Processing of mercury (rasa samskara)

Built from passages of the source by the curated extraction. Pending human review.

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Names and synonyms

Sanskrit: रससंस्काररसपरिकर्म
Hindi: पारद संस्काररस संस्कार
English: Processing of mercury (rasa samskara)

What the text says

Each statement reports the source, with its chapter, page and verse. Traditional descriptions are not presented as proven medical facts.

Classification2

The processing of mercury is described as threefold, murcchana (swooning), marana (killing, making bhasma) and bandhana (binding), each with a different result.
Chapter 24 · p. 569 · v. 3Hindi commentaryTraditional description
Each process is said to give mercury a quality: svedana (steaming) makes it intense, mardana (grinding) free of impurities, processing with metals strong, jirna (digestion) pure, bandhana (binding) siddha, garbhadravana makes it blend into one, ranjana (colouring) makes it coloured, and proper sarana lets it pervade the body.
Chapter 24 · p. 577 · v. 42Hindi commentaryTraditional description

Properties3

The text says swooned mercury destroys many bad diseases, killed mercury brings wealth, grain and enjoyment, and bound mercury, called siddha rasa, gives unmatched power of moving through the sky and freedom from ageing and death.
Chapter 24 · p. 569 · v. 4Sanskrit verseTraditional description
Mercury joined with an equal measure of sara is said to pierce (vedhaka) a tenth part, with three times the sara a hundred, and joined with rasa-sara a thousand; the commentary calls the sara loni and speaks of a benefit felt in a tenth part, a hundredfold and a thousandfold.
Chapter 24 · p. 575 · v. 30Sanskrit verseTraditional description
The first sarana is said to make siddha mercury a hundred times more powerful, pratisarana a thousand times, and anusarana a hundred thousand times (the commentary: a lakh).
Chapter 24 · p. 576 · v. 39Sanskrit verseTraditional description

Discussed in topics8

Binding of mercury: the practitionerरसबंधन विधि: आरंभ करने वाला वैद्य Greatness of perfected mercuryसिद्ध रस की महिमा Results of sarana; processing with gemsसारणा का फल और रत्न संस्कार Results of the mercury processरस प्रयोग का फल Results of the processes of mercuryरस संस्कारों के फल The separate results of the three processesतीनों संस्कारों के अलग-अलग फल The three processes of mercuryरस के तीन संस्कार The virtue of bound mercuryबद्ध रस का गुण

Questions2

What are the three processes of mercury named at the start of chapter 24, and what result does the text give for each?अध्याय 24 के आरंभ में पारे के कौन से तीन संस्कार बताए गए हैं और ग्रंथ प्रत्येक का क्या फल बताता है?What quality does the text say each process gives to mercury?ग्रंथ के अनुसार प्रत्येक संस्कार पारे को कौन सा गुण देता है?

Sessions1

Mercury and rejuvenating preparationsरसरसायनसिद्धाधिकार

Where else is this mentioned?

Named 3 times on 2 pages. These are automatic name matches, so a few may refer to something else with the same name.

Questions and answers

What are the three processes of mercury named at the start of chapter 24, and what result does the text give for each?

Murcchana (swooning), marana (killing, making bhasma) and bandhana (binding): swooned mercury destroys many bad diseases, killed mercury brings wealth, grain and enjoyment, and bound (siddha) mercury gives the power of moving through the sky and freedom from ageing and death.

Detailed answer and sources

What quality does the text say each process gives to mercury?

Svedana makes it intense, mardana free of impurities, processing with metals strong, jirna pure, bandhana siddha, garbhadravana blended into one, ranjana coloured, and sarana able to pervade the body.