Re: [INDOLOGY] Aṅgula

[James Hartzell]

Hi Jacob

>From the Sanskrit text translation work I've done on measurements, the
aṅgula or finger-width measurement is specific to the individual. My finger
widths differ from yours or my wife's, etc., but when I measure distances
on my body using my finger widths, those will match the same distances on
my wife's body using her finger widths. I've tested this quite a few times
and was a bit astonished to find it consistently true. Others may differ
(I'm very interested to hear if that's so), but the idea as I understand it
is that an aṅgula is personal measurement, not a standardized measurement
like a metre/meter, cm, mm, inch, etc. In this sense there is no
uncertainty involved, just inter-individual variation.

No doubt there's more to this topic, but this is my bit I can comment on.

Cheers
James

On Thu, Jan 14, 2021 at 5:03 PM Jacob Schmidt-Madsen via INDOLOGY <
indology at list.indology.info> wrote:

> Dear list,
>
> Is there any consensus on what an aṅgula corresponds to in the metric
> system? Or should we not consider it an absolute standard, but rather
> take it literally as the breadth of a finger (with all the uncertainties
> that follow)? There are a lot of suggestions floating around on the
> internet, but I would be interested in any scholarly references.
>
> Best,
> Jacob
>
> Jacob Schmidt-Madsen
> Postdoctoral Researcher in Indology
> Department of Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies
> University of Copenhagen
> Denmark
>
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-- 
James Hartzell, PhD (2x)
Donostia-San Sebatián, Spain
Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), The University of Trento, Italy
Center for Buddhist Studies, Columbia University, USA


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