India as Known to Panini: A Study of the Cultural Material in the Ashtadhyayi c8.s8.12

c8.s8.12

*BLANKETS* (KAMBALA)—Several kinds of blankets and woollen wrappers of different kinds were in use. Blankets produced in a standard size as marketable goods were called *paṇya-kambala* (V.2.42). Their size and weight were determined according to the measure of wool used. Such measure was called *kambalya*, equal to one hundred *palas* in weight, roughly five seers. The *kambalya* measure is derived by Pāṇini as a *saṁjñā* word (*Kambalāchcha saṁjñāyām*, V.1.3), pointing to its definite meaning. The *kambalya* seems to have been a measure of value and medium of exchange for some transactions in the barter economy of those days. Pāṇini mentions the formation *kambalyā* in *sūtra* IV.1.22, illustrated by the *Kāśikā* as *dvi-kambalyā*, *tri-kambalyā*, *i.e.* 'purchased for the price of 2 or 3 *kambalya* measures of wool' which would refer to a goat or sheep purchased for 2 or 3 *kambalya* measures of wool.