Viphala: 22 definitions
Introduction:
Viphala means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Jainism, Prakrit, Buddhism, Pali, Marathi, Hindi, biology. 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 Vifal.
In Hinduism
Ayurveda (science of life)
Nighantu (Synonyms and Characteristics of Drugs and technical terms)
Viphala (विफल) refers to “fruitless trees”, as mentioned in a list of four synonyms in the second chapter (dharaṇyādi-varga) of the 13th-century Raj Nighantu or Rājanighaṇṭu (an Ayurvedic encyclopedia). The Dharaṇyādi-varga covers the lands, soil, mountains, jungles and vegetation’s relations between trees [viz., Viphala] and plants and substances, with their various kinds.
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.
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Viphala (विफल) refers to “that which is futile”, according to the Śivapurāṇa 2.3.17 (“The dialogue between Indra and Kāmadeva”).—Accordingly, as Brahmā said to Kāma: “[...] Securing a wonderful boon from Brahmā, the great demon Tāraka has become invincible and a pest for everyone. The entire world is harassed by him. Many virtuous rites are destroyed. The gods have become miserable and so also the sages. He had been fought by the gods to the utmost of their ability formerly. But the weapons of all the gods became quite futile [i.e., viphala]. [...]”.
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.
In Jainism
General definition (in Jainism)
Viphala (विफल) refers to “futile” [?], according to Pūjyapāda’s Sarvārthasiddhi.—Accordingly, “[...] Even if human birth is attained, a good country, a good family, keen senses, health, etc. are more and more difficult of attainment. When all these are attained, if true faith is not acquired, human birth becomes useless like the face without vision. And even after attaining this rare true faith, if anyone is immersed in worldly pleasures, it is (? viphala—candanadahanam iva viphalam) like burning sandal-wood paste for the sake of ash. [...]”.
Jainism is an Indian religion of Dharma whose doctrine revolves around harmlessness (ahimsa) towards every living being. The two major branches (Digambara and Svetambara) of Jainism stimulate self-control (or, shramana, ‘self-reliance’) and spiritual development through a path of peace for the soul to progess to the ultimate goal.
Biology (plants and animals)
Viphala in India is the name of a plant defined with Pandanus tectorius in various botanical sources. This page contains potential references in Ayurveda, modern medicine, and other folk traditions or local practices It has the synonym Pandanus odoratissimus L.f. (among others).
Example references for further research on medicinal uses or toxicity (see latin names for full list):
· Der Naturforscher (1774)
· Ceiba (1975)
· Proceedings of the Indian Science Congress Association (1984)
· Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden (1911)
· Supplementum Plantarum (1781)
· Journal of a voyage to the South Seas (1773)
If you are looking for specific details regarding Viphala, for example pregnancy safety, side effects, chemical composition, health benefits, extract dosage, diet and recipes, have a look at these references.
This sections includes definitions from the five kingdoms of living things: Animals, Plants, Fungi, Protists and Monera. It will include both the official binomial nomenclature (scientific names usually in Latin) as well as regional spellings and variants.
Languages of India and abroad
Pali-English dictionary
viphala : (adj.) fruitless; profitless.
Viphala, (adj.) (vi+phala) fruitless, useless Sdhp. 527. (Page 629)
viphala (ဝိဖလ) [(ti) (တိ)]—
[vi+phala．viphala-saṃ．]
[ဝိ+ဖလ။ဝိဖလ-သံ။]
[Pali to Burmese]
viphala—
(Burmese text): အကျိုးမရှိသော။
(Auto-Translation): It is useless.
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
viphala (विफल).—a S pop. viphaḷa a Fruitless, unprofitable, vain, idle.
viphala (विफल) [-ḷa, -ळ].—a Fruitless, vain.
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
Viphala (विफल).—a.
1) Fruitless, useless, vain, ineffectual, unprofitable; मम विफलमेतदनुरूपमपि यौवनम् (mama viphalametadanurūpamapi yauvanam) Gītagovinda 7; जगता वा विफलेन किं फलम् (jagatā vā viphalena kiṃ phalam) R. G.; Śiśupālavadha 9.6; Kumārasambhava 7.66; Meghadūta 7.
2) Idle, unmeaning.
3) Having no testicles.
-lā Name of a plant (ketakī).
-lam Fruitlessness, unprofitableness; नावमः कर्मकल्पोऽपि विफलायेश्वरार्पितः (nāvamaḥ karmakalpo'pi viphalāyeśvarārpitaḥ) Bhāgavata 8.5.48.
Viphala (विफल).—mfn.
(-laḥ-lā-laṃ) Vain, idle, unmeaning, fruitless, useless. E. vi privative, and phala fruit.
Viphala (विफल).—adj. vain, fruitless useless Böhtl. Ind. Spr. 1395.
Viphala is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms vi and phala (फल).
Viphala (विफल).—[adjective] fruitless, useless, unsuccessful, idle, vain; having no testicles.
1) Viphala (विफल):—[=vi-phala] [from vi] a See sub voce
2) [=vi-phala] b mf(ā)n. bearing no fruit (as a tree), [Kāvya literature; Varāha-mihira’s Bṛhat-saṃhitā]
3) [v.s. ...] fruitless, useless, ineffectual, futile, vain, idle, [Yājñavalkya; Harivaṃśa] etc.
4) [v.s. ...] having no testicles, [Rāmāyaṇa]
5) [v.s. ...] m. Pandanus Odoratissimus, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
Viphala (विफल):—[vi-phala] (laḥ-lā-laṃ) a. Vain, useless.
[Sanskrit to German]
Viphala (विफल) in the Sanskrit language is related to the Prakrit word: Vihala.
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
Viphala (विफल) [Also spelled vifal]:—(a) failed, unsuccessful; vain, inefficacious; fruitless, futile; ~[tā] failure; inefficacy, fruitlessness, futility.
...
Prakrit-English dictionary
Viphāla (विफाल) in the Prakrit language is related to the Sanskrit word: Vipāṭa.
Prakrit is an ancient language closely associated with both Pali and Sanskrit. Jain literature is often composed in this language or sub-dialects, such as the Agamas and their commentaries which are written in Ardhamagadhi and Maharashtri Prakrit. The earliest extant texts can be dated to as early as the 4th century BCE although core portions might be older.
Kannada-English dictionary
Viphala (ವಿಫಲ):—[adjective] without results; unprofitable; unsuccessful; fruitless.
--- OR ---
Viphala (ವಿಫಲ):—[noun] that which yields no results or is unsuccessful, fruitless.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
Nepali dictionary
Viphala (विफल):—adj. fruitless; useless; unsuccessful;
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: Viphalaprerana, Viphalarambha, Viphalasha, Viphalashrama, Viphalashramatva, Viphalata, Viphalate, Viphalatevade, Viphalati, Viphalatva, Viphalaya, Viphalayanti.
Full-text (+16): Viphalata, Aviphala, Viphalatva, Vaipulya, Viphalaprerana, Viphalashrama, Viphalashramatva, Vifal, Vipphaleti, Viphalibhuta, Viphalati, Viphalibhu, Viphalibhavishnu, Viphalikarana, Viphalikrita, Ritiviphala, Viphali, Viphaleyya, Viphalayanti, Vihala.
Relevant text
Search found 26 books and stories containing Viphala, Vi-phala, Viphāla; (plurals include: Viphalas, phalas, Viphālas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Brihad Bhagavatamrita (commentary) (by Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyana Gosvāmī Mahārāja)
Verse 2.1.100 < [Chapter 1 - Vairāgya (renunciation)]
Dictionaries of Indian languages (Kosha)
Page 320 < [Hindi-English-Nepali (1 volume)]
Page 439 < [Gujarati-Hindi-English, Volume 3]
Page 65 < [Hindi-Gujarati-English Volume 3]
Canons of Orissan Architecture (by R. Chatterjee)
Garga Samhita (English) (by Danavir Goswami)
Verse 2.23.22 < [Chapter 23 - The Killing of Śaṅkhacūḍa During the Rāsa-dance Pastime]
Tattvasangraha [with commentary] (by Ganganatha Jha)
Verse 509-510 < [Chapter 9 - Examination of the Relation between Actions and their Results]
Notices of Sanskrit Manuscripts (by Rajendralala Mitra)