names for five winds

[Guest guest]

Regarding Lars' query concerning the five winds:

 

I believe that the "best modern rendition" of these terms depends

somewhat on what the context is.

 

For the Indian (and later Tibetan) Tantric literature I work with, I

use the following renditions:

 

>praaNa = vital [wind]

>apaana = evacuative [wind]

>vyaana = pervasive [wind]

>samaana = metabolic [wind]

>udaana = ascending [wind]

 

I believe these terms are also suitable in many Indo-Tibetan medical

contexts. They are not perfect of course (especially since they do

not reflect the prefix-stem structures of the original Sanskrit terms

and, further, they are not entirely consistent in rendering either

the meaning or the word), but I think they are suitable. Again, it

depends on the type of literature you are dealing with and your

translational priorities.

 

On the nature of these five winds according to a Tantric Buddhist

tradition, compare (if you haven't already) the following verses

quoted in Aaryadeva's _Caryaamelaapakapradiipa_ (unattributed, but

drawn, I believe, from the _Vajramaalaa Mahaayoga Tantra_):

 

prakrama.naat praa.naayaamaac cendriyadvaarais tantubhi.h/

prakramate sadaa kaala.m praa.na ityabhidhiiyate//

 

vaatamuutrapurii.saa.naa.m zukraadiinaa.m tathaiva ca/

apanayanaad apaano 'yam yogibhir lak.syate sadaa//

 

azita.m khaadita.m lehya.m peya.m co.syañ ca sarvata.h/

samaanayati yo nitya.m samaana iti cocyate//

 

uurdhvagamaat sa.mhara.naad bhak.syabhojyaadibhak.sa.naat/

udaanakarmavijño 'yam jñaanena sahayogata.h//

 

vyaapana.m dhaara.na.m caiva gamanaagamanaadikan tathaa/

sarvasandhi.su vyaaptatvaad vyaana ityabhidhiiyate//

 

 

A terminological problem I have found more vexing still, is how to

render the *other* set of five auxilliary winds: udvaaha, vivaaha,

sa.mvaaha, nirvaaha, and pravaaha (winds associated with the

functioning of the five senses)! For the time being, I am using

upward-moving, re-moving, authentically-moving, certainly-moving, and

well-moving. I am not satisfied with this, however. I have played

with various modes attempting to use a Latinate prefix-stem style:

e.g. ascending, descending, rescending, proscending, disscending. .

..but I have never been satisfied with the results. If anyone has any

further suggestions on more elegant renderings of these terms, I

would also be most grateful.

 

Best,

 

Christian Wedemeyer

 

 

 

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* * * * * * * * * *

Christian K. Wedemeyer, Ph.D.

University Instructor of Tibetan Studies

Department of Asian Studies Asien-instituttet

University of Copenhagen Københavns Universitet

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