# प्राण (prāṇa)

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

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 — E. pra before ana to breathe, aff. ac
- **SLP1:** `prARa`  **IAST:** prāṇa  **Devanagari:** प्राण
- **Wikipedia:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prana
- **Declensions:** 48 forms — https://sanskritlexicon.com/word/prana/declensions.md
- **Other headwords romanised the same way:** प्रणा (praṇā), प्रण (praṇa), प्रना (pranā)

## Meanings by context

### Proper Name (Mythological/Divine/Sage) (18 definitions)
- of Brahma  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of Brahmā, L. [ ID=139513 ]
- of Vishnu  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of Viṣṇu, Religious Thought and Life in India, also called ’Brāhmanism and Hindūism,’ by Sir M. Monier-Williams (Title) 106 [ ID=139514 ]
- an epithet of a Vasu  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a Vasu, BhP. [ ID=139515 ]
- a son of the Vasu named Dhara  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a son of the Vasu Dhara, Hariv. [ ID=139516 ]
- of a Marut  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a Marut, Yājñ., Sch. [ ID=139517 ]
- a son of Dhatri  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a son of Dhātṛ, Pur. [ ID=139518 ]
- a son of Vidhatri  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a son of Vidhātṛ, BhP. [ ID=139519 ]
- an ancient sage in the second Manvantara  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a Ṛṣi in the 2nd Manv-antara, Hariv. [ ID=139520 ]
- breath  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 559-2 ] Prāṇa 1 (“breath”). § 116 (Vasu, pl.): I, 66, 2586 (son of Varcas (or of Varcasvin, BR.) and Manoharā). § 270 (Brahmasabhāv.): II, 11, 443 (in the palace of Brahmán). [ ID=8565 ]
- a name for certain fires  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > Prāṇa 2 (do.), name of fires. § 491 (Āṅgirasa): III, 220, 14156 ( Prāṇaḥ Prāṇaputrakaḥ ), 14165 (father of Anudātta). [ ID=8566 ]
- 1. An epithet of Shiva. 2. An epithet of Vishnu.  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > [Printed book page 560-1 ] Prāṇa 4 = Śiva (1000 names 1 ).—Do. 2 = Viṣṇu (1000 names). [ ID=8568 ]
- a son of Vidhatri and Niyati  
  *The Purana Index*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 2-441 ] Prāṇa (I) — a son of Vidhātri and Niyatī (Āyati-Br. P.). His wife was Puṇḍarīkā and Dyutimān was his son. Bhā. IV. 1. 44-45; Br. II. 11. 6-9, 40. [ ID=8740 ]
- A Vasu and a son of Dharma, married to Urjasvati, and father of Saha and two other sons.  
  *The Purana Index*
  > Prāṇa (II) — a Vasu and a son of Dharma; married Ūrjasvatī. Father of Saha and two other sons. Bhā. VI. 6. 11-12; Vi. I. 15. 113. [ ID=8741 ]
- a Bhargava and a sage of the Svarocisha epoch  
  *The Purana Index*
  > Prāṇa (III) — a Bhārgava and a sage of the Svārociṣa epoch. Br. II. 36. 17; M. 9. 8. [ ID=8742 ]
- 1. A son of Dhara. 2. A Sadhya.  
  *The Purana Index*
  > [Printed book page 2-442 ] Prāṇa (IV) — a son of Dhara; 1 a Sādhya. 2 [ Footnote: 1) M. 5. 24.] [ Footnote: 2) Ib. 203. 11; Br. III. 3. 16.] [ ID=8743 ]
- 1. A son of Angiras. 2. A Sadhya. 3. A Tushita. 4. An Ajitadeva.  
  *The Purana Index*
  > Prāṇa (V) — a son of Angiras; 1 a Sādhya; 2 a Tuṣita; 3 an Ajitadeva. 4 [ Footnote: 1) M. 196. 2; Vā. 65. 105.] [ Footnote: 2) Ib. 66. 15.] [ Footnote: 3) Br. III. 3. 19; Vā. 66. 18.] [ Footnote: 4) Ib. 67. 34.] [ ID=8744 ]
- A son of Dhatri and father of Dyutimat.  
  *The Purana Index*
  > Prāṇa (VII) — a son of Dhātṛ and father of Dyutimat. V. I. 10. 4-5. [ ID=8746 ]
- one of the seven seers of the Svarocisha epoch  
  *The Purana Index*
  > Prāṇa (VIII) — one of the seven seers of the Svārociṣa epoch. Vi. III. 1. 11. [ ID=8747 ]

### Breath, Life, and Vitality (13 definitions)
- breath of life, respiration, spirit, vitality  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > [Printed book page 705,1] 2. प्रा (prā) ण (ṇa) m. ( ifc. f( आ (ā) ).; for 1. See under √ प्रा (prā), p. 701) the breath of life, breath, respiration, spirit, vitality [ ID=139500 ]
- life  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > pl. life, RV. &c. &c. ( प्रा (prā) णान् (ṇān) with √ मुच् (muc) or √ हा (hā) or परि - (pari-) √ त्यज् (√tyaj), ‘to resign or quit life’; with √ रक्ष् (rakṣ), ‘to save l° (°) ’; with नि - (ni-) √ हन् (√han), ‘to destroy l° (°) ’; त्वम् मे प्रा (prā) (tvam me prā) णः (ṇaḥ), ‘thou art to me as dear as l° (°) ’; often ifc.; cf. पति - (pati-), मा (mā) न - प्र् (na-pr) ° (°) ) [ ID=139501 ]
- inhaled air or wind  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > air inhaled, wind, AV.; ŚBr. [ ID=139503 ]
- 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*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 185-1 ] प्राण (prāṇa) pra‿aṇá, m. breath; vital spirit ( pl. life); vital air ( five are generally assumed; but three, six, seven, nine, and even ten are also spoken of ); sp. inhaled air; breath of air, wind; breath as a measure of time ( requisite for pronouncing ten long syllables ); vigour, energy, power; soul ( in the Sāṃkhya phil. ); intelligence associated with totality ( Vedānta ); sign of vitality ( pl. ); organ of sense ( mouth, nose, eyes, and ears : pl. ) N.; —°, a. = loving — as dearly as life, or having oneʼs life dependent on —: -kara, a. invigorating; -karman, n. vital function; -kṛcchra, n. danger to life; -ghna, a. life-destroying, deadly; -chid, a. cutting life short, fatal; -ccheda, m. destruction of life, murder; -tyāga, m. abandonment of life, suicide; death. [ ID=12390 ]
- 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*
  > प्र (pra) ाण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 586 ] प्र (pra) ाण (prāṇa) mfn. ( - णः (-ṇaḥ)- णा - णं (-ṇaḥ-ṇā-ṇaṃ) ) Full, replete, filled. m. ( - णः (-ṇaḥ) ) 1 Air inhaled, inspiration, breath. 2 Air, wind. 3 Life, vitality. 4 A vital organ or part. 5 Strength, power. 6 Myrrh. 7 Poetical talent or inspiration. 8 A name of BRAHMĀ. 9 A title of BRAHMĀ, the supreme spirit. 10 An aspiration in the articulation of letters. m. plu. ( - णाः (-ṇāḥ) ) The five vital airs or modes of inspiration and expiration collectively. E. प्र (pra) before अन (ana) to breathe, aff. अच् (ac). [ ID=27001 ]
- 1. Inhaled air. 2. Life.  
  *Yates Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 525-a ] प्रा _ ण (prā_ṇa) ( णः ) ((ṇaḥ)) 1. m. Air inhaled; life, [ ID=26500 ]
- 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*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 487-25 ] प्राण (prāṇa) m. 1. Breath of life, vitality, principle of life (generally used in the pl.), प्राण (prāṇa) ैरुपक्रोशमलिमसैर्वा (prāṇairupakrośamalimasairvā) R. ii.53, or प्राण (prāṇa) ानामनिलेन वृत्तिरुचिता (prāṇānāmanilena vṛttirucitā) Sak. vii.; 2. the first of the five bodily airs; (they are प्राण (prāṇa), अपान (apāna), समान (samāna), व्यान (vyāna) and उदान (udāna) ), Bg. iv.29; (it resides in the heart); 3. wind, air; 4. digestion; 5. muscle, strength, power, गिरिचर इव नागः प्राण (prāṇa) सारं बिभर्ति (giricara iva nāgaḥ prāṇasāraṃ bibharti) Sak. ii.; 6. the soul; 7. the supreme spirit; 8. an organ of sense, M. iv.143; 9. anything as dear as life; 10. the life of poetry, poetical talent, inspiration; 11. frank-incense. [ ID=25289 ]
- 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*
  > प्र (pra) ाण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 502-b ] प्र (pra) ाण (prāṇa) mfn. ( - णः (-ṇaḥ)- णा - णं (-ṇaḥ-ṇā-ṇaṃ) ) Full, replete, filled. m. ( - णः (-ṇaḥ) ) 1. Air inhaled, inspiration, breath. 2. Air, wind. 3. Life, vitality. 4. A vital organ or part. 5. Strength, power. 6. Myrrh. 7. Poetical talent or inspiration. 8. A name of BRAMHĀ. 9. A title of BRAMHĀ, the Supreme spirit. 10. An aspiration in the articulation of letters. m. plu. ( - णाः (-ṇāḥ) ) The five vital airs or modes of inspiration and expiration collectively. E. प्र (pra) before, अन् (an) to breathe, aff. घञ् । (ghañ.) [ ID=27790 ]
- 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*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 0613-a ] प्राण (prāṇa) prāṇa, i. e. pra-an + a, m. 1. Breath, Vikr. d. 1. 2. Air, wind. 3. A vital organ, Man. 4, 143. 4. One of the five vital airs, Vedāntas. in Chr. 207, 9. 5. The Supreme Spirit, ib. 208, 3. 6. A name of Brahman. 7. pl. Life, Hit. i. d. 11, M.M. — Comp. Ati-prāṇa + m, adv. more than life, Pañc. 220, 24. Kṛcchra-, adj. supporting life with difficulty, Rām. 4, 9, 30. Gata-, adj. dead. Niṣpr°, i. e. nis-, adj. 1. dead. 2. exhausted. Pati-, adj., f. ṇā, living in, or for, one's husband, Pañc. iii. d. 151. Mahā-, m. a raven. Yaṣṭi-, adj. out of breath, Johns. Sel. 21, 105. — Cf. probably ϕρήν, ϕρένες, ϕρόνιμος, ϕρόντις, ϕρονέω. [ ID=9994 ]
- 1. Breath or vitality. 2. Wind in the human body. 3. Life or vital organs.  
  *Cappeller Sanskrit-English Dictionary*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 350 ] प्राण (prāṇa) m. breath, esp. vital breath, vitality; wind, esp. one of the winds in the human body; pl. life, the vital organs or organs of sensation. [ ID=21219 ]
- 1. Breath or vital breath. 2. Vital spirit. 3. Life.  
  *Lanman's Sanskrit Reader Vocabulary*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 197-b ] prāṇá, m. breath; vital breath, 60 16; vital spirit, 63 21; then ( like Eng. breath), life; esp. in pl. prāṇās, life, 15 5, 21 18, 29 8. [ √an + pra, 192b.] [ ID=2812 ]
- 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.  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872)*
  > [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 ]
- breath or a vital air  
  *The Vedic Index of Names and Subjects*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 2-047 ] Prāṇa, properly denoting ‘breath,’ is a term of wide and vague significance in Vedic literature. It is frequently men- tioned from the Rigveda 1 onwards; in the Āraṇyakas and Upaniṣads it is one of the commonest symbols of the unity of the universe. 2 In the narrow sense Prāṇa denotes one of the vital airs, of which five are usually 3 enumerated — Prāṇa, Apāna, Vyāna, Udāna, and Samāna; but often only two, Prāṇa and Apāna, 4 or Prāṇa and Vyāna, 5 or Prāṇa and Udāna; 6 or three, Prāṇa, Apāna, and Vyāna, 7 or Prāṇa, Udāna, and Vyāna, 8 or Prāṇa, Udāna, and Samāna; 9 or four, Prāṇa, Apāna, Vyāna, and Samāna, 10 or Prāṇa, Apāna, Udāna, Vyāna. 11 The exact sense of each of these breaths when all are mentioned cannot be determined. 12 [ Footnote: 1) i. 66, 1; x. 59, 6; 90, 13, etc.] [ Footnote: 2) Deussen, Philosophy of the Upani- shads, 89 et seq. ] [ Footnote: 3) See Udāna, n. 1.] [ Footnote: 4) Av. ii. 28, 3; v. 4, 7 (Paipp.); vii. 53, 4 (in vii. 53, 3, Apāna, Prāṇa); Taittirīya Saṃhitā, iii. 4, 1, 4, etc.] [ Footnote: 5) Av. v, 4, 7; vi. 41, 2, etc.] [ Footnote: 6) See Udāna, n. 3.] [ Footnote: 7) Av. xiii. 2, 46; Maitrāyaṇī Saṃ- hitā, iv. 5, 6, 9; Vājasaneyi Saṃhitā, xxii. 23; Aitareya Brāhmaṇa, ii. 29; Kauṣītaki Brāhmaṇa, vi. 10; Śāṅkh- āyana Āraṇyaka, viii. 8; Taittirīya Upaniṣad, ii. 2, etc.] [ Footnote: 8) See Udāna, n. 2.] [ Footnote: 9) Ibid. ] [ Footnote: 10) Av. x. 2, 13.] [ Footnote: 11) Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad iii. 4, 1.] [ Footnote: 12) Cf. Deussen, Philosophy of the Upanishads, 273 et seq. ] [ ID=2062 ]

### Various Specific and Technical Meanings (6 definitions)
- a breath as a measure of time  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a breath (as a measure of time, or the t° requisite for the pronunciation of 10 long syllables = 1/6 Vināḍikā), Var.; Āryabh.; VP. [ ID=139505 ]
- Name of a Kalpa  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > N. of a Kalpa (the 6th day in the light half of Brahmā's month), Pur. [ ID=139506 ]
- poetical inspiration  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > poetical inspiration, W. [ ID=139509 ]
- myrrh  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > myrrh, L. [ ID=139510 ]
- the letter y  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a N. of the letter य् (y), Up. [ ID=139511 ]
- of a Saman  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > of a Sāman, TāṇḍBr. ( वसिष्ठस्य प्रा (vasiṣṭhasya prā) णा (ṇā) पा (pā) नौ (nau), ĀrṣBr. ) [ ID=139512 ]

### Soul, Spirit, or Metaphysical Principle (3 definitions)
- the spirit  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (in Sāṃkhya) the spirit (= पुरुष (puruṣa) ), Tattvas. [ ID=139507 ]
- the spirit identified with the totality of dreaming spirits  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (in Vedānta) the spirit identified with the totality of dreaming spirits, Vedāntas.; Religious Thought and Life in India, also called ’Brāhmanism and Hindūism,’ by Sir M. Monier-Williams (Title) 35 ( cf. प्राणा (prāṇā) त्मन् (tman) ) [ ID=139508 ]
- 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*
  > Prāṇa (VI) — the antarātma; it is annam or food; annam is Brahmā, etc.; from this grows creatures. (cf. Upaniṣad; also Yajur Veda); 1 one of the Vāyus which determine the karma of people; 2 is jīva. 3 [ Footnote: 1) Vā. 15. 14.] [ Footnote: 2) Ib. 21. 47; 31. 41.] [ Footnote: 3) Ib. 102. 101.] [ ID=8745 ]

### The Vital Airs (e.g., Pañca Prāṇa) (3 definitions)
- A vital organ or vital air  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > a vital organ vital air (3 in number, viz. प्रा (prā) ण (ṇa), अपा (apā) न (na) and व्यान (na) (vyāna), AitBr.; TUp.; Suśr.; usually 5, viz. the preceding with सम् - आन (na) (sam-āna) and उद् - आन (na) (ud-āna), ŚBr.; MBh.; Suśr. &c. cf. Monier-Williams’ Buddhism in its connexion with Brāhmaṇism and Hindūism: and in its contrast with Christianity (Title) 242; or with the other vital organs 6 ŚBr.; or 7 AV.; Br.; MuṇḍUp.; or 9 AV.; TS.; Br.; or 10 ŚBr.; pl. the 5 organs of vitality or sensation, viz. प्रा (prā) ण (ṇa), वाच् (vāc), चक्षुस् (cakṣus), श्रोत्र (śrotra), मन (na) स् (manas), collectively, Chāndogya-upaniṣad (Title) ii, 7, i; or = nose, mouth, eyes and ears, GopBr.; ŚrS.; Manu-smṛti (Title) iv, 143 ) [ ID=139502 ]
- one of the five vital breaths  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > *Prāṇa 3, one of the five vital breaths. § 485 (Pativratop.): III, 213, 13961, 13962, 13964, 13970, 13972, 13976 (the whole exposition is nearly identical with § 660 c ).—§ 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, 202 κκ, 9630.—§ 660 b (Bhṛgu-Bharadvājasaṃv.): XII, 184, 6844 ( °āt praṇīyate prāṇī ), 189, 6965.—§ 660 c (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.—§ 662 b (Jāpakop.): XII, 200 ε, 7346.—§ 667 (Mokṣadh.): XII, 213, 7758.—§ 668 (Pañcaśikha-v.): XII, 219, 7939 ( prāṇāpānau ).—§ 677 (Mokṣadh.): XII, 240, 8740 (do.); 253, 9091 (do.).—§ 695 b (Dakṣayajñavināśa): XII, 285, 10337 (do.).—§ 704 (Mokṣadh.): XII, 302, 11124.— § 714 g (Samāna): XII, 329, 12397 (son of Apāna), 12398, 12399.—§ 782 b (Brāhmaṇagītā): XIV, 20 α, 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. —§ 782 g (Guruśiṣyasaṃv.): XIV, 42, 1109. [ ID=8567 ]
- vital breaths  
  *Index to the Names in the Mahabharata*
  > *prāṇa, pl. ( āḥ ) (“vital breaths”): III, 13969, 13971, 13973, 13974 (10(!) in number); XII, 6877, 6879, 6880 (10(!) in number), 12413. [ ID=8569 ]

### Adjective: Filled, Full, Replete (2 definitions)
- filled, full  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > (H2) [Printed book page 701,3] 1. प्राण (prāṇa) mfn. (for 2. See p. 705, col. 1.) filled, full, L. [ ID=138763 ]
- filled, full  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1872)*
  > प्राण (prāṇa) [Printed book page 0652-b ] 1. prāṇa, as, ā, am (for 2. see under 1. prāṇ, p. 654, col. 3), filled, full, replete. [ ID=33440 ]

### 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.  
  *The Vedic Index of Names and Subjects*
  > Prāṇa is also used in a wider sense to denote the organs of sense, 13 or as Sāyaṇa 14 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 Brāhmaṇa 19 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-randhra 25 (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 breast 28 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 scholiasts 31 and by other evidence, 32 Böhtlingk 33 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 ]

### Strength, Vigour, Power (1 definition)
- breath, vigour, energy, or power  
  *Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)*
  > [Printed book page 705,2] breath (as a sign of strength), vigour, energy, power, MBh.; R. &c. ( सर्वप्रा (sarvaprā) णेन (ṇena) or - प्रा (-prā) णैः (ṇaiḥ), ‘with all one's strength’ or ‘all one's heart’; cf. यथा - प्रा (-prā) (yathā-prā) णम् (ṇam) ) [ ID=139504 ]

## Sources

Definitions from 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, University of Cologne.

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