In Buddhism

General definition (in Buddhism)

Source: Wisdom Library: Buddhism

Mahākaṅkara (महाकङ्कर) is the seventeenth of sixty digits (decimal place) in an special enumeration system mentioned by Vasubandhu in his Abhidharmakośa (“treasury of knowledge”). The explanations of the measure of years, eons, and so forth must be comprehended through calculation based on a numerical system. Enumeration begins from one and increases by a factor of ten for each shift in decimal place. The sixtieth number in this series is called “countless”.

Among these decimal positions (e.g., mahākaṅkara), the first nine positions from one to one hundred million are called ‘single set enumeration’. From a billion up to, but not including countless is “the enumeration of the great companion” and is called the ‘recurring enumeration’.

Languages of India and abroad

Sanskrit dictionary

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary

Mahākaṅkara (महाकङ्कर).—m., a high number: Mahāvyutpatti 8005. Cf. kaṅkara.

Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary

Mahākaṅkara (महाकङ्कर):—[=mahā-kaṅkara] [from mahā > mah] m. or n. (?) a [particular] high number, [Buddhist literature]

[Sanskrit to German]

Mahakankara in German

context information

Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.

See also (Relevant definitions)

Partial matches: Maha, Kankara.

Full-text: Maha.

Relevant text

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