. 652),

breathing, breath, respiration, inspiration and expira-

tion, breath of life, spirit, vital action or life generally,

vitality; a vital organ, organ of sense, vital air, (the

vital airs are variously enumerated as three, viz.

prāṇa, apāna, and vy-āna; or five, viz. prāṇa,

apāna, sam-āna, vy-āna, ud-āna; or with the

other vital organs six or seven, or nine or ten, or

thirteen; the fivefold enumeration being however

the most usual; and the first of the five or prāṇa

being used from its seat in the lungs to express

pre-eminently life and vitality); air inhaled, wind;

circulation of nutriment, digestion; the place of

breathing, the mouth and nose (?); any one as dear

as the breath of life, any beloved object (e. g. tvam

me prāṇaḥ, thou art as dear to me as the breath of

life; cf. pati-prāṇa); the spirit (as opposed to the

body); the spirit or life of a poem, poetical talent,

inspiration; the soul (= puruṣa); vigorous action,

energy, strength, power, might [cf. yathā-prāṇām];

breathing, aspiration (in the pronunciation of letters);

a breath as a measure of time, viz. the time required for

the pronunciation of ten long syllables = (1/6) Vināḍikā;

N. of a Kalpa, the sixth day in the light half of a

month of Brahmā; myrrh; a mystical expression for

the letter y; an epithet of Brahma the Supreme

Spirit; N. of a son of the Vasu, Dhara; of one of

the eight Vasus; of a Marut; of one of the seven

sages in the second Manv-antara; of a son of Dhātṛ;

of a son of Vi-dhātṛ the brother of Dhātṛ; (ās),

m. pl. the five vital airs or modes of inspiration and

expiration collectively (see above); life, vitality, the vital

organs or organs of sense, (according to Kullūka, Manu

IV. 143, prāṇāḥ = cakṣur-ādīnīndriyāṇi); (prā-

ṇān muc, to resign or lay down one's life; prāṇān

hā or pari-tyaj, to quit life; prāṇān rakṣ, to

save life; prāṇān ni-han, to destroy life); prā-

ṇais, ind. with all the soul, with all the strength,

with might and main; [cf. Gr. φρήν, ὀσ-φραίνομαι;

Cambro-Brit. fion, ‘the breath or respiration, a

puff of breath, a sigh.’] —Prāṇa-kara, as, ī,
Page0655-a+ 81

am, ‘life-making,’ refreshing the spirits; (as), m.,

N. of the father of the author of the Medinī. —Prā-

ṇa-karman, a, n. a vital function. —Prāṇa-kṛc-

chra, am, n. danger to life, peril of life. —Prāṇa-

kṛṣṇa, as, m., N. of an author of various works.

—Prāṇa-graha, as, m., N. of a particular Soma vessel.

—Prāṇa-ghātaka, as, ī, am, life-destroying, de-

structive to life, killing. —Prāṇa-ghna, as, ī, am,

life-destroying, deadly, mortal. —Prāṇa-cchid, t, t,

t, cutting off life, shortening life, murderous. —Prā-

ṇa-ccheda, as, m. the cutting off of life, murder.

—Prāṇa-toṣaṇī, f., N. of a compendium of Tantra

works. —Prāṇa-tyāga, as, m. abandonment of

life, expiring, death, suicide. —Prāṇa-da, as, ā, am,

life-giving, saving life; (as), m. a species of plant,

= jīvaka; (ā), f. the plant Terminalia Chebula (=

harītakī); a species of medicinal plant, = ṛddhi;

(am), n. water; blood. —Prāṇa-dakṣiṇā, f. the

gift of life; prāṇadakṣiṇāṃ dā, to grant any one

his life. —Prāṇa-daṇḍa, as, m. the punishment of

death. —Prāṇa-dayita, as, ā, am, dear as life;

(as), m. a husband. —Prāṇa-dātṛ, tā, trī, tṛ, a

life-giver, one who saves another's life. —Prāṇa-

dāna, am, n. the gift of life, saving any one's life;

resigning or laying down life; anointing the Havis

with Ghṛta during the recitation of sacred texts

supposed to restore life (Ved.). —Prāṇa-dāvat,

ān, m., Ved. life-giving, conferring life. —Prāṇa-

durodara, am, n. playing or gambling for life,

staking life. —Prāṇa-dyūta, am, n. staking life or

existence, a battle for life, fighting for life. —Prāṇa-

dyūtābhidevana (°ta-abh°), as, ā, am, played or

fought with life as a stake (said of a battle in which

life is as it were gambled with or staked, see Mahā-

bh. Śalya-p. 760). —Prāṇa-droha, as, m. an attack

or attempt upon (any one's) life. —Prāṇa-dhara,

as, m., N. of a man. —Prāṇa-dhāra, as, ā, am,

possessing life, living, animate; (as), m. a living

being. —Prāṇa-dhāraṇa, am, n. the support or

maintenance of life, prolongation of life, suste-

nance; a means of supporting life; retaining life,

vitality. —Prāṇa-dhṛk, k, k, Ved. sustaining the

breath, prolonging the act of inhaling the breath;

[cf. dhṛk, p. 459, col. 1.] —Prāṇa-nātha, as, m.

‘lord of life,’ a husband, lover; an epithet of Yama;

N. of a heresiarch who held a controversy with

Śaṅkara at Pra-yāga. —Prāṇa-nāśa, as, m. de-

struction or cessation of breath. —Prāṇa-nigraha,

as, m. checking or obstructing the breath. —Prāṇa-

pata, as, ī, am (fr. prāṇa-pati), see Gaṇa to Pāṇ.

IV. 1, 84. —Prāṇa-pati, is, m. ‘lord of life,’ the

soul; a husband; the heart (?). —Prāṇa-patnī, f.

‘wife of the vital breath,’ the voice. —Prāṇa-pari-

kraya, as, m. the price of life, staking one's life or

existence. —Prāṇa-parikṣīṇa, as, ā, am, one

whose life is drawing to a close. —Prāṇa-pari-

graha, as, m. possession of breath or life, life,

existence. —Prāṇa-parityāga, as, m. abandoning

or resigning life. —Prāṇa-parīpsā, f. desire of sav-

ing life, wish to escape. —Prāṇa-pā, ās, ās, am,

Ved. life-protecting, preserving life. —Prāṇa-prada,

as, ā, am, life-bestowing, restoring life, saving life;

(ā), f. a species of medicinal plant (= ṛddhi).

—Prāṇa-pradāyaka, as, ikā, am, or prāṇa-

pradāyin, ī, inī, i, life-bestowing, restoring life,

saving life. —Prāṇa-prayāṇa, am, n. departure of

the breath of life, end of life. —Prāṇa-priya, as, ā,

am, dear as life; (as), m. a lover. —Prāṇa-bādha, as,

m. danger to life, fear for life, extreme peril. —Prā-

ṇa-buddhi, is, f. sing. (?), life and intelligence.

—Prāṇa-bhakṣa, as, ā, am, ‘breath-eating,’

‘air-eating,’ inhaling merely the odour of food or

drink. —Prāṇa-bhaya, am, n. fear for one's life,

danger to life. —Prāṇa-bhāsvat, vān, m. the

ocean (‘the light of life?’). —Prāṇa-bhūta, as, ā,

am, being the breath of life. —Prāṇa-bhṛt, t, t,

t, supporting life (Ved.); containing life, possessed

of life, living, sentient; (t), m. a living being, a

man; an epithet of particular bricks used in the

erection of an altar. —Prāṇa-maya, as, ī, am, Ved.

consisting of breath, endowed with breath or life,
Page0655-b+ 81

living, breathing. —Prāṇamaya-koṣa, as, m. one

of the cases or investitures of the soul, the vital case.

—Prāṇa-mokṣaṇa, am, n. giving up the ghost,

resigning life, suicide. —Prāṇa-yama, as, m. sus-

pending the breath (= prāṇāyāma). —Prāṇa-yātrā,

f. support of life, subsistence. —Prāṇayātrika, as, ā,

am, necessary for the support of life. —Prāṇayātrika-

mātra, as, ī, am, possessing only the necessaries

of life. —Prāṇa-yoni, is, f. the source or spring of

life. —Prāṇa-rakṣaṇārtham (°ṇa-ar°), ind. for

the preservation of life. —Prāṇa-rakṣā, f. protec-

tion or preservation of life. —Prāṇa-randhra, am,

n. ‘breath-aperture,’ the mouth; nostril. —Prāṇa-

rodha, as, m. checking or suppressing the breath;

danger to life; N. of a particular hell. —Prāṇa-vat,

ān, atī, at, having breath or life, breathing, living,

animated; possessing power, strong, powerful. —Prā-

ṇa-vidyā, f. the science of the breath or vital airs.

—Prāṇa-vināśa, as, m. destruction or loss of life.

—Prāṇa-viplava, as, ā, am, depriving of life.

—Prāṇa-viyoga, as, m. ‘the separation of breath

or life,’ the departure of the spirit at the hour of

dissolution, death. —Prāṇa-vṛtti, is, f. living, acti-

vity, vital function. —Prāṇa-vyaya, as, m. ‘expen-

diture of life,’ giving up the ghost, death. —Prāṇa-

śakti, is, f. a particular Śakti of Viṣṇu. —Prāṇa-

śarīra, as, ā, am, Ved. whose (only) body is the

breath of life or spirit. —Prāṇa-saṃyama, as, m.

checking or suspending the breath (as a religious

exercise). —Prāṇa-saṃrodha, as, m. checking or

obstructing the breath. —Prāṇa-saṃvāda, as, m.

a controversy between the vital airs, dispute between

the organs of sense (an imaginary contest or con-

troversy between the senses supposed to be disputing

for precedence). —Prāṇa-saṃśaya, as, m. danger

to life. —Prāṇa-saṃhitā, f. a manner of reciting

the Vedic texts, pronouncing as many letters as

possible during one breath. —Prāṇa-saṅkaṭa, am,

n. danger to life, great peril. —Prāṇa-sadman, a,

n. the abode of the vital airs, the body. —Prāṇa-

santyāga, as, m. abandoning or resigning life.

—Prāṇa-sandeha, as, m. danger to life, risk of

life, great peril. —Prāṇa-sannyāsa, as, m. giving

up the ghost, dying. —Prāṇa-sama, as, ā, am,

equal to or as dear as life; (as), m. a lover, a

husband; (ā), f. a wife. —Prāṇa-sambhṛta, as, m.

wind, air; (perhaps a wrong form for prāṇa-sam-

bhūta.) —Prāṇa-sammita, as, ā, am, Ved. reaching

to the nose; dear as life. —Prāṇa-sāra, as, ā, am,

whose whole essence consists of life, spirited, full of

strength, vigorous. —Prāṇa-sūtra, am, n. the thread

of life. —Prāṇa-hara, as, ī, am, taking away life,

threatening life, causing death, destructive. —Prāṇa-

hāraka, as, ikā, am, taking away life, causing

death; (am), n. a kind of poison (= vatsa-nābha).

—Prāṇa-hārin, ī, iṇī, i, taking away life, causing

death, mortal, deadly. —Prāṇākarṣin (°ṇa-āk°),

ī, iṇī, i, attracting the vital spirit. —Prāṇāgnihotra

(°ṇa-ag°), as or am, m. or n. (?), N. of an Upaniṣad.

—Prāṇāghāta (°ṇa-āgh°), as, m. destruction of

life, killing a living being. —Prāṇācārya (°ṇa-āc°),

as, m. a physician to a king. —Prāṇātipāta (°ṇa-

at°), as, m. an attack upon life, taking away life, kill-

ing a living being. —Prāṇātman (°ṇa-āt°), ā, m. the

vital or animal soul, the lowest of the three souls of

a human being (the other two are called jīvātman

and paramātman, q. q. v. v.). —Prāṇātyaya (°ṇa-

at°), as, m. the passing away of life; (e), ind. at a

time when life is in danger of ceasing. —Prāṇāda

(°ṇa-āda), as, ā, am, ‘eating away life,’ causing

death, fatal. —Prāṇādhika (°ṇa-adh°), as, ā, am,

‘more than life,’ dearer than life; superior in vigour.

—Prāṇādhinātha (°ṇa-adh°), as, m. ‘lord of life,’

a husband. —Prāṇādhipa (°ṇa-adh°), as, m. ‘ruler

of the breath of life,’ the soul. —Prāṇānta (°ṇa-

an°), as or am, m. or n. (?), the end of life, death;

prāṇāntaṃ daṇḍam arhati, he deserves death as

a punishment, i. e. he deserves the punishment of

death. —Prāṇāntika, as, ī, am, destructive to life,

fatal, mortal, capital (as punishment); dangerous; last-

ing to the end of life, ending with life; (am), n. murder,
Page0655-c+ 78

assassination; (am), ind. until death. —Prāṇāpa-

hārin (°ṇa-ap°), ī, iṇī, i, taking away life, fatal,

deadly. —Prāṇāpāna (°ṇa-ap°), au, m. du. two of

the vital airs, air inhaled and exhaled; Inspiration

and Expiration personified and identified with the

Aśvins. —Prāṇābādha (°ṇa-āb°), as, m. injury or

danger to life, any act injurious to life. —1. prāṇāyana

(°ṇa-ay°), am, n. an organ of sense. —Prāṇāyāma

(°ṇa-āy°), as, m. restraining or suspending the

breath or breathing in a peculiar way through the

nostrils during the mental recitation of the names

or attributes of some deity, (it is differently performed,

cf. pūraka, kumbhaka, recaka.) —Prāṇāyāmin

(°ṇa-āy°), ī, inī, i, checking or suppressing the

breath. —Prāṇārtha-vat (°ṇa-ar°), ān, atī, at,

possessed of life and riches. —Prāṇeśa (°ṇa-īśa),

as, m. ‘lord of life,’ a lover, husband; ‘lord of

breath,’ N. of a Marut; (ā), f. a wife. —Prāṇeś-

vara (°ṇa-īś°), as, m. ‘lord of (my) life,’ a hus-

band, lover; a particular formula; (ī), f. a wife.

—Prāṇotkramaṇa (°ṇa-ut°), am, n. the departure

of the spirit, flight of the soul, death. —Prāṇot-

sarga (°ṇa-ut°), as, m. giving up the ghost, dying.

—Prāṇopahāra (°ṇa-up°), as, m. food (regarded

as an oblation to life). [ID=33540]

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872)

breath or a vital air

— The Vedic Index of Names and Subjects

Various Specific and Technical Meanings

6 definitions

a breath as a measure of time

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

Name of a Kalpa

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

poetical inspiration

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

myrrh

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

the letter y

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

of a Saman

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

Soul, Spirit, or Metaphysical Principle

3 definitions

the spirit

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

the spirit identified with the totality of dreaming spirits

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

1. The inner self, food, and the source of all living creatures. 2. One of the vital winds that determines human karma. 3. The individual soul.

— The Purana Index

The Vital Airs (e.g., Pañca Prāṇa)

3 definitions

A vital organ or vital air

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

one of the five vital breaths

*Prāṇa³, one of the five vital breaths. § 485 (Pativratop.):

III, 213, 13961, 13962, 13964, 13970, 13972, 13976 (the

whole exposition is nearly identical with § 660c).—§ 560

(Sanatsujātap.): V, 46, 1757, 1760.—§ 579 (Bhagavad-

gītāp.): VI, 29, 1062 (prāṇāpānav).—§ 595 (Ṣoḍaśarāj.,

v. Rāma Dāśarathi): VII, 59, 2237 (prāṇāpānasamānāḥ).—

Page560-a+ 63

§ 603 (Nārāyaṇāstramokṣap.): VII, 202κκ, 9630.—§ 660b

(Bhṛgu-Bharadvājasaṃv.): XII, 184, 6844 (°āt praṇīyate

prāṇī), 189, 6965.—§ 660c (do.): The wind or breath

called Prāṇa residing within the head, and the heat that is

there, cause all kinds of exertion. That Prāṇa is the living

creature, the universal soul, the eternal Being, and the

Mind, Intellect, and Consciousness of all living creatures,

etc. Thus the living being is, in every respect, caused by

Prāṇa to move about and exert…That heat, residing

between Apāna and Prāṇa, in the region of the navel,

operates, with the aid of those two breaths, in digesting all

food that is taken by a living creature. There is a duct

beginning from the mouth down to the anal canal. Its

extremity is called the anus. From this main duct (srotas)

numerous subsidiary ones branch out in the bodies of all

living creatures. In consequence of the rush of the several

breaths (Prāṇa, Samāna, etc.) those breaths mingle together.

The heat (agniḥ) [that dwells in Prāṇa, PCR.] is called

Ūṣman. It is this heat that causes digestion…The

breath called Prāṇa, the bearer of a current of heat, descends

[from the head, PCR.] downwards to the extremity of the

anal canal and thence is pushed upwards again. Coming

back to its seat in the head it once more sends back the heat

it bears. Below the navel is the region of digested matter,

and above it that for the food not yet digested. The navel is

the depositary of all the forces of life, which sustain the body.

Urged by the ten kinds of breaths the ducts (nāḍyaḥ),

branching out from the heart, convey the liquid juices that

food yields upwards, downwards, and in transverse directions.

The main duct leading from the mouth to the anus is the

path by which yogins succeed in attaining to Bráhman by

holding the soul within the brain. Even thus heat is planted

in the breaths called Prāṇa and Apāna of all embodied

creatures. That heat is always burning there like fire

in any vessel: XII, 185, 6868, 6870, 6878, 6882.—§ 662b

(Jāpakop.): XII, 200ε, 7346.—§ 667 (Mokṣadh.): XII,

213, 7758.—§ 668 (Pañcaśikha-v.): XII, 219, 7939

(prāṇāpānau).—§ 677 (Mokṣadh.): XII, 240, 8740 (do.);

253, 9091 (do.).—§ 695b (Dakṣayajñavināśa): XII, 285,

10337 (do.).—§ 704 (Mokṣadh.): XII, 302, 11124.—

§ 714g (Samāna): XII, 329, 12397 (son of Apāna), 12398,

12399.—§ 782b (Brāhmaṇagītā): XIV, 20α, 612, 613, 614;

21, 646, 647, 653; 23, 685, 687, (691), 692, 693, 694,

696, 697, 699, 705 (the contention of the vital breaths about

superiority); 24, 712, 716, 719, 722; 25, 742; 28, 789.

—§ 782g (Guruśiṣyasaṃv.): XIV, 42, 1109.

[ID=8567]

— Index to the Names in the Mahabharata

vital breaths

— Index to the Names in the Mahabharata

Adjective: Filled, Full, Replete

2 definitions

filled, full

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

filled, full

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872)

Organs of Sense or Vital Bodily Parts

1 definition

1. Breath, expiration, or breathing forth. 2. The organs of sense or vital breaths, varying in number from six to twelve in different texts.

Prāṇa is also used in a wider sense to denote the organs of

sense,¹³ or as Sāyaṇa¹⁴ puts it, the ‘orifices of the head,’ etc.

These are given as six in one passage of the Śatapatha

Brāhmaṇa,¹⁵ presumably the eyes, ears, and nostrils. More

frequently there are stated to be seven in the head, the mouth

being then included.¹⁶ Sometimes again they are mentioned
Page2-048+ 65

as nine,¹⁷ or as seven in the head and two below.¹⁸ Ten are

counted in the Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa¹⁹ and the Jaiminīya

Brāhmaṇa,²⁰ while even eleven are mentioned in the Kāṭhaka

Upaniṣad,²¹ and twelve in the Kāṭhaka Saṃhitā,²² where the

two breasts are added. Exactly what organs are taken to

make up the numbers beyond seven is not certain.²³ The tenth

is the navel (nābhi) in the Maitrāyaṇī Saṃhitā;²⁴ when eleven

are named the Brahma-randhra²⁵ (suture in the crown) may be

included; in the Atharvaveda,²⁶ as interpreted by the Bṛhad-

āraṇyaka Upaniṣad,²⁷ the seventh and eighth are the organs

of taste and speech respectively. But usually these make one

only, and the eighth and ninth are either in the breast²⁸ or

below (the organs of evacuation).²⁹

The word Prāṇa has sometimes merely the general sense of

breath, even when opposed to Apāna.³⁰ But its proper sense

is beyond question ‘breathing forth,’ ‘expiration,’ and not as

the St. Petersburg Dictionary explains it, ‘the breath inspired,’

a version due to the desire to interpret Apāna as ‘expiration,’

a meaning suggested by the preposition apa, ‘away.’ This

being clearly shown both by the native scholiasts³¹ and by

other evidence,³² Böhtlingk³³ later accepted the new view.
[Footnote: 13) Colebrooke, Miscellaneous Essays,

1, 339, 355; St. Petersburg Dictionary,

s.v. 1.]

[Footnote: 14) On Aitareya Āraṇyaka, i. 3, 7.]

[Footnote: 15) xiv. 1. 3, 32; 4, 1.]

[Footnote: 16) Av. ii. 12, 7; Aitareya Brāhmaṇa,

i. 17; iii. 3; Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa,

iii. 1, 3, 21; vi. 4, 2, 5; xiii. 1, 7, 2;

Jaiminīya Upaniṣad Brāhmaṇa, ii. 5, 9,

10; 6, 8, etc.]

[Footnote: 17) Taittirīya Saṃhitā, iii. 5, 10, 2;

Taittirīya Brāhmaṇa, iii. 1, 7, 4; Śata-

patha Brāhmaṇa, i. 5, 2, 5; Pañca-

viṃśa Brāhmaṇa, xxii. 12, 5; Aitareya

Āraṇyaka, i. 4, 1; Śāṅkhāyana Āraṇ-

yaka, ii. 2; Av. v. 28, 1; x. 8, 43

(navadvāram), etc.]

[Footnote: 18) Jaiminīya Upaniṣad Brāhmaṇa,

ii. 5, 9, 10; 6, 8.]

[Footnote: 19) xi. 6, 3, 17, where the eleventh is

given as the Ātman.]

[Footnote: 20) ii. 77 (Journal of the American

Oriental Society, 15, 240).]

[Footnote: 21) v. 1.]

[Footnote: 22) xxxiii. 3.]

[Footnote: 23) Cf. Deussen, op. cit., 269; Keith,

Aitareya Āraṇyaha, 185, 187.]

[Footnote: 24) iv. 6, 1; Kāṭhaka Saṃhitā, ix. 16.]

[Footnote: 25) Aitareya Upaniṣad, i. 3.]

[Footnote: 26) x. 8, 9.]

[Footnote: 27) ii. 2, 3, 4.]

[Footnote: 28) Kāṭhaka Saṃhitā, xxxiii. 3.]

[Footnote: 29) Jaiminīya Upaniṣad Brāhmaṇa,

ii. 5, 9, 10; 6, 8.]

[Footnote: 30) Av. v. 4, 7 (Paippalāda) . See

Blloomfield, Hymns of the Atharvaveda,

552.]

[Footnote: 31) Rudradatta on Āpastamba Śrauta

Sūtra, xii. 8, 8; xiv. 11, 1; Sāyaṇa on

Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, i. 1, 3, 2; Tait-

tirīya Brāhmaṇa, ii. 5, 6, 4; Śaṅkara

on Chāndogya Upaniṣad, i. 3, 2;

Ānartīya on Śāṅkhāyana Śrauta Sūtra,

vi. 8, 1, 2, etc.]

[Footnote: 32) Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa, ii. 2, 2, 15,

as compared with Kātyāyana Śrauta

Sūtra, iv. 8, 29; Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upani-

ṣad, iii. 2, 2; Jaiminīya Upaniṣad

Brāhmaṇa, i. 60, 5; ii. 1, 16. 19;

Aitareya Āraṇyaka, v. 1, 4. See Caland,

Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen

Gesellschaft, 55, 261-265; 56, 556-558;

and Apāna.]

[Footnote: 33) Zeitschrift, 55, 518.]
[ID=2063]

— The Vedic Index of Names and Subjects

Strength, Vigour, Power

1 definition

breath, vigour, energy, or power

— Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)

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Definitions on this page come from 13 works: Benfey Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Index to the Names in the Mahabharata, 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, The Vedic Index of Names and Subjects, Vaidya Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Wilson Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary. Text from the Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon.