Pancaka, Pamcaka, Panca-ka, Pañcaka: 24 definitions
Introduction:
Pancaka means something in Buddhism, Pali, Hinduism, Sanskrit, the history of ancient India, Marathi. 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.
Alternative spellings of this word include Panchaka.
In Hinduism
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: archive.org: Puranic EncyclopediaPañcaka (पञ्चक).—One of the two soldiers presented to Subrahmaṇya by Indra for the battle between the devas and asuras. The other was named Utkrośa. (Śloka 35, Chapter 45, Śalya Parva).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: The Purana IndexPañcaka (पञ्चक).—A royal line established by Viśvasphāṇi.*
- * Vāyu-purāṇa 99. 378.

The Purana (पुराण, purāṇas) refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.
Kavya (poetry)
Source: Wisdom Library: KathāsaritsāgaraPañcaka (पञ्चक) or Pañcakādri is the name of a mountain whose lord is named Diṇḍimālin: a great warrior (mahāratha) who fought on Śrutaśarman’s side but was slain by Prabhāsa, who participated in the war against Sūryaprabha, according to the Kathāsaritsāgara, chapter 48. Accordingly: “... then four more great warriors, armed with bows, sent by Śrutaśarman, surrounded Prabhāsa:... the second Diṇḍimālin, whose home was the hill of Pañcaka”.
The Kathāsaritsāgara (‘ocean of streams of story’), mentioning Pañcaka, is a famous Sanskrit epic story revolving around prince Naravāhanadatta and his quest to become the emperor of the vidyādharas (celestial beings). The work is said to have been an adaptation of Guṇāḍhya’s Bṛhatkathā consisting of 100,000 verses, which in turn is part of a larger work containing 700,000 verses.

Kavya (काव्य, kavya) refers to Sanskrit poetry, a popular ancient Indian tradition of literature. There have been many Sanskrit poets over the ages, hailing from ancient India and beyond. This topic includes mahakavya, or ‘epic poetry’ and natya, or ‘dramatic poetry’.
Shaktism (Shakta philosophy)
Source: Google Books: ManthanabhairavatantramPañcaka (पञ्चक) is another name for Pañcapraṇava, which refers to the “five Praṇavas”, according to the Manthānabhairavatantra, a vast sprawling work that belongs to a corpus of Tantric texts concerned with the worship of the goddess Kubjikā.—[...] The five together can also be treated as a single unit called ‘pañcapraṇava’—‘the (one called) Five Praṇavas’, ‘pañcārṇa’—‘the (one called) Five Letters’ or simply ‘pañcaka’—‘the Group of Five’. As such the five together are sometimes treated as a single mantra in its own right called ‘pañcākṣarī-vidyā’—‘the Vidyā of Five Syllables’. They may also be called ‘the Five Letters’ (pañcavarṇa—pañcārṇā pañcavarṇāḥ pañcapraṇavās te).

Shakta (शाक्त, śākta) or Shaktism (śāktism) represents a tradition of Hinduism where the Goddess (Devi) is revered and worshipped. Shakta literature includes a range of scriptures, including various Agamas and Tantras, although its roots may be traced back to the Vedas.
Shaiva philosophy
Source: Brill: Śaivism and the Tantric Traditions (philosophy)Pañcaka (पञ्चक) [=Pañca?] refers to “five (elements)”, according to the Īśvarapratyabhijñāvivṛtivimarśinī 2.131:—“[...] For the former [i.e., Ṣaḍdhātusamīkṣā] acknowledge that ordinary human practice is accounted for if this much [is admitted]: the five elements (bhūta-pañcaka) and consciousness, because such other [things as] the sense organs are included in these; whereas the latter admit that the ordinary human practice [consisting in the relationship between] an apprehending [subject] and an apprehended [object] is accounted for if a particular transformation called ‘consciousness’ arises in the four elements from [some of their] various combinations, and if this transformation does not arise [from other combinations of the four elements]”.
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Sports, Arts and Entertainment (wordly enjoyments)
Source: archive.org: Syainika Sastra of Rudradeva with English Translation (art)Pañcaka (पञ्चक) refers to “five days” (of training hawks), according to the Śyainika-śāstra: a Sanskrit treatise dealing with the divisions and benefits of Hunting and Hawking, written by Rājā Rudradeva (or Candradeva) in possibly the 13th century.—Accordingly, [while discussing the training of hawks]: “Now we will treat of how to inspire the hawks with confidence. An expert will close the eyes by sewing (t.e., seeling) them so that the hawk may not see his face for five days (divasa-pañcaka), nor should it hear the trainer’s voice during this period. [...]”.

This section covers the skills and profiencies of the Kalas (“performing arts”) and Shastras (“sciences”) involving ancient Indian traditions of sports, games, arts, entertainment, love-making and other means of wordly enjoyments. Traditionally these topics were dealt with in Sanskrit treatises explaing the philosophy and the justification of enjoying the pleasures of the senses.
In Buddhism
Theravada (major branch of Buddhism)
Source: Pali Kanon: Pali Proper NamesSee Pandaka and Pancika.
Theravāda is a major branch of Buddhism having the the Pali canon (tipitaka) as their canonical literature, which includes the vinaya-pitaka (monastic rules), the sutta-pitaka (Buddhist sermons) and the abhidhamma-pitaka (philosophy and psychology).
India history and geography
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Indian Epigraphical GlossaryPāñcaka.—(CII 3), a committee. See pañca-maṇḍalī and pañcakula. Note: pāñcaka is defined in the “Indian epigraphical glossary” as it can be found on ancient inscriptions commonly written in Sanskrit, Prakrit or Dravidian languages.
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Pañcaka.—(CII 4), same as Pañcāyat. Note: pañcaka is defined in the “Indian epigraphical glossary” as it can be found on ancient inscriptions commonly written in Sanskrit, Prakrit or Dravidian languages.

The history of India traces the identification of countries, villages, towns and other regions of India, as well as mythology, zoology, royal dynasties, rulers, tribes, local festivities and traditions and regional languages. Ancient India enjoyed religious freedom and encourages the path of Dharma, a concept common to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism.
Languages of India and abroad
Pali-English dictionary
Source: BuddhaSasana: Concise Pali-English Dictionarypañcaka : (nt.) a pentad; a group of five.
Source: Sutta: The Pali Text Society's Pali-English DictionaryPañcaka, (adj.) (fr. pañca) fivefold, consisting of five J. I, 116 (°kammaṭṭhāna); Dhs. chapters 167—175 (°naya fivefold system of jhāna, cp. Dhs. translation 52); SnA 318 (°nipāta of Aṅguttara).—nt. pañcakaṃ a pentad, five Vin. I, 255 (the 5 parts of the kaṭhina robe, see Vin. Texts II. 155), cp. p. 287; pl. pañcakā sets of five Vism. 242. The 32 ākāras or constituents of the human body are divided into 4 pañcaka’s (i.e. sets of 5 more closely related parts), viz. taca° “skin-pentad, ” the 5 dermatoid constituents: kesā, lomā, nakhā, dantā, taco; vakka° the next five, ending with the kidneys; papphāsa° id. ending with the lungs & comprising the inner organs proper; matthaluṅga° id. ending with the brain, and 2 chakka’s (sets of 6), viz. meda° & mutta°. See e.g. VbhA. 249, 258. (Page 389)

Pali is the language of the Tipiṭaka, which is the sacred canon of Theravāda Buddhism and contains much of the Buddha’s speech. Closeley related to Sanskrit, both languages are used interchangeably between religions.
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionarypañcaka (पंचक).—n (S) An aggregate of five. 2 The five Nakshatras from the latter half of Dhanishṭha to the first half of Ashwini; during which certain works are forbidden. 3 A certain number--To the number of a particular lagna add the number of the preceding lunar day, and divide the sum by 9: the remainder, if it be 1, 2, 4, 6, or 8 is a pañcaka. These have distinct names, and are all unlucky.
Source: DDSA: The Aryabhusan school dictionary, Marathi-Englishpañcaka (पंचक).—n pañcakaḍī f An aggregate of five.
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
Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक).—a.
1) Consisting of five.
2) Relating to five.
3) Made of five.
4) Bought with five.
5) Taking five percent.
-kaḥ, -kam 1 A collection or aggregate of five; अम्लपञ्चकम् (amlapañcakam).
2) the pentad of five नक्षत्र (nakṣatra)s beginning from धनिष्ठा (dhaniṣṭhā) and ending in रेवती (revatī).
-kam A field of battle.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Edgerton Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit DictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक).—adj. (as in Sanskrit and Pali in this meaning), con- sisting of five, forming a group of five; regularly of the bhadravargīya (or the like, q.v.) monks; pañcakā bha- [Page315-a+ 71] dra° Lalitavistara 245.16; 246.2; 404.7, etc.; Mahāvastu ii.241.2; iii.322.20; 415.7, et alibi; without the word bhadra° but certainly or probably referring to them, as bhikṣavaḥ Jātakamālā 51.19; Suvarṇabhāsottamasūtra 239.10; Saddharmapuṇḍarīka 56.10; pañcakehi (by em.) saha tehi munīhi (same group) Mahāvastu i.72.10.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English DictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक).—mfn.
(-kaḥ-kā-kaṃ) Five or relating to five, made of five, bought with five, &c. m.
(-kaḥ) Any collection or aggregate of five, a five. n.
(-kaṃ) A field of battle. E. pañca five, and kan aff.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Benfey Sanskrit-English DictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक).—i. e. pañcan + ka, I. adj. 1. Consisting of five, [Mānavadharmaśāstra] 2, 92. 2. With śata, Five in the hundred, [Mānavadharmaśāstra] 8, 139. Ii. n. 1. The number five, śata-, Five hundred, [Pañcatantra] 134, 16. 2. A collection of five, [Bhāgavata-Purāṇa, (ed. Burnouf.)] 3, 11, 15.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक).—[adjective] consisting of five, five days old, etc.; [with] śata [neuter] five per cent. —[masculine] a man’s name; [feminine] pancikā a book of 5 chapters; [neuter] aggregate of five.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Pañcaka (पञ्चक):—[from pañca] mfn. consisting of 5, relating to 5, made of 5 etc., [Manu-smṛti; Mahābhārata; Suśruta; Purāṇa]; 5 days old (See below)
2) [v.s. ...] bought with 5 [Pāṇini 5-1, 22 [Scholiast or Commentator]]
3) [v.s. ...] (with śata n.) 5 percent, [Manu-smṛti; Yājñavalkya]
4) [v.s. ...] taking 5 per cent, [Pāṇini 5-1, 47], [vArttika] 1, [Patañjali]
5) [v.s. ...] m. any collection or aggregate of 5 [Horace H. Wilson] (also n.; cf. [gana] ardharcādi)
6) [v.s. ...] a [particular] caste, [Viṣṇu-purāṇa]
7) [v.s. ...] Name of one of the attendants of Skanda, [Mahābhārata]
8) [v.s. ...] of a son of Nahuṣa, [Viṣṇu-purāṇa]
9) [v.s. ...] [plural] the 5 first disciples of Gautama Buddha, [Jātakamālā]
10) [from pañca] n. an aggregate of 5, a pentad, [Harivaṃśa; Varāha-mihira] etc.
11) [v.s. ...] a field of battle, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English DictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक):—[(kaḥ-kā-kaṃ) a.] Relating to five. m. A five. n. Field of battle.
Source: DDSA: Paia-sadda-mahannavo; a comprehensive Prakrit Hindi dictionary (S)Pañcaka (पञ्चक) in the Sanskrit language is related to the Prakrit words: Paṃcaga, Paṇa, Paṇaga.
[Sanskrit to German]
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.
Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusPaṃcaka (ಪಂಚಕ):—
1) [noun] a group or set of five people, things or values.
2) [noun] that which is made of or consisting of five elements.
3) [noun] the site of a battle; battlefield.
4) [noun] a bundle (as of paper).
5) [noun] a measure of grains equal to five Koḷagas.
6) [noun] a land got as a tax-free gift.
7) [noun] (math.) a symbol for the number five.
8) [noun] (astrol.) a group of five consecutive lunar mansions (Mṛgaśirā, ārdrā, Punarvasu, Puṣya, and āślēṣā).
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
Nepali dictionary
Source: unoes: Nepali-English DictionaryPañcaka (पञ्चक):—n. 1. aggregate of five similar objects or materials; set of five; 2. Astron. group of five particular stars coming together beginning from Dhanistha;
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 (+14): Pamcakacce, Pamcakaceri, Pamcakajjaya, Pamcakalyani, Pancaka-shala-pratya, Pancakadi, Pancakadri, Pancakalakriyadipa, Pancakalapaddhati, Pancakalapika, Pancakalapravartana, Pancakalasha, Pancakalavit, Pancakalpa, Pancakalpi, Pancakalpin, Pancakalyana, Pancakalyanacampu, Pancakalyanaka, Pancakalyanakamala.
Full-text (+208): Angulipancaka, Samantapancaka, Dhanyapancaka, Pancapancaka, Bhishmapancaka, Ratnapancaka, Pancakashata, Amlapancaka, Prapancaka, Upadeshapancaka, Vyomapancaka, Pancakamala, Dhatipancaka, Prarthanapancaka, Manishapancaka, Padapancaka, Nimbapancaka, Bakapancaka, Phalamlapancaka, Yatipancaka.
Relevant text
Search found 72 books and stories containing Pancaka, Pamcaka, Paṃcaka, Panca-ka, Pañca-ka, Pañcaka, Pāñcaka; (plurals include: Pancakas, Pamcakas, Paṃcakas, kas, Pañcakas, Pāñcakas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Ganitatilaka (Sanskrit text and English introduction) (by H. R. Kapadia)
Page 89 < [Sanskrit Text of the Ganitatilaka]
Page 112 < [Sanskrit Text of the Ganitatilaka]
Page 109 < [Sanskrit Text of the Ganitatilaka]
Yogatattva Upanishad (translation and study) (by Sujata Jena)
Part 1.5 - Treatment of various other Dharana < [Chapter 5 - Philosophy of Life and Meditation in Yogatattva Upanisad]
A Descriptive Catalogue of the Sanskrit Manuscripts, Madras (by M. Seshagiri Sastri)
Cidgaganacandrika (study) (by S. Mahalakshmi)
Verse 47 [Īśvara and Jīva Bhāvas] < [Chapter 2 - Second Vimarśa]
Verse 273-278 [Śakti as the Supreme principle] < [Chapter 4 - Fourth Vimarśa]
Verse 102 [Śakti’s forms in Śṛṣṭi, Sthiti and Saṃhāra] < [Chapter 3 - Third Vimarśa]
Maha Buddhavamsa—The Great Chronicle of Buddhas (by Ven. Mingun Sayadaw)
Part 4 - The Discourse on The Cha-pañcaka < [Chapter 32b - The Buddha’s Fourteenth Vassa at Savatthi]
(10) Tenth Pāramī: The Perfection of Equanimity (upekkhā-pāramī) < [Chapter 6 - On Pāramitā]
Brahmacariya-Pañcama Sīla < [Chapter 6 - On Pāramitā]
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