[INDOLOGY] Gourds

[Martin Gansten]

In a fanciful expression of humility, a 13th-century Sanskrit author 
compares his work to a /kadatumbī /(according to the MS) in which to 
cross the ocean. I haven't found that exact word anywhere, but 
Monier-Williams gives 'a kind of bitter gourd' for /kaṭutumbī/, which 
might be meant. Do we know what kind that might be (that is, what it 
should be called in English), or does anyone have a qualified guess? I 
confess to a complete ignorance of gourds, though I would assume it to 
be some fairly large and rounded variety, perhaps used to make bowls or 
the like. MW gives Suśruta as his reference.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions,

Martin Gansten
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