Mrittika, Mṛttikā, Mṛttika: 19 definitions
Introduction:
Mrittika means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, Marathi, Hindi. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
The Sanskrit terms Mṛttikā and Mṛttika can be transliterated into English as Mrttika or Mrittika, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
Alternative spellings of this word include Mrattika.
In Hinduism
Ayurveda (science of life)
Nighantu (Synonyms and Characteristics of Drugs and technical terms)
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) refers to “good clay” or “earth” as defined in the second chapter (dharaṇyādi-varga) of the 13th-century Raj Nighantu or Rājanighaṇṭu (an Ayurvedic encyclopedia). The Dharaṇyādi-varga covers the lands, soil [viz., Mṛttikā], mountains, jungles and vegetation’s relations between trees and plants and substances, with their various kinds.
Agriculture (Krishi) and Vrikshayurveda (study of Plant life)
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) refers to “earth” suitable for the various bio-organical recipes for plant mutagenesis, according to the Vṛkṣāyurveda by Sūrapāla (1000 CE): an encyclopedic work dealing with the study of trees and the principles of ancient Indian agriculture.—Accordingly, “Fragrance of the blossom can be changed by filling (the base near) the roots of the trees with the earth (mṛttikā) scented with the desired fragrance and then fed with water mixed with Cyperus rotundus, Erythrina stricta, Valeriana wallichii, Aporosa lindleyana and Cinnamomum tamala”.
Āyurveda (आयुर्वेद, ayurveda) is a branch of Indian science dealing with medicine, herbalism, taxology, anatomy, surgery, alchemy and related topics. Traditional practice of Āyurveda in ancient India dates back to at least the first millenium BC. Literature is commonly written in Sanskrit using various poetic metres.
General definition (in Hinduism)
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) is a Sanskrit word referring to clay derived from wet earth.
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका, ‘clay’) is mentioned in the later Saṃhitās and the Brāhmaṇas.
Mṛttika is soil, most suited for cultivating paddy, vegetables and other grains, generally with good earth that could be ploughed. In all auspicious functions it is customary to bring from the river bed or anthills and use for sowing grains, Pālikai which sprout quickly as a symbol of fertility. This rite of bringing fertile earth, called Mṛt Sangrahana is performed in all marriage functions . Thus Mṛttika stands for fertile soil, cultivable land. It is called in Tamil Literature as Marutam. The people occupying such lands have settled life and are engaged in cultivation and the lands are also called Nādu.
In Buddhism
Mahayana (major branch of Buddhism)
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) refers to a “fired clay (begging bowl)”, according to Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra (chapter 41).—Accordingly, “[Digression on a case brought against the Buddha; A. The accusation].—[Question].—So be it! But the Buddha sometimes has physical and vocal actions that do not seem to accompany knowledge. How is that? [...] He insults his disciples and treats them like foolish men (mohapuruṣa). He insults Devadatta and says to him: ‘You are a fool (mūḍha), a corpse (śava), a spit-swallower (kheṭāśika)’. The Buddha forbids the possession (dhāraṇa) of eight kinds of begging-bowls (pātra) and authorizes the Bhikṣus to use only two kinds of bowls: i) fired clay (mṛttikā-pātra) and ii) iron (ayaḥpātra) but he himself uses a stone bowl (śailapātra). [...]”.
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) refers to “clay” (suitable for performing offering ceremonies), according to the Vajratuṇḍasamayakalparāja, an ancient Buddhist ritual manual on agriculture from the 5th-century (or earlier), containing various instructions for the Sangha to provide agriculture-related services to laypeople including rain-making, weather control and crop protection.—Accordingly [as the Bhagavān taught the detailed offering-manual], “[...] One should prepare a square [space] measuring a hasta, very smooth and well smeared. It should be sprinkled with perfumed water all around. Four Nāga kings should be prepared in the middle of the ditch. Full of brownish cow dung and clay (mṛttikā) a nine-headed [Nāga king should be prepared] with a hood and a coiled body. [...]”.
Mahayana (महायान, mahāyāna) is a major branch of Buddhism focusing on the path of a Bodhisattva (spiritual aspirants/ enlightened beings). Extant literature is vast and primarely composed in the Sanskrit language. There are many sūtras of which some of the earliest are the various Prajñāpāramitā sūtras.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
mṛttikā (मृत्तिका).—f (S) Earth. 2 Any particular earth. Seven kinds of earth are enumerated as necessary in certain anuṣṭhāna or śāntikarma (propitiatory observances); viz. aśvamṛttikā, gaja -ratha -catuṣpatha -gōṣṭha- valmīka-ṛhada or saṅgama-mṛttikā; or, according to another catalogue, gōṣṭha -vēdikā -kitava -sthāna -ṛhada -karṣitakṣētra- catuṣpatha -śmaśāna -mṛttikā.
mṛttikā (मृत्तिका).—f Earth. mṛttikā hōṇēṃ Be reduced to dust; be destroyed.
Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.
Sanskrit dictionary
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका).—[mṛd tikan ṭāp]
1) Clay, earth; Manusmṛti 2.182.
2) Fresh earth.
3) A kind of fragrant earth.
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका).—f.
(-kā) 1. Earth, clay, soil. 2. A fragrant earth. E. mṛt earth and tikan pleonastic addition, fem. aff. ṭāp .
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका).— (derived from mṛd), f. 1. Earth, [Vedāntasāra, (in my Chrestomathy.)] in
1) Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका):—[from mṛd] f. earth, clay, loam, [Vājasaneyi-saṃhitā] etc. etc. (ibc. also a)
2) [v.s. ...] a kind of fragrant earth, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
3) [v.s. ...] aluminous slate, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका):—(kā) 1. f. Earth, soil, clay.
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका):—(von mṛd) f. Erde, Lehm, Thon [Pāṇini’s acht Bücher 5, 4, 39.] [Amarakoṣa 2, 1, 4.] [Hemacandra’s Abhidhānacintāmaṇi 940.] [Halāyudha 2, 4.] [Vājasaneyisaṃhitā 18, 13.] [Aitareyabrāhmaṇa 3, 34.] [Taittirīyāraṇyaka 10, 1, 8. 9.] [Chāndogyopaniṣad 6, 1, 4] [?(= Vedāntasāra Allah. No. 121). Manu’s Gesetzbuch 2, 182. Mahābhārata 1, 5724. Suśruta 2, 36,1. Varāhamihira’s Bṛhajjātaka S. 54, 39. 55, 25. Kathāsaritsāgara 37, 91. 39, 131. Bhāgavatapurāṇa 5, 16, 21.] kṛṣṇa [Suśruta 2, 248, 13. 261, 3.] Verkürzt aus metrischen Rücksichten: sudhāmṛttikalepana [Mahābhārata 5, 7477] [?(Benfey’ Chrestomathie aus Sanskritwerken 57, 3] fälschlich mṛttikā gedr.). Am Ende eines adj. comp.: apāstamṛttika [Kathāsaritsāgara 37, 88.] Nach dem Schol. zu [Hemacandra’s Abhidhānacintāmaṇi 1056] und nach [Rājanirghaṇṭa im Śabdakalpadruma] bezeichnet mṛttikā auch eine best. wohlriechende Erdart. — Vgl. dhavala, nīla, pāṇḍumṛttika, pūti, mārttika .
Mṛttika (मृत्तिक):—(metrisch im Comp.) und mṛttikā f. —
1) Lehm , Thon. —
2) f. mṛttikā Alaunschiefer [Rājan 13,63.]
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) in the Sanskrit language is related to the Prakrit words: Maṭṭhiā, Maṭṭī, Mattiyā, Mittiā.
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.
Hindi dictionary
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका) [Also spelled mrattika]:—(nf) earth; clay; —[udyoga] ceramic industry.
...
Nepali dictionary
Mṛttikā (मृत्तिका):—n. clay; soil; earth;
Nepali is the primary language of the Nepalese people counting almost 20 million native speakers. The country of Nepal is situated in the Himalaya mountain range to the north of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Starts with: Mrittikabuddhi, Mrittikacurna, Mrittikakala, Mrittikama, Mrittikapatra, Mrittikaputra, Mrittikashaucavidhana, Mrittikasnana, Mrittikasnanavidhi, Mrittikavarapura, Mrittikavat, Mrittikavata, Mrittikavati.
Full-text (+34): Pandumrittika, Krishnamrittika, Nilamrittika, Lohitamrittika, Dhavalamrittika, Ksharamrittika, Putimrittika, Mrittikavati, Udanmrittika, Suramrittika, Saptamrittika, Bhandaranjakamrittika, Mrittikavata, Marttika, Saurashtramrittika, Mrittikacurna, Lohinimrittika, Mriti, Mrittikapatra, Mi chi jia.
Relevant text
Search found 55 books and stories containing Mrittika, Mṛttikā, Mṛttika, Mrttika; (plurals include: Mrittikas, Mṛttikās, Mṛttikas, Mrttikas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
International Ayurvedic Medical Journal
A conceptual study on pandu roga < [2022, Issue 07 July]
Swedana karma – an exploration to the various types of kizhis in practice < [2022, Issue 07 July]
Pharmaceutical review of arka kalpana < [2014, Issue VI Nov-Dec]
Garuda Purana (by Manmatha Nath Dutt)
Chapter CCXXIX - Duties of Brahmanas, etc. < [Dhanvantari Samhita]
Chapter CCXXVII - Different names of the Ayurvedic Drugs < [Dhanvantari Samhita]
A Descriptive Catalogue of the Sanskrit Manuscripts, Madras (by M. Seshagiri Sastri)
Chandogya Upanishad (Madhva commentary) (by Srisa Chandra Vasu)
World Journal of Pharmaceutical Research
Clinical efficacy of krishna mrittika chikitsa in low back pain < [2021: Volume 10, September issue 11]
Navayas Lauha and Lohasava effects post-teekshna virechana in anemia. < [2018: Volume 7, March special issue 6]
Etiopathogenesis and principles of management of pandu roga < [2023: Volume 12, March issue 4]
Chandogya Upanishad (english Translation) (by Swami Lokeswarananda)
Verse 6.1.4 < [Section 6.1]
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