Aṅgula

Aṅgula, “finger-breadth”

Hasta has other meanings too: see all meanings of Hasta.

Grammar: masculine noun, from aṅguli (finger): “a finger’s breadth”.

Meaning: the finger-breadth, the basic measure of length in the building of temples, kuṇḍas and mūrtis. In the Agni Purāṇa’s table it is eight yavas (barley grains); twenty-four aṅgulas make one kara (hand) and twenty-eight make one padmahasta.

In the scriptures: in the rite of taking possession of the ground for a temple, Hayagrīva gives the table of measures, rising by eights from the paramāṇu (the finest particle) through the trasareṇu, the hair-tip, the nit and the barley grain: eight yavas make one aṅgula, twenty-four aṅgulas one kara, and twenty-eight aṅgulas one padmahasta (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 39). The kośa gives the vitasti, the span from the thumb to the tip of the little finger, as twelve aṅgulas (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 364).

The Purāṇa measures in aṅgulas all the things of the rite:

  • The square kuṇḍa (fire-pit) is twenty-four aṅgulas, with mekhalās (raised bands) twelve aṅgulas high and a yoni (lip) of ten aṅgulas; the sruk (ladle) is one hasta or twelve aṅgulas long (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 24).
  • In a maṇḍala of one hasta, the field of the lotus is twelve aṅgulas (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 29).
  • For a mūrti, the śilpī divides the stone into nine parts and the ninth part into twelve; each is one aṅgula by the image’s own aṅgula, and two aṅgulas are a golaka. By these the head, the face and the body are measured: forehead, nose and face four aṅgulas each (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 44).
  • The width of the dhvaja (banner) is twenty aṅgulas (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 61).
  • Temple doors of 160, 150, 140 and 130 aṅgulas in height are the best; of 120, 110 and 100 the middle; of 90, 80 and 70 the least (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 104).
  • The shadow-measure for all undertakings is given by weekday: Sunday twenty aṅgulas, Monday sixteen, Tuesday fifteen, Wednesday thirteen, Friday twelve and Saturday eleven (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 233).
  • In the laying-out (prastāra) of the forms of a metre, the width of the Meru-prastāra decreases by half an aṅgula from the bottom to the top (Agni Purāṇa, Chapter 335).

Related terms: Yava · Kara · Hasta · Vitasti · Padmahasta · Māna

Sources

  • Agni Purāṇa, Chapters 24, 29, 39, 44, 61, 104, 233, 335, 364