གཎ་ཌའ་དས་ཀྱ་མད intro.5

intro.5

As described by Yijing, telling time based on shadow length was premised on the use of a long L-shaped stick or cane. The shorter, vertical length of the stick that casts the shadow was known as the “man” (Skt. puruṣa, Tib. skyes bu). This vertical portion corresponds to the gnomon of a sundial. The shadow cast by this “man” was measured along the longer horizontal portion of the stick. When the shadow was equal in length to its height, that measurement was also called one “man.” Not unlike how a sundial works, the length of the shadow cast by the gnomon was used to indicate the seasonal hour, a unit of time that varied between seasons.⁶