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Translation of Rasadhyaya (Rasādhyāya)

Language
English
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782 passages, 26,288 words
Text
complete digital text
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pramana-mt · Machine translation by Gemini 3.8 Flash (2026-10-10) of in.med.rasa.rasadhyaya · Machine output without human authorship: no copyright is claimed (CC0 1.0). The original text keeps its own…

Contents

Text

1

Bowing to those Jinas by whose auspicious name perfection ensues, the desired object of all fortunes, / I compose the commentary on the chapter of Kaṅkāla.

2

Having heard something from gurus, having conferred something with those who know it, / and having personally experienced a little, this text is explained by me.

3

<Importance of personal observation>
Even when taught directly by a guru, metallurgical alchemy is not accomplished / so long as the practical procedure is not witnessed two or three times beside the guru.

4

Having heard it from whoever and having watched it wherever, / fools, spending their wealth, suffer in vain.

5

If the true guru, being pleased, should demonstrate every operation, / then even effortlessly, all preparations certainly succeed.

6

Therefore, even though the text's meaning is clearly stated here, because of the fundamental certainty, / exertion in metallurgical alchemy should not be undertaken while disregarding gurus.

7

He who speaks does not know; he who knows does not speak. / Therefore the wise should not open their mouths just anywhere.

8

The venerable Kaṅkālayogin was an expert in mercury, pills, and collyriums; / by him the reality of mercury was imparted for the instruction of his own disciples.

9

The capable disciple of the venerable Kaṅkālaya also, for the benefit of himself and others, / composed the Rasādhyāya in twenty-one chapters.

9_2

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

9_3

There, at the very beginning, he states the salutation to his chosen deity for the unhindered success of the undertaking commenced.

10

Having bowed first to the venerable Bhairava, the omniscient lord of the three worlds, / I venerate the venerable Bhāratī and Vighneśa for the pacification of obstacles.

11

Celibacy and austerity must be observed, along with eating sacrificial food. / When fallen from the practice, they do not succeed; when austerity is lost, they bear no fruit.

11_6

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

11_7

Here, mercurial operations are eighty-four; the varieties of pills are eighty-four; the collyriums are eighty-four.
Thus they are two hundred and fifty-two varieties.
Then, when any single practice among these varieties is commenced, before the start, austerity in the form of celibacy must be maintained for one month,
because celibacy itself is the root of all austerity,
and because all other austerity devoid of that is entirely fruitless.
Or rather, celibacy must be maintained,
and austerity must be performed by custom and other means as appropriate,
because both are the prime root of the fruits of all works.
Likewise, sacrificial food—eating milk or sweet porridge mixed with ghee and sugar—must be adopted,
because through other foods there is an absence of bodily purity,
and an absence of the means for breath-control.
Then, by one observing the work in this way, the fruit of that work is to be carried out until completion,
because operations such as mercury do not succeed when the practitioner has lapsed, failing to take the prescribed food,
and when austerity is lost, they do not bear fruit.
And he will clarify this himself at the end of the book.

12

Now I declare the chapter received from the venerable Kaṅkālayogin, / in which chain-processed mercury is manifested through methodical procedures.

12_10

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

12_11

"I declare the chapter received from the presence of the venerable Kaṅkālayogin"—such are the disciple's words.

12_12

In which chapter chain-processed mercury is revealed through methods—through the operations of medicinal soaking, fire-kilns, and the like.

12_13

Just as a chain is connected by the interlinking of each earlier link, so it is here too.

12_14

First is the purification of mercury.

12_15

Then, the swooning and revival of the purified mercury.

12_16

The distillation of the swooned and revived [mercury].

12_17

And the second revival of the distilled [mercury].

12_18

The steaming of the distilled and revived [mercury].

12_19

And the state of restraint of that steamed by steaming.

12_20

The state of confinement of the restrained [mercury].

12_21

And the curved expansion of the confined [mercury].

12_22

And the calcination-digestion of mica in the curved-expanded [mercury].

12_23

And the calcination-digestion of iron in that which has digested mica.

12_24

And the calcination-digestion of the prepared iron amalgam in that which has digested iron.

12_25

And the calcination-digestion of the prepared gold amalgam in that which has digested the prepared iron amalgam.

12_26

The calcination-digestion of sulphur in that which has digested the prepared gold amalgam.

12_27

And the calcination-digestion of the metallic essence of realgar in that which has digested sulphur.

12_28

And the calcination-digestion of the metallic essence of calamine in that which has digested the metallic essence of realgar.

12_29

And the calcination-digestion of non-fusible diamond in that which has digested the metallic essence of calamine.

12_30

And the fixation of that which has digested diamond.

12_31

The transmutation speed-enhancement of that which is fixed.

12_32

And the killing of that which has undergone transmutation speed-enhancement.

12_33

And the penetration of that which is killed.

12_34

And the fixation of that which has undergone penetration.

12_35

And the unveiling of the fixation.

12_37

In this way, the subsequent refinement process of the mercury is linked to the previous refinement process; thus it is described—this is the reality.

13

Then I shall describe the defects of mercury, its purification prior to refinement,
the result and origin of mercuries, and bodily and metal rejuvenation.

13_40

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

13_41

The twelve defects of mercury, that is, pārada;
its purification, that is, stainlessness, by means of the remedies for those defects; then first I state the eighteen refinement processes such as distillation and transmutation speed-enhancement;
then the result, consisting of the production of silver and the like, from the refined mercuries;
then the origin of prepared gold amalgams and the like, and of calamine essence and the like;
then, "I state the rejuvenation that accomplishes the body and accomplishes metals"—such are the words of the venerable Kaṅkālaya's disciple.
Here he states in order the reply to what was promised.

14

<The sheath-coverings of mercury>
One is the earthy sheath-covering, and the second is the stony sheath-covering;
the third is born of water, and two each arise from lead and tin. .. 1.14 ..

15

Kapālikā and kālikā are in tin; in lead are śyāmā and kapālikā.
And just as the film is upon boiled milk, such in form are the two kapālikās. .. 1.15 ..

16

Śyāmā is five-coloured; kālikā is black-coloured.
Seven innate sheath-coverings are ever present on mercury. .. 1.16 ..

16_44

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

16_45

The triad of verses is clear. .. 1.14-16:1 ..
Merely, 'and two each arise from tin and lead' .. 1.14-16:2 ..
means two defects born of tin and two born of lead. .. 1.14-16:3 ..
Kapālī and kālikā are the fourth and fifth .. 1.14-16:4 ..
defects born of tin; śyāmakapālikā [and kapālikā] are the sixth and seventh, born of lead. He states the characteristics of these four: .. 1.14-16:5 ..
When milk is boiled, whatever film forms on top, .. 1.14-16:6 ..
such also in mercury is that born of tin; .. 1.14-16:7 ..
and that born of lead, kapālikā, appears on top. .. 1.14-16:8 ..
Śyāmā, the sixth defect, is five-coloured, and kālikā, the fifth defect, is black-coloured. .. 1.14-16:9 ..
Now he states the five defects of mercury: .. 1.14-16:10 ..

17

<Defects of mercury>
The defect of impurity is one, the second originates from fire,
the defect of poison is the third, and the fourth is named arrogance. .. 1.17 ..

17_48

The frenzied defect is the fifth; there are ever five defects in mercury.

17_49

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

17_50

The verse and a half is clear. .. 1.17:1 ..
And here, those which are seen in water through contact with earth, stone, and internal water, and like the film upon milk, are called sheath-coverings. .. 1.17:2 ..
Those, however, which are like the intoxicant in kodo millet, are defects; such is the distinction. .. 1.17:3 ..
Now he states the specific disorders produced by these defects: .. 1.17:4 ..

18

<Pathogenic effects of the sheath-coverings>
From the earthy sheath-covering, leprosy arises in embodied beings. .. 1.18 ..

19

From the stony [one] arises numbness, and from the water-born a mass of vāta disorders.
The two kapālikās of tin and lead cause rash in the body. .. 1.19 ..

20

Kālikā always causes elephant hide and ringworms,
anemia, delusion, eruptions, and jaundice. .. 1.20 ..

21

And vitiligo arises, originating from the śyāmā sheath-covering.
The impurity originating in mercury destroys the body's luster. .. 1.21 ..

22

Fire destroys vitality, and poison causes dizziness;
from arrogance the body literally cracks, and from the frenzied comes madness. .. 1.22 ..

23

He who administers mercury accompanied by the twelve defects,
murders such as Brahmin-murder would forever fall upon him. .. 1.23 ..

24

He who administers the lord of mercury freed from the twelve defects
becomes exalted in this world and an inheritor of heaven in the other world. .. 1.24 ..

25

Freed from the twelve defects, mercury renders the body free of disease;
and refined by eighteen refinement processes, it accomplishes [the perfection of] body and metal. .. 1.25 ..

25_54

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

25_55

All eight verses are indeed clear; only, cilharī is a variety of skin disease. .. 1.18-25:1 ..
Thus ends the explanation of the defects and properties of mercury. .. 1.18-25:2 ..

26

<The 18 refinement processes of mercury>
There are eighteen refinement processes for mercury; among them, the first is cloth-filtration;
the second is called grinding; the third is considered purification. .. 1.26 ..

27

The fourth is swoon-revival; the fifth is mercury distillation;
the revival of mercury is the sixth; the seventh is steaming. .. 1.27 ..

28

Restraint is proclaimed as the eighth; the ninth is confinement;
the tenth makes an opening; calcination-digestion is the eleventh. .. 1.28 ..

29

Twelve is proclaimed as causing fixation; situated at thirteen is transmutation speed-enhancement;
killing is fourteen; fifteen is reverse transmutation speed-enhancement. .. 1.29 ..

30

Penetration is sixteen; projection is seventeen;
and the eighteenth refinement process is considered by those who know it to be unveiling. .. 1.30 ..

30_59

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

30_60

The group of five verses is clear. .. 1.26-30:1 ..
These are the eighteen refinement processes of mercury. .. 1.26-30:2 ..
Now, explaining the refinement processes in order, he says: .. 1.26-30:3 ..

31

<Cloth-filtration>
When mercury is strained through cloth, that refinement process is cloth-filtration;
all the defects of tin, lead, and the like remain on the cloth. .. 1.31 ..

31_64

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

31_65

First, mercury should be strained through a fine cloth, so that all the previously mentioned defects born of tin and lead stick to the cloth and remain there. .. 1.31:1 ..
Thus ends cloth-filtration, the first refinement process. .. 1.31:2 ..

32

<Grinding>
To make mercury abandon blackness, loṣṭajīkaka should be prepared:
one pala of it, and sixty-four palas of mercury, .. 1.32 ..

33

cast into a mortar and combined, one should grind for a period of one watch.
Ground and purified, it certainly abandons blackness. .. 1.33 ..

33_69

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

33_70

One pala of well-prepared white loṣṭajīkaka and sixty-four palas of mercury: combining both and casting them into a mortar, one should grind for one watch, .. 1.32-33:1 ..
so that, having abandoned kālikā, the mercury becomes pure. Thus ends grinding, the second refinement process. .. 1.32-33:2 ..

34

<Purification>
From being ground with the latex of vajrī for seven days, the earth-born [sheath] departs;
and ground with the latex of arka for seven days, the stone sheath-covering departs. .. 1.34 ..

34_74

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

34_75

Casting the mercury into a mortar with the latex of snuhī, it is ground for seven days; .. 1.34:1 ..
then the earth-born sheath-covering departs. .. 1.34:2 ..
Likewise, when ground for seven days with the latex of arka, the stony sheath-covering departs. .. 1.34:3 ..

35

One should grind flat cakes of the palāśa tree, moistened with water; / and from being ground with its juice for seven days, the water sheath-covering disappears. (1.35)

35_79

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

35_80

Having moistened flat cakes of palāśa with water, then having ground them, the juice is to be extracted by wringing through a cloth. (1.35:1) / With that juice, mercury is ground for seven days, (1.35:2) / so that the water-born sheath-covering disappears. (1.35:3)

36

From being ground with a decoction of citraka, the skull-like [sheath-covering] born of tin departs. / From being ground with the juice of vajrakanda alone, the blackness born of tin [departs]. (1.36)

37

From being ground with the sap of bitter bottle-gourd, the dark [sheath-covering] born of lead is destroyed. / From being ground with water of bīyā, the skull-like [sheath-covering] arising from lead [is destroyed]. (1.37)

37_83

From being ground for seven days each, the sheath-coverings depart from the mercury.

37_84

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

37_85

The two and a half verses are clear. (1.36-37:1) / Only: vajra is snuhikanda and śūraṇa; with the juice of those two. (1.36-37:2) / Alternatively, the tuber named vajra grows in mountainous terrain. (1.36-37:3) / All sheath-coverings are destroyed by grinding the mercury for seven days with each stated juice. (1.36-37:4)

38

From being ground with a decoction of triphalā, impurity thus undergoes destruction. (1.38)

39

From being ground with a decoction of citraka, the fire-defect is destroyed. / From being ground with the juice of aśvagandhā, the poison-defect is pacified. (1.39)

40

From being ground with the juice of nāhī, the arrogance-defect is destroyed. / From being ground with the juice of kudhyā in this way, even the wild madness dissolves away. (1.40)

41

From being ground for seven days each, the five defects are indeed destroyed. / Thus, freed from the twelve defects, mercury becomes pure. (1.41)

42

At the end of each drug, one should wash it with sour gruel. / The purification of mercury should be performed using eleven drugs. (1.42)

42_89

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

42_90

And here is the traditional instruction: (1.38-42:1) / The juice of the prescribed drug is poured over the mercury in a mortar. (1.38-42:2) / It is to be ground as the mercury sinks down [into the liquid]. (1.38-42:3) / Slowly, slowly, if the surface juice of the drug dries up, it should be poured again. (1.38-42:4) / When the mercury has been ground in this manner for seven days, the mortar is filled with sour gruel and it is ground slowly again; then cloth wicks are inserted and positioned so that the ends of the wicks touch the ground; (1.38-42:5) / and by them the sour gruel drips out and drains away. (1.38-42:6) / In this way, having ground the mercury with each of all the drugs for seven days, it is afterwards to be washed with sour gruel. (1.38-42:7) / And these are the eleven drugs: (1.38-42:8) / milk of vajra, (1.38-42:9) / milk of arka, (1.38-42:10) / palāśa flat-cake, (1.38-42:11) / decoction of citraka, (1.38-42:12) / vajrakanda, (1.38-42:13) / bitter bottle-gourd, (1.38-42:14) / bīaṅka, (1.38-42:15) / decoction of triphalā, (1.38-42:16) / decoction of citraka once more, (1.38-42:17) / aśvagandhā, (1.38-42:18) / nāhī, (1.38-42:19) / aṅkudhya. (1.38-42:20) / Here decoction of citraka occurs twice; therefore among the twelve drugs there are only eleven: thus concludes the third refinement process, the purification of mercury. (1.38-42:21)

43

<Swooning>
Crushed with a decoction of trikaṭu, the natural, purified mercury, / and with the juice of nearby dūdhelī, as well as with fresh ginger juice; (1.43)

44

likewise with the juice of kākamācī, and with the juice of devadālī, / repeatedly crushed as it dries, grinding and grinding it, one should dry it. (1.44)

45

At the end of each drug, one should wash it with sour gruel. / One should grind it for seven days each per drug here. (1.45)

46

<Revival>
The swooning and revival of mercury is to be done with five drugs. / Mercury that has swooned and been revived inevitably becomes full of splendour. (1.46)

46_94

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

46_95

Mercury purified according to the previous method is first ground thoroughly in a mortar with a decoction of trikaṭu as before for seven days and dried. (1.43-46:1) / Then it is to be washed with sour gruel. (1.43-46:2) / In this way with the juice of bhūmidūdhelī, then with fresh ginger juice, (1.43-46:3) / next with the juice of karmāī, (1.43-46:4) / afterwards with the juice of devadālī, (1.43-46:5) / having ground and dried it for seven days each, it is to be washed with sour gruel. (1.43-46:6) / And when this is done, this mercury is called 'swooned and revived', and it becomes full of splendour. (1.43-46:7) / Thus concludes the fourth refinement process, swooning and revival. (1.43-46:8)

47

<Swooning, revival>
When the mercury, abandoning its dense restlessness, resembles collyrium, / it is then to be known as 'swooned', though in some cases here it may take on various colours. (1.47)

48

Then, having confined it inside a covered pair of vessels, one should revive it. / Then one should make that mercury swoon again and destroy its sheath-coverings. (1.48)

49

In this manner, following this procedure, one should make it swoon seven times. / Mercury that has swooned in this way becomes devoid of defects. (1.49)

49_99

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:
]

50

<Revival>
Mercury is to be revived without sour gruel by an alchemist: / sixty-four palas of mercury that has swooned and been revived, (1.50)

51

and throwing sixteen palas of copper powder into a mortar, / and adding lime juice and salt in a thirty-second part, (1.51)

51_102

one should grind it until it becomes a paste resembling an ointment.

51_103

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

51_104

64 palas of mercury swooned and revived, 16 palas of finest copper powder, and in a thirty-second part salt, that is, 9 palas—such is the meaning. .. 1.47-51:1 ..
Uniting all of them and grinding them thoroughly with lime juice, a paste resembling an ointment should be made. .. 1.47-51:2 ..
This is the traditional precept here: .. 1.47-51:3 ..
In proportion to the measure of mercury, copper powder is in a fourth part, and salt in a thirty-second part. .. 1.47-51:4 ..
And the lime juice should be added in such a way that all the medicinal substance is immersed. .. 1.47-51:5 ..
An excess causes no defect, but a deficiency does cause defect. .. 1.47-51:6 ..
As it dries and dries, [more] should be added again. .. 1.47-51:7 ..
And the grinding [continues] as long as needed until there is a paste resembling an ointment. .. 1.47-51:8 ..

52

<The refinement process of distillation>
Placing it in the bottom rim of a cauldron, one should set over it a cloth covering;
One should smear the edges of the cloth with clay, as if fixed, onto the bottom rim. .. 1.52 ..

53

One should place the cauldron inverted over the mouth of a water-filled pot;
One should likewise smear the neck, the junction with the cauldron, and the cloth with clay. .. 1.53 ..

54

In such a way that one burns dried cow-dung cakes above the cauldron for half a yāma;
The mercury passes into the middle of the water, [while] the copper remains in the bottom rim. .. 1.54 ..

55

This distillation of mercury should be done seven times to become pure;
Minute defects are dissolved in the distillation of swooned and revived [mercury]. .. 1.55 ..

55_108

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

55_109

On a cauldron resembling half a jar, a clay coil is made underneath, and that is called the cauldron's bottom rim. .. 1.52-55:1 ..
Then, placing that previously made paste into the cauldron's bottom rim, and affixing over it a covering of strong, smooth cloth for concealment, one should smear the edges of that cloth all around the coil with smooth clay in such a way that they become as if fastened. .. 1.52-55:2 ..
Then, having placed that cauldron inverted over the mouth of an earthen pot half filled with water, and applying cloth-and-clay firmly at the point of union between the pot's neck and the cauldron's bottom rim, dried cow-dung cakes are burned inside the cauldron for four ghaṭīs. .. 1.52-55:3 ..
Then, due to the heat of the fire, the mercury escapes through the pores of the cloth's threads and goes into the middle of the water located in the pot below. .. 1.52-55:4 ..
The copper, however, remains clinging right in the bottom rim. .. 1.52-55:5 ..
Then once again, making a paste of copper powder and mercury as before, the mercury is caused to fall into the water as before by means of the apparatus consisting of the cauldron's bottom rim and the water-filled pot. .. 1.52-55:6 ..
When the distillation of mercury is performed thus seven times, minute defects such as blunted state and inertness disappear. .. 1.52-55:7 ..
Such is the fifth refinement process, the distillation of swooned and revived mercury. .. 1.52-55:8 ..

56

<The refinement process of revival>
One should grind the mercury together with [the ingredients] in a mortar for three days;
And one should distill it as before: downward, upward, and transverse. .. 1.56 ..

57

Thus one should distill it seven times using a distillation apparatus;
The two, mercury and mica, are to be ground all around with sour fermented gruel. .. 1.57 ..

58

The ball made of them is to be placed in the center of the bottom of an earthen pot;
With equal parts of the three myrobalans, black mustard, leadwort, aconite, and drumstick tree, .. 1.58 ..

59

Smearing the upper pot thoroughly, an excellent sealed apparatus should be made;
And wrapping the joint with clay, an excellent ḍamaru apparatus [is formed]. .. 1.59 ..

60

And on the upper part of this, another coil should also be formed;
Underneath it, one should burn a fire gently, gently for three yāmas. .. 1.60 ..

61

Leaving the lower pot, it will proceed into the upper pot.
<The refinement process of revival: another opinion>
Green vitriol, rock salt, and mercury, equal to that, for the duration of a day;
Indeed, in the absence of green vitriol, alum should be given. .. 1.61 ..

62

One should throw them little by little into the mortar and grind the three together;
Each should be one hundred niṣkas—never less, nor more anywhere. .. 1.62 ..

63

Using the paired-pot apparatus, one should cook it for a day with a fierce fire;
And one should collect that pure, auspicious mercury adhering to the top. .. 1.63 ..

64

<The refinement process of revival: third opinion>
Having made a paste of thin leaves of copper with a threefold amount of mercury in a vessel,
[...] [...] .. 1.64 ..

65

Mercury from copper and copper from mercury are separated for distillation;
Grinding both just so, a paste should be made as before. .. 1.65 ..

66

One should place that paste of copper and mercury again into an earthen pot;
And invert another pot over it, smearing the mouth with cloth and clay. .. 1.66 ..

67

This apparatus is called the ḍamaruka, and likewise designated vidyādhara;
Then cow dung should be applied to the top of the upper pot's bottom rim. .. 1.67 ..

68

Under the bottom rim of the lower pot, one should cook it with a mild fire for a yāma;
The mercury goes to the upper pot, [while] the copper remains right there. .. 1.68 ..

69

This should be done seven times; it is called the revival of mercury;
Distilled and revived, mercury becomes all-pervading and clear. .. 1.69 ..

69_113

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

69_114

In the previous formulation, for the sake of the refinement process of distillation, mercury was separated from copper and copper from mercury seven times. 1.56-69:1
In this formulation too, that very thing is done; however, there it was for distillation, while here it is for the revival of what has been distilled—this is the distinction. 1.56-69:2
And that is done as follows: 1.56-69:3
Sixty-six palas of mercury, sixteen palas of copper powder, [and] two palas of salt: grinding everything in lemon juice, making a paste as before, placing it in an earthen bowl, placing an earthen bowl face-down in the middle above it, at the junction of the two rims, it is smeared with clay-smeared cloth. 1.56-69:4
This apparatus is called the ḍamaruka apparatus and the vidyādhara apparatus. 1.56-69:5
Then, having applied cow dung to the outer side at the base of the upper bowl, a gentle fire should be burned for just one watch beneath the base of the lower bowl. 1.56-69:6
Then the mercury, flying up, goes into the upper bowl. 1.56-69:7
And the copper remains in the lower bowl. 1.56-69:8
When the revival of the mercury has thus been performed again and again seven times, the mercury becomes pervasive. 1.56-69:9
"Pervasive" means sharp and endowed with the property of spreading. 1.56-69:10
Such is the revival refinement process of distilled mercury, the sixth. 1.56-69:11

70

<Steaming>
One should grind the leaves of the śigru tree with water so that
a very soft lump is formed; one should make an earthen-style cup from the lump. 1.70

71

One should cast all of the revived mercury that has left the copper, [together with] salt [equal to] a thirty-second part,
into the middle of that previously prepared cup. 1.71

72

One should pour fermented sour gruel and juice obtained from lemons into a pot;
one should tie a wooden stick across its neck, and tie the previously prepared cup in a cloth. 1.72

73

One should bind the cloth to the wooden stick so that it does not touch the sour gruel;
the pot being thus covered, one should burn a gentle fire underneath. 1.73

74

Indeed, this should be done every day for eight watches, for seven days;
and each day a new cup should be made from śigru leaves. 1.74

75

Whenever the fermented sour gruel is exhausted, one should repeatedly pour in fresh [gruel];
the procedure for the steaming of mercury should be performed by means of the swing-apparatus. 1.75

76

Through steamings, fire is generated [within it, and] the mercury becomes hungry;
now, the upward mercury exceedingly endures fire during cooking. 1.76

76_118

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

76_119

Having ground the leaves of the tree named śigru until they are dense, like an unguent, and having made a cup out of their lump; having thrown into that cup the mercury revived by casting off the copper according to the previous rule, as well as salt in a thirty-second part; having wrapped that cup in a cloth; having tied that cloth with a cord to a wooden stick; having tied that wooden stick with a cloth strip across the neck of the pot; having poured sour gruel together with lemon juice in three parts into the pot; the cloth having been tied in such a way that the cup hangs suspended above the sour gruel, it should be lowered so that the sour gruel does not touch it, [and] only the steam touches it. 1.70-76:1
Then a fire should be burned beneath the pot for a day and a night. 1.70-76:2
Then, having made a new cup with śigru leaves once more, the mercury should be steamed in the very same way for a day and a night by means of the swing-apparatus. 1.70-76:3
And if the earlier sour gruel dries up, fresh sour gruel should be added again. 1.70-76:4
Mercury thus steamed seven times over seven days with seven cups, when cooked henceforth, endures fire exceedingly. 1.70-76:5
Such is the steaming refinement process of revived mercury, the seventh. 1.70-76:6
Steaming according to another treatise: 1.70-76:7

77

<Steaming>
With black mustard seeds, salt, plumbago root, and the three pungents, in sixteenth parts [each]:
this steaming of mercury over a gentle fire is performed with husk-water. 1.77

78

<The Steaming Apparatus>
Suspended in the middle of a bundle inside sour gruel and medicinal leaves,
the substance to be steamed is steamed over an oven-fire; wherein this is the swing-apparatus. 1.78

79

Having made cloth fourfold, it is also enveloped by a bird [skin];
and the mercury should be steamed over a gentle fire, so that it does not go to destruction. 1.79

80

With the three pungents, fresh śigru tuber, mayūra, radish, and mustard,
and with sour gruel, the mercury should be steamed by an intelligent person for a day. 1.80

81

With the urines of cow, buffalo, and sheep, and with five donkey urines,
[and] with five salts and alkalis, the lord of rasas should be steamed. 1.81

82

With cāṅgerī, sour gruel, and the juices of lemon, jambīra, and citron,
mercury should be steamed, desiring [it to have] a mouth. 1.82

83

<Restraint>
There should be a thick lump of red rock-salt from the north;
having made a cavity in its center, one should deposit the steamed mercury. 1.83

84

And then, having placed chickpea alkali [inside] and lemon juice above,
having poured in the mercury, a similar lump of rock-salt should be placed [over it]. 1.84

85

Then, having dug a pit in the earth and placed the rock-salt container [in it],
having applied dust for eight finger-breadths, for seven days with dried cow-dung 1.85

86

one should kindle a fire; then it should be taken out and washed with sour gruel;
this is indeed remembered as the eighth refinement process, named restraint. 1.86

87

And in the absence of chickpea alkali, there should be powder made of sal ammoniac;
in the absence of natron, the alkali of jhījaraṭa; 1.87

88

and in its absence, asafoetida and tamarind, and likewise castor seeds;
having added tamarind to each, one should pour in lemon juice. 1.88

89

That restrained mercury has become exceedingly fire-enduring;
its tongue longing for food, it is always refined without doubt. 1.89

89_123

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

89_124

The large, red block of rock salt that is produced in the northern region: / having made a cavity in its center, having placed the steamed mercury there, chickpea alkali should be added on top; then a little lemon juice should be poured over it. / Then, to cover that cavity, another such red block of rock salt should be placed on top. / And here is the method [to follow]: / whatever the extent of the cavity is in the lower block, having left that much ground in the middle of the second block, it is hollowed out a little from above. / And when that is placed on top, it forms a rock salt saucer-casket. / Then, having made a pit one cubit deep in the ground, having placed the rock salt saucer-casket there, having applied dust to a depth of eight fingers on top, and having filled the pit with powdered cow dung, a fire should be kindled. / Then, having removed [it] in the morning, having washed it with fermented gruel, having placed it again in the rock salt crucible, having sprinkled sal ammoniac powder and lemon juice on top, having applied the upper cover, and having placed it back into the pit, a fire of dry cow-dung cakes should be kindled for a day and a night. / In this way it should be subjected to the refinement process seven times over seven days, day after day. / On the third day, pearl ash [is used]. / On the fourth day, alkali of jhījarīṭa [is used]. / On the fifth day, hiṅgupuṣā [is used]; on the sixth day and on the seventh day, powder of castor fruit [is used]. / In every case, lemon juice must indeed be poured on top. / When this is done, this restrained mercury withstands intense fire. / Likewise, desiring a little food, it moves its tongue. / Thus ends the eighth refinement process, restraint of the steamed mercury.

90

<Confinement>
One should smear a glass bottle with clay; having thrown the restrained mercury inside, / having bound a cloth over its mouth, and covered it with an earthen vessel shard, 1.90

91

having thrown the glass bottle into a pit in the ground, and having added sand on top, / one should kindle a fire of dried cow dung every day for seven days. 1.91

92

The confined mercury should be taken from the glass bottle according to the prescribed rule, / licking its tongue and tormented by intense hunger. 1.92

92_128

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

92_129

Having applied sticky clay to a glass bottle, having thrown the restrained mercury inside, [one places] an earthen vessel shard over its mouth; / meaning: having placed a clay coverlet, / having applied cloth and clay on top, one should dry it. / Then, having made a pit one cubit deep in the ground, having thrown [the bottle] there, having applied dust eight fingers deep on top, a fire of dried cow dung should be kindled for a day and a night. / Then, having observed protection again in the morning, having thrown fresh powdered cow dung, a fire of dried cow dung should be kindled for a day and a night. / In this manner, refined seven times over seven days, this mercury named 'confined', tormented by intense hunger and licking its tongue, should be taken from the glass bottle. / Thus ends the ninth refinement process, confinement of the restrained [mercury].

93

<Mouth-maker>
Snuhī, girikarṇī, kṣīriṇī, vajrakañcukī, / sarpākṣī, meghanādā, matsyākṣī, mṛgabhojanī, 1.93

94

śiraḥpuṅkhā, cāṅgerī, vajravastrī, punarnavā, / madhuka, the two sārivās, tiktā, trāyantī, candana, amṛtā, 1.94

95

araṇyatulasī, kṛṣṇā, śākhinī, ravibhūlikā— / these restrainers have been declared by Śambhu in the work on mercury. 1.95

96

One should employ these restraining [plants] as they are obtained. / Its wings will certainly be clipped by virtue of the ripening of the merit of herbs. 1.96

97

<Mouth-maker (2): another view>
Then I declare the restraining [plants] in the operation of killing mercury: / sarpākṣī, kṣīriṇī, vandhyā, matsyākṣī, śaṅkhapuṣpikā, 1.97

98

kākajaṅghā, śikhiśikhā, brahmadaṇḍī, ākhuparṇikā, / varṣābhū, kañcukī, mūrvā, mācīka, utpalaciñcika, 1.98

99

śatāvarī, the two latās, vajrakanda, ādikarṇikā, / maṇḍūkaparṇī, pāṭhālī, citraka, grīṣmasundara, 1.99

100

kākamācī, mahārāṣṭrī, haridrā, tilaparṇikā, / the two śvetārkas, śigru, dhattūra, mṛgadūrvā, harītakī, 1.100

101

guḍūcī, musalī, puṅkhā, bhṛṅgarāj, red citraka, / citron, sūraṇa, muṇḍī, excrement of pigeon and cuckoo, 1.101

102

rock salt, white varṣābhū, calamine, asafoetida, chalcopyrite, / viṣṇukrāntā, somavallī, brahmaghnī, yakṣalocanā, 1.102

103

vyāghrapādī, haṃsapādī, vṛścikālī, kutumbaka, / svayībhukkusama, kumbhī, hastiśuṇḍī, indravāruṇī, 1.103

104

seeds of arūṣkara as well—all these are restraining [substances]. / These should be applied, together or separately, numbering more than seventeen. 1.104

105

One should employ these in the killing, swooning, and fixation of mercury.
<Killing and calcination-digestion>
Ground with the urine of uncalved cows, the restraining agents [and] mūrvā, 1.105

106

one should triturate the mercury with their juices, in sequence as previously described. / Thus the killing accompanied by calcination-digestion has been described. 1.106

107

<Making of the mouth>
Having removed the fine stalk of a citron, make a hole. / Having placed the confined [mercury] with salt inside, cover it with that one [stalk]. 1.107

108

A pot filled with fermented gruel, sprinkled with lemon juices, / with the citron submerged in the middle of it by means of a swing apparatus, 1.108

109

having tied and covered [it], one should kindle a fierce fire beneath for seven days. / Every day, with fresh citrons, its mouth becomes splendid. 1.109

110

And it devours mica and the like; its mouth is expanded by mercury. / Opening wide its mouth, it indeed devours; and everything thrown in digests. 1.110

110_133

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

110_134

Having plucked the stalk of a well-formed citron, having scooped out [the interior] and made an aperture in the middle, having then thrown in the confined mercury and placed salt on top, having covered it again with that stalk, having tied the citron in a cloth, and having suspended the citron submerged in sour gruel inside a pot filled with sour gruel mixed with a third part of lemon juice using the previously described swing apparatus, a fire should be burned below for a day and night. .. 1.93-110:1 ..
Then, having brought a fresh citron again in the morning, having thrown the mercury inside in the very same way, the mercury is to be processed with the swing apparatus for a day and night. .. 1.93-110:2 ..
Processed thus for seven days, seven times with ever-fresh citrons, the mercury, its mouth opened wide for devouring prepared grain-mica and the like, digests every morsel given according to the rules. .. 1.93-110:3 ..
Thus ends the tenth refinement process, mouth-expansion, of confined mercury. .. 1.93-110:4 ..

111

<Restraint>
Restrained then properly with karkoṭī, phaṇinetrā, ciñcikā, lotus, and mārkava,
one should remove its restlessness. .. 1.111 ..

112

<Confinement>
Distressed indeed by grinding, swooning, and distillations, it becomes weak in potency.
From confinement with water-lotuses in an earthen vessel, it becomes largely [resembling] both surfaces and is not fragmented. .. 1.112 ..

113

<Kindling>
Its body thus distressed and its own potency drained, enclosed in an earthen vessel and heated in a pit with dried cow dung, it becomes strong.
Steamed for three days in husk-water with ground earth-borax, black pepper, self-grown mustard, and horse-radish tree, it then becomes well kindled. .. 1.113 ..

114

Having treated the three fruits, plumbago root, alum earth, and sal ammoniac
with the juice of horse-radish tree, one should grind them for three days. .. 1.114 ..

115

Placing [the mercury] in the midst of that very [mixture], it is to be restrained again and again.
When the thirteenth day arrives, an auspicious kindling takes place. .. 1.115 ..

116

<Kindling>
Through steaming for three days with earth-mica, borax, realgar, salt, mustard, horse-radish tree, and sour gruel,
this mercury, having its sluggish fire kindled, comes to desire morsels. .. 1.116 ..

116_138

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

116_139

Thus kindled and completely purified, it becomes exceptionally resplendent like a thousand flashes of an exceedingly strong streak of lightning. .. 1.111-116:1 ..
Mercury is to be employed both in [transmutation of] substances and in bodily rejuvenation. .. 1.111-116:2 ..
Thus conclude the texts on kindling. .. 1.111-116:3 ..

117

<Mica-devouring mercury>
Inside a glass phial, [one places] mercury with an open mouth together with salt and lemon juice;
having thrown in one pala of prepared grain-mica, one should coat the mouth with cloth and clay. .. 1.117 ..

118

One should place a cowrie-shell at the mouth; an earthen basin is filled with sand.
Having placed the phial in the midst of the sand, and having put sand on top, .. 1.118 ..

119

the wise practitioner should burn a violent fire beneath for eight watches [of three hours each].
One pala of prepared grain-mica is to be calcined-digested day and night. .. 1.119 ..

120

Eight times the amount of mercury in prepared grain-mica is to be calcined-digested by the one who knows mercury;
by name, this mercury is celebrated as "Mica-devouring". .. 1.120 ..

120_143

Commentary on the Rasādhyāya:

120_144

Having placed inside a glass phial one pala of mercury whose mouth has been opened wide, and having placed an earthen saucer over the mouth of the phial, one should coat it on top with rag and clay and dry it. .. 1.117-120:1 ..
Then, having poured sand into a wide-mouthed basin, having added earth to the measure of four or five fingers on top, and having kindled a violent fire beneath the basin for eight watches, one pala of prepared grain-mica is to be calcined-digested. .. 1.117-120:2 ..
Here, however, this is the traditional instruction: .. 1.117-120:3 ..
Sand is to be poured into the basin in such a way that, when the phial is placed upon it and sand to the measure of four or five fingers is poured over it, the basin becomes full. .. 1.117-120:4 ..
Likewise, the measure of the dose is: 64 palas of mercury, 2 palas of salt, 1 pala of prepared grain-mica. .. 1.117-120:5 ..
Then, having broken that phial and collected the mercury, and having thrown mercury, prepared grain-mica, salt, and lemon juice again into a second phial, one pala of prepared grain-mica is to be calcined-digested as before for a day and night by kindling a violent fire. .. 1.117-120:6 ..
In this manner, over eight days with eight phials, eight palas of prepared grain-mica are to be calcined-digested. .. 1.117-120:7 ..
Then, that mercury is designated by the name "Mica-devouring". .. 1.117-120:8 ..

121

Immediately after that, all the mica, made into a single sheet,
placed on a heated potsherd, one should burn thoroughly with a fierce fire. .. 1.121 ..

122

And in the water of Sesbania grandiflora flowers, and with the juice of white water-lilies,
with Boerhavia diffusa and Amaranthus spinosus, with black peppers and sumukha, .. 1.122 ..

123

and having made the mica run using female buffalo's milk,
having drenched it with the water of barley and wood-sorrel, one should cook it in an enclosed heating-pit. .. 1.123 ..

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