concerning the meaning of "murch/mūrch" and related words I would like to call your attention to an [unfortunately still] forthcoming paper by Dr. Jan Meulenbeuld, which I was lucky to listen to during a small workshop in Copenhagen organized by Prof. Zysk. Here Dr. Meulenbeld has demonstrated on the basis of numeral passages from Sanskrit medical literature that the meanings of murch/mūrch could be boiled down to smth. like 'to become one homogeneous mass'. Exactly this meaning, I believe, could be rather naturally applied to both the passages quoted by Prof. Vielle. I wonder which passage Artur Karp actually had in mind, while asking his question and whether there too mūrch could be understood acc. to Dr. Meulenbeld's finding.

What kaṭhina is concerned, I would like to briefly second Prof. Goodall's statement concerning the term ghana. In fact, the passage in Suśrutasaṃhitā (3.3.18 acc. to GRETIL's e-text) applies this designation to a two-months-old embryo. The commentator Ḍalhaṇa briefly states on it: "ghanaḥ kaṭhinaḥ |"

Best wishes 

with great respect for the passed away scholar 

Andrey Klebanov

 

On 20.02.2012, at 11:09, Christophe Vielle wrote:

A very detailed comparative study of various passages on embryology (including puraa.nas, medical sa.mhitaas, etc.) will be to be found in:

Sandra Smets, La question de la non-dualité dans la Jaiminīyasaṃhitā du Brahmāṇḍapurāṇa. Le Janakapraśna édité, traduit et commenté, Louvain-la-Neuve: Publications de l'Institut orientaliste de Louvain no. 63 (Leuven: Peeters Press), 2012    

now in press (http://www.peeters-leuven.be/boekoverz.asp?nr=9120 - I join for information a special list of Indological books published in this series. A reprint of Lamotte's Sa.mdhinirmocanasuutra with a new introduction by H. Durt is planned).

So, for answering Karp's question on the basis of Smets' researches : 

The verb mūrch is used in JaiSa 47.7:

p.rthivyaadi.su bhuute.su muurchito dhaatur antima.h |

sa.mti.s.thati draviibhuuta.h prathame maasi garbhaga.h ||

Cf. YajñS III.75 and Mit. ad loc.

(Smets states that muurch should be here rather translated by "expanded", "increased" or "filled" with, viz. "mixed")

and also the Pari/si.s.ta ad Vaaraaha/srautasuutra xxvi.1 (cf. P. ROLLAND, 'Un fragment médical “ védique ” : Le premier khaṇḍa du Vārāhapariśiṣṭa Bhūtotpatti', in Münchener Studien zur Sprachwissenschaft 30 (1972), p. 129-138):

tad vaayu/s ce.s.tayaty aakaa/se cetanaadhaatu.m muurchayati

Best wishes,

Christophe Vielle

Le 19 févr. 2012 à 21:49, Artur Karp a écrit :

<PIOL-indianisme et bouddhisme.pdf>