Aṅgula

Aṅgula (from Sanskrit: अङ्गुल aṅgula - 'a finger; the thumb; a finger's breadth'[1]) is a measure equal to eight barley-corns. Twelve aṅgulas make a Vitasti or span, and twenty-four a Hasta or Cubit. 108 Angulam make a 'Dhanusha'. These measurements are claimed to have been used since the Harappan civilization and that these were also used for the construction of Taj Mahal.

One Aṅgula during the Maurya period is believed to be approximately equal to 1.763 centimetres. Dimensional analysis of the oldest engineered caves at the Barabar and Nagarjuni hills (dated to the Mauryan Period) has revealed that the basic length measure (angulam) of this period was 1.763 cm. The planning of these cave complexes was executed using the traditional measurement units mentioned in the Arthashastra, in particular the Danda measuring 96 Angulams. As the basic length measure is also noted in several Harappan civilization sites, this sudy confirms that Harappan metrological ideas were transmitted virtually unchanged from the Harappan civilization to the Ganga civilization, thereby proving the continuity of the people themselves who built their settlements upon this tradition.[2]

In the Hindu Āgamas, the size of an aṅgula is considerably larger – "the length of the middle digit [phalange] of the middle finger",[3] (about 4.5 cm), but the ratios with the larger units remain unchanged.[4]

Notes
  1. Sanskrit-English Dictionary by Monier-Williams, 1899
  2. New Insights on metrology during Maurya period
  3. T. A. Gopinatha Rao, M.A. (1920). "Talamana Or Iconometry," Memoirs Of The Archaeological Survey Of India No. 3. Calcutta: Superintendent Government Printing. p. 38.
  4. ibid
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