Pattana

[Aklujkar]

Amara-siµha in his lexicon, popularly known as Amara-ko;sa, has the verse
quarter  pattana.m pu.ta-bhedanam  at 2.2.1 or  line 594. Although the
glosses of this line found in traditional  commentaries are different, it
is likely that Amara was explaining pattana as pu.Ýa-bhedana 'a place where
wrapping or packaging is broken / taken off, where goods are unloaded,
where crates are opened (for distribution of goods, determining customs
duties etc.).'

We may be unsure about the exact reason why a pattana was associated with
pu.ta-bhedana, but the connotation that pattana is a port town or city, not
just any town or city, is borne out by the Pali, Buddhist Sanskrit and
Prakrit usages of the word in forms such as pa.t.tana and pa.t.ta.